http://www.thethinkingstick.com/lecture-as-content-delivery-is-dead/
Do you agree with the author? Do you think the other ways that Jeff discusses using lectures are more effective? Why or why not? How do or would you use lecture in your classroom?
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Lecture As Content Delivery Is Dead
http://www.thethinkingstick.com/lecture-as-content-delivery-is-dead/
Do you agree with the author? Do you think the other ways that Jeff discusses using lectures are more effective? Why or why not? How do or would you use lecture in your classroom?
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138 comments:
This blog post was excellent! Jeff really gets down to what is important in regards to teaching and connecting your audience/learners/students. Lectures and delivering content aren't the same today as they were 20 years ago and they cannot be approached the same way anymore. Simple content delivery just isn't enough if you want your students to be engaged active learners. I went on to read another blog of his(which is linked in the blog) regarding his ideas on "flipped learning." He ellaborates on his ideas presented in this blog of collaborative learning and making students accountable for ownership of their own learning. Students should be offering information, opinions, and ideas into the curriculum. Learning outside of the classroom and connecting it to what they have learned inside of the classroom. As well as teachers should be taking what they teach in the classroom and connecting it to the vast amount of knowledge available. I found this article releavant and interesting and Jeff is brilliant.
-K.S.
I agree with Jeff...I think he makes an excellent point! When he states " Let kids go find the content….what we need to use the lecture for is to inspire them to go learn the content, create understanding, and apply that new knowledge to other areas"...he can't be more on the money. Going to school, the subjects I remember most are the ones the teacher made ME research and do something hands on. If the teacher is at the front of the classroom talking while students listening, that subject and school in general can get boring VERY fast. Attention is lost and interest to learn is GONE. If students are engaged by asking questions or giving opinions or even starting a friendly classroom debate on a subject they will benefit more from a lesson. This article was definitely worth my time!
I couldn't agree with Joanna or Jeff more. Going to lectures through college had to be one of the most painful experiences I have experienced. Even in earlier education I didn't learn much from sitting and listening to my teacher talk the whole time.
The information I remember most is information that I had to find myself and discuss with the class or information that provided hands on lessons. Even lectures that included allowing students to share their thoughts, stories or experiences about a subject really stuck with me.
I agree with the points Jeff makes throughout the blog. Oftentimes, lectures are boring and it is the responsibility of the teacher to make the students want to learn. In order to do so, teachers must find other ways to engage students in their lessons. One way is giving students some leeway with homework assignments by allowing them to research topics that they are interested in. This way, students can go outside of the classroom and bring in new ideas which can be discussed during class. From my own personal experience, I most remember the topics in which I, myself, was interested in.
I completely agree with the author. I think this is what classrooms need for students to actually want to be in the classroom. I do think the ways he talks about are more effective. If you walk into a classroom today, most of the time a teacher is lecturing and most of the students are on their phones, sleeping, doodling, or not paying attention. By using his strategies you can possibly pull the students in and make them interested in what is being taught. I would love to use lecture in my classroom kind of like he talks about using it. I like to be hands on and interactive in the classroom and that is what has to happen to pull the students in. By having them go home and do research to bring back and discuss. By putting the learning in the hands I think can be really beneficial to the students and the teacher. Teachers always worry about having to be the experts, but learning something new is not a bad thing. It can help all involved.
Amen Jeff! Today, kids have such great access to content that we, as educators, need to inspire them to find out more about what they do not know.
This blog reminded me so much of Robin Williams movie "Dead Poet Society". Robin William tries to guide/inspire his students. I loved it when Robin stood up on the desk to make his big speech to his students who just followed the rules and never challenged their learning. He tells his students to sieze the day using the Latin term carpe diem. Karen Palmer
I feel as though Jeff made some very interesting points about telling stories as opposed to lecturing the content. It doesn't matter how old you are- if you are not interested in the content matter you will be bored! As an educator, i feel as though it is our job to constantly be trying to engage our students into the lesson if not encouraging the students to be creating the lesson!
As educators, we need to be getting the students attention and I feel as though keeping is the challenge that most educators face!
Very good article!
Michelle Phelan
Karen I very much agree with you in that the students now have the ability to find the information that they need to know via the internet- they could even find out more than we know about certain topics.
I have never seen that movie but I will definitely go rent it because you make it sound like a really good movie, especially to inspire young and inexperienced educators to encourage students to "think outside the box."
I agree with what Tom is saying about students being off task on their phones or sleeping during a lecture. It's time to get them motivated and that's what teachers need to do.
Jeff brought up the point about it being the teacher's fault if students are not paying attention and I completely agree. We need to keep our students engaged in the classroom. It seems that making a powerpoint is the most convenient way to get information across, but my favorite way to convey information is through hands on group activities. I think collaborating with others really helps you understand even more.
As much as I can agree with Jeff's strategies and how I feel this can work in an ideal situation, I don't think these strategies can work for every classroom. I am in a school district where the student population may not have access to the internet or a computer after the school day is over so having students research on their own may not be plausible. I'm also working with seniors who taking my math class as their last chance to graduate. It's my goal to keep them engaged or I will lose control. I know that I cannot lecture the full period, but by breaking it up with student involvement whether it be coming up to the board or sharing their own opinions, they are engaged during the 45 minutes I have with them. As for after class, school is the furthest thing from their minds. I know as much as I can push an idea, these kids are not going home to research it. I think that is a wonderful idea, but may only work in certain classroom environments.
I really liked his idea of inspiring students to find out the information for themselves instead of just delivering the context of a lecture. The lecture a teacher gives should not be one sided, rather motivating the students to learn more.
I do think this idea would be hard for some topics where the students do not have prior knowledge of the topic. The teacher would have to balance a lecture of delivering the information with time for the students to research and gather their own information.
John, I agree with what you said. Students will do better when they are working with topics they are interested in. By bringing the topics they are interested in to the classroom, it might spark an interest in that area for someone else.
I really enjoyed reading this post. I feel as if the this man understands how to deal and cope with kids that wonder off and get lost; not to just get mad at them and blame it so fast on the student. But maybe there is something the teacher can do keep the students engaged and involved by his techniques.
After reading this blog for the second time I realized how much I like the idea of inspiring students to want to learn more. By just providing the students with the information, it does not require them to do much thinking at all. But by placing ideas and posing questions to them that make them want to think and do their own research they are learning the information on their own making it much more likely that they will grasp the information. It will also likely stick with them for much longer than just memorizing it because it will be on the next exams.
Lecture I feel like is one of the most boring ways to learn. So I agree with Jeff about how we need to make it a little more interesting. We have to let the students find the material for themselves. If we do give a lecture it has to make them think.
Tierney C
I certainly agree that lecture is no longer the way to get students to learn. When a teacher simply talks to students for an extended period of time the students quickly drift away and begin to daydream, draw in their notebooks, dose off, etc... The idea of making leture inspirational is great. Students should feel like they are being spoken for a purpose other than just the content. Talking to the stduents like they are worthy of making a difference will keep them attentative. Truth be told just talking to the students and feeding them content for hours upon end will never keep them interested, it is the teachers job to come up with more fun ways for the stduents to learn.
I whole-hardheartedly agree with the statement, "what we need to use the lecture for is to inspire them to go learn the content, create understanding, and apply that new knowledge to other areas."
Students do not want to sit through a lecture for 40 minutes about a topic that they could care less about. As teachers, we need to find a way to make learning content engaging and without resorting to power points and reading out of a textbook.
By allowing students to go home and discover the content for themselves, we are placing them at the center of their own learning. We are encouraging students to go out and find the answers to their own questions rather than lecture them about the facts.
I fully support 'lectures' that inspire, move, and encourage students to make positive changes in the world.
I whole-hardheartedly agree with the statement, "what we need to use the lecture for is to inspire them to go learn the content, create understanding, and apply that new knowledge to other areas."
I believe that we shouldn't be 'lecturing' students about content but rather encouraging them to find their own answers to the big questions. By allowing students to discover their own learning, they will be more engaged and want to learn; which is the most important aspect of education in my opinion.
No one wants to sit through a long and boring lecture about things they don't care about, especially children; this is imperative for teachers to understand if they are to make their classrooms more engaging and student centered.
Lectures should be reserved for inspiring, moving, and encouraging students to make positive changed in the world.
I agree with Amanda that lecture isn't the only way for students to learn, but I do not think that we should let the students go out, decide what they want to learn and learn it themselves. I believe this could work in some subjects, but I teach mathematics, so I doubt students will be able to teach themselves some of the topics, like they will need a lecture to learn how to do some of the steps in the given topic. I like the idea of being a lesson with a lecture in order to get the students inspired and that the lecture shouldn't take the entire class time because we do not want to bore our audience.
I agree with Utech's blog. I feel if students are not engaged in classrooms, then it is hard for them to grasp key concepts and learn. Their lack of interest in the lesson will inhibit their desire to do work, therefore it's important as educators to make creative and fun lesson plans.But lecture is still important. I agree with K Davis that there are certain lessons that must be explained by teachers. Teachers must find a balance. We must be open to new methods and techniques so that our students will be motivated and inspired. K chin
I agree with sir Jeff that content can be dry and it is up to the teacher to try to spice things up. However, to leave the content up to the students and do your best to inspire them to go find the knowledge after a mind blowing anectodote in class i think is a receipe for disaster. Through my own experience I never once said after a good speech/lecture "let me go look up some further information" unless I was interested in the topic and most H.S. students are not interested in angles nor cells that they are wiling to voluntarily look for information so it us as teachers to find the balance on how to keep the students engaged. M.Worthy
I liked Jeff's 'flipped learning' ideas on content delivery and class lectures. I can relate to sitting through classes where the material was extremely boring and the teacher didn't help to spice the material up to motivate the students' to want to learn. In many cases, it made it hard to focus and students' found themselves lost after the lecture was over. Students can only grasp a certain amount of information in a short period of time; their lose interest quickly and their attention span is very brief when the teacher is just speaking and not engaging the students'. So, Jeff's ideas about using a quick lecture to inspire and inform the students makes them interested in the material. Then have the students discover their own content and use those new ideas to make connections with other areas of knowledge. I think that this technique is one that I will use in certain subject areas when I teach my own class someday. I think this way of lecturing would be most effective in social studies or literacy; subjects that you can tell a story about for example, and have them expand by researching and teaching themselves more about that topic.
