Keep the students engaged in the classroom

An educator is a one-man army with the roles of a facilitator, parent, counsellor, evaluator, referee, etc.; all rolled into one. The goal of an educator, among other things, is to inspire and train young minds to become active and continual learners.

Each child possesses his own set of strengths, behavior and pace of learning. There are Visual, Auditory and Kinesthetic learners and there should be some learning for every one in each session. The bright ones need appreciation and challenges to continue to be engaged while some need more affection and hand-holding. The idea is to embrace each child’s individuality and customize one’s approach accordingly.

Surprise the students

While a teacher is expected to be a disciplinarian and check the students all the time; it helps if she/he surprises them once in a while. Rather than scolding a trouble maker each time, establishing eye contact with this child could solve the same purpose. One could laugh along with the class once in a while to strengthen the student-teacher bond. But at the same time, have substance in what she/he speaks and conviction in one’s voice to establish authority.

Create Classroom rules together

Getting the students involved in devising the rules of the classroom brings in a whole new level of excitement and ownership. Not only do they follow the rules themselves but also ensure that the others do too.

Mix it up

Providing a learner-centric approach that caters to the needs of the students must be the aim of every educator.

There’s a lot of room for innovation in terms of teaching aids and techniques ranging from quizzes, listening to interviews, watching Ted Talks, simulations, discussions and competitions that bring fresh ideas to the class and get more and more people involved.

Change the backdrop

A change in the backdrop gets the attention of even the notorious ones, especially the notorious ones.

One could start with small experiments like getting the students to work in pairs, making them sit in groups for games and discussions related to the curriculum; and once the teacher has established herself/himself as a source of edutainment, she/he could get more adventurous in her/his approach by taking the students to the library or computer lab for research on a topic and make them read for specific information. The sports field is the number one venue on every child’s list and can be used creatively.

Have clear objectives

Classes have an assortment of learners- visual, auditory and kinesthetic with varied interests and learning paces. And so each lesson must be planned keeping their needs in mind. The learning outcomes must be shared with the students before each lesson or after each activity and the key points must be recapitulated from time to time.

Energy levels are contagious

An educator who speaks with conviction, takes rounds to monitor the students while teaching, gives relatable examples and has high energy levels brings a new level of energy and freshness to the class as opposed to one who sits in his chair and gives instructions.

Landing into the Lesson

A lesson must begin with a warmer which gets the students in the mood, learning more about the topic.

A picture, an anecdote, a game or a general fact could be a great source to open a lesson.

Theatre in Education

Getting the attention of the students is easy but increasing the attention span up to the entire period, or well, most of the period is important. Using miming activities or charades for recall; speaking with intonation and dramatic pauses goes a long way.

The idea is to make them fall in love with learning and the rest will take care of itself. We can’t get all of them interested in the same subjects and it would be unfair to even try doing so. We must rather encourage them to nurture whichever talent they have and excel in it; and make the other important topics understandable to them so their journey of pursuing their dreams becomes easier.

For more info: http://www.jphschool.com/cbse-school-in-jaipur

Jayshree Periwal High School is a high school in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India, and is a part of the Jayshree Periwal Group Of Schools. The director of the school is Jayshree Periwal. For more information: http://www.jphschool.com/