Sharing Good Practice complete even the most challenging tasks . Therefore , providing students opportunity by giving them “ Genius Hour ”. We , as educators , help them to think out of the box and to take on challenges which will eventually boost their self-efficacy .
Another benefit of Genius hour is Self-regulations in students . The capacity to control one ' s attention , thoughts , and emotions is known as self-regulation . Since students are flexible to work either in groups or make their own groups , they will be interacting with each other , assigning leaders , delegating tasks . In short , they will be exercising or practicing empathy and patience . According to literature , students who can control their emotions and conduct , are better equipped to interact with their peers and respond to the various events of the day . Moreover , self-control assists children and teens in learning , behaving effectively , getting along with others , and becoming self-sufficient .
There are no set rules or principles . Students can choose any topic when they are working on their genius hour . It does not have to be always related to course content , for example ; students can use any of their interests , skills , ideas , or knowledge ; such as making their own podcast , they can write a poem , create a drama , a song , a narrative , a blog post , or an entire book . They can also develop their own language or learn a new one . They can teach a skill to a younger student or create a website or an app . While working on these activities , students are continually experiencing different behavioral and psychological changes such as ; talking , planning , problemsolving , and role-modeling , all of which are good ways to help students learn self-control .
While working during “ Genius Hour ”, students can learn about their nature , their behavior , what they like , dislike , what distracts them etc . So , this hour can be considered as self-awareness hour . Students may use these findings on their own study habits , such as learning to develop self-control by reducing the temptations that cell phones and social media bring . Students might also be encouraged to conduct experiments on attention
boundaries and debate the practical consequences of their findings .
While technical skills are vital , many experts think that cultivating soft skills , such as curiosity , is essential for job success . If students utilize technology to pursue their interests , they are less likely to be afraid of it . Genius hour allows students to work on a project with the help of an instructor or on their own . Aside from encouraging students to pursue their passions , genius hour provides several advantages , and aids in the development of abilities that will serve them well throughout their lives .
Genius hour , by its very nature , encourages student creativity . If your students want to raise awareness about sustainability , they may hold a virtual charity concert or share infographics on social media . Your students create and select the technique they wish to use to implement their project , then report back to the class on how well it went . This freedom allows individuals to show off their innate abilities and skills which will enhance self-determination . One of the most important characteristics of self-Selfdirectedness , is a self-determination that refers to the capacity to control and adjust behavior to the demands of a circumstance in order to attain personal objectives and ideals .
Genius hour can be used for different disciplines and subjects , for example , in astronomy , if students want to learn how space debris can be reduced by using internet of things . They can present the knowledge they have gained through articles or pod casts .
I would like to share my own experience of using this approach in my class . This past semester , I discovered that the brilliant projects my students made reached new heights of success . Last year , my class showed greater enthusiasm , more time commitment , and higher performance than in the previous ten years . Genius projects
produced an electrifying environment in my classroom this past semesterfrom the three groups who provided great solutions , to industries such as cost effective baggage handling solutions at airports , completely new concept of reducing carbon footprints in retail industry and introducing the cost effective solutions in reverse logistics , to the fourth group who presented and published a paper in the conference , related to green packaging system .
One of the most distinguishing features of genius hour is that it is studentcentered , it is messy , and emphasizes inquiry and exploration . It is genuine , allows challenging environment , creativity , purpose-driven , and frequently collaborative and social . In conclusion , the idea is that teachers engage and empower students by connecting them with ideas , content , and opportunities , by allowing them to choose something they want to learn more about , do , or accomplish , and then following their curiosity through inquiry and research to learn more about , do , or accomplish .
Dr . Sameera Iqbal is a Lecturer in the Department of Logistics Engineering in Engineering & Technology at The Higher Colleges of Technology , UAE . She is a registered Internal quality Verifier ( QCF ) from National Quality Center ( NQC ) – UAE . She has a Ph . D . from the Department of Technology , Operations Management , and Logistics Engineering at the University Utara Malaysia . She has published numerous technical papers , including Logistics , Operations Teaching , and Learning , and has been recognized for excellence in research , teaching , and outreach .
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