How would you handle two different catigories of students in the same class? Smart and active vs. slow and careless
Hi Amer,
There are many ways an instructor can approach this very common situation. By the vary nature of human beings there will be diversity of learning within an given classroom. The challenge is how to create a learning community that will include everyone.
The use of peer groups, study groups, or case study groups will help in the sharing of the learning process. Also, the use of learning style assessments, or one that I use constantly is the multiple intelligence assessment called “Talent Keyâ€. It is available at MI.Got.DNS,com. You can take your students through this assessment and then use the results to develop learning groups or adapt the course assignments to their respective MI strengths. There are 7 MIs as identified by the research of Howard Gardner. You might want to look at his work and how it can be used in the classroom.
An instructor has to be creative in order to reach all students no matter where they find themselves on the learning continuum. Also, as a model you can challenge them to strive for excellence in their work and assignments. This is the only way they will succeed in their field.
Gary
The way I handle this is,In my class now I get beginner to shop owners, and I have had this. Before going over information I tell the class a little story about my learning. That is in the tool trade you always listen to people with more experience than you because there is always more to learn. And that I am open to questions at anytime because I believe there are no dumb questions.That seems to work so far. The slower one is the hard one and I do this with one on one help.
Hi Joseph,
Thank you for your information about how to handle diverse learners in the classroom. This is always the challenge of teachers. How to get everyone to the end goal of the same information and expertise when the learning patterns are so different. By individualizing your approach and keeping a constant check on student progress you will help the students to keeping moving along.
You can also look at presenting the information in different learning modes, to enable the student to grasp concepts and principles in different ways. This way they can reinforce their learning by seeing how the information can be gained in different ways. This will help them with application as well.
Gary
I think this is one of the hardest challenges that a instructor faces. You don't to lose the one group as they get bored while waiting for teh second group, nor do you want the second group to feel like they are slowing the class down and add additional pressures to their learning style.I usually will put on the board for the night extra work to do while they wait. it keeps their minds busy and no one is aware if they are working on the orginal subject or something extra.
Dear Gary, I am fortunate to have small class enrollments and make it very clear that I am avialable for one-on-one help. All students work to their individual levels. I consistently learn from my students and from time-to-time, I ask for input from the "smart and active" students as to their thought processes re. difficult problem solutions. Every student is busy in the classroom, but not all are working on the same page. (This eliminates "idle" time and boredom). I had never seen the average adult attention span (in minutes) listed before. Thank you for this fact!!!
Hi Brenda,
Glad the fact was of help to you. Adults, are constantly challenged to focus their attention on a single item, when they are being pulled so many different ways in their personal and professional lives. By understanding their attention span and looking for alternative ways of delivering course content we can do a better job of providing for our students.
With your dedication to your profession and your caring attitude I know your students enjoy your classes. Keep up the good work!
Gary
Challenge the smart and active with problems to peek their interests and show the the others better work habits to make them faster and careful which usually make the job more enjoyable
Hi Keith,
One of the methods that works well with diverse student learners is to create small groups or two person study groups that can work on projects. This way each student can contribute his/her strengths and experience to the group project. Peer groups encourage each other as well as hold each other accountable for getting the work done. In creating the groups you need to have a clear understanding of the abilities of each student and the ways they will be able to work with other students.
Gary
Although this is a challenge, I believe it should also be one that is embraced with enthusiasm and vitality.
One way is to arrange study groups according to interests, whether they are slow or active. This can be a positive approach to interaction of like minds. I believe the active students will involve the carless or slow ones with questions about their "like interests" or just ask "what do you think" to prompt feedback.
I will hand out cards with topics listed for discussion. Sharing brings about a multiplicity of ideas. I am aiming at the shy becoming verbal,the introvert, becoming extroverts. Being shy does not mean you are slow, but it sometimes requires a nudge from another class-mate.
I can also play a game similiar to a football team-offensive and defensive. One team will purposefully stray from the questions presented and the other will continuously work on getting the questions answered. This can be achieved by giving everyone a piece of the puzzle with ideas to discuss-some positive and others will have totally nothing on the subject.
I will also have an exchange of papers to read with a prize offered to the ones who finds the errors and is able to provide feedback.
Hi Loree,
Thank you for your suggestions on how to work with diverse learning groups. Anytime you can create a mix of students that will enable them to balance each other while sharing equal responsibility for learning you have created a quality learning environment.
The think, pair, share model helps students play to their strengths while drawing out some of those that aren't as verbal. It also helps to hold accountable those students that have a tendency to be less accountable in terms of assignments or projects.