I completely agree with Jeff and everything that was said in this article. I have been to countless lectures where my attention was directed elsewhere due to the lack of engaging information provided or the enthusiasm with which the information is presented. Yet, students are always blamed for not paying attention. It's very true that unless something interests an individual, it's quite difficult to really set your mind to understanding it to the best of your ability. This is why I think that teachers should but bigger efforts into their lesson plans so as to inspire students to go above and beyond in research and investigation, not only for the sake of getting a good grade, but also to discover something new for their own personal reasons.
I agree with Jackie Hughes "By just providing the students with the information, it does not require them to do much thinking at all. But by placing ideas and posing questions to them that make them want to think and do their own research they are learning the information on their own making it much more likely that they will grasp the information" It is important to make students more active than passive in the learning experience. Each student learns differently, but every student can learn by being hands on and engaged in a lesson. Go out and search for things you want to learn more about and bring that to the table.
I do agree with the author, Jeff Utecht, however, I still believe traditional lectures are necessary. Lecturing is a learning style that can either be a great tool for some or a horrible one for others. As a student who loves captivating lectures, I would want the bulk of my information to come from a lecture instead of receiving a call to research via a lecture. Nevertheless, for grade school aged students, Utecht’s kind of lecture is great as a motivating conversation or enrichment tool. It allows students to differentiate themselves by their interest area and delve into something that truly captures their minds. As a result the topic researched will stay with them for a much longer time. This style of lecturing is something I would use in my classroom as bonus activity for students, it will allow them to delve deeper into the topic and an area that actually peaks their interest. It can be used for all students, those above, on and below expectation levels because it allows all students to understand the material in their own way.
This post is poorly titled. All Jeff is really saying is that lectures shouldn't be boring...I mean...duh. This is everyone's issue with high school. He somewhat interestingly goes on to break down different types of lectures, but I don't really see the point. Lectures are boring or engaging. And an engaging lecture can teach content. Whose to say content isn't wound up in a story wound up in a lecture? This is how people learned for generations through oral tradition. I feel like this post is trying to say something popular, and is really saying nothing.
I do not think I could agree more with this author. In classroom's today, I have found that students find difficulty in listening and grasping an effective lecture. These children are so used to the constant auditory and visual stimulation of the television shows they watch, that they have become unable to sit, listen and comprehend a lecture for any longer than 40 minuets.
As Jeff has mentioned, powerpoint has made it very easy for many teachers to "deliver" their content to their students. Are most of these students truly grasping this content? I don't know, but from my past learning experience I can tell you I definitely was not.
Jeff's idea that "lectures should be used to inspire, tell stories, and push ideas" is exactly what defines effective teaching. In this approach, you are really engaging and motivating the learner, and this is ultimately what will lead to their success.
There is no doubt about it, once I am able to teach my own lessons, this is the style of teaching I would like to use for my classrooms. I want to be an effective teacher, and I believe learners will learn best through lectures that are inspiring, have story-lines, and will push ideas, just as Jeff has mentioned.
-Ariel V.
It seems that I, like many others who have commented on this article agree with Jeff. Lectures do not create active learners. I went into education to motivate students to be active learners, members of society, and people. Lessons should be conversations to inspire research and curiosity. This again has to do with a shift in teaching. The focus of the lessons should be student centered. Lectures are teacher centered. I enjoyed this article. Again, this article made me reflect on my planbook and how my classroom is structured.
Kaitlyn B,
I loved this blog. I agree with Jeff in many of his ideas. He really focuses on how to get students attention and keep them engaged. That is the key to teaching and I believe he does a great job on explaining how to deliver important content to your students. I agree with Jackie when she stated lectures that allow students to share their thoughts, stories, and experiences are the ones that are remembered most. -Dayna O.
I agree with the points that Jeff brings up. I believe he included all the important things that should be included in a lecture. Out of all the lectures I've ever heard, I remember the ones that have inspired me with change or a good story. Anyone can deliver content, but it takes more than that for people to remember and make connections with it. I LOVE when he stated that teachers shouldn't just be delivering content, but we need to inspire our students to go out and find it themselves. Only when they are inspired and making connections will the content be meaningful to them, and that's what makes them remember it. I love the authors point of view and his ideas!
-Elizabeth A.
The author of this blog describes how the use of lecture has moved forward and developed into a more motivated strategy in the classroom. We have gone from straight lecture to power point and now we barely see them in used because students are doing more in the classroom. We want our students to go out and find the content we are teaching them, instead of teachers delivering the information through lecture. We still need to use lecture as a tool that inspires and make students understand their newfound knowledge and apply it to other areas. I would most definitely continue to use lecture in my classroom. As a social studies teacher I feel lecture is a central way of delivery information to the students. Lectures still hold a responsibility to the lecturer to hold your attention and keep you engaged in the content. I agree with the author’s statement of how lectures are supposed to be effective. Lectures need to be used to inspire, tell stories, and push ideas forward. I most agree with telling stories because that’s what social studies is, it is the retelling of countless stories to your audience. When you have a good storyteller that knows the information and the past ideas that can push a learner to get more involved in the content, and want to know more about it. This can go hand in hand with pushing an idea. Pushing an idea can cause students to think outside the box. Inspiring type of lecture I feel should be towards the end of a topic or help conclude and topic and make students want to explore or do research on it. It can help give students insight and perception, and that is what we want. We want student to be pushed to go out and look for information because they want to know it.
-Jonathan Rich
The article was insightful, in a sense that teachers, and professors should allow students to learn more hands on for themselves, however, at the same time, some subjects require more knowledge from the teacher, because students don't have the background knowledge to do so. I agree, some lectures I had during my undergrad classes were boring when the professor just lectured for two hours. Teachers should allow students to research material that they are interested, which will engage learning, and become more interesting for the student.
Tim A
I enjoyed reading this article. I as an undergrad student was not a fan of lectures but a lot of the times they were necessary because I didn't know anything about the topic that was being taught. I also knew that if given the option to do my own research or sit through a lecture, I would choose the lecture because I knew I wouldn't look up the information. Lectures engage the learner even though they can be long and tiresome. But if you take good notes, you will be golden and it will help you further your education.
In reality, for teachers to inspire students to engage in learning and to help them understand lectures can be a real task. I do agree with the author about how the impact of learning a new concept can be minimized, especially when it is presented as a content-based lecture. I think learning, as essential as it is for students, needs to be delivered with a purpose. For example, the idea can be to manipulate students to become curious about the importance of the given subject and its relationship to their/ our environment. This association will push students to formulate new ideas and the continuous practicing of it, may promote learning. The key is to provide freedom for students to individually, or in groups discover new aspects that can be related or added to the original concept. The author introduces helpful ideas about how to inspire students to learn. It is crucial to allow learners to form their own experiences by giving them the task to figure out the answers. This is an ideal that as a future teacher, I would like to practice. This article is very interesting and insightful. I especially like this statement, “If I can’t hold their attention that’s my fault as a lecturer.” The author couldn’t put it in better words!
Nora R.
I agree with the author that in a sense, the traditional lecture is "dead." But I also have to agree with a previous comment; if I were given the opportunity to research on my own or sit through a lecture, I would go to the lecture. I would trust that I am receiving the most important and accurate information this way, and I would not necessarily trust myself to researching, especially if it is a topic that I have no interest in.
I do however really like the authors ideas of what the modern lecture style should be used for- to tell stories and to inspire. A lecture is much more enjoyable in this format. Therefore, if I were teaching a lecture style course, I would divide the time between independent research and lecture. This would allow the students to share their own findings and take control of their learning. However it would also give the teacher the ability to focus in on key concepts and information that may not be independently researched by all participants.
K. Doria
I love Jeff approach to teaching or lecturing. I definately agree with him that if students are not engaged in the lesson, that it is the teacher fault for not captivating thm in the first place. However I do also think it basically impossible to captivate every student during every lesson, which makes it so important to vary the intensity, learning level, content and teaching style of every lecture/class.
This ties in to the ideas jeff presents: Inspire, Tell stories, and Push an idea as part of a lecture. This breaks up the classroom time and gives students who may be otherwise engaged an oppurtunity to become captivated by the teacher.
I agree with Kaitlin in the sense that although lecture is a dying method of teaching, as a student I find that it is an integral part of the learning process and I would and do attend lectures when given the choice.
I enjoy lecturing, sometimes it is that random teachable moment, that comes from some tangent, maybe it is because I like to hear myself talk, but, people have zero attention span anymore. Children and todays young adults have zero attention span because everything is just a couple of clicks away. Recently, I thought a partial history/ELA lesson. One child who was in 7th grade looked up what I said and stated that my facts were correct. She did this by looking at her phone, she then proceeded to say how come you just did not have everyone take out their phones and just give them the link to look up what I said. I had no answer, and I had to personally agree.
Todays generation has grown up completely submerged in the use of technology and social media. They have become accustom to receiving information in short posts or videos that sum up important information. Asking a student to sit though a dry 40 minute lecture is foreign to students, and today more then ever, it is imperative to captive and inspire students to want to learn.
I agree with the authors statement " If I can't hold their attention that's my fault as the teacher not their fault as the learner". As mentioned prior teachers today have technology as a teaching aid to engage learners. Although I do feel lecture is still an imperative part to learning, like the author stated that can be done is a shorter 10-15 minute fantastic lecture. These lecture will need to be more direct and leave students inspired to want to learn more.
As a future teacher I would like to incorporate stories into my lessons that student can relate to, as well as have student tell stories from their own lives. When telling relevant stories student will become more engaged in the topic thus making them less apt to becoming easily distracted. I also like the authors method of flip learning where the student is inspired at the end of class and assigned to find more information of their own to bring into next class discussion. I feel this method keeps the students in control of their own success with moderation for their teacher. Although I will implement this as a technique, I will also still use the "old fashioned" lecture in some cases.... old habits die hard.
-Ashley M.
I think this was a great blog post and a lot of Jeff's ideas would benefit all teachers. Giving students a printed agenda or paper helps them feel like they are interacting in something like a lecture based class where students don't typically have much of a role but to sit there and soak up information. I think the reason Jeff's post is so interesting is because it is so inspiring. You can tell that he loves teaching and that enthusiasm is enough to get any educator excited.
