Speaker
ABSTRACT
In many college classrooms in Japan, inviting guest speakers has become popular regardless of academic discipline or major; many universities share their practices of inviting guest speakers on their websites as one of their unique educational features. Indeed, guest speakers can bring various benefits to the classroom, such as introducing real-life experiences, raising students’ interests, and connecting theories taught in lessons and practices in society. However, the mere invitation of such a guest speaker does not always ensure a successful educational experience. For example, students, especially those at lower academic levels, easily become passive audiences and learn little. To partially address this issue, I have had students involved from the preparation phase when inviting a guest speaker. More specifically, I purposefully had each student take responsibility and contribute to organizing the lecture with a guest speaker. By doing so, students were no longer passive attendees but became active agents. Based on my previous practices, I will present how I planned a lecture with a guest speaker, how I encouraged students to gain learner agency, and how I tried to enhance their autonomy through the process of arranging the lecture. Finally, the benefits obtained from these practices will be introduced.
KEYWORDS
guest speakers, Japanese university students, learner agency
| TITLE | How to Maximize the Benefits of Guest Speakers in Lessons |
|---|---|
| RELEVANT SIG | College and University Educators (CUE) |
| FORMAT | Practice-oriented Oral Face-to-face presentation (25 minutes, including Q&A) |
