Enthusiasm creates momentum. But what creates enthusiasm? Every teacher wants to know the answer to this question because if we have this answer then our days are sheer joy. No more apathy, no more disinterest, no more glazed looks from twenty-five pairs of eyes that twitch forever in the direction of the clock. So I pose the question to you all (y'all): In the past, what has made you enthusiastic about learning? Do not limit yourself to school time -- you have been learning since you emerged into this world! In fact, your brains are pre-wired for learning massive amounts of stuff. So now reflect on when you felt enthusiastic about learning. What qualities were present in the moment?
Post your replies to this question by clicking the reply link right below. Feel free to read the replies of your classmates and add, argue, qualify what they have said before you. Feel free to illustrate your point with personal experience, particularly if your point is abstract. In other words, don't just answer the question, help me and everyone else understand what you are saying.
For me, I have been most enthusiastic about learning when we, as students, are not sitting at our desks simply listening to lecture. There is usually nothing stimulating about it. However, I am most interested when we learn about things of substance; like analyzing passages that speak about things we relate to. Debate in the classroom is fantastic, and makes me feel as if everyone in the classroom is feeding off of each other. Why? Because we want to know more. We love being able to voice our opinions and create an environment in which we can coexist. Not just as "the smart AP geeks", but as the teenagers who love to discuss the significance of the conch in The Lord of the Flies, question Nick's sexuality in Gatsby, and drool over Mr. Darcy's professions of his true love. Being able to joke about literature and being able to discuss it makes me want to learn.
ReplyDeleteDuring school, for me to be enthusiastic about learning, the teacher has to grab my attention for me to listen carefully. Also, the teacher has to be interactive and exciting for me to want to listen to him/her. When I feel enthusiastic about learning, the subject usually is something that catches my attention because its something that interests me. If i'm interested in the lesson, then i'm more likely to pay attention and not fall asleep on the desk.
ReplyDeleteNoted. :~)
DeleteWhen learning to improve in swimming, doing well at meets has always kept me enthusiastic. The enthusiasm and excitement of beating my times always brings me back, wanting to learn better swimming techniques. When I do well I have enthusiasm, when I have enthusiasm I have greater focus and confidence, which give me the tools I need to learn and keep improving. In a school setting, I think I learn more and retain information from teachers that have more creativity and a realistic, casual personality.
ReplyDeleteAm I supposed to respond to this question here? This is the only link that I see, yet it feels odd that I would be the first to reply... Oh well, here goes. My own personal times when I felt enthusiastic about learning have been limited to science, lets face it, grammar does not exactly excite the world, and all of my times of interesting scientific conversation have been not at the desk in the classroom, but at the dinner table with my father. Both of us being absolute science nerds we are intrigued by odd phenomena of the scientific world, or facts and ideas hard to wrap one's mind around. These have included but are not limited to, the 4th dimension, quantum mechanics with "spooky energy" and teleportation. These all have in common a total lack of curriculum behind them and were just subjects to have discussion and mull about over a nice meal. The problem with science classes are the fact that everyone is concerned about getting the 'right' answer rather than the process of discovering that correct answer. In other words, there is no coherent thought needed, just memorization, and studying for tests and walla! a beautiful brilliant scientist.
ReplyDeleteI am enthusiastic about learning when I feel like what I'm learning will make a lasting impact. One of my biggest struggles in school is retaining information. I've found that in order to do well grade wise I have to stay up late studying the night before a test, to temporarily memorize the imformation for the following day. But that's all it is. Temporary. In many classes (especially history!) all I'm left with is a letter grade at the end of the year, but no lasting knowledge.
ReplyDeleteEnglish is a class I am genuinely interested in being engaged in. I'm already loving the class this year. I think the blogs are a really cool method of writing. I like using technology in school for writing. Its a realistic technique and touches basis with a comment made in the video we watched in class today, "Why haven't we allowed innovation to happen." If it was up to me I would never handwrite a writing sample again!
Often in English I feel like I'm rushed to read books and writes essays, but do not get much feedback. Its discouraging to have essays returned but no comments on how to improve.