-Melanie P
Jeff blog was very interesting. As for whether lecture is dead in classroom is absolutely true. There is nothing worse than sitting in a classroom and having the teacher just straight lecture. It is extremely boring! I love the way he wants to challenge his students to research the information. He challenges them to "push the idea" until it hurts. I have had teachers that have done just that and they were the best teachers I ever had! Flipping the classroom is a great trend that I hope gains some steam and is infused into all schools curriculum. Schools need to help all students learn and this is the way to do it.
Jeff's Lecture as Content Delivery is Dead blog had many great points. Using the lecture format to inspire, tell stories and push ideas is unconventional and interesting. Which is what you want your audience to feel--interested to the point of action. Are Powerpoints inspiring tools or attention getters? And once you have their attention, what do you expect from your audience.
Jeff sounds like an enthusiastic teacher who wants his students to have the best experience while discovering content, making a connection through stories, and being an author of content.
Erin H.
I absolutely agree with the author Jeff Utecht and believe that the ways in which he discusses using lectures are much more effective than the traditional idea of lectures. Jeff Utecht makes an excellent point in saying that “when content is free, open, and accessible to all then we need to rethink what lectures should be used for and delivering content or knowledge is not a good use.” I find this to be true, especially when lectures consist of reading straight from a PowerPoint that has already been delivered and viewed by the students. I would like to use lecture in my classroom in the many ways that Jeff has mentioned, especially to inspire students to want to learn more. During my time as a student, I have experienced traditional lectures in which I am unable to focus my attention for a long time span and lectures that have kept me engaged, intrigued, and excited to learn more. I absolutely agree with Jeff Utecht in his statement “If I can’t hold their attention that’s my fault as a teacher not their fault as a learner.” As a future teacher, I believe that it is vital for me to create lessons and use lectures in order to spark student interest and curiosity. I would use a lecture to introduce a topic in order to inspire students to research the topic further. In addition, I also love Jeff Utecht’s idea to use lectures to tell stories and push ideas. Lectures can be an extremely powerful tool, if delivered in an interesting and effective way.
While reading this article I have to agree with the author of this article. If one was to walk into a classroom today one would see a teacher standing in the front of the room lecturing in the front of the room. Usually at that time most students will be on their cellphones, maybe sleeping, doodling or the most common just not paying attention. By using the strategies stated in the article a teacher could pull in those students who aren’t paying attention. An interactive classroom may be one way to engage all students so they don’t become bored and the same for the teacher. If a teacher is bored one should assume the students will also be bored. We as teachers need to learn not to just lecture to our students but actually teaching but to become more interactive so the students can be more engaged and want to learn.
-Nicole A
Jeff make some good points in his article , but there are some things I disagree with as well. While I do believe a good amount of the lecture should be used to emphasize ideas, I do feel that at certain points students need help with the content. I also think that it is very difficult to constantly inspire through a lecture everyday. With that being said, I do agree that lectures many times are ineffective. When I think back to my schooling, I barely remember any lectures that I listened to in high school. I am trying to keep that in mind as I build my lessons for my students. In my class, I like to have a class based on discussion. Especially with literature, students tend to give up very easily when the literature it difficult to read. Through discussion, students piece things together and become more confident in their abilities to understand the text. Although I believe Jeff's method for lecture could be hard to maintain, he does bring up a topic that is important in progressing towards better education and learning.
-Sean C.
Jeff’s blog post was very interesting and I do agree with most of what he stated. It is extremely important as a teacher to keep the attention of the students. Without the students’ attention, they will not want to go home and find out more information. When I was in high school, there were numerous lectures that were so hard to pay attention during. If any one of Jeff’s ideas were used in those classrooms, I would have had a much better understand of the material and would have enjoyed being in class more.
If Jeff’s ideas are used in the classrooms, I think students will want to learn more. They will come to class ready for discussions and ready to be inspired.
- Joanna S.
For a majority of this article I did agree with the author’s opinion on lectures. I think that Jeff’s strategies that he discusses are more effective than the traditional PowerPoint slide presentation. Similar to the flipped classroom model, students are given the freedom to research the content further after being introduced to the topic. I would use lecture in my classroom is many ways that Jeff spoke about. I really like his idea of using story telling and inspiration as a way to lecture. If I, as the teacher, am able to keep my students attention during a lecture by telling an inspiring story, then I will feel confident that my students have developed an interest in the content.
-Holly P.
Straight lecture is no longer an effective learning tool. Students no longer have the attention span to sit through a long college course and just listen and take notes. They get bored and will turn to their cell phones or laptops as entertainment. Teachers should either use interactive slideshows or have small class sizes and allow for discussion to be the main strategy. I know that the classes I enjoyed the most have allowed the students to be part of the learning environment.
I completely agree with Jeff Utecht’s lecturing strategies of inspire, tell stories, and push ideas. Any person that has attended years of schooling has unfortunately experienced sitting through a tortures lecture that seemed never ending. Utilizing techniques that make a lecture interesting and holds the audience’s attention will create stronger chances of content delivery. I especially enjoy his technique of flipping the classroom. He prompts students to go home and research a certain subject area, this provides students the opportunity to learn about a topic that catches their interest. The students than come into school the next day and everyone shares their ideas as a class. From there, the educator guides the students on the right path and puts all the information together into an organized form of learning. I would love to use this technique in my future classroom because I believe this would be highly effective and it will give students the sense of strong involvement in their learning.
I think that this was a great blog post about where teaching and learning has come in our modern society. I think Jeff really brings out some great ideas of how to change teaching in the classroom to make it more exciting for students. It is true, that many times when teachers give a lecture students really aren't all that interested and more times than none, aren't playing attention. I think that story telling is a great way to get material across to students (both in the lower and higher grades). As a future Social Studies teacher, I think that I can definitely use the idea of story telling in my classroom. This way, students will become engaged in something other than lecturing.
-Victoria L.
I agree with many of the points that Jeff makes in this blog post. Lectures can be boring for both students and teachers. However, I think that lectures can be very useful if they are interactive and engaging. There are just some topics of information that students will need assistance in grasping and lectures can be an effective way for some students to learn. Not all students are hands-on learners; some will be successful in a classroom environment where the teacher leads the class. It is crucial that the teacher is familiar with his/her students and what will work for each of them. In college I had many professors who kept my attention during a lecture because they were asking questions, telling jokes, or animated in the way they were speaking. All of these things contribute to whether or not a lecture is effective. In conclusion, I would argue that to say "lecture as content delivery is dead" is not accurate. More specifically, I would argue that the only type of lecture that should be used in schools are ones which actively engage students in learning.
-Samantha F.
I agree with the many ways Jeff suggests using lectures. Especially at the college level, the lectures and presentations are almost too painful to endure. The best lectures are the ones that keep you thinking after the class is over. Story telling as a way to engage students in lectures is a great strategy. Often storytelling about personal experiences, or relevance in the real world makes the content relatable to students.
-suzie
Most teacher's "go to" for lesson delivery for content is lecture. I agree with Jeff that students are not interested in what teachers have to say in lectures. They tune us out, play in their desks, or distract other students (at least mine do). Having students "discover" the information makes learning more meaningful for all students. They are actively working with the content instead of just listening to the teacher and taking notes. The new Common Core State Standards also emphasize the importance of flipped classrooms as well. I have to start using that technique in my classroom.
-Christina G.
I agree with the author! The ways to inspire are absolutely more engaging than a plain, traditional lecture. It is said, that the average adult's attention span is only about 8 minutes long. In a world with 30 second commercials, and flashing lights, "story telling" is an easy way to spice up a lecture.
In my classroom, I try to avoid lectures. If I must, then I will insert questions and wait for student responses or students are encouraged to "turn and talk" to discuss an answer with their peers. Pictures and videos are also a great way to break the monotony of a lecture.
Shaina H.
I agree with Christina that having students "discover" the information makes learning more meaningful. They are active, rather than passive and they are taking responsibility for their education.
Shaina H.
The second I saw the photo of the student sleeping, I instantly thought of my entire undergrad life. Lectures became dull and uninviting, no one wanted to sit through the lectures and even the professors knew it and would purposely take attendance to force us to come. Rather than finding a way to intrigue students and entice them into going to lectures, professors would lock students into a vicious cycle of wasted time, naps, attendance sheets and withheld lecture notes until after class (always inconveniently released to students). So yeah, lets make lectures not suck.
- Doug Ferguson
I have to agree with Jeff about his new way of "lecturing". Though I admit depending on the teacher I would sometimes prefer a simple lecture, the idea of using class time to get the kids so interested that they go search and learn on their own is great. For a lot of students, it seems that school has become a boring routine where they just go to be spoon fed facts and information. However, if we can get the students to enjoy the concept of learning then the students will benefit greatly. A student will learn a lot more searching for topics that he is generally interested in than by just giving him the information. By learning on his own, the student can now also bring his own perspective to the class, which then makes for a more engaging and educational environment. Although lecture should not be entirely replaced, I agree that class time should be more devoted to inspiring the students and encouraging a personal love a learning.
-Gabriel G.
Jeff is absolutely right, I could remember on one hand how many lectures I actually paid attention to. Lectures can be very boring and hard to keep up with especially if teachers just read straight off of it. I believe lectures should keep students engaged, give them something to do while listening to the teacher talk. Because of advancements in technology & social media, students can find out the information on their device while the teacher is talking. I do believe if you use a lecture as an inspiration or story telling session, the students will remember and may be excited to come back and learn. No one wants a boring lecture, as a adult, I would not sign up to go to a lecture. But, if we give our students tasks like tweeting, or gathering notes the outcome of the students paying attention will be much higher. I would use a lecture as a story telling session and inspirational session, I would use what I think I would rather hear and transfer that to my students.
I really enjoyed this blog. I do believe that lectures should be more inspiring and entertaining. Most of the boring material should be learned on their own through the internet. I love the idea of students discussing information through social media like Twitter. When I think of inspiring Educational speakers, I think of Rick Lavoie. I saw a video of his in one of my classes and he was so enthusiastic and powerful, you did feel like standing after. As a teacher, I want to spend more classroom time with my students having deep discussions rather than wasting time learning material that they have in their cell phones already.
I think that Jeff has some innovative ideas, some of which I would definitely like to incorporate into my social studies classes, such as storytelling and inspiring. In history, I think storytelling is key, because history is the story of the people who lived during events and made changes (whether positive or negative). Students love a good gossip story and they are able to remember the intricacies of a story that they heard from a friend better than reading excerpts from a textbook, so I might as well harp on this concept. I also think it is so important to inspire your students. I loved coming out of a class thinking about making a difference, it really just made me excited to learn and come back the next day. I would love to be able to incorporate these two concepts into my classroom to make my lessons more effective and interesting for my students.
