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No matter how passionate you are about the subject you teach, it can sometimes be difficult to capture students’ attention. And for good reason, passion for a school discipline is not the only factor that comes into play. However, making a course attractive has many advantages: better concentration in class, a better working atmosphere and better performance results. the part of the students. It is therefore in your best interest to make a lesson interesting. But then, how can we motivate students to learn and participate in class?
We notice a close link between the interest of a student in class and the teacher who leads this class: his charisma, his personality, his learning method… Certain common points then come up frequently. There are 20 of them, and these are the ones we are going to discover today to make your course attractive.
You are ready ? Here we go !
Create a relaxed atmosphere by establishing a ritual
Adopting a daily routine has many benefits beyond productivity. Indeed, this reassures the brain, which feels safe, because it is not faced with the unknown. Following this logic, routine reduces stress to createa positive atmosphere and ensure a certain group harmony.
When to practice these rituals? At each highlight of the class , either at the start of the course, at the end of the course, but also at each start of a new activity (such as going to the blackboard, for example).
Motivate students by mastering the rhythm
Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, Minister of National Education, Higher Education and Research, already highlighted the prevalence of boredom in middle school during an interview with Europe 1 on March 11, 2015 . “The real problem we have today in college is that the students are bored .”, she declared. Why is this a problem? Because demotivation is one of the main factors in dropping out of school and absenteeism .
One of the educational solutions to motivate the students in the course then consists of mastering the rhythms. Indeed, a teaching pace that is too slow risks demotivating your students, while a pace that is too fast risks losing them and making learning difficult. The educational solution? Alternate between speaking time (theory) and learning experience (practice). Please note that the maximum attention span of students is estimated at 20 minutes. This can therefore be a real temporal marker.
As mentioned previously, the concentration time of a middle or high school student would be estimated at 20 minutes. It is therefore recommended to take breaks every 20-30 minutes, if you want them to stay focused. These breaks can be very short: 1 to 2 minutes between each activity. They are then carried out in addition to morning and afternoon recess, as well as the much longer lunch break.
But then, what to do during this break? Walk around the room, do stretches, have a drink, go to the bathroom, let your mind wander, chat…
Be convinced to be convincing
Being passionate allows you to always enjoy teaching, despite the intrinsic difficulties of being a middle and high school teacher. Furthermore, passion is transmitted quite easily. The more passionate you are, the more convincing you are and the more attentive and motivated your students are in class.
Concretely, this involves sharing with your students everything that excites you personally about the subject you teach. This then involves storytelling about your own experience, but also through concrete examples of the interest of this subject in everyday life. In any case, it will be your intonation and your joy in leading the class that will make a course attractive.
