This article has some great ideas for how to invite students to work with you in the learning process.
This semester, I created a short survey for my students to fill out at the beginning of class. Besides the typical contact info, I asked questions like the following:
1. Are you a big picture learner (I need the big picture first before I can hang on to details) or a detail-oriented learner (I get overwhelmed by the big picture)?
2. How do you foresee yourself using the knowledge and skills you gain in this class?
3. How would you rank both your skills and motivation in the following areas (i.e. listening, speaking, writing, reading)?
4. What can I do to help you succeed in this class?
Questions like these helped the class to express any concerns or worries they had about their “weak” language acquisition skills or not being fully prepared for the semester. It also gave me a chance to acknowledge which students were seeing this subject matter as important to their future lives as well as recognize the students were taking the class just to fulfill a requirement. Having such a frank discussion at the beginning of class helped everyone to see that everyone was approaching the class and the subject matter from a slightly different angle. Surprisingly, even the students that stated that they were only taking the class to fulfill the requirement have become fully engaged in the class and language learning process because they know that I know where they are coming from.
I’d love to know what other teachers do in their classrooms to create a sense of safety, trust, and cohesiveness. Comment away!
