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Four good reasons to participate in class
Do you participate in class? What’s the hardest part about participating? Why participate if the teacher already has all the answers? There are many good reasons to participate in class: 1. Participation impacts your final grade. Some teachers assign a hefty weight to participation – up to 20% of a student’s final grade a class. Some teachers don’t assign a weight, but instead award an “S” for Satisfactory or “U” for Unsatisfactory at the end of the term. Always review the class syllabus to determine the weight your teacher has assigned to participation, because it definitely impacts your final grade to some degree . At the end of the grading term, a solid participation history might just provide the bump you need to get your grade up to a higher letter. 2. Participate because the classroom is a community. Why go through a whole year of school without your teachers and classmates realizing what an awesome person you are? A classroom is a community, and every student brings a unique and important perspective to it. When every student participates, the community thrives. Besides, it gets boring hearing from the same students all the time. Class participation is also important because it enables a teacher to make a quick check of the depth and breadth of their students’ understanding of the topic under discussion and make adjustments to the lesson if needed. 3. Participation is a good learning skill. Generating thoughts in your head, organizing ideas, verbalizing your ideas and hearing yourself express them is an important part of learning. Participation improves comprehension, retention of content, and speaking skills. PRODUCT PREVIEW 4. Participating is good practice for your future. In high school and college, participation expectations are high. Verbal response and active commentary in classroom discussions are a common means of measuring a student’s achievement. In college, you will take classes called seminars where participation can count for up to 50% of your grade! You must be able to engage in intelligent discourse about an academic topic. Participating now is excellent practice for a successful academic future. Why Participate in Class? 1. Participation impacts your grade. 2. Participation is good for the classroom community. 3. Participating helps you learn. 4. Participating is good practice for high school and college readiness.
THE 21st CENTURY STUDENT’S GUIDE TO STUDY SKILLS 255
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