I think the way Jeff approaches and his ideas on teaching is innovative. It is important to approach the classroom with enthusiasm and excitement. If the teacher seems bored with the material, how can you expect the students to be thrilled about learning. To inspire students, teachers need to teach with energy and power. I will definitely use some of his ideas in my mathematics/special education/TESOL classroom.
A lecture style classroom in my own opinion is a very boring way to learn. I have sat in so many of my college classes and even some of my high school classes where they just show Powerpoints or write notes on the board and the teacher does all of the talking. When the author talks about a lecture being about the students mostly and not the teacher as much, I have to say that I agree. I like the idea of the author giving a link or page to his/her students/audience of things that can do if they get off task. It is bound to happen. Getting off task while sitting on a lecture happens to the best of us. There is just so much that you can pay attention to someone talking about one topic or subject area. I think by giving the students an off task plan can still keep them on task. But I do worry that it will just give them incentive to be off task. The idea of telling stories during a lecture is something that I personally like so I think that other would like it too. I have had teachers who tell stories during class that is related to the topic at hand and to me it makes it more personal and interesting. Lastly, the point that the author makes about if the students aren’t paying attention then he/she has failed as a teacher. Now I don’t think that if the students aren’t paying attention that the teacher necessarily has failed because there are times were a topic just isn’t fun or interesting to learn about. But I think that there are so many ways to at least try to get the students to pay more attention and participate mentally more into lectures. I would use all three techniques; inspire, tell stories and push an idea while using a lecture in my classroom. I would also try to get the children involved in their learning so their not just sitting their listening to me speak about a topic. Students need to be learning not just hands-on but be a part of their learning. They need to be able to share ideas and make sense for themselves about what they are learning.
I have been in more than enough classrooms where every students head is on a desk. I attended two very big colleges, where hundreds of students were in one class and the teacher had no choice but to lecture based on the amount of students in the class. Although a lot of students enjoy these classes because you can sit on your phone for two hours, they are clearly not the best learning environment. I believe that lectures should be used sparingly, and that a teacher should avoid a lecture lesson whenever possible.
I agree with the blog when it says that lecturs should be used for things such a story telling. When used for a motivational stragtegy, lectures are great and can really grab the students attention. However, after the short lecture, the teacher really needs to switch it up a bit. Lecturing is essentially unavoidable, as some things need to be lectured. But other strategies need to be used to keep the students interested and awake.
I really do agree with the authors idea of when lectures are appropriate. Pushing ideas, telling stories, and inspiring students are all things that can be achieved by lecture. However when it comes to learning new concepts, it is important to make sure we are not lecturing the students to sleep, and rather getting them involved and interested in learning by using new technology and strategies whenever possible.
The article “Lecture as Content Delivery is Dead,” by Jeff Utecht is a very interesting article. From my experience, lecture does not help the students learn the content. By the end of the class, I feel like most of the students are either asleep or daydreaming. Utecht suggestions of using lectures in other ways would be more effective. A lecture that tells a story is more effective because it captures the students’ attention and the students learn more. For instance, in my future social studies classroom I will use the story telling lecture to teach about life in the post-Soviet Union. In this lecture, I will tell my students about my experience as a child living in Ukraine.
-Mariya L.
I think Jeff Utecht has some valid points about lecture and its inadequacy as the sole or primary teaching method. Sitting through lecture after lecture, year after year can be boring for students and cause them to lack focus on the material being taught. Lectures that tell stories, inspire us, or push us to think outside the box are more memorable and engaging than those in which we’re being spoken at for hour just as Jeff argues. I also agree that students would be more interested in what teachers have to say if the method through which the teacher states his or her ideas is engaging and the content is interesting to the students. I think the suggestions Jeff gives for lecture can be incorporated into lecture, but I still feel there are instances in which lecture is necessary. For instance, an interesting anecdote to start a lesson can pull students into a topic that might not have been quite as interesting without the story. I also agree that students should want to learn about “stuff” as Jeff calls it on their own and believe that if we relate the material to “real world” use and experience students will want to do more research themselves. Lecture can be a method through which material is taught, but it must be used in conjunction with other methods. For instance, in a future English or ESL class I might use direct lecture to introduce students to a topic, but to practice the topic I would have them work in independently (individually, or in groups or pairs). I would also try to make the introduction of material more of a class discussion than a lecture but with grammar, spelling, and/or vocabulary that can be difficult. I would also use something engaging like a Prezi with videos and activities to keep the students focused on the lecture.
I do not necessarily believe that lecturing as a means of content delivery is totally dead. However, I do agree with several points raised in the article. For one, I like the idea of using lecturing to inspire students to learn independently. Education is about giving students skills which they can then use on their own outside of the classroom. (Short) lectures can help introduce or advance those skills as long as the lesson doesn't consist entirely of teacher lecturing. Turning the lecture over into a class forum for discussion or setting students off for opportunities of self discovery can make these lectures more meaningful. Lecturing should be used to make instruction more relevant. That seems to be the heart of this blog post.
-Jesse G.-
I agree that lectures are boring. Lectures can be fine in small segments but today students learn best through visual aids and by doing. Students need to try problems out for themselves, learn through self-discovery. I understand in math certain topics need to be learned through lectures and example, but teachers should strive to gets students involved whenever possible.
I agree with Jeff Utecht, lectures used to be one of the only ways to teach children. Now we have so much technology such as tablets, videos, power points, smart notebook, and much more. As teacher’s it is our job to make the class exciting for them. If students are bored and falling asleep it is up to that teacher to get them excited about learning and motivated. Teachers absolutely need to show pictures, videos, tell stories, and do whatever is necessary to engage their class. For example, I will tell my student “fun facts” about my life or personal stories. This will usually perk the students up because they want to learn more about their teacher. Telling a story about my life helps to re-focus the students and then I will connect it to the topic. If teachers see their students falling asleep they need to know that they should change their lesson to re-focus and engage their students.
-Liam
I agree with Jeff’s ideas about different ways to use lectures. I think they are definitely interesting and seems like they would work especially in the higher education field because they would involve and engage the students more. I really like the idea of the flipped classroom because it allows the students to do the research and find the information on their own and then bring it in to the class where everyone can share and learn together. I think using lectures in the classroom is inevitable because some topics need to be taught using this method.
A speaker once commented that some teacher preparation programs encourage future teachers to inspire the next generation of young people in the most uninspiring ways-through a lecture. I had to laugh. I think many of us have experienced this at some level in the course of our academic careers, whether during our undergraduate work or beyond. That being said, I agree with Jeff Utecht when he said that delivery strictly based on a model of lecturing is stale and predictable. Students need to be inspired; they need to have someone with experience guide them on learning pathways that are less rigid and more creative. I am a believer in incorporating storytelling to teach lessons in class. Personal anecdotes tend to stick, and, if told in just the right manner, can leave an indelible impression second to none.
-Peter L.
Lecture is the most boring part of teaching. As a teacher keeping lecturing to a minimum and when you do have to lecture the goal is the make it exciting so the students become more excited to learn. I have alway learned best from doing and not being told. Jeff says students learn best when they are responsible to find the information. Being told how an equations works is just not the same as sitting down and working out the problem and seeing the equation fit into the problem. In undergrad I had many class that were just lectures that I found almost useless and the majority of the learning for the class came from me and fellow students working out problems together. Jeff says that lectures should tell a story and even in math this would be true. The lecture should show why they are learning this and how this seemingly boring math problems has affected the world. So we as teacher need to push students to finding answers for themselves and instilling in them a sense of wonder that will make them want to learn rather than force feeding them equation after equation.
-John Ryan
I believe a lecture is the most boring part of teaching but are sometimes necessary. While a teacher cannot only rely on a powerpoint presentation, they can be the best way for some students to retain information. I do agree with the article that students need an active learning environment to become active learners.
-Patrick H.
I do not think that the lecturing style of teaching is dead. However, I do think that it is quickly being replaced with many other strategies. I do agree with some other things that are mentioned in the article. I think that the majority of students do want to learn, especially at the college level so if a teacher cannot hold the attention of an entire classroom I think it is their fault. Obviously, there are exceptions to this rule, but for the most part I think that if the teacher finds a fun and interactive way to deliver a lecture more students would pay attention and as a result do better in the classroom.
-Nick Gilbert
I think Jeff really hit the mark on the title of his blog. After years of sitting through lectures, I agree that professors, and teachers alike need to make a lecture ore engaging in order to keep the attention of the students. I love how he gives links for the students to access if they start losing focus. It is a productive technique to allow the students to be engaged even if their not listening to the lecture. I think he made useful suggestions that could help teachers improve their lessons. He possess the ability to reflect on his own teaching , whihc is key for all educators to improve their skills.
Diana Albert
Yes, I agree with him for the most part. However, I don’t know if I agree with his comment about students failing to paying attention is often our fault. It can be, but sometimes the teacher cannot help that the student is not interested in a certain topic no matter how it’s presented or the student could have a disability or their tired of sitting in class listening. We just have to do the best that we possibly can to present and as he mention give links for students to explore the information on their own. Jeff feels that it makes more sense to align self-discovery learning as close as possible to the natural way in which a student would look up something if they have interest in it, which I think makes the most sense. I like his discussion about lecturing more like telling a story because that is my favorite way to lecture. I would try to present the material in the most fun and interactive way that I can. I prefer lectures to be somewhere between a story and a conversation with the students.
-Jessica S.
I believe that lectures are important. It is important for students to learn and retain information on a given topic that is necessary for the class. I do also agree that lectures can be boring sometimes and not gain the interest of the class. Lectures need to be entertaining and engaging so it grasp the learners attention and allows them to want to learn. This is important to do when lecturing a class. As a teacher, your job is to maintain the attention of the class while engaging them. This is an important task of a teacher while teaching.
