I went on my practicum at Oak Bay and was fortunate to observe some excellent teachers. One teacher in particular used differentiated instruction to engaged the whole class. He used a text book to deliver his math lesson and had students work at their own pace answering the questions. He would go through each question or any potentially troubling questions for those who struggled while the other students moved on. Those students that had moved on were also invited to share their problem solving with the rest of the class, engaging every student in the classroom. This allowed each student to work at their own pace and also take on the role of a teacher to their classmates.
On the opposite end of the scale I observed a teacher that had all the accolades, excelled in his job and produced results. However, this teacher was the reason I never wanted to be in school. He was so dour and boring. He possessed absolutely no charisma or savy. He was monotone and failed to smile once. His class was extremely well behaved and obviosly wanted to be there but I could not imagine why this was. His teaching style was as dull as it gets but produced results. It led me to wonder if it was the right way of doing things.
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ReplyDeleteThis post actually makes me think about our little chat with Sandy Gibbons today in curriculum and instruction, about the art of teaching and the science of teaching. Sounds like your second guy was all over the science of teaching. He had all the tricks to make sure that the things that needed to be accomplished in his classroom to meet the requirements and the curriculum were being done. But when it comes to the "art" of teaching, with qualities like humour, creativity and personality, your teacher number two up there appears to be lacking. And he may be a good teacher and can, as you say 'produce results' he may not be creating that memorable and comfortable community in his classroom that we can all remember from our own high-school experiences.
ReplyDeleteMaybe that's a great thing for that teacher because it works the way he wants it to, and to each their own. But I am glad to hear that you aren't such a fan of that type of teacher because I think you are going to be way cooler than that!!!!!
I wouldn’t worry about it Sam. There are so many different styles of teaching that get results. The best teacher you can be is the teacher you want to be. I know that sounds cheesy, but if you’re not genuine, the students are going to see right through that, and you’ll lose them. Kali’s right, you are going to be a good teacher, but I don’t think it’s going to come from being boring. Take a look at Price...his energy, and the love of what he does, and his desire to have a community in the classroom is incredibly inspirational and effective. He’s the kind of teacher any student would love to have. Love your students, love your job, and everything will be fine.
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