Fires 7: Teaching Difficult Academic Material

Fires 7: Teaching Difficult Academic Material

            There were 2 things in this chapter that caught my attention, which were really the same issue.  Students mentioned they were afraid to admit if they don’t understand something, because they were afraid it would affect their grades.  3 pages further in, another mention was made of teachers thinking students had grasped something, and so the teacher moves on.  This leaves some students possibly still confused, and again, not wanting to ask for further clarification. 

            This comes down to teachers needing to get feedback about students’ understanding of the new material.  In both situations, the teacher should be asking if students have questions about the material.  The teacher (me) should mention on the first day (and other times) that it is an important part of the class for the students to ask questions about stuff they don’t understand.  It should be established that there won’t be any effect on grades for students that ask questions, and that there will probably be other students in class with the same question who will be secretly happy you asked.  It should also be stated that if they don’t understand and don’t ask questions, when it comes time to take a test or try to do a project that involves that information they will probably take a hit on their grade then.  They will definitely feel much worse with a lower test grade than if they had taken a moment now to ask the question.  They should also understand they can ask me at the end of class, at the beginning of the next class, or during study periods.  They could also ask by email for more information that will explain it better.  As a teacher, I will also need to be sure I ask in various ways (Checking For Understanding-CFU) if students understand that day’s information.  I might also set up a simple CFU quiz online as needed and assign that as part of homework, especially when difficult material has been covered.