Motivating students who don't want to be there (background, government, complain)
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Seriously, how many different ways can you express your dissatisfaction with your students? You're only going to shoot down every suggestion people give you.
Seriously, how many different ways can you express your dissatisfaction with your students? You're only going to shoot down every suggestion people give you.
Gee, that was helpful....
No, sorry, hookers won't work. That would be against the law.
And yes, I am dissatisfied with students who don't want to participate. IMO, I should be....
I teach a summer college course, history, and it's a general requirement. Every student on campus must take at least six hours of history, so I know how you feel.
As part of my dissertation research a few years ago, I sat in on some philosophy classes particular to my areas of emphasis. I found that the profs usually framed each lecture and class discussion around issues--modern-day issues that have some bearing on the lives of young people. One such issue was cell phone and computer technology--should it be unencumbered or should people use it as much as possible (like in a car, in a classroom, in church, etc.) Now this is one example, but I was rather surprised at how much passion the students had on their respective positions. Just about everyone in this class of 50 had something to say and so the prof had a different problem than disengagement--too much engagement to the point that "discussions" turned into a cacophony of voices.
So I decided from that point forward that when I wanted students to discuss something, usually a primary source document, then I'd frame the discussion in the form of an issue like religious government vs. secular government; gendered divisions of labor; American Revolution--radical or conservative; and are we all truly equal.
I've had mixed success. If students didn't do the assigned readings, most didn't, then their ability to speak confidently during the discussion was jeopardized. Others were confused by discussion in general because during the course of it, they don't know what to write down and remember so that they can get an A (or for some, at least a C-) on the test. Also, some of my framings fell outside of areas of youth interest and so I began with a disadvantage.
I'd say that the best way to get people engaged in a class is first of all to have high standards. If they know the class is a gimme (and many on my campus structure these required classes as gimmes), then they'll treat it like a gimme and complain if they have to do even a minimal amount of work. If the course is a challenge, then they'll figure out by mid semester that they cannot sleepwalk through it and will begin to churn out some effort (while a challenging course will weed out the dead weight).
That's about the best I can say at this time. I just remember back in my undergrad days of having profs who had the whole class hinging on every word he or she said and I've never been able to duplicate that. I've always got students who are genuinely interested, but it's usually like 3% of the total class population. So in turn, I teach for them and forget about the rest (until they remind me that they exist).
I teach a summer college course, history, and it's a general requirement. Every student on campus must take at least six hours of history, so I know how you feel.
As part of my dissertation research a few years ago, I sat in on some philosophy classes particular to my areas of emphasis. I found that the profs usually framed each lecture and class discussion around issues--modern-day issues that have some bearing on the lives of young people. One such issue was cell phone and computer technology--should it be unencumbered or should people use it as much as possible (like in a car, in a classroom, in church, etc.) Now this is one example, but I was rather surprised at how much passion the students had on their respective positions. Just about everyone in this class of 50 had something to say and so the prof had a different problem than disengagement--too much engagement to the point that "discussions" turned into a cacophony of voices.
So I decided from that point forward that when I wanted students to discuss something, usually a primary source document, then I'd frame the discussion in the form of an issue like religious government vs. secular government; gendered divisions of labor; American Revolution--radical or conservative; and are we all truly equal.
I've had mixed success. If students didn't do the assigned readings, most didn't, then their ability to speak confidently during the discussion was jeopardized. Others were confused by discussion in general because during the course of it, they don't know what to write down and remember so that they can get an A (or for some, at least a C-) on the test. Also, some of my framings fell outside of areas of youth interest and so I began with a disadvantage.
I'd say that the best way to get people engaged in a class is first of all to have high standards. If they know the class is a gimme (and many on my campus structure these required classes as gimmes), then they'll treat it like a gimme and complain if they have to do even a minimal amount of work. If the course is a challenge, then they'll figure out by mid semester that they cannot sleepwalk through it and will begin to churn out some effort (while a challenging course will weed out the dead weight).
That's about the best I can say at this time. I just remember back in my undergrad days of having profs who had the whole class hinging on every word he or she said and I've never been able to duplicate that. I've always got students who are genuinely interested, but it's usually like 3% of the total class population. So in turn, I teach for them and forget about the rest (until they remind me that they exist).
I teach chemistry. I'm trying to think how I can get students to take sides on issues like reaction types, lol. I'd love to get the class discussing the readings. I'd be really interested in hearing from any science teachers who have accomplished this.
I miss teaching physics. Physics can be taught as investigations. You can toss balls and string out and have students investigate linked pendulums, for example, without fear of them blowing up the building or mixing chemicals they shouldn't.
I hear you on issues with students who don't know what to write down to get an A. It seems the group I could most likely get involved in lively discussions is the group that is overly concerned with getting that A. I'd rather see a B with real learning than an A any day of the week.
I teach college non-majors, and most of them aren't thrilled about having to take it for their gen ed requirement. But by the end of the course most of them find themselves pleasantly surprised that they enjoyed it and learned a thing or two.
I think the most important thing is that it is very obvious to the students that *I* am glad to be there and that I love what I do. I start the class at 8:00 with a cheery 'Good Morning' and keep up the pep ("isn't plasmodesmata a beautiful word? See how it rolls off the tongue... woot!" Surprisingly, very few of them seem annoyed by me. lol
Second, I get them involved in class discussions. It's mandatory (worth points) that each person at least once asks a question to the class and generates a 5 minutes discussion (I use my timer and have strict rules about respecting each other). My only requirement is that it *somehow* relates to the subject. (potential examples for a chemistry class could be acid rain or how many pharmaceuticals stem from chemical compounds found in plants) They prefer to pick topics that are somewhat controversial, and they do learn a lot by doing enough background research to formulate a question. I find it well worth it to spend the last 5 minutes of class doing this, because I often get teachable moments to dispel misconceptions, talk about internet searches, and the nature of science.
I never taught science...but I did teach for many years...with various students. One problem I had was teaching Braille to kids who could see...and did not want to learn Braille...but the law where I worked was any student with 20/70 acuity was mandated to learn Braille.
I had students write out their favorite rock groups, songs, and we labeled their CD collections in Braille. If you make the lessons relevant to the interests of the students they will get involved with learning. How about chemistry of household items? Students could learn about chemical reactions of cooking...I don't know much about chemistry...but I do know kids...even the most reluctant students will work in a small group, if they can be competitive with other groups...
Seriously, how many different ways can you express your dissatisfaction with your students? You're only going to shoot down every suggestion people give you.
What are your strategies for motivating students who resent being made to take your class and choose not to put in effort?
Emphasize the positive. Call home early in the year with good things to say about each student. This gets the kids used to the fact that you *will* call and talk to parents so that if you must when they screw up, you already have a relationship established. It takes a lot of time at the beginning, but eventually, you get a reputation.
If you take the behavioral view, you must pay attention to good behavior and ignore bad behavior that you want to extinguish.
Spend some time at the beginning of the year, getting to know the students and having them set goals for themselves.
Make sure the students know the goal of the lesson. You might consider using a strategy from earlier grades called K-W-L where you begin a unit by determining what the students already know about the topic (much of it will be incorrect, but that is part of the point. You want to correct false ideas as well as teaching what they don't know). You start with what they think they know. You then chart what they think they want to know and then after you finish the unit, they chart what they learned.
First I would decide what each student needs to know to pass the class and then figure out a way to teach it by applying it to their lives. Unfortunately I don't know enough about chemistry to tell you how to do that. I would think that everything in life involves chemistry.
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