I used this technique just last week in my sales class when presenting students with the top 9 things a server can do to increase sales based on the available research, which is important to know as future managers when responsible for hitting sales goals. I started the presentation by having the students work in their teams to brainstorm the things they think a server can do to increase sales. I let them work on their list for about five minutes. I also walked around the room to listen in on the teams to see if they were on task. I highly recommend this tactic to educators using this technique because the students will appear to be talking about the subject but far from it on closer inspection.
Once the students have been given five minutes to discuss the topic I now know that their brains are focused on the topic at hand. At this point, you can do one of two things. You can go around the room and ask the students to share their list with others or you can begin your presentation by saying, "see how many of the 9 things servers can do -- based on the research -- your team figured out on its own." I began the presentation with the latter. In either case, students are curious to find out if they know as much as they think they know about the topics being presented in class. That is why I had their complete attention when revealing each of the 9 points and explaining why they are effective sales techniques and then solicited feedback from the students as to what they thought about each point. For the 20 minutes I spent on the 9 things research has shown servers can do to increase sales I had the students attention. You can see that they are processing new information with their already held beliefs on the matter, even some of those who have been or currently working as servers. Also note that I spent 20 minutes, which experience has taught me I should spend on a topic to keep students engaged before they grow tired of the topic.
After asking for final thoughts or comments I then moved on to another topic using a different segue to give their brains time to reflect on what was just learned -- to remember it -- and provide a seque to the next topic. Reading Willingham's book, "Why Don't Students Like School?" explains why this is important in more detail and if you have not yet read it I highly recommend doing so at your earliest convenience.
2 comments:
Another trick I used and learned was from my El Ed class. That was using a child's book as a starter. For example I have read Stone soup and duck soup to spur focus and discussion. It is always fun to take students back to when the first started learning and loved it. Then they engage themselves just as before, this power of association as resulted in good discussion and focus.
Cool, thanks for sharing and hope others will read your post.
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