In the past teachers that make an individual connection so I become aware of my strengths and weaknesses in that subject, make me more enthusiastic to learn. I like doing creative projects that make a lasting impression, so I feel that not only did I do well in the class but I remember what I learned. Last year we did a Macbeth project where we were assigned scenes to fully memorize and act out with props and costumes. While a challenge, it was really fun performing and watching others perform. It made me more interested in the entire Macbeth unit.
Ever since I was young I was always intrigued by physically taking things apart and (at least attempting)putting them back together. This often helped spark ideas to use the components inside for other things. I learned about how they worked when I took them apart and thought it was really cool to look at the insides of whatever it was. It was often Nerf guns that I modified. This led me to start building things. I built my own homemade pressurized Nerf gun and then decided that I really liked to build things. This intrigued me to learn a ton; I was very interested in air cannons especially. I also decided I wanted to build an electric bike or motorcycle. The idea of building something complex and difficult while learning a lot really appealed to me. I learned a lot about all of the different components I could use and also learned about micro controllers. I was planning on using these skills to build it but never got around to it. I did however learn how I could build one. Last year my friend Jake and I decided we wanted to build an electric go kart. For this we would likely have to build a custom motor controller; because of that I was able to figure out exactly how to build that and now know a good deal about the engineering of electrical components. I feel very enthused to learn when something really excites me and is something that I think will be fun. If I can physically build something it always appeals to my interests. I like to learn about random things in my spare time on the internet. This is because I am constantly thinking of some invention that I think would be cool or would like to try to build. The internet gives me ideas for this and helps me follow my science and engineering ideas up with useful information that I can use well in the future. I am a member on the robotics team where we constantly try to come up with ideas to build new things and this knowledge definitely helps.
ReplyDeleteI am enthusiastic about learning when there is digestion time available for me to sit and think to develop my own opinion on whatever the topic is at hand. What I learn, whether it is in or out of school, often occupies the back of my mind for days, or even weeks after learning it if it is something I am interested in. Almost any controversial topic makes me enthusiastic because I like turning it over in my head and connecting it to other ideas and thoughts I have had. I also like to think of my own theories to explain why something I learn about has come to be what it is. To sum up, I am enthusiastic about learning when it is something I can reflect and occupy my mind on, rather than solve like a math problem.
ReplyDeleteI think enthusiasm about learning is created when students learn something that they think will be important and useful in their lives. Everyone is enthusiastic about different things depending on their interests. I'm enthusiastic about learning about medical and scientific information because it will be useful for me to cure diseases. I'm also interested in anything else that's useful in real life and not just information teachers teach you because they have to or because they want you to pass a test.
ReplyDeleteIn school, I have always been enthusiastic about certain subjects, like history and law, but this tended to come from an attraction to the subject itself. I have been enthusiastic though about my criminal justice class where we learn through hands on activities (like making foldables), writing some notes, and watching video clips. I also liked to learn more when the class was more fun and the teacher could make jokes. Outside of school, I was eager to learn how to play the flute because I could hear myself improving and that gave me a reason to keep at it. I also liked learning how to play the flute because I could play fun music and find songs that I really liked and songs that I was able to get into and feel emotion while playing.
ReplyDeleteI think the most important factor for being enthusiastic about learning is being interested in the topic you are learning. If you have disinterest in the specific topic you are learning about, it will be difficult for you to stay engaged in your learning. The problem in a school learning environment is that there is so much structure that it leaves no room for creativity or imagination so students have a hard time being enthusiastic about their learning. The best way for teachers to keep their students engaged while learning is to try to make the class interesting. Teachers should try to create a fun learning environment and make it a priority to have students wanting to come to their class. If you can keep me engaged during class, than I will definitely be enthusiastic about my learning even though it maybe a topic I have no interest in. I think I was most enthusiastic about learning how to drive a car. During this special experience, I was not only interested in driving; but also gave me an opportunity for self-maturation. For the first time in my life, I realized that I was finally maturing into an adult and I was gonna be given more responsibility such as driving car. This may not be your typical learning situation but there are still certain aspects about how to learn enthusiastically that you can derive from this situation. To be an enthusiastic learning experience, it must be an enjoyable experience where you can learn something that you think is important. As a student, I learn a lot everyday. The things that I thought were important were the times i was thinking enthusiastically.
