“You can’t do big things if you’re distracted by small things”. Distractions have always been a topic of concern for students (and for teachers too at times). Even before the advent of Home-based Learning (HBL), teachers found it difficult to grab the attention of the students during classroom sessions, as children tend to get easily distracted. With HBL being the new normal ever since 2020, “how to help students keep distractions at bay” is likely to be the most searched query on Google by teachers. 🙂
Distractions aren’t just limited to students alone. Even teachers get distracted with untimely visits of neighbours or family members to their homes, and other external factors.
Here are a few pointers that will help students and teachers keep their distractions at check. Read on!
Encouraging the Micro-learning approach
When there is plenty of information to absorb, students tend to get distracted. So, it is best not to bombard students with too much course content. Students drawing in loads of information are more likely to get confused. Micro-learning helps address this issue.
Micro-learning is a smart learning technique for students where bite-sized information is provided to the students so as to prevent information overload. For example, you can summarise a long subject topic into a crisp and easy to understand version which will keep the students engaged.
Promote Interactive learning
Interactive learning can drastically improve the attention and knowledge retention among students. Instead of walking students through several slides of presentations, bring in interactive sessions where students get to interact with the teachers to understand the subject concepts more effectively.
For example, if you are teaching your students the concept of “percentages”, you can explain it in the form of a pie-chart divided into different segments. Ask them questions that help them relate the pie-chart with the topic of “percentages”. Their discussions and arguments might seem off track, but do appreciate their thought-process. Finetune their thinking and slowly guide them towards the right answer.
Interactive learning is an effective learning method for students of all age groups. Students will be able to connect the topics with the discussions they had during the interactive sessions, and answer questions quickly and with better understanding.
Sticking on to a proper schedule
Following a proper routine is very much important in helping children excel in their academic journey. Add punctuality into the mix and you have two important life skills to help your children cross all challenges in their lives.
Being organised is critical to completing learning goals. This factor is even more important when it comes to home-based learning. Students need to follow a proper routine on a daily basis – freshening up and dressing up for the morning class and switching on their screens 5 minutes before the session begins. When children keep following a schedule religiously, the scope for distraction minimises. They tend to understand their priorities better and take actions accordingly.
Timely Assessments
Periodic assessments help students and teachers evaluate themselves. Students will get to know if they have proper understanding of the subject concepts or not. Teachers will know if their teaching was effective and well-received by the students or not.
In a way, it helps students and teachers relook at their current learning style and teaching method respectively. The degree of success will help students and teachers get rid of the current distractions in place and take up suitable measures to overcome the hurdles. Moreover, regular assessments help drive desirable learning outcomes for the students.
Group Projects
Provide students with group assignments every now and then. The peer pressure associated with group projects helps students work better. This results in less distraction, and also getting the tasks completed on time. Moreover, assignments that are given as group tasks have higher recall value. Students tend to connect the exam question with the interactions they had during the group assignment, and come up with the right answer.
Have a to-do list
This is a must-follow pointer for both students and teachers. Teachers need to prepare a to-do list before they start the day’s session for their students. This will help the teachers to stay more focused on completing the points they have noted down for the day. Similarly, students also need to come up with a to-do list consisting of all the learning plans and assignment works they have stacked up for the day. A to-do list encourages individuals to have more focus with minimum scope for distraction.
Pick a calm environment
Parents need to set a proper learning space for their children at home. This space needs to be away from all kinds of disturbances and distractions. A calm and sound environment will help children concentrate and learn better. The same holds true for teachers as well. Teachers need to pick a disturbance-free zone at their home and handle their sessions.
We hope the above mentioned pointers help both students and teachers keep distractions at bay, and encourage them to work to their fullest potential. All the best! 🙂
Exam Smart Tips
Exam Smart Tip #1 – How to Encourage Our Kids to Speak Better?
Exam Smart Tip #2 – How to avoid carelessness?
Exam Smart Tip #3 – Establishing Routines!
Exam Smart Tip #4 – Let’s Read Carefully!
Exam Smart Tip #5 – Beating the Exam Fever!
Exam Smart Tip #6 – How to Eat Right for the Exams?
Exam Smart Tip #7 – How to Avoid a Meltdown?
Exam Smart Tip #8 – Taking Stress out of Tests
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