Thursday 8 September 2016

PIDP 3260 - Week 6 - Lecturing Creatively

In chapter 6, Brookfield talks about asking questions before your lecture, and framing the lecture around these questions. This lets comments and suggestions centralize around these questions, thereby guiding the attention of the class. Additionally, this lets the class know that these questions will be addressed through the lecture, and perhaps the class can brainstorm or stem more insight beyond the main points of the lecture.

Forming a lecture around a particular set of questions will be key in teaching computer literacy. I’ve taken some points from the University of Waterloo (UW) Centre For Teaching Excellence, where they summarize a section called Lecturing Effectively. While following guidelines including sub-topics on preparation, lecture notes, engaging students, and more, I can centralize the lecture around questions that may generate a buzz in the class.

An example would be “What is WiFi, and why does it work better in some areas versus others?” Another being “How can you make a professional-looking resume that won’t get tossed aside, in only 30 minutes?” These questions sometimes read like headlines, but it can get students thinking of possibilities, or perhaps peak their interests.


I can aid these questions and structured lesson plans with visual aids as well. From the same Centre For Teaching Excellence website through UW, I have taken notes from their Designing Visual Aids article. This will help reduce clutter and distraction in my visuals, while keeping the learners engaged while we go through lesson plans.

In terms of searching for a video that would supplement these ideas, below is a TED Talk from Osaka in 2012. Garr Reynolds instigates his 'talk' on lectures by engaging everyone right at the start. There's a thought thrown about into the audience, and he does a great job of connecting the audience to the ideas.


No comments:

Post a Comment