Jeff Utecht makes a few good points in his blog post: "Lecture As Content Delivery is Dead" but I can not say that I agree with him 100 percent. I agree that lectures can be boring, and I will also concede that a boring lecture is primarily the fault of the teacher. However, I will not concede that lecture as a form of content delivery is "dead." Sure, everyone has had those teachers that lecture 100 percent of the time and it can be a miserable experience, but does this mean that lecture for content delivery cant be a strategy within a teacher's bag of tricks? Of course not. Lecture should never be the only form of teaching, but to say that we should deliver any content through lecture is a little narrow minded. The fact of the matter is that students in high school will have to get used to some form of lectures because when they get to the next level of learning in college lectures are pretty much what they will experience.
I do like some of the other ideas he gives for lecturing though. Particularly the one about story telling and inspiring. I would love to bring some inspiring lectures into my classroom because I think students would appreciate something like that over a dull and boring lecture.
In Lecture as Content, I like how Jeff believes we should "push" and inspire. Students learn when they are engaged, and listening to someone speak about a topic they are passionate about can have that effect on students. I think that in the classroom, teachers should try to inspire rather than just speak. They could try to relate their teaching to their own lives, and push a topic so students understand it, and it sticks with them.
I completely agree with Jeff! When I was in high school I was lucky enough to have many teachers that tried not to give lectures, but I did have a couple of teachers that did and I remember them because I would be very bored. Teachers need to inspire the class and give the students something to enjoy. Telling stories is great. I think many students are interested in your life and what you do because its almost like a forbidden subject in their heads. I think related different stories to different topics, like social studies is a great use of lecture time. Students don't want to hear just content they want to understand it on a deeper level too.
I agree with the Jeff. Students love to learn, just more when it is up to them to find the topic and information they like. Of course there are times it won't be something they like. When they look for themselves they might learn things they would never have learned just listening to the teacher talk. It is more hands on and they are responsible for doing the work instead of just listening. In my classroom however, this might be hard to do. In ESL you are teaching a language to students who do not know it. To have them research a language might be difficult. But I think this is great for science and social studies and even English class.
I agree with Mr. Utecht to a certain extent. I disagree that lectures as content delivery is dead. I feel that lectures as content delivery can be boring, and can potentially lose a student's interest in the subject matter, yet I do believe that there are circumstances when lectures are the only way to deliver the content. While content may be very accessible to them, many students just do not have the time to find the content. It is a heavy burden to put on them. I do agree with Mr. Utecht that lectures have potential far beyond content delivery, and lectures with the objective to inspire the students are very appealing. I would try to incorporate lectures with the intent to inspire, with lectures as content delivery. I feel it is a nice combination that the students will benefit from.
So far this has been my favorite blog in class. I enjoyed it because I totally agree with what Jeff said. I know as a 26 year old if I am being lectured or "talked at" I could get bored very quickly. Using real life experiences to connect with the content you are teaching could be very beneficial. For example when going over the protocol and steps for CPR, AED, and First Aid I can tell students stories from my experience working on an ambulance as an EMT. When I start telling these stories students immediately have more questions on the topic and are more interested and want to know more about what I did in certain situations. I will say that when teaching a brand new topic, it could be good to lecture students on back ground information so that students can have something to reference too.
In the blog “Lecture as Content…” I do agree that lectures can be boring. I think Jeff’s approach to inspire, tell stories, and push an idea during lecture would be most effective. As a future teacher I agree with Jeff that if my students are not engaged it is my fault as a teacher. I think with all the resources and technology available to teachers today there is no reason that all lectures need to be boring. Some subject matter is not ideal however; a little change and different approach can be good!
I really liked the point Jeff Utecht made in saying that the lecture used to be the way in which we delivered content to students. I totally agree that the lecture should be a way to inspire students rather than just overloading them with an hour’s worth of information. It’s great that, as a lecturer, Jeff can say that “if [he] can’t hold their attention that’s [his] fault as a teacher and not their fault as a learner.” That’s actually a way I’ve never looked at teaching before. We really can’t fully blame kids for not being able to pay attention or be engaged by a lesson all the time. We have to find the ways to intrigue them and grab their undivided attention.
In my own class, I would definitely utilize Jeff’s theories on lecturing, and not really make it about a “lecture.” The whole point of teaching is to make kids want to learn, to push them beyond the bare minimum. The best students are ones who are actually interested in what they’re learning.
Most people say lectures are the most boring part in teaching. I believe it is the teacher who can make a lecture worthwhile. Lectures are not always boring to students. Students need to get involved and ask questions and participate in the lesson. The teacher has to have some sort of charisma in front of the class, make jokes and get the kids laughing and interested in the topic. Try and relate the lesson to the students and they will not be bored. Yes, being a math teacher I completely agree that lecturing is very boring by showing the kids step by step how to solve/do a problem, but then it is beneficial for the students to apply what they have learned and do it on their own. Not all classes have to be lecture. A teacher can take what they have learned the day before and have the students create a project or do a group activity with the class so that the students are having fun but getting educated at the same time.
Jeff Utecht explains that if we are to use lecturing as a means of teaching out students we must make sure our lectures are entertaining and worthwhile. A lot of students get very bored and do not want to listen to a teacher ramble on for 42 minutes. I do not blame my students for dozing off through lectures they listen to. The most surprising thing that Utecht described was that we need to use lecture to “inspire students to go learn the content, create understanding, and apply that new knowledge to other areas.” His idea to make lectures as a use of inspiration by telling stories and pushing out ideas is a wonderful way to make a lecture more engaging and enjoyable for our students. I also believe you have to have the right showmanship for these lectures to go well. Monotone lectures, even if told as a story, would not be as beneficial as when a teacher shows passion and some theatrical ability to “perform” the lecture to help students learn.
I agree with Jeff Utecht's comments about how to make lectures more effective and meaningful for students. Very often, some teachers feel that just by lecturing and imparting information on a specific topic that they are doing their job. I agree with this article that lecture should be used to inspire students to want to delve deeper into a particular topic that interests them and research further to learn more about the topic. In addition, using lectures to push ideas so that students get the deeper meaning behind the content is an excellent use of the lecture. By using lectures in this way, students are more engaged and actively participating in their own learning. With all that said, I do believe that there is a place, at times, for general lecture which can introduce a topic to students and provide background information. I feel it is necessary to strike a balance between the different types of lectures in order to best motivate and affect student's learning.
I agree with a lot of what Jeff Utecht says, but I do not feel the teaching form of lecturing is "dead." While hands on tends to work best for much of the student population, there comes a time and place for them to sit and listen. This becomes the time that it falls on the teacher to keep it interesting and keep up a dialogue. If the lecture allows for more back and forth and an opportunity for interjection from the students, the more successful the lecture can be.
The most interesting point made by Jeff Utecht in the article “Lecture as Content Delivery is Dead” was that he encouraged teachers to use lectures to tell stories. He believes that the art of story weaving into lectures should have a purpose, that purpose being to inspire, get a point across, or push students to want to learn more or think deeply about a subject. I remember most of my high school classes were taught as lectures and depending on the content and/or the teacher sometimes it was difficult to be fully engaged or “inspired.” Mr. Utecht supports student learning and discovery and research based learning; however I question whether these methods are appropriate or even feasible for primary early childhood grades. Do first graders have the mental capacity to go forth and conduct research one a topic introduced in class? How much scaffolding and how to scaffold in order to get them to be independent thinkers and take the reins of their learning? It seems as though, this particular style of teaching will benefit high school and college students. Although, I do incorporate story telling when teaching to make it more personal and to engage my students.
I have had my fair share of lectures in college that were not particularly fun to listen to, that is why I would agree with some of the methods that Jeff Utecht offers. Reading the slides off a PowerPoint that students already have access too is very repetitive and not engaging with the students. Getting the students involved and thinking is a better approach than lecturing in my opinion. Telling a story to the students can help them relate to the subject and be very engaging and thought provoking. In my classroom I would make my time very valuable with the students. It is important that they understand what is being taught in a way that is interesting to them rather than just a lecture that can be looked at on their own time.
Being a audio learner and a fan of listening, I do agree with Jeff that lectures should be used to inspire, tell stories, and push ideas. Students, I think, have become more visual as technology grows. Standing in front of the classroom and giving very teacher-centered lessons where the teacher does most of the talking and lectures to the students is not a beneficial way for all students to learn. Teachers need to be engaging and inspiring when they lecture, they need to encourage the flow of ideas and opinions as well as probing students to form arguments with reasons to back them up. I think Jeff made an excellent point and gave great advice on how students can research the content and use the lecture to get the students interested and thinking. If students are learning in a more hands-on approach, they are more likely to remember and learn the content. If you simply deliver and tell students information, they are less likely to remember it by just listening. Being inspiring, telling interesting stories and anecdotes, and pushing ideas for only some of the class time will be more effective. Then, having the students themselves research and look up the content on their own helps them learn it better, form opinions, ideas, questions, and arguments, and also become more interested.
In my classroom, I do use lecture for the first fifteen minutes of class. I give a motivation or do now that grabs the students attention and introduces the topic in class we are learning that day. It is a leeway into the content which I then lecture for no more then fifteen minutes. I use it as a way to give the students a foundation for the content. I try to be as exciting and engaging as possible, sparking analytical questions. I then give the students an activity to do to have them learn more hands on. I then summarize the lesson through open discussion or ask the students what they learned. I use lecture only to do what Jeff suggests, which I think is an excellent idea.
In my opinion, lectures do seem to be a little boring. the teacher goes up there and shows you a powerpoint that you have to copy or follow along. in this way, it is a little tedious and boring, however, if they make it more interesting by telling a story then it will be a lot easier to learn. so I do agree with Jeff in that regard. for my class as an inspiring teacher, when I lecture I will try and attach a storyline to it so that my students have an easier time remembering the material.
I thought this blog was very interesting. I firmly agree with Jeff in that if the student doesn't understand or grasp what you are teaching its not their fault, its the teachers fault. I feel that putting a lecture together that will not bore the student but inspire them is an excellent choice of teaching. Too many students are distracted by many things outside the classroom. I feel that if the lecture is interesting, the students will grasp it and want to learn more. I agree with Jeff in flipping the classroom. I think that if students research the night before class what the assignments are, it gives more time in the classroom to go over what they found and what they didn't understand. I always lost focus in class when the teacher would talk to the whole time and I never got anything out of the lesson. Jeff's way of teaching is definitely something I will be doing once I start teaching!
