http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/at-a-glance/main-section/thumbs_up_for_attention_at_school_1_3835229

I noticed this article today and thought it was interesting. What do you guys think about this? According to the teachers in the school it is working for their students. Would it make a difference to you or does this seem like just a silly idea that won't accomplish much of anything?

My fiancee is a first year teacher, and she has a first grade class. They do things similar to this. She said it makes a difference. Apparently, she gets more kids to ask questions with this method because it isn't as attention drawing as sticking your hand high in the air. Although, they don't do thumbs up. I can't remember what it is that they do. I'll ask her later.

Well the teachers know better than me id imagine.if they have had results then why not.
So do you regularly read the yorkshire post?
=p

thenumberone : nope, I came across it via a blog or something like that. I can't really remember.

I do not think that it makes that much of a difference though maybe it does in the smaller children. I think that when you get to be my age it is just habit to raise your hand and kids would probably (at least in my school) raise a different special finger. The only time we use thumbs up is if the teacher asks us if we understand. They say thumbs up down or middle. Though that is also very rare to see.

billythekidmonster : yeah, but if you made the changes progressive (started in Elementary and worked your way up) then you would have a consistent way things were done. I doubt it would work to suddenly expect 15-18 year olds to suddenly start doing a thumbs up of some sort to answer or ask a question.

And do you honestly think students would just flip the teacher off? Where I went to school that generally got you into a lot of trouble

geeogree : Oh it gets us in trouble here it is just we are an "expulsion school" you get expelled from Public guess where you are probably going to go... here! So there are many kids who flip of the teachers yell cusses at them and the whole nine yards. Our kids have little to no respect for authority but when those in authority do not act as they should a lot of the time I understand why. Many do it to be funny but in the same way many truly mean it.

I also agree that if they taught it early that would be more natural then hands up...

ah, fair enough. If you're in that sort of a situation then I can see why it happens. The issue of putting your hand up or not is pretty far down the list then

geeogree : Ya though in other schools I do not see why they would not do it. Though I must say that it does not seem like it would make much of a difference though I guess that it could be putting a better vibe in the room. Mainly because a thumbs up is kind of like a good job and all of that and if kids see that more it could improve other aspects of their days or possibly their life. Though to me it seems like it is just weird, I could never adjust.

Nice find!

They Mean the same thing but thumbs up sounds a lot better.

It's an interesting way to do things. I personally wouldn't want to put thumbs up instead of raising my hand. x3

But some students work better if they don't have to pronounce themselves as much. A lot of people put their hands at shoulder height to show they're raising their hands. Still, I think it's more of a confidence problem that rests deeper than just raising your hand.

noelia : just curious since you're becoming a teacher.... what do you think of this idea from your experiences in a classroom situation?

Someone70 : I think you've hit the nail on the head. Building confidence for some people stems from starting in a safe place and moving out from there. The thumbs up idea may be a safer way for many kids to do that from. It's probably a lot easier to not do a thumbs up for questions rather than never raising your hand. It's less noticeable if you fail to do a thumbs up than if you aren't raising your hand regularly to answer questions.

Plus, I agree that it likely creates a calmer classroom environment. I see positives in the idea.

I also see some schools and/or students thinking the idea is totally stupid which is why I wouldn't suggest implementation at this level.... but rather at an early grade school level.

noelia : just curious since you're becoming a teacher.... what do you think of this idea from your experiences in a classroom situation?

Someone70 : I think you've hit the nail on the head. Building confidence for some people stems from starting in a safe place and moving out from there. The thumbs up idea may be a safer way for many kids to do that from. It's probably a lot easier to not do a thumbs up for questions rather than never raising your hand. It's less noticeable if you fail to do a thumbs up than if you aren't raising your hand regularly to answer questions.

Plus, I agree that it likely creates a calmer classroom environment. I see positives in the idea.

I also see some schools and/or students thinking the idea is totally stupid which is why I wouldn't suggest implementation at this level.... but rather at an early grade school level.

noelia : just curious since you're becoming a teacher.... what do you think of this idea from your experiences in a classroom situation?

Someone70 : I think you've hit the nail on the head. Building confidence for some people stems from starting in a safe place and moving out from there. The thumbs up idea may be a safer way for many kids to do that from. It's probably a lot easier to not do a thumbs up for questions rather than never raising your hand. It's less noticeable if you fail to do a thumbs up than if you aren't raising your hand regularly to answer questions.

Plus, I agree that it likely creates a calmer classroom environment. I see positives in the idea.

I also see some schools and/or students thinking the idea is totally stupid which is why I wouldn't suggest implementation at this level.... but rather at an early grade school level.

Wow, geeo. Triple post fail. Back to the subject. I think having the students give a thumbs up instead of raising their hand is a great technique. Honestly I sometimes do not like to raise my in class, or even at church, because I feel I am drawing unwanted attention to myself. So I do believe I would feel more comfortable if I were to raise my thumb instead. Looking back through the posts, I too agree that Someone70 has it down.

Well, I was teaching for awhile for university practise, and here is what I think. Kids, who are shy to raise their hands wouldn't be "brave" enough to raise their thumb. The issue with those kids is that they don't have self-confidence. So, even if the signal wasn't to raise the hand or the thumb, and it was just to "wink" to the teacher, they would still feel shy to do it. They just want to avoid being in the center of attention. I wouldn't mind to make this small change in my classroom though, if this would make kids more eager to be more active. I usually encourage those kids a lot, and praise them,  so they'll get some more self-confidence, and day after day I realized that they become a bit more active, because they're not so afraid of rejection or being teased by other kids(no kid dares to tease bad students in my classes).
But keep in mind that I'm not too experienced yet, so that's just my personal opinion

I would have to say that this will fix nothing. Kids like me who would never raise their arm in class won't raise their thumb either. They dont want the center of attention. It's not embarrassing to raise your hand, but it is embarrassing when you are the center of attention and you don't want it. I dont like it, lets use Jeopardy buzzers instead. Kids would definitely have more fun that way.

I think the idea that it would fix nothing is taking it a bit far. It may not fix everyone but it would help some people I bet.


And the point isn't just about the confidence of the students but also to encourage a quieter atmosphere in the classroom.

Honestly, you'll have the same kids answering, I think. If the kid doesn't care to answer, a different gesture for attention won't change anything. But if it works for them, well, good on 'em.

Yeah, I don't see how changing how to get the teachers attention will make more kids participate.

Although this could be an idea since my hand gets tired from raising it for like 4 minutes.