The problem
Have you ever felt like no matter what you do or how helpful your lesson content is, your students just don't seem that engaged in what you have to say? We've all been there! In my early teaching years, I witnessed many an eyeball fluttering to sleep, whether it was from my lessons or watching other colleagues teach - in fact, on a few occasions, I have felt the warm embrace of sleep try to capture me when observing other people.
This is a problem that we have all faced and continue to face in our classrooms. So how do we keep our students (and indeed our adult observers!) awake and engaged throughout our lessons... especially during those afternoon slump periods after a heavy lunch? Well, the trick is to adopt ACTIVE learning strategies. Read on to find out more...
Know the difference: Active learning and Passive learning
One of my biggest 'bug-bears' in the classroom is the battle between ACTIVE and PASSIVE learning. Just because your students are being "well-behaved" absolutely does not mean they are listening to what you are saying. In fact, many students have perfected the art of napping with their eyes open.
Here's a familiar scenario: you've just completed an award winning speech on the well-guarded secrets of acing the test (with your seemingly well-behaved students smiling adoringly at you, in awe of your awesomeness!) You're just about to set the class off on their big task and you're feeling so good you should be winning a TES award... And then Daniel in the corner asks that one question which makes you come out in imaginary hives: 'So,... what are we doing again?' Cue *face palm* and lots of internal sobbing.
To be fair, it's not really little Daniel's fault that he's missed a lot of the golden nuggets you've been handing out for FREE (thinking why am I not a one-to-one tutor earning £40+ an hour with a student who wants/is forced to listen to me by a tiger mum in a Crew jumper and pearls?)
First of all, the idea that ALL students can be engaged ALL the time is an absolute myth. If any colleague tries to tell you that they have magically mastered the art of keeping their students fully engaged 100% of the time, they are either: 1). delusional, or 2). fudging with the truth.
The Truth
The truth is that students (of all ages) are easily distracted. From feeling ill, to the weather changing, to friendship issues, to not getting enough sleep... these and many more all have their consequences for classroom engagement. And that's before you add in the hormones, developmental shifts and myriad of other possible distractions and dramas that infuse our students' daily lives. I once saw a whole Year 9 lesson derail itself for 20 minutes because of a bee... A BEE! *facepalm*
In a nutshell
ACTIVE learning is where students are engaged in the learning process and are actively showing this through independent thinking, discussion work, being challenged, and physically completing tasks.
On the other hand, PASSIVE learning is where students are just expected to sit back and absorb information, which is sometimes very necessary, however these moments can become the perfect environment for them to secretly nap! Students may look as though they are listening (and therefore learning) but they are actually retaining very little of what is going on around them... because they're not active in their own learning process.
Sounds pretty simple, right?
Well it's amazing how often we confuse 'good behaviour' for 'good LEARNING behaviour' - and they are definitely NOT the same thing! What we see as 'good behaviour' is often just 'PASSIVE' learning behaviour. Some students have learned that if they "behave themselves" then the teacher is less likely to bother them during the lesson. Often a student's goal is to work as little as possible... especially when tired or distracted. As educators, it's our job to flip passive learning into active learning, where the students work harder than us. After all, you have your qualifications... they don't.
So, how can we create an environment where this 'flip' to 'Active Learning' happens? Herein lies our challenge.
So there you have it, the problem we face with creating the right educational environment!
Check out 'Active Learning: How to beat the after lunch slump with the right educational environment. Part Two' with SJ’s Top Tips on ways to build your own Active Learning environment.
If you have found this blog or any of its related blogs helpful, please subscribe and give us here at Inspire My Teaching a big thumbs up!
We love feedback so please get in touch at contact@inspiremyteaching.com
Comments