5 minute read
The Enquiry | 004 - Student Perspectives
STUDENT PERSPECTIVES
A Student Perspective: Classroom Environment, Small Steps, Videos, and Class Discussion
OJ AYOOLA (UIV) TALKS ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF BUILDING A SAFE CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT AS WELL AS BREAKING LEARNING INTO SMALL STEPS.
Personally, I think there are two main strategies that are significantly valuable to my learning.
The first one is setting a safe class environment. The benefits of this would be that students are not afraid to attempt answering hard questions because they know that if they make mistakes, it would be used to help them build on their knowledge and not be used against them. It goes without saying that most teachers are very good at this but I think the best way for teachers to create that safe environment would be to not demonstrate frustration when the student cannot yet comprehend a concept, that way the student would not shy away from asking questions. A safe environment also allows other teaching strategies to be used more effectively. An example of this would be asking students questions midlesson; this is good because it allows them to think quickly and accurately but sometimes it can be off-putting and so the student thinks more about being on the spot than the answer to the question. Whereas in an environment where they feel safe, they would attempt the question without the fear of getting it wrong.
The second strategy is for the teacher to break down the lesson. Whether it is the concepts that are trying to be taught or the task that needs to be done, breaking it down into smaller steps makes it more manageable for the student both physically and mentally. Breaking down makes what is trying to be done more mentally manageable for the student because it makes it less daunting and gives them reassurance which leads them to believe they can do it. It allows the student to make steady progress and that way they can unlock their fullest potential and get to the top.
The analogy of climbing a wall can help to understand this point. When climbing a wall, being at the bottom, looking up at what you have to climb to get to the top can be very overwhelming. The person who is watching the person climb can help by doing one of two things. They can encourage the person to get to the top or they could prompt the person in small steps about where to put their foot next. In most cases, the second option would be more effective for the climber. The belayer would not have to prompt the climber much because the climber would begin to think in broken down steps and be able to get up higher this way. Regardless of the help, the climber is still doing it independently just with assistance which is completely fine. Applying this analogy to the classroom, if a student needs help, they will accomplish what needs to be done more effectively if they receive the task in steps. The small steps create urgency
and so the student learns to prioritise and avoid procrastination. It isn’t spoon-feeding, it is just guiding.
SOPHIE SCOTT (LVI) DISCUSSES THE IMPORTANCE OF VIDEOS AND DISCUSSION.
Primarily I think it is really useful when teachers use videos for learning purposes. For example in Politics when explaining ideologies and voting systems. I find this method really easy to understand when it comes from someone other than the teacher, as it changes the pace of the lesson. I really enjoy making presentations of sections within a topic, this enables me to do further research and enhance my knowledge in this field. Another teaching method I find essential to my learning are class discussions, these allow me understand other people’s perspectives on topics (especially in Politics) as well as enriching my own knowledge of the topic. Furthermore, partner work is extremely useful as sometimes I find it easier to communicate and discuss within smaller groups before opening up discussion within the class. Overall, I would say a range of teaching techniques enables me to engage in class which I find to be the most useful to my learning.
GEORGINA DAWSON (UV) EXPLORES THE IMPORTANCE OF DISCUSSION, RETRIEVAL PRACTICE AND WATCHING VIDEOS.
One element of my learning that I really enjoy and value is discussing certain points and opinions with my classmates. I find that this not only helps me to gain another point of view or to find new ideas, but it also gives me a break from the lesson and helps me to be more focussed afterwards.
I also find that doing small non–revised tests helps me to understand how much I have learned so far. For example in Biology with Dr Yabsley, we often do short one-word answer tests on Post It notes either individually or in groups. This not only helps us to put our knowledge to the test but also helps us to find what we need to revise more. Another example of factual recall is in English with Dr Atherton. At the beginning of each lesson we answer a question or do a small task that is related to a previous lesson, I find that this really helps with remembering quotes or analysis that would otherwise have taken a long time to remember.
For fact based subjects, I personally really value watching videos and doing online quizzes (such as Kahoot!) in class, sometimes videos can simplify and use good anagrams for facts that are hard to remember. Online quizzes are also really useful as they not only test our factual recall but they also add a fun and competitive element to the lesson, which I think is really important in order to keep us interested and engaged.
