Motivating to study
Hi - I work for a small trade school - we lecture and do hands on skills in my class. It is an accelerated program, so things move fast! I often have students comlaining becasue they aren't "given" all the information on the tests... although it is in their assigned chapters. I make study guides for my classes, that are quite thorough! Sometimes I get so frustrated becasue I feel they don't study the material... any suggestions on how to motivate them, help and not enable them to study the material? I find that those who aren't studying often don't do well on the practical hands on-majority anyway. There are those occasional few...
Hi Sally,
You ask a question that has faced teachers for years. How to get the hard to reach students involved in doing their work. It would seem that this effort is unessary in career college since they are studying to change their lives, but not so.
Depending upon how you structure your class students can earn points by completing sections of their study guides and turn them in. I use guided notes to help my students to focus in on the really key concepts they need to know. They fill in the blanks on the guided notes as I go through a lecture or demonstration. They get the guided notes as well as the study guide. I have this blend to work well for me, though there are times that I will have studenst come along that simply are not going to do anything in the class. As much as this disappoints me, that is there choice and the end result of not passing is also their choice.
Gary
The vocational school I'm teaching at focuses on careers in media so we get a lot of creative students who think its "cool" to get a job working in a creative field. The problem of course is that like any career you do have to work at it and many of the students have never really learned how to focus and apply themselves.
What suggestions would you have on how to help motivate students to spend time on developing some of these skills?
Hi Stewart,
I send my students out to "shadow" a professional in an area they think they might want to work. I have them develop a profile of the job they want including what it takes to get into that job, not only from the training side but from the network, connections side as well. I have a part of my courses dedicated to the "soft skills" which are in many ways even more important than the specific skills. During these times I have graduates and people from the field come in a talk about how they got to where they are. Many new graduates what to start at the top and work up from there and we all know that isn't how it works. Creative fields are very hard to break into unless you have served your apprencticeship with time in the ranks. Hearing from the field really helps the students to find reality in their career planning.
Gary
Many times there is nothing you can do....just keep trying to motivate those students that need motivation to do thier work.
Thank you for the comment. It does get frustrated when you are trying to motivate students to study and do her work. I have come to the same conclusion there is nothing you can do but continue to motivate the students.
Thank you for the comment. It does get frustrated when you are trying to motivate students to study and do her work. I have come to the same conclusion there is nothing you can do but continue to motivate the students.