This was a great article to read. I have sat through some really boring lectures that have had me watching the time, almost falling asleep, and simply praying for them to be over. I can honestly say that by the time I walked out of the room I have no idea what was presented. "We don’t need to deliver content, we need to inspire students to go out and find it for themselves... Not to deliver content but to inspire, tell stories, and push ideas to the point we want to go learn the “stuff” on our own". His idea of using 10 to 15 minutes to inspire, sending them to do the research and then come back and "report" in what was found and connect the dots is great. his is a strategy that I would love to use in my classroom. I also believe that students would prefer to do it this way rather than waste the time sitting thru a boring lecture, use the time to research and actually learn. This article was definitely inspiring.
I agree with Jeff Utecht when he says that lectures should inspire, tell stories and push ideas. Lectures should inspire students to take action and be happy about what they are learning about. Teachers should be able to create an interesting story to present the material in a lecture. It should not be boring, instead it should grab the audience attention and make them eager to listen. Last lectures should push ideas and make you think of situations that could have never happened before. All too often now teachers rely on long lectures and PowerPoints to convey ideas. Many students are bored by lectures that are not engaging and interesting. It is our job as teachers to teach the material in an exciting interesting way to our students.
I agree with Jeff Utecht that lectures need to inspire, tell stories, and push ideas. Students need to be kept engaged and it is the role of the teacher to help encourage students to delve deeper into learning. I agree that a flipped classroom or telling a story for 10-15 minutes and then having the students do their own research is helpful. Students will be more willing to do the work and the knowledge will stick if they are interested in the material. Many teachers stand in front of a classroom and lecture, sometimes with a PowerPoint presentation. This can be very boring which causes students to lose interest and stop paying attention. When I start teaching I plan to bring material into the classroom that students can relate to and hopefully inspire them to remain engaged in the material.
-Lauren G.
I appreciated Jeff Utecht's commentary on keeping students engaged through the duration of a lecture period. I do agree with Jeff in that lectures should be used to inspire students, create understanding of the material, and apply the new knowledge to other contexts and other content areas. I would disagree with him however, in what seemed to be his encouragement of letting students go off task. I think that idea undermines his primary ideas of creating understanding and applying new knowledge- you can't do that if the class is focused on all different things.
I agree with Lauren that our students will be more willing to do the work that we ask of them and their knowledge will be more lasting if they are interested and engaged in what they are learning about. As a future biology teacher, I think I have to accept that a fair amount of my lectures will have to be just lectures- there is a lot of material to be delivered, and a lot of students find the subject challenging. In cases where it is possible, I would be happy to flip the classroom and use our lecture time for a more exciting and engaging application, project, or discussion. I hope to be a teacher that keeps my students' attention and interest for the whole year, and am open to using this as a mechanism for doing so.
I think Jeff brings up some valid points. Currently I am in two undergrad classes, one being economics, one being cultural geography. Both are lecture style classes with tests as assessments. The delivery method is what sets them apart. Economics, and that professor are straight forward ideas and pretty bland. You don't really get excited for it. Cultural Geography makes us think, and the professor uses power points and topics to stir discussion. I think to an extent that is the goal the Jeff is arguing in his blog.
I like the idea of telling stories. I think an exciting lecture, depending on how you go about it would definitely relate current events, stories, and real life to the students, all while making them interested in the topic.
Jeff Utecht poses some excellent points. It is absolutely true that lectures should be used to inspire, tell stories, and push ideas. It is very common to find instruction in terms of the teachers talk and the students listen. The students need the opportunity to be engaged in the content during the lecture.
I could not agree more when Jeff states that the students should be responsible to find stuff on their own and as a class learn it together to put it into context. Keeping the students engaged in lectures that make them think past what they thought was possible and motivate them to keep looking further into the content is what teachers should strive for. The classroom is no longer a place where we deliver content, all of the information is out there for the students to discover.
I thought this blog was right on point. It talks about how a lecture should inspire, tell a story and push an idea. Three great ways to get our students motivated! Students and people in general are all have different ways of learning. I think if we use lecturing not only as a means of getting the information out but to engage and promote curiosity it can and will be effective. If you want the students to be engaged active learners they have to be involved. I really enjoyed this article because it really gave me a different perspective on lectures.
This was a great read. I'm sure it will be hard to find a student who can say that he/she loves lectures. In reality, lectures are typically boring and difficult to sit through. It feels as though the teacher is just spitting information at you. Anyone can deliver content, but it takes more than that for people to remember and make connections with it. I love when he stated that teachers shouldn't just be delivering content, but we need to inspire our students to go out and find it themselves. Only when they are inspired and making connections will the content be meaningful to them, and that's what makes them remember it. It is our job as educators to think outside the box and somehow give information to our students in exciting and meaningful ways.
I agree with Jeff's ideas of changing the idea of lecturing in the classroom. It is the responsibility of the teacher to engage students and grasp their focus when lecturing. I agree with the idea that it is not the learners' fault if they lose focus in the lecture. It is the fault of the teacher. I believe that lecturing is a time for inspiring students about the content by telling stories and pushing ideas that allows students to critically think. Lecturing should be a time of conversation rather than a one sided talk. Students should have opportunities to debate, ask questions, and express their feelings and ideas that can further the students learning and the teachers' lecture. This can also allow students to be fully engaged and participate in the classroom.
Jeff Utecht has some fantastic points when it comes to teaching and giving lectures. Based on my own experiences in school, I know how boring or grueling some lectures can be, if they are not presented in a fun and intriguing way. While I understand there are some topics that will not always be that interesting, creating lectures that truly pull the learner in, I believe, is key. I could not agree more about creating and giving lectures that tell particular stories and inspire. While as a teacher it is easy to get caught up in doing all the talking, making sure conversation and input is distributed evenly amongst both the student and the teacher is also very important, especially during a lecture. If a student is not engaged during a lesson, there is no way they will walk away with all of the knowledge they could possibly get from the given lesson.
The only part I have to disagree with Jeff on is the same point that Carly brought up in her comment which was his encouragement of letting students go off task. By allowing students to go off task, that could lead to many misunderstandings or interpretations that would not be beneficial. Like Carly said, if the students all go off task, they will all be on different things which means the focus of the lesson or lecture would probably be lost.
I completely agree with Jeff about this topic. Lecturing students can not be the only way or for a matter of fact the way to give content to students anymore. I know having been a student for a very long time that when a teacher just gives lecture is not interesting or will hold my attention for however long the class will be. The teachers have so many sources now to make the class fun and entertaining but full of knowledge for the students. Learning should be a shared experience between the teachers and students, students should be able to give teachers new perspectives on topics. I really agree with Jeff about teachers telling stories to their students. I love this idea, it helps the students connect to a topic. I know as a future Social Studies teacher, history can be boring and dull at most times. I connected the most with the teachers that would give actual life experience about a topic. I think this article was great.
I think Jeff is correct-if class is boring that is on the teacher. Engaging activities will motivate and educate without too much lecturing. I understand better the idea of flipping the roles but I don't 100% agree with him. Maybe let the students lead the classroom discussion sporadically. Let them research stuff at home and come in to discuss their findings but not for every new topic.. I think that a method like that should be used on occasion. The students still and will always need direct teacher instruction. Our story telling and inspiring words will provoke them to want to learn but I wouldn't expect them to be the only ones finding the facts. The problem with finding the facts out on their own is that they need some guidance to do it right. They need to find scholarly sources and real facts. I wouldn't want them researching on yahoo answers or Wikipedia. I need to control some of the "freedoms" they have with a discovery based lesson. I think older grades will succeed with the task of flipping better than the lower grades. However, I am certain my "lecturing" will be electric and NO ONE will be bored! I will occasionally have students find their information on a topic and teach it and collaboratively learn together with peers but I will always give them guidance.
-Gina A.
Personally, as a student for almost my entire life thus far, I've really never learned as much from lectures as I did from other teaching methods. Almost all of my undergraduate classes were discussion based. We worked in collaborative learning groups frequently and other ways to engage the entire classroom. I don't think lecturing should be the sole way to educate students because not everyone learns the same way. It is imperative to help make the students active learners and retain information. I've always felt that lecturing simply goes in one ear and out the other. Especially now with the increase in technology in the classrooms, there are many ways to go about teaching a lesson. In fact, technology for some lessons isn't necessary either. It's all about being creative and lecturing certainly isn't that.
Katie Risolo
I completely agree with Jeff Utecht. As a student, I always thought lectures that deliver content were boring and I didn't get much out of them. I could always find this information in a textbook and online. The classes that were meaningful to me were the class where we had discussions, did activities, used materials to make something, and use manipulatives to figure something out. I think the other ways Jeff discusses using lecture are more effective. When a lecture is boring no one is paying attention and gaining anything from it. Lectures should be used to inspire, tell stories, and push ideas. Lectures should inspire students to go out and be the change in the world. They should give the students the confidence to try something new and go out and do it. I have always loved hearing personal stories from teachers. It connected what we were learning to the real world. I also think lectures should push ideas and show you a different perspective and have you thinking outside the box. I've been in a few lectures that have had me questioned what I believe and it opened my mind to a whole new world of ideas. In my classroom we use lecture to tell stories and inspire students. I think using lectures in this way is a great way to connect to my students.
This blog by Jeff Utecht was definitely an interesting read. His concepts are completely accurate and right on the ball. Lectures should be used to inspire children to want to learn more, no to shove information down their throat. Maintaining students interest is the most important part about teaching, without student interest it is almost a guaranteed that the students will not remember or contain he content. I think that Jeff's points are valid and that having students control the content is an inspiring idea.
Danielle Collins says...
I think lecture should not be used in the classroom, you are only touching upon one learning style, and forces kids who are visual and hands on to not pay attention.A lecture if dont correctly, is inspiring and informational, but it is not something that is easy to do. And for the majority, i think lecturing is dead. It truly depends on your class whether or not lectures can work, they can be humorous and grasping, but boring too much.
I really enjoyed reading this article. I was always a student that seemed to wonder off during class lectures simply because I felt that some were extremely monotone and boring. No student wants to sit in class for 45 minutes listening to a teacher speak the entire time. It is so important that teachers add in different techniques and resources to use during lectures, maybe get the class involved in an interactive lesson to keep their attention.
I agree with Jeff, connection is key. If you do not make a connection early on in your lesson/lecture then students will be lost and content will not be understood. Delivering content in a lecture setting can kill a child and their motivation for learning. Many of the articles we've been reading have had the same mentality of "let kids find the content" and i completely agree. Setting students up to find and discover the information themselves is wonderful, it will give children a great sense of accomplishment as well. Getting to that point and setting up a student for discovery in a lecture setting is difficult and we must us new methods to hook them into the lesson.
