Sarah,
Effective communication is important for career success no matter the field. Your approach with your culinary arts students help them see the value of good communication especially in your area of verbal communication. You are making learning how to communicate fun, engaging and valuable with each of your activities.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Using the internet for current information and case studies have been useful.
Some sites offer lectures that give the students a different voice and perspective on the subject matter. This gives room for class discussion.
FRIEDA,
I am a big believer in using all the resources you can. Your approach is doing just that. You are giving additional resources to your students so they can gain maximum knowledge while they are in your course.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Role Play- As a criminal justice instructor it can be challenging to incorporate multiple learning styles into heavily theory based content. Role playing allows the student to think outside the box and apply theoretical knowledge.
James,
I think this is a great strategy to use as it helps the students to make application of the content that has been shared.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I really like this idea it helps the students summarize the content to themselves and reinforces their learning!!
Shock tactics with relation to safety, repetition is talking about dangerous situations, personal stories or parables to get the point across, video to illustrate procedure
Steven,
Good list of ways to get students engaged and focused on the value of the content being shared.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I try different approches depending on the students. I have used projects that are presented in class, power points and in class work.
Brainstorming is a great way to develop new ideas and to implement relevant course content.
Dominick,
Right you are about the value of brainstorming and the development of critical thinking skills.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I teach writing studies, and often when I'm trying to get students to engage with difficult academic texts, I show students ways to connect their lives to the content to make viable connections. Getting students to read above their register is not easy, but I find that if there are ways to connect the difficult of challenging text back to their lives, students will be more interested.
Role playing or having students act out skits is a great way to make them more aware of content. I like doing these activities to break down difficult and challenging readings.
Joseph,
Like the way you bring value to what you are teaching by helping your students to make a connection to the application of the skills they are developing in the course. This is what the ROI will be for them and helping them realize this is important if you are to keep them engaged.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Joseph,
I do to. I use case studies and role playing a lot in my courses to help my students make application of the content being shared. The more this can be done the greater the retention of content there is going to be.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Because I teach OB nursing I bring in many tools that are used in the OB setting. I also show many video's to help the students understand what they might see in the clinical setting and also what I hope they do not see. (as students) For most of my students they will not be in the OB setting after graduation they want ICU ER and a few want Med/Surg. Many of the props that I bring into the classroom the students can play with and they get a sense of what nurses and doctors use them for. Most of them like that I bring in a vacuum extractor I encourage them to place it on their arm or thigh and then apply the suction. They then can see why it is only allowed to be used 3 time because of the force the suction places on the baby's head and why we then need to be careful of that baby's head. The more props that I bring in the better understanding students have.
Christina,
Students love props as you have learned. My students get excited when I bring in something from the field and let them see, touch and interact with the object(s). These are what I call "connectors", that is they connect the content with the minds of the students via their tactile senses. Since you teach such an interesting area of nursing I know your students really enjoy the classes where you bring in the tools that they can handle and learn about.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
In reading through the feedback, I can see there are many different approaches in implementing relevant course content primarily designed around the type of class you are instructing. Whether it is through demonstrations, field trips, case studies or brainstorming, all are good ideas.
I'm somewhat a "story teller" when I lecture. In order to help my students understand the importance of the lecture topic, I would talk about my personal work experience that is relevant to the topic. Or,I would think of some aspect of their lives that we all can relate to as well. Helping students make the "connections" usually give them a deeper understanding of the lecture and hopefully help them recall the information.
Judith,
Instructors like change of pace and variety in their instructional delivery. As you can see from the comments this is how instructors are offering instruction throughout the country. By following these best practices you are going to be in good shape with your own instruction delivery.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
