Hands-on Learning in the Classroom

          Hands-on learning is really becoming the better choice for learning in the classroom. A lot of students don't learn what they need to learn because of the way teachers choose to teach their classrooms. There are many different ways to teach a classroom and positive effects for how they do it. Depending on the students' learning abilities, there is also negative effects to how it is done as well. It has been proven to work in many classrooms. Not every classroom should just be lectured or come from a power point.

          Every student learns in a different way. Many don't find a lecture from a power point very effective. There's a lot of information given and even the best note taker can't always get all of the important facts written down. Even if the student could get everything important written down, that doesn't mean that they would understand or even retain what they're being told, especially if it comes from a very monotone professor. Some alternatives to this would be things like taking the class on a field trip to help them better understand and even see what they're learning about. The professor could also break up the lectures with movies, giving the time for students to think, and sometimes having two courses work together. This could doubly ensure that a student not only learns but retains information because of spaced repetition. Another way would be to have the students interact with each other and in some classes, have a debate about what they're talking about. This allows the students to voice their opinion and be creative with what they have to say. 

  

They have to speak for themselves and really understand what they're talking about in order to defend it. This type of interaction is also beneficial to them in the work force and later in life. Having a student speak for themselves and mingle with their peers can really help them feel useful, accomplished, and smarter because they know they've had to work for something. It can be added to any classroom, no matter what the subject because of uses of interaction, personal discipline, and experience that can come with hands-on learning. They can all grow in knowledge and life skills just by a way a professor chooses to teach their students.

          Sometimes this type of learning and classroom interaction won't always work. Not every student is a leader or even interested in anything school related. Only they can decide what to do with the time they're given in and out of the classroom. A lot of this type of learning has much less teaching from the professor his or herself. This type of distraction can lead to less learning being achieved because the student was not first fully taught the material, and requires a lot of self learning capabilities, which not all students have. There really should be a balance of the typical-style of classroom and a hands-on method. Without it, not every student could really benefit from their college classroom.

Many classrooms that aren't just lectured are preferred than by students who have classes that are. 

Would a student who was learning by telling the class about the material rather than a student who just heard it from a teacher not retain more information? It is proven that spaced repetition works more efficiently than just hearing it, reading it, or writing it down once. Students remember what they find interesting. Even the most boring topics can be remembered if it's taught in a fun way that the student remembers. No one likes a boring classroom; a student always remembers more from the classrooms they enjoyed and sometimes even looked forward to going to.

          Jacksonville State University would see so many results if they switched to more of a hands-on learning method instead of the typical method. A lot more students would want to attend JSU with this type of learning technique being used in the classrooms. The freshman class would grow, and the percentage of students who got to graduate would increase. The wouldn't be so burned out and fail so much in their first few years. This would help the teachers better understand their students and bring the campus into the twenty-first century learning techniques. Every student deserves the opportunity to learn in a way the enjoy and gain information they can hold on to. Let's give them that chance!