I have been very blessed in my online classrooms and in my
face-to-face classrooms to have students who are excited about their education.
How do I know they’re excited? They certainly aren’t dancing in the classroom aisles
(Macarena, anyone?) or throwing after-class parties to celebrate education, but
there are key signals instructors get from students who are truly engaged:
·
Enthusiastic students are those who get involved
in classroom discussions. Now this doesn’t exclude all my favorite introverted
or quiet students from being passionate students; I know all my strong, silent
students are eager to learn because they are actively listening (sitting
upright, making eye contact, maybe nodding their heads). My not-so-shy
participants, meanwhile, pelt me with relevant but lateral questions and
discussion points (no really, could aquatic life survive if ice didn’t float?
What about the frozen koi?). All this lateral discussion gives students
anecdotes and examples by which to understand and remember topics they would
otherwise have to rotely memorize (ugh).
·
Students who are keen to learn let me know
what’s going on (whether I need to know or not). I often have students who
wander into class a few minutes late – it’s part of being an adult and having a
life other than school. But my students who are truly interested and engaged in
the class always let me know what’s going on (a text that says they’re going to
be late, an email letting me know that a family emergency caused them to miss
class and wanting to know what they missed). None of this is required of any
student, but it’s a clear indicator that the student is committed to the class.
·
Coming to class with completed assignments and
having read/previewed the lecture material is a sure sign that students are
taking massive action to succeed. I LOVE when students have read ahead and have
some idea of what we’ll be talking about – it makes lecture less like
spoon-feeding and more like a great academic conversation. Not having a textbook,
handing in incomplete work or poor work, or showing up to class not prepared to
listen and take notes are signs that a student has other more important
commitments and class is not a priority.
And if you want to really make your mark in a class? Teach
your teacher something new! Most teachers love when students add “something
they heard” or “something they read somewhere” that is relevant to the
discussion. We love teaching because we also love learning! The othe
r day, my
students taught me what a “fatberg” is (look it up – it’s disgusting and
amazing!) – completely relevant to our discussion on lipids and
super-entertaining at the same time! And if you bring up something I haven’t
heard of or don’t know about? We’ll look it up together because discovery is
part of learning!
If you haven’t been engaged in your classroom as a student,
now’s your chance! Jump right in: share, listen, discover, and learn! It’s why
we’re here together in the classroom…be your best student!
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