Becoming An Updated Health Lecturer

By Connie Sears


The learning environment is posing a unique challenge to the health lecturer and raising the bar on expectations. Increasing number of dental, medical and nursing students requires a rethinking of strategy. More specialization in career requires better and deeper understanding of content. There is a call for implementation of new learning methods that makes it easier to understand concepts.

The new trend in the world is a movement towards more interactive learning methods as provided in the new curriculum. There is advocacy for lesser numbers in class which makes it possible to sustain enthusiasm. A paradigm shift is urgently required especially with the introduction of PDAs, tablet computers and laptops. It calls for modification of old models used in learning and embracing new customized, interactive and self-paced options.

Policy makers in the health education sector are favoring reduced class hours and increased practical and interactive sessions. Lectures are very passive and might not transmit necessary skill needed in the field. Participatory sessions are considered productive and should systematically replace lectures. This does not mean that all lectures do not add value to the profession. The number of people in a lecture hall should not necessarily be a gauge for success.

The gist of lecturing is not to plainly read notes to a listening audience. One may compare it to a dance which demands the participation of both the lecturer and the students. There is a mutual exchange of energy that is transmitted in a package of words, content and delivery. Each participant must inspire the other. It should be an interactive and transformative session for the lecturer and the student in their lives and careers.

There is value in the presence of a lecturer that cannot be delivered when a student follows an online module or reads a book. Real time delivery which is only possible during a physical lecture adds greater value. A lecture goes beyond information into inspiring a learner and engaging his or her imagination. It should be easier and better to understand a concept during a lecture than when one reads.

The purpose of a lecture is not only to deliver information. If this were the case, students can read books on their own or listen to an electronic copy. The heart and mind of the lecturer are at work and seek to find synchrony with the heart and mind of the learner. The enthusiasm displayed by lecturers is picked and exhibited by learners. A learner should be in a position to see his or her future through the lecture.

The focus of lectures, therefore, must go beyond good grades, examination and professional certificates. The end of a lecture should herald new perspectives, connections and questions about life. It creates a new vision for work place and life in general.

A story format is the best way to achieve success when lecturing. The concepts that form the story are a beginning, a body and a conclusion. The lecture begins by eliciting questions, suspense and curiosity in the student. The lecture then endeavors to find an answer or quell the curiosity.

A health lecturer will be successful if he or she is delighted and enthusiastic about the session. This feeling will be transferred to the learner and the session will fulfill their expectations. It is a productive session where a learner asks an unexpected question. The enthusiasm created makes the discipline infectious from lecturers to students and then to work places.




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