Quotes
One of the strategies that many faculty members use involves finding and using interesting quotes from industry leaders, cultural icons, persons that the students know or persons that the students may never have heard about. It is a chance to broaden their knowledge base, and you can use it for one-minute lectures about key writers, leaders, politicians, authors and managers as well as chefs, dining-room managers and industry leaders.

Some of the quotes that I have used recently include:

• “The real secret of success is enthusiasm” by Walter Chrysler, which led to an interesting discussion of that person as a role model in this economy and kinds of contributions individuals have made in the past.
   
• On a discussion of fads and trends in the industry, I used “Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion” by Jack Kerouac, which produced some discussion of who he was and what that world was like. Later in the same class, “Fads are the kiss of death. When the fad goes away, you go with it” by Conway Twitty“If we cannot end our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity” by John Fitzgerald Kennedy. Although I used this quote to start a discussion on diversity, we did get into a discussion that the Kennedy tragedy for some students was a plane crash and not President Kennedy’s assassination.
• “Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers” by Voltaire to start a class on interviewing skills.

Statistics and Numbers
A second way to get students focused is to put some numbers on the board and ask them what they stand for and why they are important. Tying them to their reading or the general topic of the class, you can use 130, 140 and 170 if you are discussing cooking beef (and then discuss ranges of those temperatures and how to recognize it on their hands) or 41-135 (the newer numbers for the danger zone for food) or 165 (the internal temperature to which the Food and Drug Administration recommends cooking a whole chicken). I recently used $1,295,000,000, the predicted domestic and tourism revenue for the United States in 2009. Each time students have to figure out what the number means, it helps them get used to using numbers and remembering them, something that helps overcome some students’ math phobia.

Images
A different and more generation-appropriate way to get students engaged involves providing images at the beginning of class. Clip-art images are good ones to use because they project well. Sometimes, photographs that look good on your computer monitor do not show well on a screen. They do not have enough density for the projector and the light. Glasses of wine, knives, pots, pans, plates, platters and kitchen equipment can make great images, and there are many images in most clip-art programs and even great clip art online.

Even if the images are not clear, they can provide a conversation. Logos also can make an impact. Prompting discussion can involve asking what the image is and why it is there. Another way is to see what kinds of connections students can make between the various images or logos and the subjects of the day or the unit. It encourages them to think about the topic for the day.

Anagrams
Another way to provoke students to think about the goals of the class or the objectives is to provide them in scrambled form or in a form that is hard to read. One of the sayings that I have used at the beginning of class that gets students really focused is the following:

“fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid too.Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can.”

“i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno’t mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in th e rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.”

Students find that they can read it—but they have to really focus to get it, and it brings a vivid concentration to the room. I have used it to start class sessions, to discuss note-taking and to introduce a discussion of critical reading and thinking.

Provocative Questions
One intriguing way to get students awake and alert to the topics of the day is to ask them provocative questions about why this particular topic or why this topic at this point in the course. Often, getting them to think about the reasons for the topic order of subject and the sequence of learning makes them more conscious and intentional as learners.

Outcomes and Objectives
Another way to get students to pay attention in class and to focus on what you want to help them learn is to start the class with a clear set of learning objectives—statements that describe what they should be able to do when they complete the class. Often called outcome statements or instructional objectives, they can help the students and you focus on the goals of the class session. In addition, they encourage students to assess their progress toward those goals during the class. They also provide you with a set of questions to ask students if they are accomplishing those goals.

Reviews of Last Class
A very different approach involves starting class sessions with a review of the key ideas from the last class session. For those courses that meet only once a week, this strategy can be especially helpful because it helps students connect one class session with the next one. Calling on individuals—and not identifying who you will call on ahead of time—often makes them all think about the last class before they get to this one. They get themselves ready to review key ideas if called on, an activity that increases their interest in the current class.

Calling on Individuals
One of the questions raised about these strategies is the negative reaction that we can engender in students by calling on them and potentially embarrassing them. The positive argument is that we get them involved and they get themselves alert in order to be prepared; at the same time, students will get ready since they typically do not want to embarrass themselves. The negative argument is that we add too much stress; some shy students do not like to be put on the spot, and those with disabling learning conditions may not be able to answer quickly. To help ameliorate that situation, a number of faculty members will call on students but readily accept—and not criticize—a student’s response of “I don’t know” or “I don’t remember.” It actually can become a great teaching moment and a chance to review because the likelihood of other students not remembering or not understanding is high. However, posing the questions and pushing the students to remember and stay focused helps bring energy into the classroom and can make a difference in students’ approach to the intellectual challenges they experience.
For student with learning disabilities or who are overcome with fear at being called on, some faculty members make a private agreement not to call on them. Others have developed a series of subtle signals—such as touching glasses, adjusting a watch or ring—that no one else in the class would notice, but that help the student know when he or she is about to be called on. That way he or she can focus on the material and learning rather than being flooded with fear about being called on in a public setting.

Summary
Each of these strategies can help your students get ready for class and build their enthusiasm for the topic of the day. They may want to learn the material for the course, but they are not always ready for the topic on that day due to other events and activities in their lives. Try these for fun and see what happens. Remember the excitement you had as a kid playing with sparklers? Try playing with these as professional educators!

Dr. Fred Mayo, CHE, CHT, is clinical professor of hospitality and tourism management at New York University, where he teaches courses in research and management. He also maintains an international consulting and coaching practice specializing in faculty development, hospitality education and training. Mayo recently received an Outstanding Teacher Award from the School of Continuing and Professional Studies. He is a key presenter on a variety of education topics at annual CAFÉ workshops and Leadership Conferences.