A classroom is that place where students learn to ask questions, discover new things about the world and become more learned people. Failure of the teachers to engage students and provoke curiosity in them might lead to students being bored and inattentive.
YUKTA BAJRACHARYAThat feeling of restlessness and disinterest in what’s happening around you, we are of course familiar with it. Yes, the kingdom of boredom is a known turf for most of us. Boredom can strike anywhere but in a student’s life, the most common place of boredom can be a classroom.
Not all classrooms are boring. But we’re talking about the seemingly never-ending lectures, the difficult subjects taught in an even more difficult manner, and the teacher-centric education system that fails to catch the interest of the students, and hence making it not possible for the students to effectively learn in the classrooms. When asked whether he gets bored in class, Vishal Basnet, student of Bachelors of Science in Computer Science and Information Technology, replies, “All the time.”
Justifying himself, he says, “The way the teacher teaches has nothing to do with practicality and is only about scoring good marks in exams. A teacher comes inside the classroom, gives us notes, and when the class ends, he goes,” he adds.
Basnet, who gets bored in such classes often, engages himself with other things to fight boredom. “I start asking questions to the teacher that are silly or irrelevant to what’s being taught, or else, I sleep,” he shares.
This is perhaps the story of most students’ lives. No matter how much you are willing to learn inside the classroom, sometimes it becomes difficult to concentrate because what is being taught, or more aptly, the way in which what is being taught, fails to intrigue students. Not all teachers are capable of engaging their students and not all of them can teach effectively.
There are those classes where time flies just like that. Students are hooked by what the teacher is saying. There are interactions and a learning atmosphere that there should be in a class.
“I get bored in classes where the teachers are very strict,” shares Surakshya Malla, a student in grade 11. “If the way the teacher teaches isn’t interesting, for example, if he or she just starts to lecture, then I lose interest,” says Malla. “When I’m bored in class, I start doodling on the last pages of my copy or I throw paper balls at my friends,” she giggles.
Of course, cell phones are a lifesaver, especially if you have a Smartphone full of games, photo editing applications or other apps that are a pastime.
“Using cell phone in class is another thing to do when you’re bored,” says Malla whose Samsung Galaxy Y is another cure for boring classes.
By the third class of the day, boredom usually strikes in for Bina Bhattarai, a student of Masters in English Literature. Lack of appropriate breaks in between classes makes things monotonous, she says.
“However, it also depends on the teacher’s style of teaching. If the teacher is interesting, I’m very attentive, even in the third class,” she says.
However, the sole blame can’t be placed on teachers and their teaching methods alone. “But sometimes, I also think that it’s my weakness that I can’t concentrate and be alert in class. So if an important topic is being taught, no matter how boring it is, I force myself to pay attention,” adds Bina.
Whenever she’s bored in class, she moves to the last bench and listens to music or reads novels. Sometimes, because her college is liberal, she also goes outside to drink tea with her friends.
A classroom is that place where students learn to ask questions, discover new things about the world and become more learned people. Failure of the teachers to engage students and provoke curiosity in them might lead to students being bored and inattentive. This of course, affects learning. Hence, it’s important for teachers to ensure that students have no time to think about doodling, sleeping or engaging in unnecessary side talks in class, and instead are so grasped in what is being taught in class that they don’t want the school bell to ring.
Not all classrooms are boring. But we’re talking about the seemingly never-ending lectures, the difficult subjects taught in an even more difficult manner, and the teacher-centric education system that fails to catch the interest of the students, and hence making it not possible for the students to effectively learn in the classrooms. When asked whether he gets bored in class, Vishal Basnet, student of Bachelors of Science in Computer Science and Information Technology, replies, “All the time.”
Justifying himself, he says, “The way the teacher teaches has nothing to do with practicality and is only about scoring good marks in exams. A teacher comes inside the classroom, gives us notes, and when the class ends, he goes,” he adds.
Basnet, who gets bored in such classes often, engages himself with other things to fight boredom. “I start asking questions to the teacher that are silly or irrelevant to what’s being taught, or else, I sleep,” he shares.
This is perhaps the story of most students’ lives. No matter how much you are willing to learn inside the classroom, sometimes it becomes difficult to concentrate because what is being taught, or more aptly, the way in which what is being taught, fails to intrigue students. Not all teachers are capable of engaging their students and not all of them can teach effectively.
There are those classes where time flies just like that. Students are hooked by what the teacher is saying. There are interactions and a learning atmosphere that there should be in a class.
“I get bored in classes where the teachers are very strict,” shares Surakshya Malla, a student in grade 11. “If the way the teacher teaches isn’t interesting, for example, if he or she just starts to lecture, then I lose interest,” says Malla. “When I’m bored in class, I start doodling on the last pages of my copy or I throw paper balls at my friends,” she giggles.
Of course, cell phones are a lifesaver, especially if you have a Smartphone full of games, photo editing applications or other apps that are a pastime.
“Using cell phone in class is another thing to do when you’re bored,” says Malla whose Samsung Galaxy Y is another cure for boring classes.
By the third class of the day, boredom usually strikes in for Bina Bhattarai, a student of Masters in English Literature. Lack of appropriate breaks in between classes makes things monotonous, she says.
“However, it also depends on the teacher’s style of teaching. If the teacher is interesting, I’m very attentive, even in the third class,” she says.
However, the sole blame can’t be placed on teachers and their teaching methods alone. “But sometimes, I also think that it’s my weakness that I can’t concentrate and be alert in class. So if an important topic is being taught, no matter how boring it is, I force myself to pay attention,” adds Bina.
Whenever she’s bored in class, she moves to the last bench and listens to music or reads novels. Sometimes, because her college is liberal, she also goes outside to drink tea with her friends.
A classroom is that place where students learn to ask questions, discover new things about the world and become more learned people. Failure of the teachers to engage students and provoke curiosity in them might lead to students being bored and inattentive. This of course, affects learning. Hence, it’s important for teachers to ensure that students have no time to think about doodling, sleeping or engaging in unnecessary side talks in class, and instead are so grasped in what is being taught in class that they don’t want the school bell to ring.
source:BAJRACHARYA,YUKTA (2013),”When boredom strikes the classroom-Things students do when bored”, republica,3 may 2013 photo/art: republica
