Must teachers always entertain students in the classroom? Why or why not?

1. 83

   Paul Kuehnposted 12 years ago

   Must teachers always entertain students in the classroom?  Why or why not?

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2. 77

   chef-de-jourposted 12 years ago

   Entertaining students 100% of the time is an energy draining process! Ideally a teacher is both entertainer and disciplinarian (without taking this too far!), looking to get a balance in the class between creativity and hard work. Not always possible but the rewards are great for the teacher who can maintain the balance.
   
   You could say an entertaining teacher is always looking for creative ways to work with the students whilst taking into account targets and deadlines and so forth. In my experience there is plenty of opportunities to entertain in class but it has to be founded on realistic approaches to learning and not simply be 'froth' without content.

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3. 61

   dianetrotterposted 12 years ago

   Yes!  Many don't do a lot of creative thinking.  The inspiration helps classroom management.  Entertaining can trick them into learning without realizing it.  Maybe they shouldn't be entertained all the time but the alternative is uneducated, un- or underemployed adults below the poverty level.

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4. 81

   sriparnaposted 12 years ago

   I agree with chef-de-jour, there must be a balance between the entertainment and the teaching content. I believe, if different ways are employed to get the attention of the students and to deliver the lessons, if critical and creative thinking is elicited from the students, extra effort to dramatize is not necessary. For example I teach Chemistry in the middle school, when we teach chemical bonding, we do talk about friendships, why we need to bond and what are the ways in which we bond? When an interesting discussion is already cooking up, I introduce the necessity for atoms to bond etc. Most of the times it's the introduction which needs to be like a hook, that can be done in an unconventional way instead of asking children to open their books and turn to page so on.....once you capture their attention, they are all yours, if you have a great class, you'll find coming out thoroughly entertained.

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5. 37

   ChristinSposted 12 years ago

   I think a balance needs to be struck.  In life, there is always going to be times where material is a little dry or not overly engaging, but you have to find the discipline to learn it anyway.  I think if education is "always" entertaining, then it kind of does a disservice as kids will have a rude awakening when they enter the "real world" and things are not always that way.  However, having something entertaining can make certain material stick and make learning easier at times - I still remember my high school English teacher and her tune she sung prepositions to - and of course all of the prepositions lol.  That was fun and made a boring task of memorizing a bunch of words manageable.  I think, as with anything, good balance is key.  I would love to see more teachers engage in creative strategies for enhancing memory and learning rather than just lecturing solely on subject matter etc.

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6. 98

   donnah75posted 12 years ago

   Let us not confuse entertainment with a comfortable, enjoyable classroom environment.  I am a teacher, not an educator.  I am creative and try to keep the material interesting for my students.  I am passionate about my subject matter, and I relay that passion with energy and a larger than life personality.  Never is "entertainment" part of my process.  I encourage my students to work hard and appreciate the success that comes from enjoying the outcome of their hard work.  Not everything we do is fun, and it shouldn't be.  Learning sometimes comes at the end of frustration and struggle.  We must create a comfortable, supportive environment for our students to feel that frustration, at times. I think we need to keep our priorities straight, and the "fun" teacher often has the worst results.  Just my two cents...

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   1. 61

      dianetrotterposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Hi Donna!  I teach choir and piano.  By the nature of what they are learning, it has to be entertaining.

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7. 96

   Docmoposted 12 years ago

   As a teacher ( and as a learner) If I think about my own best learning experiences the most memorable ones where those where the teacher was able to create  a sense of fun, a sense of awe , a sense of relevance or a sense of narrative and belonging. 'Entertainment' is a broad word but I think if we ensure we connect, stimulate, engage, illuminate and instruct is ways we keep the learners on board, then teaching will be a delight... Teaching can be a performance art too. Striking a balance, as others have said before ..within the confines of the curriculum and delivery. Finding newer ways and more relevant ways to deliver the core knowledge is always a thrill but very tiring and energy consuming.

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8. 68

   maddotposted 12 years ago

   As a relatively new ESl teacher I always feel the pressure with the teenagers to keep them entertained which is rather tiring. Recently I had a class of 15 to 17 year old students from Japan. They were unreponsives to just about every trick I pulled out of the bag! This caused me some grief as I'd not encoutered this before and I started thingking it was ME!
   I did a little internet surfing and found the following article that eased my mind.
   It's about boredom in the classroom and how the student brings a bored mind to the room. The teacher does not bore them, they are already in that state of mind and closed to any new ideas. It's an interesting article:
   
   http://www.ajarn.com/blogs/steve-schert … classroom/
   
   I did notice however that group work went much better than the more formal horseshoe arrangement. I think these younger students felt their cultural pressures when invited to speak out alone from the herd whereas in the group work they were more talkative and I could move around and monitor/talk to each group or individual without a stonewall going up!
   
   I always found learning to be more enjoybale if it was fun and I try to incorporate that into my lessons. That doesn't mean I actually perform like a clown, it means that I try to find age relevant activities that are engaging and that reinforce the grammar point/ reading, writing, listening or speaking task.

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9. 58

   Ira periyavallurposted 12 years ago

   So far as entertainment is on the lines of teaching, it is always fine because in the bargain children learn, have fun and also know where to limit their fun. This also increases their respect for the teachers.

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10. 0

    lovekesh45posted 12 years ago

    not always but entertainment is necessary otherwise students will get bore. Teachers should maintain balance in the classroom between studies and entertainment.

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    1. 52

       rock 111posted 12 years agoin reply to this

       i agree

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11. 70

    Preethi Anushaposted 12 years ago

    There can be entertainment alongside disciple. Being a teacher I believe the topics must be made entertaining . Thus teaching while entertaining . It is indeed not possible with all topics. Hence even the smallest chances to do so must not be let off .

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12. 82

    tipstoretireearlyposted 12 years ago

    Teachers should strive to make lessons interesting, but there are some subjects where students simply need the self-discipline to work through the material even when its not entertaining.  Learning is sometimes just hard work!

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13. 78

    bernard.sinaiposted 12 years ago

    Education and entertainment should be inseparable.
    
    Young minds love entertainment and if you can create programs that are both educational and entertaining, I’m sure retention rates in schools would increase.

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14. 62

    Kevin Peterposted 12 years ago

    Entertainment in classroom is very necessary. It enhances the intensity of students and teacher relationship, which would help teaching as well as learning easy.

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15. 59

    Umm Ibrahimposted 10 years ago

    I don't think it's a matter of 'entertaining' students, as our classrooms ideally should be student-centered and not teacher-centered.  But, learning can and should be fun, in my opinion.  Weekly competitions about a given topic, for example, encourage students to study the subject matter and make them enjoy coming to school.

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16. 63

    Al Greenbaumposted 8 years ago

    Sometimes you have to give lessons that "entertain" but other times you have to do the hard slog and get the work done. Depends what you mean by entertain. I think students enjoy a lesson in which they are engaged and know what is expected of them. They hate listening for long periods and they hate to do the same thing every lesson.

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17. 49

    Posesselpereposted 5 years ago

    It is just because you can make the environment very soft by making some laugh with the students. I think it is very useful in class and I am a aussiewriter and I can understand these things very clearly. I think it is not wrong.

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