Presentation at GBS Teaching Community of Practice

1. How to Increase Class
Attendance
GBS Teaching Community of Practice
Tuesday, 5 August 2008
Peter Woods

2. Objective
 That participants will adapt teaching
strategies that will improve class
attendance

3. Why?
 Why should I attend if I just want to
pass this course?
 Why should I attend if hardly
anyone else attends?
 Why should I attend if my learning
style is better suited to private
study?
 Why should I attend if I am
distracted during class?

4. Why should I attend if I just want to
pass this course?
 Just passing is a wasted opportunity
 Expand career awareness in class –
industry speakers, wage/ consultancy
scales, input from industry seminars/
news
 Relate content to career goals
 Relate teaching and learning activities to
professional realities (project teams,
critically evaluating meeting ideas,
presentations)

5. Why should I attend if hardly anyone
else attends?
 Assessment reasons + personal benefit
reasons
 Course outlines and class attendance
categories – explain why attendance will
be beneficial in outlines
 Tell stories of past student experiences
 Present previous course evaluations
 Avoid focussing on the complainers

6. Assessment Reasons
 Lecture/ workshop quizzes – very clear
rules are needed, especially the ‘failure to
attend’ rules, link to previous delivered
lectures
 Reflective journals – limited number of
submissions needed
 Case studies in exam – must make exam
procedures very clear from the beginning
 Content structure – must tie in each
week’s content to a content/ module
structure, linked to learning objectives
and assessment tasks

7. Why should I attend if my learning style
is better suited to private study?
 Learning activities cater for all learning
styles
 Develop learning activities that cater for a
variety of learning styles (visual, audio,
active, reflective)
 Lectures – application discussion groups,
stories/ cases, problem-based
discussions, ask hard questions
 Tutorials – How would a reflective learner
benefit?

8. Why should I attend if I am distracted
during class?
Because most students find the lectures
interesting: -
 Short video clips (5 mins) followed by
discussion
 Use a central case study in each lecture
 Develop the art of story telling
 Break up lecture into 5min blocks
 Present latest research in class
 Provide an outline only in notes
 Manage class participation
 Control classroom noise

9. Why should I attend if I am distracted
during class?
Because most students find the tutorials
interesting:-
 Produce a clear tutor guide with outlines and
activities
 Train and meet regularly with tutors
 Record attendance and use student names
(communicate regarding attendance)
 Use a variety of activities – games, debates,
hypotheticals, quizzes, case studies
 Present information visually as well as verbally –
record student ideas on power-point
 Expect preparation and separate the prepared
from the unprepared

10. Conclusion
 Students ask ‘why should I attend?’
rather than ‘why shouldn’t I
attend?’
 Teachers must be able to provide
clear and feasible answers to this
question and structure class
activities and content accordingly