Decoding
Have you ever had problems caused by communication breakdowns when both the message sender and message receiver speak the same language? The difficulty of decoding could be language but what's about prejudices, assumptions, cultural differences and preconceptions!!!
Hi Catherine,
This can easily happen that is why I do frequent pauses to check for comprehension and application. That way I can determine if my students are decoding and recoding the content as needed.
Gary
I agree; taking time to make sure everyone is on the same page can save you from problems down the road. Another thing I find helpful is to have them fill out a brief worksheet or answer a question, so that I can guage their comprehension of a certain day's topic. Otherwise it can be hard to differenciate between students who are simply quiet and those who need more instruction.
I agree completely it makes the information obtainable and useable.
I have had this problem before as well. What I have to do is remember that the learner may be thinking an a different way than I am and then try to deliver the same information but in a different way that makes sense with thier learning process.
I also find this if they come from a back ground in which has nothing to do with their career choice.
I have this problem all the time. I have a wide range of learners in my classes and although most of my classes are hands on learning (for massage), there are many times when my students look at me as if I have no idea what they are talking about, even though I have been teaching the subject for quite some time. I have several students who make assumptions that I couldn't possibly understand how they learn but I myself learn in various different ways, none of which include reading out of a book! I tend to use a lot of Study Guides and pictures and videos to help my students understand the content better. But there are still times when the breakdown of communication bring the class to a screeching halt! Hopefully you have found ways to get around it. I'm still learning new ways every day to keep barriers down. Good luck!
Karissa,
Thank you for sharing your experience and advice with other instructors. It is a collective process for us all. We need to collect all the information, experiences and input we can get as we strive to improve our instructional delivery.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
