Getting out of reading 4 docx

The more active you are in class discussion, the more you’ll feel a part of the class and the more you’ll get out of it.. Many students don’t like class participation, either because the

Practice Tips

Listen to a Radio Talk Show Check radio listings in your newspaper

to find a program that interests you Get ready by writing out what you

expect the program to be about Then write down questions you expect

the program to answer

• If you learn best by hearing: Focus on hearing the program As

soon as it’s over, write down or draw a comic strip of what it

was about

• If you learn best by seeing: Take notes or draw as you listen.

If other questions come to mind, write them down Write or

draw a summary of the talk

Include in your reflections:

• Which of your questions were answered?

• What helped you focus on the talk?

• What helped you write your reflections?

Try It in a Phone Conversation The next time you’re talking on the

telephone, write down what the other person is saying How did that

help you remember later on what the person said?

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C H A P T E R 13

C LASS

A lot happens in class

participation You have to

be on your toes—listening

to the lecture and to other

students, putting together

what you hear with what

you know about the

subject, and getting ready

to volunteer or be called

upon to speak It sounds

like a lot of work, but

getting involved is actually

quite enjoyable and

stimulating The more active

you are in class discussion,

the more you’ll feel a part

of the class and the more

you’ll get out of it

S ome teachers simply lecture for the whole

class period, every class period Other teachers, though, like to use class participation for all or part of their instruction Many students don’t like class participation, either because they’d rather hear what the teacher has to say than what their fellow students think, or because they just don’t want to speak in class

(To get the most from this chapter, you may wish to review Chapter 3, “Looking and Listening,” Chapter 9, “Getting Involved,” and Chapter 12, “Getting the Most from a Lecture.”)

Getting Around Shyness

Janine enjoyed the lectures in her nursing class She just didn’t want to be called on or pressured to volunteer She’d cringe just before the student comment period that ended every class She tried to slide down in her seat so she wouldn’t be called on She kept her eyes on her notebook Her instructor saw what was hap-pening and finally asked Janine to stay after class for a few min-utes one day She explained to Janine that she had set up the class

so that students would get more out of it by actively taking part, and Janine wasn’t taking advantage of that opportunity Janine wasn’t surprised to hear the teacher’s comments; she knew she had to get over her shyness if she wanted to get the most out of the course.

H O W T O S T U D Y

104

Classes where professors encourage students to engage in discus-sion have many advantages over straight lecture courses If you’re one

of those people who doesn’t like class participation, consider the fol-lowing benefits that don’t come with a lecture course A class in which

you speak as well as listen is more active than a class in which you just listen When you learn by doing, you are really learning When you’re involved, you’re having a different experience than if you’re just sitting

there You’re more apt to pay attention, remember, and get real mean-ing out of the class In fact, bemean-ing involved can even make you excited about what you’re studying!

ACTIVE LISTENING

As you know by now, people listen and retain what they hear in different ways How well you use your learning style in a class of participating students can make a great deal of difference in how much you learn and remember

• If you learn best by seeing: You’ll probably find an active class

helps you keep better tabs on what you’re hearing There’s more reinforcement for what’s been said, with students (including you!) asking questions and offering comments Taking careful and fre-quent notes will give you something to see—and re-reading them will help you recall the class Remember, about half of everybody

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105

learns better by seeing You’re not alone in working to make

sense-of what you hear!

• If you learn best by hearing: Much depends on the kind of

mem-ory you have Some hearing-learners can hold onto information

for a whole class period, writing their notes after class Others find

writing down some cues about what happened right away, as it

happens, helps them remember later

• If you learn best using images: Draw pictures of the ideas,

people, and images that come from what you hear, connecting

pictures to show the influence of one on another and the

relationships between them

• If you learn best using order: Make a list of ideas, events, even of

the other students and what they said that you find significant

• If you learn best through doing: Talk a lot Use hand gestures if

this helps you get your ideas flowing While you’re listening, put

yourself in the mind-set of somebody connected with the subject

at hand and imagine what you’d be thinking, feeling and doing;

who’d you be interacting with; and so on

Janine (see box) found that if she pretended she was in a clinic,

and her classmates and instructor were co-workers, it was easier for her

to pay attention during discussion time

MAKE ASSOCIATIONS

Another way to keep track of what’s being said is to associate Some clever

teachers will pause or do something unusual after something important

has been said—maybe stamp a foot or spin around But, sometimes

something unusual happens by itself: a woman has a sneezing fit just

after the function of the thigh-bone is explained, for example When

things like this happen in the classroom, you’re likely to remember that

sneeze and also facts about the thigh bone That’s because people are apt

to remember the unusual

1.

2.

3.

Ask If You Can’t Hear

After her talk with her teacher and a little practice at home, Janine was becoming more comfortable with the participation part of class She learned to say things like, “Excuse me, I can’t hear you Please repeat what you said,” and, “I’m having trou-ble understanding what you just said Do you mean ?” She found the more she helped others make themselves understood, the more she was getting out of the class—she discovered she was interested in what the other students had to say.

Maybe you know how to help others listen to you, but some

of them aren’t helping you listen to them You have a right to know what’s being said It’s your job to tell someone if they’re not loud enough, or if you’re confused by what they’re saying.

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PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

You’ve listened carefully, but how can you make sense of what really matters and what doesn’t, of what’s valuable to your learning and what is just peripheral information that doesn’t contribute anything important

to your study? And how do you combine the instructor’s lecture with student comments to keep track of what’s happening in this class? How can you put it all together?

This is where active learning can really help Take notes to keep track

of the exchange of ideas taking place in class Use your learning style— drawing, making lists, whatever works for you If you’re a strong literal and/or visual learner, try numbering your notes or drawing lines con-necting common themes in what you’ve written This will help give you

an idea of the direction that the instructor-student dialogue is going Then you’ll be prepared to ask informed questions!

PARTICIPATING

GETTING THE GUMPTION TO SPEAK

Usually people are anxious about speaking in class because they’re afraid they’ll make some kind of mistake Aside from the fact that some teach-ers require participation, and grade accordingly, once you accept yourself

as a bona fide class member—and an appreciated contributor—you’ll not only get more out of class, you’ll feel good, too