Gary
Hi Joseph,
I also like to share as much of my own experiences with my students, since I have so many years working in the feild that I am teaching. I think the slower students respond better to shared experiences than to strictly book learning. By doing that, I feel that the slower student as well as the intelligent students are more open to asking questions that lead to instructive answers. They see the instructor as human, as a role model who has done it all, made mistakes, and is not afraid to share the good with the bad. I also like to put my students into dicussion groups, grouping the slower with the quicker and find that the slower students do very well in these situations and come away from the discussion with new knowledge and a firmer grasp on critical thinking. Peggy
I agree this also increases student participation. I encourage slow learner to have group study as well. That helps if everyone is agreeable to it.
Kiran
Hi All,
Those of you commenting on Forum 4 are on the right track. Thank you for all of the good input. Grouping students, study groups, and think, pair, share models all help the students to grasp the course content in different ways. Students often have unique ways of explaining a concept to other students, so this should be encouraged.
Also, you all might want to explore the use of graphic organizers. These organizers are pictures or symbols, lines, and boxes in which students are to place certain information. These organizers really help to focus the students in on specific points cricitcal to their learning success. I also use the newspaper organizer model, that has the students work through the who, what, where, why questions that will get them in the material and learning.
The use of mnemonics is very helpful to students that must learn certain procedures or steps in their field. I have found that mnemonics helps slower students to grasp and retain the material much easier. The key is to use strategies that will be of help to all students and are easy to use.
Gary
In lecture style teaching I try to place the setting for students with learning differences
in the front were I can have direct eye contact with them often and constant. One reason students chose a trade / tech school over a University is the lack of attention and focus they are capible of having in a formal setting.
This is extremely common in artistic and creative instructional schools. Some of this is cultural and some a chemical or physical condition. They need more supervision and stimulation during lecture session or instruction classes. The students who are fast learners can be incorporated as teachers helpers or assistant teaching coaches.
I have had few to no classes without a learning difficult student. Keeping them stimulated is the greatest challange to a teacher.
I am still working on this skill level and hope to find a perfect formula one day. Don't hold your breath!
The slow must be stimulated.
The smart active ones must be kept active with some for of learning experience all the time or they will be in the same catagory as the difficult learner. Bored!
William Edison Travelstead / Instructor
Hi William,
The challenge of instruction is how to best meet the learning needs of all the students in your class. The most rewarding part of instruction is when you feel that you have done it well. Each class and the respective mix of students presents a major challenge to providing the content in a manner that will facilitate maximum learning.
As an instructor you need to always be on the lookout for new and creative ways of keeping your students engaged in the learning process. You may find that the think (individual) pair (2 students), share (small group) model works for certain phases of the class and at other times instructional aides such as guided outlines or structured notes helps the students with learning difficulties with their learning growth. The key is to have many different strategies in your instructional toolbox from which you can draw when needed. I have found that when I offer a special study device or learning outline for a particular student it generally helps other students in the class as well. This means that my job is made easier and the students are feeling better about their educational progress.
Good luck with your teaching.
Gary
The challenge is to keep the good students interested without leaving the slow ones behind and not having the class break down into two separate entities. I try to do hands on, one on one with the slow students. The good ones usually respond to challenging assignments issued to the whole class.
Hi Donald,
By knowing the learning styles of your students you can tailor instruction to meet the different needs of your students. When you are faced with a wide range of student abilities you can offer instruction and application in a number of different ways, thus allowing different ability students chances to succeed.
I have found that using graphic organizers and structured notes for classes greatly assist students in understanding what is important to the class and what information they must acquire. In addition, through the use of teams I am able to use the different abilities of all the students in the learning process.
Gary
I believe that it is the responsibility of the classroom teacher to prepare for all levels of abilities. I have done this in several ways.
First, I administer a learning styles test to identify each student's two significant styles. I try to plan lessons with a goal of using as many of the learning styles as possible.
Secondly, I identify extension activities that I can use with faster students who finish a task early. I go over with students my expectation that when they finish a specific task, they can move on to the challenge or extension (enrichment). I have posted steps or instructions for that activity. I make sure that the challenge or extension uses skills previously taught, but on a more challenging level.
For slower students, I often modify the amount of material expected to be covered or completed. I may use a peer tutor, or I may pull a small group of slower students to myself and work with them while the faster students are working in pairs or individually on the challenge activity.
Finally, I make sure I pull all students back in one group to close the lesson.
Hi Carol,
You are doing the right things in terms of meeting the individual needs of your students. By offering the diversity of delivery and the various methods of student support you are providing your students with a variety of learning opportunities. I know your approach requires preparation and planning but from your comments I can tell that you are getting the results and rewards that you want from your teaching experience.. Keep up the good work.
Gary