-Michael O'Keeffe
I could not agree more with Jeff in that connecting with your students is essential in learning and will both inspire and engage them. It is true that if a student becomes bored or disinterested in a lesson, it is the educator’s fault, not the childs. If the teacher were to engage the students right from the beginning of the lesson, they would be anxious to learn more, ask questions and maybe even go home and do some research for themselves. A simple lecture everyday will not interest kids and I know this from experience. I want to have the ability to work in groups and do presentations and I feel it is important to have feedback. When students are excited about coming to class and are tweeting about it, that is when the teacher should know that they will most likely discover more content, while the educator can look into new methods of teaching lessons.
I completely agree with the author. Students are bored in the classroom, that is why their attention is lost. Reading off a powerpoint and hearing a long lecture is not going to interest anyone. Therefore, I agree that it is not the students fault, it is the teachers fault. Telling stories is very interesting, I agree that is an effective way to capture the students attention. I will definitely tell the students stories that relate to the subject. Inspirational lectures are important too, there is nothing better than getting your students inspired to do something. I hope that I can inspire my students. My teachers inspired me to become a teacher, this is why teaching is so important. I do not believe in lecturing all the time because students can only take in so much information at one time. Therefore, there should be group work, interactive activities, use of technology, reading, writing, etc. throughout the class. That is the way I want my class to be. I never want my students to be bored. I hope I am successful.
I agree with the author’s ideas that it is not always a student’s fault if they go off task or stop paying attention to a teacher. Often, this is the teacher’s fault for not engaging his or her students and for not presenting the information in a more interesting way. However, I still believe that some basic and rote note taking is very important in the classroom. Students will then have a ‘hard copy’ so to speak of the information that they need to know and it makes the students responsible for what they are learning. For middle and high school students this is very important as they are preparing for college.
I think that Jeff presents many viable points here especially his assertion that lectures should motivate students to go out and learn and make a difference, and find out more information on their own. This goes back to the idea of the flipped classroom that we read about earlier in the semester, where students learn on their own at home, and do their independent practice work at school. I think 'inspiring,' or 'telling stories' are all critical elements to a lecture, as is finding something in the content you are teaching that connects to something that your students already know, or something that interests them. Motivation is key. It is okay to go off tangent as well as long as you are staying somewhat on topic, and the students are learning. All that being said, mandates nowadays dictate that students learn specific material in order to be prepared for state tests and other assessments so it is difficult to ensure that students learn all the material necessary while also inspiring them. It is difficult but it takes a great deal of creativity and critical thinking on the part of the teacher in order to achieve both in a 40 minute period each day.
I agree with Jeff Utecht statement that some lectures are boring. I can admit it from time to time I have zoned out or was on the verge of falling asleep during some lessons. It wasn’t the content that was boring it was the lecturer. I need to entertained and given time to ask questions so that I can fully grasp the concept. I liked his ideas to make lectures more involving and interesting by telling stories, pushing an idea, and inspire. Telling stories are the most effective idea in improving lectures. The reason why is because stories makes the topic relatable to real life situations. For example I was teaching a kindergarten class about the five senses. I added in the lesson about hearing impairment and blind people, what would happen if you only have four senses? I talked about having a brother who was born deaf and how he can feel the vibration of the floor when I come in the room. In addition I have to flicker lights to get his attention. I felt my story helped students learn about the five senses more.
I love to use lectures in my classes. However, I might discuss some information and allow the class to give their input and ask questions. When I substitute classes especially during history classes I love to have discussions. I taught a lesson about Ancient civilizations being a history major I know some more information about the topic that they might not discuss in the book. The students were asking me various questions about the Hammurabi Code and giving me certain scenarios. All the students were engaging in the lecture and answering really good questions.
Giovanna Bove
Blog Reflection #11
I agree with Jeff because anyone can stand in front of a room and merely read bullet points off of a powerpoint presentation. You have to find a way to engage your students with the lesson and keep their interest to learn alive. If a teacher stands in front of a room and is not passionate about what they are teaching then the students will not be eager to learn the material. I think by having students find the information they are looking for as Jeff mentioned is one effective way you can keep them interested.
I would use this method in my classroom by setting up the lesson so it is a scavenger hunt. By have my students actively looking for the information they will be able to work together and learn. Having the lesson form in this way would encourage collaborative learning and socialization.
Lectures are not engaging, they are not fun, they are simply a lecture. Yes, it is how we were or are taught in school but there has to be something more for students. personally, I know during a lecture I could fade out very easily and lose my attention which is not a good thing because once I am home I have already forgotten what was said. lectures and classroom experiences should be fun, of course there has to be one day when maybe a new lesson is being introduced that you have to sit for a lecture but after that hands on learning or active learning should be implemented. Lectures, especially if given in a monotone voice, can be very boring and lead to poor grades.
I believe that Jeff makes some very good points on the topic of lecturing. Lecturing is the oldest and most primitive way for people to learn about a topic. If the presenter is passionate and well-rehearsed, the lecture could be amazing. However, the biggest failure I see in presentations is when the presenter merely reads from a Power Point. This happens to often in the field of education. When the lecturer does not care enough to make the presentation engaging, the lesson will fail. Motivating the students to learn is one of, if not the most important job as a teacher. Finding other ways than lecturing, such as the flipped classroom or simulations, will help students learn in an authentic way.
I do agree with the author. I find that lectures can be very boring to the point I forget what the topic is even about. I think the ways the author suggested could possibly work, but not for all age groups. I think it’s great to engage students by having them actively involved. The lecture he suggests lets children go out into the real world to apply their knowledge and understanding of the lecture. He isn’t exactly teaching them content, he is inspiring to go out and learn the content. I am a kindergarten teacher and think I would have slight difficulty doing a lecture. I feel what I can do is to lecture for only a short period of time (10 minutes). While I lecture I will actively have my students participate by answering questions and use them while presenting an example.
Tara Berglind
Jeff Utech’s post is intriguing and contains many useful elements, but he does fail to support his thesis statement that is the title of the post, or does not realize that he is in fact practicing lecture as content delivery.
If you click on the link to the example document that he hands out at the beginning of his lectures, You will find from the evidence of the note-takers at the 20011 AIS Leadership Conference that Mr. Utecht did indeed deliver a significant amount of content in his lecture. Those notes are packed with many facts that were certainly delivered in the lecture. There is nothing at all wrong with this. I believe what Jeff Utecht is really asserting is not that the lecture form is dead, but that it must be adapted and changed to reflect the needs of a more modern and connected audience, and can and should perform additional functions other than content delivery. His points about what a lecture should do, be an inspiration for further learning and investigation, and a catalyst for thought, are spot-on in my opinion. Keep in mind that in the previous blog entry that we viewed, “5 professors on YouTube who Nailed Teaching” those links were to videos of lectures. Thought provoking, entertaining, engaging lectures. Plenty of content was delivered in them. It was delivered in a way that was meaningful to the viewer.
One idea that I find to be very interesting is his method of providing a set of links to resources related to his presentation, with the suggestion that the viewers investigate and follow some of these links during the lecture if they find themselves drifting off or not engaged. This is a brilliant idea for allowing students to self-direct learning while keeping them on the subject of the content at hand. As well as providing a chat room for participants to communicate with each other and comment during the lecture. I might be a little wary of trying this myself in my classroom as it might likely be filled with many comments like “Mr. Altruda is a jerk” and the like. For a more mature, college level course or professional development audience I might try it however.
In short, Mr. Utech has not killed the lecture as a method of content delivery, but he has outlined how it can be made more effective in practice.
Utech starts the article by claiming that the lecture format is currently outdated by noting the abundance of information available through technology. He suggests that a lecture can instead take the form of a motivational discussion to inspire true interest in the learning of the content rather than simply presenting it to students.
In some ways, I do agree with Utech. I believe that lectures should not become the centerpiece of a lesson and that students should discover the material of a lesson for themselves (and if they are interested, even better). What he suggests however seems much too idealistic. His first issue is claiming that all inattentive listeners are his responsibility. The limits of an attention span, as he notes, are a very real thing and while an effective educator will be able to engage a class consistently, much less can be done in the constraints of a lesson to keep the student who didn't want to be in the classroom in the first place from zoning out. Ironically, the highlighted "solution" to inattentive learners is to break from the lecture in to some sort of activity, so I'm not sure how important modifying the lecture format truly is.
Regardless, my lectures will rarely provide students with exactly what they need to know. I would much rather have a lecture with full classroom discussion and participation which "pushes an idea" as Utech discusses. Most of my lectures will be short, introducing a mathematics problem with equal parts familiarity and unfamiliarity to challenge students to discover the material for themselves, only to reach a full conclusion in their activities for the day.
I agree with this article one hundred percent. I have found that for the most part, lectures throughout my educational career were more detrimental to the class/individual student than anything else. I think lectures can be a very valuable tool for a teacher IF AND ONLY IF you are able to inspire your students and make them want to be involved. As stated in the article, lectures should be used to INSPIRE not put students to sleep. In order to be an effective educator within a lecture you must not only be informative and inspiring but also be a great public speaker. In a lecture the educator must be motivational and entertaining. In a way this form of teaching can be compared to a performer on a stage reciting a monologue. In a monologue the actor recites a longer script all by himself and it is up to him to engage the viewer and make them believe and hear what he is truly saying. A lecture is a show and the educator is the performer. If the teacher is just spitting information out while sitting at a desk, the student will not retain any information provided or even look forward to coming to class or another lecture in the future.
I agree with this article. I believe that a teacher's role is to inspire students to apply new knowledge. In my opinion, lecture based content does not inspire students to successfully practice newly obtained ideas. Outside of the classroom, students are already used to proactively seeking and obtaining information. With resources such as google, students can quickly and efficiently find information on their own. The difference is applying the new ideas so that they may retain information based on their student-experience. Personally, I utilize lectures as my source of motivation to get students interested in the topic.
-Gabriel Ramos
Do you agree with the author? Do you think the other ways that Jeff discusses using lectures are more effective? Why or why not? How do or would you use lecture in your classroom?
