5 Surprising Tips to Enhance Learning in the Classroom
14 November 2016
Engaging students in the classroom is one of the biggest challenges for teachers. They’re often working with a strict curriculum that limits what and how they would like to teach.
Fortunately, in spite of this, there are ways to enhance learning in the classroom and ensure that kids are engaged and excited about what you are going to teach them.
Always link back to the main purpose
Children (and their brains) always want to know WHY they are learning what they’re learning. They’re just like you, they don’t want their time wasted, so if they think memorising a bunch of names and dates that aren’t obviously useful, they’re going to struggle to learn.
You can overcome this by making an effort to pause and link back each lesson to the overall theme and how it will help them in some way.
Praise effort over intelligence
According to behavioural scientist Carol Dweck, praising intelligence fosters a fixed mindset – meaning the students believe that intelligence is inherent. On the other hand, when you encourage effort, you are telling the students that their abilities can be improved through education and discipline.
The implication is that the children will be more likely to invest time and energy in the classroom, as they see a tangible end goal in mind.
Speak naturally
Many teachers have the habit of going into ‘teacher mode’ in the classroom, meaning they will talk loud or more aggressively than they otherwise would. Students, however, can sense the act that they’re putting on. They will actually be a lot more receptive if they feel you believe what you are teaching them, and that you are being honest with them – and this starts with a natural speaking tone.
Ask the students for anonymous feedback
There will naturally be a variety of learning styles in the classroom, so it’s important to make sure everyone’s voice is heard. Because students won’t talk out equally, you can hand out anonymous multiple-choice surveys so students feel that they can express their opinion on how to improve their learning experience honestly and openly.
Teach with headlines
When you start to teach a topic, it can get repetitive and dry for the students quickly. One way to engage them is to start with creative headlines, similar to those used in blogs, which will immediately grab their attention. For example, if you are covering countries in Geography you could write ‘6 countries with the Highest Temperatures’ on the board, which is a lot more interesting than simply mechanically going through different nations.
Teaching isn’t always the easiest job in the world, but it can be incredibly fulfilling when the students and educators are on the same wavelength. Try teaching with these tips today and see how they impact the learning of your students.
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