Keeping students focused and engaged is one thing; recognizing when we (the instructors) are losing their attention is another. I believe that storytelling can be useful in several ways. Creative storytelling can peak interest, allow for student input/feedback/participation as well as provide a way to teach the students from an experience. I like the idea of handing out 3x5 notecards to allow all students to participate in class discussions. Not everyone is comfortable with talking in front of a roomful of peers, but they may have wonderful ideas/input. This allows all students the opportunity to get their thoughts/input/feedback made known.
I will keep from this module the Refocus and Unburned and their meanings.
Keeping the course interesting and not rote is a definite challenge. Learning to REFOCUS can help in this challenging area of teaching. I will definitely use these strategies in my instruction.
Enthusiasm is what keeps the students motivated!
I really liked the REFOCUS acronym tool. To me it seems to humanize the teaching process and gives everyone a good tool for re-calibrating success.
I like the idea of refocus and midterm student evaluation. If the students get low grades, it's always good to look at yourself and the course and see what can be done differently.
Comment on Rose Elam's post: I am encouraged that loosing steam or motivation was brought up. Sometimes, you may think that you're the only one experiencing something. It will be important to find ways to rejuvenate and refocus as the class continues. I need to find ways to replenish my energy.
Discussions are an important part of keeping students motivated. Also reminding them of all the past learning skills they have accomplished by having them write new skills learned.
Students draw energy and motivation from an instructor's enthusiasm for the class materials. Engaging all students and compelling participation in class activities helps prepare students to use what they've learned to create actionable interventions that are applicable to their future careers. Including excitement and fun helps learners easily retain important information for this synthesis.
This section was a great reminder to me that my attitude dictates my class environment. And that when I get in that slump because I don't feel the test and assignment scores are where i feel they should be that I need to reevaluate and make sure that I'm creating that sense of excitement for my students and helping them and myself measure their successes greater than what I see as potential failure due to attendance issues or low test scores.
I like to add personal experience to my lectures to keep students engaged.
REFOCUS! self examination of yourself as an instructor to provide the best learning experience and the tools to do so. Improvements for oneself and promoting a positive learning environment. I will remind myself that to much storytelling can negatively impact learning. I love telling stories so I’m making a note to manage this.
After going through this module, I want to be more intentional about creating a mid-term evaluation for students to take; I believe it will be useful for facilitating the remainder of the course.
Setting realistic expectations for yourself as a teacher and your students helps to provide the best learning enviroment.
If you enjoy the curriculum they will enjoy it, for the most part. "Like what you do and you'll never work a day in your life".
Refocus:
Recognize, Empower, Focus, Objectivize, Commit, Unburden, and Surprise.
All of this helps not only the students but instructors as well.
In this module, I learned that the best use methods to encourage students to be active in class and increase students retention. Also, I will apply these method during contents of class, homeworks, quizzes and group activities.
The REFOCUS teaching tool was a revelation for me! Even though some I know I had done before, it was nice to have it organized in a way to help keep the class and myself excited and focused on the material through the entire course.
REFOCUS is totally new concept to me but of great potential use.
Love learning about the refocus tool is very helpful in this module.