ReplyDeleteThe most effective ways to make me enthusiastic about learning are three things in particular: collaboration, competition, and cookies (and its always best when they are combined.) Collaboration makes things more interesting; you can debate with group members, joke around, and just make simple, usually boring things like worksheets, more interesting. Competition gives you incentive to do well, and established the satisfaction of winning as equal to doing academically well. Cookies, well, cookies are delicious.
ReplyDeleteAs part of the math team, we get to work as a team to try to help each other figure out practice packets. At meets, we eat cookies and compete to beat the other team. I have to say, there is no greater moment then seeing the other teams have to quietly pack up their calculators and admit defeat.
The main cause of enthusiasm is the plate of cookies waiting for you when you win a math meet, or finish writing that essay.
I almost forgot to mention something that always makes me extremely enthusiastic. I love to create things, whether that be posters, movies, skits, or any other form of art. If I am asked to create a documentary on, let's say, types of cows in the united states, I will be far more thrilled to jump into a movie about cows, and all the options that gives me, than to write an essay about these very same cows. Media and art allow for innovation, and are much more likely to end in a final product that I am proud of and put a lot of effort into than a standardized and limited form.
ReplyDeleteWe shall see, Bethany. We shall see.
DeleteIf teachers' want students to be enthusiastic about a subject, the teachers THEMSELVES must be the first to show eagerness in what they are teaching. Nothing disengages students more than a monotonous teacher who talks at students rather than engaging with them. By the teacher actively creating games and group activities that inspire teamwork and competition among students, they are in turn helping the students to actually LEARN the material rather than MEMORIZING it. For example, history had always been a struggle for me. I spent more time trying to keep up with the teachers notes than actually thinking about the content I was writing down. However, last year was different. My American History teacher last year developed skits that the entire class to acted out. Instead of learning about a boring dead guy from the 1800's, I WAS that dead guy from the 1800's and I was able to get a better understanding about his life and role in society during that particular time period. It's that extra mile my American History teacher took that helped me achieve an A in that class, and for that I am grateful.
ReplyDeleteAlthough school is not my favorite thing in the world, I like to learn new things. Despite this, sometimes it is very difficult for me to feel more enthusiastic about it all. When a teacher is excited to teach the lesson and is very animated when they do so, that makes me pay attention more. I also get more enthusiastic about learning when the teacher shows an interest in and attempts to develop a relationship with the students. When a teacher really doesn't seem to care about the class or students, that makes me feel like I shouldn't have to care either. Also, if a teacher always acts serious and never jokes around, I get really bored and lose interest in what's going on. Overall, I believe that everyone is different and therefore, we all retain information differently.
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ReplyDeleteEnthusiasm is a hard feeling to get out of students - anybody, really - because it's not something that can be artificially expressed. Even when a student is excited, a lot of the time it's not fruit of the teacher's efforts, but some prior interest. I hardly have enthusiasm in school. There's a sense of accomplishment for some things, sure, but that's never really a major factor.
Really, I only recall feeling enthusiasm in learning for two main reasons: discussion/teaching of a subject I already have preestablished interest in, or teaching about a subject I know will be intriguing to discuss or learn more about, and will be beneficial to my life.
The first cause, while helpful, isn't something teachers can do much about. They can make an effort to learn about what students know they are interested in already and try to cater to those curiosities, but there's only so much you can do when your class already has an assigned subject. The most students can do about that is take classes relevant to those interests, or do research separate from school.
Interest is something teachers can try to generate, but there's no guarantee it will work. Math is useful, but no teacher can explain why knowing how to graph a certain type of function is pertinent to anybody's life. English has a freer rein because it is a more open topic, and the books and papers it covers can have more complex themes. I always have more interest in English discussions because, while I may not participate too much, it's a good experience hearing other people's opinions and how they may have interpreted certain parts differently, even though everyone read the same text.
