I'm fairly certain it has been proven that you listen better if you're looking at the person speaking to you. (Brownie points to people that can point me to relevant research.)
At the very least it shows respect to that person.
But in a classroom, is it fair to expect my students to look at me every single time I speak? I mean... how self-centered could I be? It's not about me. It's about them. I want my students to learn how to listen. I mean they're not doing the super best job at it right now, but they're also 14 years old. I can cut them some slack.
My students use computers. Every day. For those familiar with what I do, this is not news. There are times when this can be perceived as a severe distraction for my students. How can they be listening to directions if they are navigating a website or typing or reading something on the screen?
I feel the need to argue that we do it all the time. And so do our students.
I sit in meetings with colleagues in which we are all working on computers and carrying on full conversations about curriculum development. I go to conferences and listen to speakers while I tweet about it. And I am a graduate student. My life revolves around being able to listen and type and participate in intellectual conversations all at once. Sure, I have to prioritize those sometimes or monitor myself to stop if I'm not focusing on the most important thing, but it is a skill i have learned.
Our students are learning how to do all of this, too. (Just watch them texting while talking to their friends.) For some, it's harder than we want it to be. They get lost in what's on their computer, or they tune me out because, well, it's school. But if I berate every child or every class that does not physically look at me when I speak, what am I telling that student about her/him as an independent thinker? All I'm teaching is compliance, and how does that create a classroom community that anyone wants to be in?
This means that I have to pick my battles. Sometimes, I need everyone's attention. At those times, my students literally turn their computer screens toward me so that they have nothing else to look at (except, maybe, walls). Often, though, I am giving them directions while they are looking at the information on their own screens, and they have to be able to stay with the class on their own. And here's the kicker, if they don't, they need to learn how to take that responsibility upon themselves to figure out what they need to do.
Almost everything we do in my class is written on a class blog. In addition, they sit in groups of six and I don't really require silence in every moment. The students have the tools to find those answers, and I need to let them learn how to use those tools sometimes.
I have found that the students who don't listen, don't listen regardless of whether or not they are looking at me.
How do I make sure those students are getting the information they need to be successful?
At the very least it shows respect to that person.
But in a classroom, is it fair to expect my students to look at me every single time I speak? I mean... how self-centered could I be? It's not about me. It's about them. I want my students to learn how to listen. I mean they're not doing the super best job at it right now, but they're also 14 years old. I can cut them some slack.
My students use computers. Every day. For those familiar with what I do, this is not news. There are times when this can be perceived as a severe distraction for my students. How can they be listening to directions if they are navigating a website or typing or reading something on the screen?
I feel the need to argue that we do it all the time. And so do our students.
I sit in meetings with colleagues in which we are all working on computers and carrying on full conversations about curriculum development. I go to conferences and listen to speakers while I tweet about it. And I am a graduate student. My life revolves around being able to listen and type and participate in intellectual conversations all at once. Sure, I have to prioritize those sometimes or monitor myself to stop if I'm not focusing on the most important thing, but it is a skill i have learned.
Our students are learning how to do all of this, too. (Just watch them texting while talking to their friends.) For some, it's harder than we want it to be. They get lost in what's on their computer, or they tune me out because, well, it's school. But if I berate every child or every class that does not physically look at me when I speak, what am I telling that student about her/him as an independent thinker? All I'm teaching is compliance, and how does that create a classroom community that anyone wants to be in?
This means that I have to pick my battles. Sometimes, I need everyone's attention. At those times, my students literally turn their computer screens toward me so that they have nothing else to look at (except, maybe, walls). Often, though, I am giving them directions while they are looking at the information on their own screens, and they have to be able to stay with the class on their own. And here's the kicker, if they don't, they need to learn how to take that responsibility upon themselves to figure out what they need to do.
Almost everything we do in my class is written on a class blog. In addition, they sit in groups of six and I don't really require silence in every moment. The students have the tools to find those answers, and I need to let them learn how to use those tools sometimes.
I have found that the students who don't listen, don't listen regardless of whether or not they are looking at me.
How do I make sure those students are getting the information they need to be successful?