As teachers we are aware that any group activity done in class room creates interest in learning and keeps the students engaged throughout.They need teachers as facilitators in that process.Where as, our challenge is to be keep them focused in learning in a normal classroom scenario.
Try these ten strategies that keep students engaged in class
- Be a good speaker. Keep a check on your audibility, posture and visibility to students.
- Do not do a slow paced teaching assuming it’s effective.
There is a lot of evidence that shows that when teaching is at a brisk instructional pace, students have more opportunities to engage, respond, and move on to the next concept (Carnine & Fink, 1978; Williams, 1993; Ernsbarger et al., 2001).
- Write down what is the goal for today’s lesson (This has worked out brilliantly with my students). They get mentally prepared for the tasks. The student output is maximized.
- After 10 min of teaching give two minute break for students to ask you questions or process it in their mind.
- Give constructive feedback, acknowledge good thoughts or sharing. If need be, note that catalyzing thought on the board for others to hover on it.
- Ask them to quickly note down three things they remember,2 interesting things and one question from the content that was delivered this is called 3-2-1(courtesy: Reading horizons)
- Ensure student movement for some reason. Use pop-corn style for reading out lessons, or answering questions ( From my experiences pop corn style has always keeps students engaged in listening to others carefully)
- Try peer to peer reading activity for 5 to 10 minutes if it’s a lengthy session.
- Give choices in representing what they understood in that day’s session either in writing/verbally summarize or through illustration.
- “Use black board wisely”. Fill it up with important words, new spellings, new concept they have learnt or any thing you feel is the crux of that session. Try to represent the concepts in flowcharts for enhanced grasping. Teachers who do not use the black board are missing out on utilizing one of the most important teaching tools!
Blackboards are communication tool for visual learners!
Now getting to the depth of one strategy that I personally consider is crucial for student engagement in the session…
“Sharing the goal of a session”
A usual instruction in some of the kindergarten classes, “You are going to color the house picture on the worksheet now. Use the crayons provided to you”.
Share as why are we coloring ?
- Where will they use this in future?
- Is the picture going to look colorful?
- Will it match to the real world around them ?
- Don’t their houses have colors on wall?
- What skill is developed?
Add more value to the time they spend on coloring. Instead of just saying, “Color and complete it”.
- Why are we learning phonic sounds?
- How it is going to be used by them?
- Why are we reading this three lettered words every day?
In Upper primary classes during history lessons, why should you know about the invention of wheel?
Why are we learning grid on Globe?
Go beyond what the definition says. The text will define the term, as teachers add more flavor to that aspect.
Instead of commencing a session saying, as we have already learnt LCM in previous grade let’s move on to HCF today ? A student might think why did I ever learn that LCM?
How many times a student would have wondered? “If only I knew the usage of number names in life!”
Do share a simple instance –It is going to be used in filling out a bank cheque while drawing money out of the bank. Don’t you think the learning will extend beyond the four walls of classroom?
Always share the purpose of learning things. It could be a nursery rhyme or the measure of angle in a building. Our ancient kings were so good at angle and measurement that they were able to build that beautiful structure, ‘Thanjavur Brihadeeshwara temple’ or quote the importance of angles and beauty of construction in an Eiffel tower, Paris.
When a student knows its application we can expect student engagement, else it is going to a combination of alphabets and numerals as understanding!
Make students’ accountable for what they learn by sharing the objective to them.
Student engagement is 80% possible and successful if and only if a student gets to know at least 20 % of what he is going to learn in a session. There is a reason behind this 80-20 rule.
In 1906, the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto found that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population. When applied more broadly, others noticed that roughly 80% of the effects came from 20% of the causes. It has become a popular principle in management and business. Ask any dean of students, 80% of the discipline problems come from roughly 20% of the student body. The Pareto Principle suggests that a few things produce the majority of results. Find out what is vital, ignore what is trivial, and you can maximize results.
- Student engagement is an authentic process and it cannot be attained unless the student is aware of the goal behind every session.
- Student engagement should be a culture at school and I feel all educators working at the institution should follow the measures uniformly for best results. It shouldn’t be a stand alone practice followed by pockets of teachers here and there, but as a language unanimously spoken by the all the educators of that organisation.
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