Set Class Intentions
2 minutes each class
How to use the tool?
At the start of each class, have students set goals for the session.
This reminds me that I am not just a passive consumer of my university experience.”
Asking students for their intentions at the start of class increases their focus and motivation and gives teachers entry points to connect with their students’ learning needs.
What to Do?
At the start of a class, lecture, or seminar, simply ask your students to take two minutes and answer the question: “What do you want to learn today?”. You can ask them to write it down for themselves or provide them with an online form or quiz. After the two minutes, either ask for volunteers or cold call on students to share their intentions as the starting point of the class.
“In an undergraduate course on institutional change, I combined the intentions question with a 5-minute online quiz on the preparatory readings for each class. Students were asked to fill out these quizzes, which did not count towards their grade, at the start of each class; I was able to see the results in real-time. After the quiz, I could then see:
What content from the readings was clear to students, and what still needed further explanation; and
What intentions students had for the class.
I then referred to these results, without identifying specific students, and highlighted how I would address both points in the coming two hours of the class.”