IF YOU WANT TO:
Individualizing instruction as much as possible.
A professor of physics explain that he first gets to know the students as individuals, then he focuses on their weak points (excessive shyness, lack of confidence, aggressive over-confidence, etc.). "Then I begin to draw them out individually to help them overcome those weaknesses," he says.
"For example, I might challenge a smart-aleck student with a question he can't answer, and then help him find a way of researching or solving the problem. With a shy student, I might start out by asking him to walk back to the office with me to loan him a book I think will be of interest, or I might ask him to go to the library and look up something for me. Once he is in the office, I may ask him to work out a problem on the blackboard and discuss it with me orally, and then gradually convince him to make a presentation in front of the class.
"Most students are either afraid of faculty members or tend to think that we only like A+ students. In fact, some A+ students are a bore and some C students are very interesting and engaging people. More importantly, some C students are really A or B students, if only someone takes the time to work with them, to help them correct bad study habits or faulty problem-solving techniques and gain self-confidence."
Limitations on Use of Suggestion
Copyright 1983 by the Regents of the University of California