I guess one could say that enthusiasm is something personal and it depends on what they enjoy. However they're certain events that can make any student happy. Most students that I know can get enthusiastic from something as simple as taking class outside. The everyday routine of sitting inside and doing minimal tasks drives some students insane. Change in the everyday schedule can make the biggest difference in grades and even the way a student views a class. So, the bottom line is, let's switch things up! Let's be creative and then enthusiasm will ensue.
ReplyDelete(I originally replied to this as a post on my blog on the day it was assigned)
ReplyDeleteAs a goal-oriented person, I feel I am most enthusiastic about learning when there is a certain goal my classmates and I are trying to reach and we can go about it creatively. Doing a project or creating some sort of visual piece makes me the most enthusiastic about learning. When I have an assignment and can go about doing it creatively I find that I am more motivated to do it. In my past experiences, I've found that working as a class and trying to solve something is a more enjoyable challenge than analyzing a source from a packet. Being active in the classroom and collaborating with others is a way for everyone to be involved. Enthusiastic learning makes me think back to my seventh grade history class. Although the material we covered is much lighter than that of classes I am taking now, our teacher always found ways to surprise us in the way we would be taught. There were always interactive activities going on; whether it was with other students or the Smart Board. From class discussion to group projects. Something where I always have to be on task makes me become more involved in the material and enjoy it more. Walking into a class and being excited to find out what you will be doing that day makes me more enthusiastic about the whole learning process. Being passionate about what I am learning can cause me to think of the topic on a larger scale and relate it to life. Connecting themes and things we do in class to the outside world can cause me to not have a tunnel-vision when it comes to learning. When any group of people becomes truly passionate about a topic, it can create a sort of "excited" environment and cause every individual to also expand their own mind.
For me in order to be enthusiastic about learning I have to be interested in the subject. If I'm not interested then I immediately start to pay less attention to whatever we're learning about. However if I am interested in the subject then learning becomes more enjoyable and and comes easier. My enthusiasm on the subject that we're learning also depends on the difficulty of the subject. If it is easy to learn then i feel more confident about learning it which makes it more enjoyable to learn. But if it is difficult to learn then I am not as interested because i may become frustrated due to the difficulty.
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ReplyDeleteEnthusiasm can be created by a wide variety of different things. Many factors work together to create an enthusiasm for learning. Even though this is true, nothing is more important to creating enthusiasm than curiosity. Curiosity about something causes a person to question it and want to learn more about it. A person will not stop questioning it until they finally get an answer, and the only way to get the answers is to learn. Children ask so many questions because they are very curious, which in turn makes them very eager to learn about whatever they are questioning. Curiosity is more likely to take place with interesting topics that students haven't already learned about. When students have to learn about something that they already know about, it eliminates all enthusiasm that they may have previous had for the topic. Enthusiasm for learning is sparked by curiosity, and without curiosity the enthusiasm can be virtually nonexistent.
Lets be honest sitting in a class all day isn't fun or exciting. So for me to get enthusiastic is hard because I'm not even energetic in the first place. Which explains why when I'm out and about I only get enthusiastic to learn and its simply that. I think its because I enjoy learning. Alot of people do but when someone is tired which is typical. Most people are not gonna be willing to learn because of the low energy
ReplyDeleteEnthusiasm is created when an activity is made fun, or when the activity is interactive. It draws my attention and pulls me in.It creates an excitement which sparks my enthusiasm. I am enthusiastic about learning things to do with football or something else that I enjoy and have a passion for. In order for me to be enthusiastic for learning I need to be able to visualize the lesson and the learning must be from the smartboard instead of a long boring lecture. Enthusiastic learning brings me back to my history classes for the past years where there was competitions between classmates during the lessons.In the past when I was enthusiastic about learning I was passionate and it was interactive and inorder for me to become enthusiastic again, school needs to become more interactive.
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