I identify with the fact that students learn in the same way we the instructors learn and we should take into consideration that keeping assignments as simple as possible is the way to go. Students will not engage on material they do not understand. We should also be prepared to find alternate ways of getting the same message across.
I wish I could produce more talk in my classes. Everyone is too afraid to speak no matter what I do. I cannot wait to learn more and get these kids more productive in class!
The lesson explains methods for preparing and executing instruction to students. First, it must be engaging, so a teacher should be considering the three questions each student will ask when a lesson begins: "Am I interested?", "Can I do this?", and "Does this matter?"
Second, what levels of DOK does a lesson reach? Are they all covered? Do they need to be? (For much of CTE, Level 3 is adequate, at least in my understanding).
As instruction turns to student exercise, failure needs to be acceptable as a means for growth and learning, as failure can itself be a teacher if that failure is analyzed properly. SWOT could, in my view, be a way to analyze a failure effectively.
There were several other examples as well, for which I appreciated the HVAC video a great deal, being an HVAC instructor myself. I could implement that exercise, in fact. So I'm grateful for the quality of the content of this lesson.
Students understanding the three key questions "Am I interested?, Can I do this?, Does it matter?" feels validating and important for CTE. I get all ability levels in my classroom and part of the challenge can be increasing their confidence that 'yes I can do this'. Also a huge key to engagement that I have seen in my classroom is making it relevant (am I interested?), this is so helpful for students.
Teachers need to model metacognitive processes, provide un-graded opportunities for productive talk, and support a community of learning.
To summarize, teachers should encourage interaction with material through facilitating conversations (productive talk) and engaging students to help them understand the "why" is critical to their engagement and retention.
Engagement while talking is important in order to share information as well as know whether or knowledge has been obtained as well as display of outcome.
Being sure that the students are engaged is essential.
Use a "this one time" style of question where the student uses an example from their real life.
The three primary questions to ask when developing engagement are: Am I interested? Can I do this? Does it matter? Utilizing these three questions to continuously develop/improve classroom strategies to strengthen engagement is critical. Without the insertion of these principles, students simply lose interest in their attempt to learn leading to reduced engagement.
Student's engagement is very important. I think if students feel free to talk to class without worry of getting a bad grade, they will be more willing to engage more in a positive way.
I learned that students retain information in the beginning of the school year and the end and that the in-between time of the school is when they slump in retention. So what does this mean for our semester long classes in high school? That they only retain what is taught in September through October and forget what is taught in November and December? Why do we give end-of-course exams for semester long classes and end-of-year exams for year-long classes.
Student engagement starts with being able to answer the following questions for the student:
Am I interested?, Can I do this?, Does it matter?
I like the idea of having the students talk more about what they are learning as a means of assessment because it will make them more engaged in their learning .
Students are social beings. They learn socially. Increase their participation in your class by allowing them to lead discussions, small talks, and activities. Facilitate!
A very important part of student engagement in CTE is "Show, don't tell". Students typically do not like to sit in a classroom listening to someone lecturing - they want to be shown and then be able to duplicate and understand the concepts taught. This involves more of a true learning experience vs. memorization. Just because you know the correct answers doesn't mean you can churn out the proper results when tasked with a project.
I have really enjoyed this module! The 30-second Talk-about is GENIUS!! I am so excited to use this in my classes this year! It is humbling to realized I've been "doing it all wrong" all these years - Lecture, lecture, lecture -- that is what was modeled for me as "good teaching" where the teacher was the source of all knowledge & answers and students were empty vessels waiting to be filled. I am so excited and grateful for all these tools I am gaining through these courses. Thank you! Thank you!
CTE is about teaching where the grass dirt and gravel all meet. We empower kids to be able to work in groups and do whatever is asked.
I think it's important to remember that experience can be just as important as taking tests and quizes.
I experienced the relevance of the value of enhanced discussion and the power of thinking about thinking to evoke powerful and meaningful learning.
