While there are many ways to encourage students to talk in class, not all of them will work in every situation. These 6 tips will help you understand how and when to use these techniques so that they’ll be successful in the classroom, improving your students’ learning and making your job easier.
Ways for teachers to get students talking
Communication is crucial to education. If students can’t articulate their understanding of complex ideas, they can’t learn them. Teachers who want to get their students talking should look into using some of these methods Teachers who are looking for a deeper analysis of strategies that might be more effective should check out our recent guide on providing guided math instruction and discussion . We encourage teachers to explore our library of guides as well – we have a series on elementary education teaching strategies as well as one focused on communicating with parents . You might also be interested in our tips for flipping your classroom or running an open house .
Understand Student Behavior
Some educators think that students don’t need to socialize and that it’s enough for them to learn. But, some research suggests that having students interact with each other actually makes them better learners. So what’s a math teacher to do? That brings us to our first tip… Talk More, Teach Less: While you may be tempted to simply hand out worksheets for students to fill out on their own and not speak another word, talk more!
Lessons from Good Conversations
Good conversations are a cornerstone of education. While we want our classrooms to be about more than one-way information flow, that’s often what happens: students listen to teachers, who share knowledge and advance concepts. There’s nothing wrong with that—in fact, it works well! But if we give our students only one way to learn, we aren’t giving them all of their options. Here are some ways to spark student engagement in your classroom
The Secret of Great Questions
In order to get students talking, you have to ask them questions that generate discussion. If a question’s subject isn’t engaging enough or if it doesn’t allow ample opportunity for students to respond, your class will remain quiet. Luckily, there are some tricks you can use to develop questions that help students share their knowledge and ideas. Here are six strategies you can use in your math classroom today!…
4 Steps Towards Great Conversations
Great conversations help students not only learn their math, but also understand that learning is an active process. Here are four steps you can take to encourage your students to talk more in class. 1. Do you have any questions? Sure, asking every student at least once a day if they have any questions will likely be met with a lot of blank stares and eye-rolling—but it’s better than nothing. If a student asks a question or two, even if it’s something simple, count yourself lucky; those who prefer listening over talking might be feeling shy and insecure. 2. Start with me… Begin each class session by having a brief conversation with one another. Remind students that small talk doesn’t have to revolve around dumb topics like sports, TV shows, and celebrities; instead, focus on discussing how they’re doing (emotionally/physically), what activities they had over the weekend, anything new/exciting going on at home/school, etc. Talk about your weekend too! 3. Listen while someone else talks… While you could try bringing up some controversial subject matter and go back and forth between conservative vs. liberal points of view—it may actually be a great deal more productive to get your students comfortable expressing themselves first before throwing them into such heady topics. Plus, as mentioned above, many kids won’t participate unless they feel safe enough to do so. 4. Let everyone answer… Once everyone has discussed something with his or her neighbor, stop everything and let everyone respond to what was just said. It may seem intimidating at first—especially when you consider that most classes tend to settle into roles where there are quiet people who never speak out—but most students crave feedback and don’t know how much their voice matters until they hear it being acknowledged from others.
How Chat Bots Can Help Teachers Improve Student Engagement
It’s clear that teachers are struggling to keep students engaged, and it’s no wonder. With a barrage of distractions coming at them from every angle, how can teachers possibly compete? One way to get students more engaged with what’s happening in math class is by using a chat bot. A chat bot is an automated program that uses conversation to help you complete tasks and fulfill your goals.