I totally agree with what the author is saying, mainly because I try and encourage my students by teaching them in the same way. As a Spanish teacher, I try and teach my students about Spain and other great countries out there. I show them pictures and videos, as well as other materials to get them engaged. After the students are engaged, I want them to go out and find materials and information on their own to help them become more knowledgeable for themselves. For example right now, my Spanish 1 class is taking a virtual trip through Madrid. The students are seeing real taxis, actual landmarks, seeing restaurants, types of food eaten in Spain, etc... I was just asked by one of my students, if she was able to go on the website at home, because she enjoyed the activity so much and therefore wanted to learn more about Madrid. I honestly think the way in which Jeff talked, is the appropriate way, teaching should be incorporated in class, because a student is only going to learn the material, if he or she wants to. It is essential that teachers make the students engaged, and want to learn.
I agree with the author that content delivery lectures can often fail to inspire and overall be boring for the students to listen to.
I feel that lessons that bore students, are failing lessons and like the author I feel lessons should inspire, tell stories, and push ideas. Both inspiring students and telling stories will create student interest and therefore will promote positive learning. Additionally, pushing ideas will add to student participation and the student will feel like they're apart of the lesson rather than just a listener, I believe this in itself will empower students. Pushing ideas can also change how the student views a particular topic and even at times can be life changing. This in itself is a powerful way to learn.
Do you agree with the author? Do you think the other ways that Jeff discusses using lectures are more effective? Why or why not? How do or would you use lecture in your classroom?
I agree with the author, that students should be inspired to go learn the content instead of the teacher drilling it into their heads. I find that by providing them with a worksheet that gives out key bullet points about the conversation is extremely beneficial for a multitude of reasons. Students who may struggle to stay focused can later look up these bullets, or students who are not very proficient in the English language will have less to read if they are just given brief notes. By lecturing students verbally, you may lose their attention and their desire to go further and research the information on their own. In my own classroom, I do not often lecture about the topic in detail. I will introduce some key points through a slide on powerpoint or another multimedia format, ask for questions, and then allow students to go out on their own and find out information or practice the skills. I would find it too dreadful to just sit there and expect twenty-eight eager fourth graders to listen to me.
Allison Schmidt
I do agree with the author. I think that lectures, no matter how old you are, can be quite boring. You most likely will only be engaged by a lecture if it is a topic you are interested in, or the material is presented in an interesting way and so it captures your attention. Therefore, I do believe teachers should use lecture to inspire students to be active learners, and want to learn more about the topic at hand. The teacher should present enough information to hook the students, but leave them on a sort of “cliff hanger” so it makes them want to research more and/or learn more about that topic. I use lecture in my classroom to teach new math skills/concepts. However, I do provide time during my class for students to complete problems as a class/small group, and then time for students to complete problems individually to check their understanding of the material. I would like to try to follow the author’s example of “flipped learning” and implement it more often in my classroom. This will allow the students to start forming their own understanding of the content, and hopefully intrigue them to want to learn more about it.
I would have to agree with the author that lectures are completely boring! Being interested and engaged in the topic is hard when you are teaching through lectures because students are not engaged and most of the time they are rushing to get every note down. I also think sometimes lectures are needed in the classroom because students have to get all the note down needed for the unit. Applying new knowledge in a creative way will engage the students more and make them want to learn about the topic being presented. Having class discussions and group talks during a lecture can help the student pay more attention and be more interested in the lesson. I think changing things up and always changing your learning style is the best way to teach students and if lectures need to be done implementing into your lessons just make sure you make it interactive and interesting!
Jeff Utecht definitely does a great job as expressing the importance of changing the way students learn. I agree with him on many of his main points. His views on how lectures should be used are innovative and adjusted to the way students learn today. Students have answers at the tips of their fingers, and I believe that exploring what they can find, could be a great tool to use when teaching students content. When students take ownership in their own learning of the content, they can come to class and turn a boring lecture into an applicable lesson. By inspiring students, you are allowing them to take charge and explore things that they find exciting and interesting. They should feel encouraged to learn more, even when they are not expected to. Telling stories is a great way to connect with students and put content into real world situations for them to make connections with. Finally, pushing an idea is effective because it allows students a chance to think outside of the box and break away from what they think they know. These innovative ways of lecturing can open the door for students to learn beyond what they think they are capable of learning. In order to incorporate this type of learning into my classroom, I would start by trying to use student led discussions. I would allow students to discuss what they know about a topic, and provide them with resources to learn more. It can be hard to implement this form of teaching into a classroom, but there are ways to do it on a smaller scale.
I agree with the author that a class made of lectures is boring and not engaging. Most students have the tendency to "zone out" during lectures leaving them with no real knowledge of what was taught. I myself am guilty of hoping a teacher lectures the whole time just so I can think about other things during class! However, I am always presently surprised on days that I hope to zone out when a teacher incorporates group activities and discussions. My lazy student mentality disappears and I am able to fully engage in the lesson and actually obtain knowledge of the subject. As a future teacher, I hope to inspire my students to want to learn by always keeping them engaged and active in the lesson. I agree that telling stories is a great way to relate a subject to the real world, and noticed that students love to hear stories about their teacher. This makes the student/teacher bond stronger allowing students to view their teacher as someone they are willing to listen to and learn from. I think the best way to keep students active in a lesson is to always be switching up the teaching styles. From visual, to audio, to kinesthetic and tactile, students need all aspects of learning in a lesson so that all their learning styles are met.
Do you agree with the author? Do you think the other ways that Jeff discusses using lectures are more effective? Why or why not? How do or would you use lecture in your classroom?
Lectures and Powerpoints are commonly the easiest way to give students the important information needed for each lesson, however it is not the most engaging and interactive way of teaching. It may just be the easiest option to cover all the materials. I like some of the activities that the author does for "lecture". The author uses lecture to tell stories, pushing ideas and have lectures inspire students to do more. The idea of flipped learning is discussed again in which it is the responsibility of the students to find the information and teacher and students learn it together.
I think it is very important to try out new ideas and methods to get students to learn and apply the material in everyday life. All students are required to learn the same information but it is how you get them to learn it is what matters.
This article really made me think. The fact that he says it's the teacher's fault is the students are not paying attention, is eye-opening. I actually agree with him. Although, student or anyone for that matter should be able to focus their attention for a certain amount of time. However, I understand the point that he is making. That if the lecture/lesson was engaging, thought provoking, inspiring, or anything along those lines then the students wouldn't be checked out. Again, the idea of the flipped classroom is great. Students, anyone really, spends so much time on their phone usually reading useless stuff anyway. Why not ask the students to spend time looking up content. When they are in your classroom they can use that knowledge to create or do something.
I found the article to be very interesting. It is true that lectures can be boring. This however, depends on the topic being covered as well as the presenter. A teacher has to find innovative ways to keep her class interested in the subject matter. I like the concept of Push an idea. I think that it can be great if you tell students ahead of time what is going to be discussed, so that they can conduct their own research. This has its limits though. A subject such as Math, that is very practical and takes time to develop an understanding of the concept, might not be a good fit for this. I can see it working for Social Studies or Science. I also think that this idea will work well for older children from around sixth grade. At this age they are becoming responsible and establishing a good work ethic. Telling stories is definitely a strategic and effective way of breaking up the monotony of lectures, especially if it is a difficult, or even new lesson that is being presented. Maintaining the same way of giving a lecture or lesson day after day is what is dead. A teacher has to keep her class interested in the topic by engaging them in conversation, group activities and open ended questions and assignments. A good reward system in place also helps. These will stimulate learning amongst students and keep them motivated to learn.
This article is very interesting in the sense that it is matching what education is moving towards today. Lectures where teachers stand up in front of the classroom to teach is becoming more and more obsolete. Principals want to see interactive lessons and student driven activities. This idea goes along with this article. She continues to discuss that lectures should inspire, tell stories, and push ideas. I agree in this sense because the speaker needs to keep the audience interested and wanting to listen to what is being said. I understand what this teacher is trying to say, but how do you teach fractions or a science lesson without incorporating content into it, yet be exciting. I think this teacher has interesting ideas, but the topics need to be taken into consideration when you are thinking of adding these additions to a lecture.
This article is very interesting in that I can relate to the feeling of being bored out of my mind during a lecture. There were times during my undergraduate where I wish I was being pushed to think above and beyond about a topic, as talked about in this article. I like the concept of Pushing the idea; it would be fantastic if when lectures are used in the classroom they could do the same thing. I would love to push the idea about a topic, to get the class to think far beyond what they ever thought about. I do think that there are topics that cannot be successfully covered unless in some type of lecture format, such as science and math (in order to have an overall understanding). I agree with Christina when she said the topics need to be taken into consideration. I could use these ideas in my classroom definitely with upper grade students, maybe with a topic that they are struggling with.
This article sums up a lot about how I was feeling during a lecture when the lecture was boring that I was entertaining myself. But I agree with Angela about the pushed to think above and beyond. This will help students think about things that they never thought of and also help them ask question to things that will make them look it up and come back to class to share it and compare it with others.
I think every student can relate to being board at one time or another. This is because everyone has different interests. It is unrealistic to make every single lesson super exciting by meeting every multiple intelligence. We have a lot of different resources at our fingertips and that can definitely add enthusiasm to a lesson but it is not going to always make a lesson more exciting. It is very important that the teacher knows their students learning needs very well as well as their interests. A teacher can help make learning more fun by teaching to their students intelligences. I personally feel that when students work hands-on they remember what they learned better than when listening to their teacher lecture. Not all adolescent teachers are creative but they are very good at delivering the material and sometimes that is just as important. Students need to also learn that not everything in life can always be how they want it. Sometimes they are going to be board and that's okay. What is most important is that the students are learning and remembering the material so that they are able to generalize it and apply it to their future.
I agree with Jeff when he says not all lectures are interesting to every single person. Everyone is different and has different interests. His thought on lectures being used to inspire, tell stories, and push ideas is something every teacher should be trying to implement in their classroom when delivering content. The whole idea is to get your students interested in some aspect of the content that is important for them to know. The aspect I do believe is crucial for students is the power point or work sheet with bullets that are important for that specific lesson. I believe students should have these important points in their notes and then go on with discussing information in a way that gets the students excited. I believe each student needs to relate somehow to the material being presented in order to inspire or push ideas. This is something I think teachers should be working on and getting better at as time goes on. You learn your students more and more each day so by learning their likes and dislikes lessons can be modified accordingly in order to get your students inspired when learning important material. Once students are inspired they will want to know more.
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