Engage With Passion by Chiayo

Engage With Passion by Chiayo - January 2015 Scholarship Essay

According to our English dictionary, learning is to acquire knowledge or skills through experience, study, or being taught. While it has been argued that experience is the best teacher, I firmly believe that the act of being taught can be equally engaging. If I could give a teacher one piece of advice that would be the most valuable in helping me to learn, it would be to engage your class in an experience.

While I have always believed in the power of a charismatic speaker, I had not highly valued the charisma of a professor until I began my introductory history series in college. Despite enjoying academics in general, I had always found history to be dull. My experience previously consisted of endless lists of dates and names and hours of dry reading. For this reason I forgot whatever I learned almost immediately and was dreading the college class. However, as I sat through my first day of class I kept rapt attention and was transfixed. What had changed? For the first time in my life I had seen someone speak of what had previously just been names and dates with such passion, I could not help but find myself caught up in her enthusiasm. I proceeded to sign up for each of her classes in my history series and found that, through her teaching style, I excelled.

I am now in my third year of college and have encountered a small handful of individuals whose passion again swept me away. Each of these encounters coincided with a drastic boost in my performance as well as that of my classmates. The key factor I can link to each of my very favorite professors is their ability to engage their class with passion and emotion. I can liken this to the way I might appreciate an inspired acting performance. You emotionally involve your audience in such a way they feel they are experiencing the story as it plays out. While this may seem dramatic, every professor in every classroom has to potential to speak of their subject with enthusiasm.

One way you can create the experience is to speak as if you are discovering something. While the material you prepare to cover each day may be old hat to you, your students are most often being introduced to it for the first time. Every class is a moment of discovery. Share that with them and you will have stepped away from your podium, so to speak, and begun to share and engage. Approach each lesson with the perspective of one who is seeing something for the first time and guide your class through their discovery.

The idea of engaging your class in an experience means you cannot allow them to be passive. Ask the question and ask it often; “What do you think?” If the material allows, ask open ended questions. If it does not, push your class to come up with the answer together. Encourage your students to be vocal. In this way they will have the opportunity to engage in your experience, making their classroom time more memorable.

Individuals have a variety of learning styles and I am sure my beliefs are not for everyone. I do, however, truly believe energy is the key. The most intelligent man in the world is useless to a student without the tools to communicate his knowledge. Engage your class, get excited, and fuel a passion. Regardless of the subject, there is a reason to love and care for it. Share that, and create a memorable experience that will help your students to engage.