Teacher-Led Instruction

TEACHER TALK

Since Socrates, and before, teacher-led instruction has been widely used in classrooms. From lecture-specific designs used primarily in large college halls, to “carpet time” in kindergarten, teachers have facilitated information through talk. But teacher-centered instruction is trending downward, especially in the middle school grades. There is greater emphasis on group learning, student collaboration, project-based and inquiry-based learning. The goal is not to wipe out the teacher from directly giving students information, but to encourage strategies aimed at improving learning for all students. Today, it is not the amount of information teachers can relay to their students but to what degree of effectiveness.

Formal teacher talk (lectures) and informal teacher talk (guided discussion) are effective ways to facilitate learning. Teacher talk is the most direct way for information to go from the teacher to the student. But few teachers are great orators and student attention, studies show, wanes after the first few minutes of instruction. No matter how conscience teachers are of their pacing or inflection, students will ultimately lose focus on what is being said. The article says, “The most useful strategy for recapturing student attention is changing to an entirely different strategy or learning modality.”

Transitioning from a lecture to guided discussion, the students are still at the mercy of the teacher. The teacher is still driving the discussion. This is an example of going from formal to informal teacher talk and has been shown to continue the downward trend of student attention. The article suggests moving from teacher-centered instruction to student-centered instruction. One example started with a lecture and transitioned into a student-led panel discussion. Another began with an informal discussion or lecture and built into a cooperative learning activity in groups. In both instances, the graphs measuring student attention were equal to or exceed student attention at the beginning of the class period.

Other ways to increase student attention is to have a focused, clear, planned lecture or discussion. Keep in mind, middle school students are hard pressed to give a teacher their full attention for more than 15-20 minutes. Having a well scripted, precise teacher talk with an engaging opening and a logical progression to a clear purpose at the end is a way to keep student attention longer. The use of questioning, demonstrations and audiovisuals also keep students attentive. When lecturing, a teacher must recognize that all students are not auditory learners. Many need visual representations such as charts, videos, graphs, notes or pictures. Some students need a hands-on activity. While modeling a process or a concept, allow students to model with you. If performing a demonstration, have students participate. Allow students to ask questions of you and of fellow students.

With the move away class periods filled with teacher lectures, students are participating more and more in group work, hands-on activities and projects. Does this mean the end for teacher-centered instruction strategies? The short answer is no. Without a context the group project or the hands-on activities can have shallow learning experiences. It is the teacher who ultimately should drive the curriculum. I prefer to look at a lesson with a fishing analogy: Bait-Cast-Reel in. By “Baiting the Hook,” a teacher is preparing students for the lesson. Whether it is defining terms, giving context, setting out goals, etc., the initial teacher talk gives students what they need to successfully accomplish the mission of the lesson. Then, the teacher releases (Casts) students to explore and otherwise actively participate in the lesson with a group or individual activity, project or student-led discussion. Finally, the teacher consolidates (Reels in) what students have gathered during the activity. This is also a time for correcting, reflecting on, questioning and challenging student thinking. Without the teacher providing such context, boundaries and perspective, hands-on or group learning can happen without direction or a foundation.

The effectiveness of teacher-led instruction is tied to the preparation of the teacher. If I gain anything from this article, it is how to organize my thoughts and objectives. By making an advanced organizer or composing a detailed outline with color and number prompts, focused preparation will better help me deliver a proper lecture or class discussion. It is much like writing a movie script. I need to plan when I will use an audio-visual aid, or when I expect to open the class up to questions. I have to keep in mind that my lecture or lesson introduction has 15 minutes before the students drown me out completely. And, when I lose them, I have to know how to get their attention back.

Teaching Influence

Teachers Who Influenced You

Throughout one’s schooling career a person will come in contact with over 100 individuals, classroom teachers, counselors, administrators, learning coaches, exploratory teachers, athletic coaches, substitute teachers, aides, etc., who help influence their life and learning. And while all these educators attempt to positively influence a child’s life, circumstances, professional and personal deficiencies, lack of skill, talent or motivation and/or personality conflicts cause eruptions within the educator-student relationship. And sometimes the student is to blame for many of the same reasons.

My purpose here is to take two teachers from the same school year and reflect on how one negatively influenced my view of 1) the teacher, 2) the subject matter and 3) learning and the school experience and how the other teacher was a positive influence in those categories.

First, let me state for the record… I can read.

Ms. S was my social studies, reading and homeroom teacher in sixth grade, my first-year of middle school in Boulder, Colo. She was mid-40s, Jewish and hardheaded. I was 11, from a free-spirited family and hardheaded. I should have seen this wasn’t going to work out.

As the year progressed my relationship with Ms. S deteriorated. I refused to turn in classwork. I thought journal entries were silly and I hated that I couldn’t select what I wanted to read. From what I recall, our social studies class was non-descript. We sat in rows, had to update agendas everyday (if not, you received a grade deduction) and did “book” work with worksheets. It was not a warm environment for me.

To be honest, I remember very little from her classes except three things: 1) we watched weekly videos about a fictional Mayan ruin expedition, 2) I failed reading during both the 3^rd and 4^th nine weeks, failed her social studies class the final nine weeks and would have failed homeroom if I had the chance, and 3) Ms. S and I did not get along. Looking back, I may have been a bit too insecure in my self (sixth grade does that to kids.) I was odd (still am), quirky and was bullied often. But I did not feel comfortable in Ms. S’s classroom. It was not the welcoming environment my other core teachers had. I did not feel I could talk to her, reason with her. I didn’t feel she was listening to me.

When I reflected over this paper as to who had the most negative influence over me there was little competition. I tried to think of my 7^th grade English teacher and how she was a tick eccentric. But she knew how to hammer grammar into my head. I tried to think of my fifth grade teacher, an intimidating, large old man from Texas with a belt buckle the size of a hubcap that shone like the sun. Or, my 9^th grade geometry teacher who was shallow with his subject knowledge, his teaching ability or a mix of both. But Ms. S was the combination salad of all these teacher defects. She was cold, dry, intimidating and uninspiring.

Sixth grade was not all bad. Three periods after social studies was language arts with Mr. D. He opened me up to reading and writing like I had never experienced before. Every three to four weeks we composed short stories, poems, plays, non-fiction research projects, fantasies and dramas. We were introduced to Edgar Allen Poe. We experienced music and studied the poetry and descriptive language of the lyrics.

The class had an open, creative feel. No rows or gluttonous teacher-directed lessons. We discussed, debated, created and shared. I enjoyed listening to other student’s stories. Some were silly (what would happen if Oprah met Barney the Dinosaur) or scary (the boy whose nightmare turned into reality) or gory (the genocide of a family of desert people by the mighty king). The class not only opened my eyes to myself but to the other students.

I learned to accept the editing process as not an indictment of my ideas, but of my writing. I understood that there are always things to tweak, re-word or just get rid of. I learned to better take criticism because I was able to freely create in the first place.

The way Mr. D established a rapport with students, making jokes, allowing open discussion and a free flow of ideas is exactly what I want to bring into a classroom. I want my students to feel like they can open up, express themselves and learn about themselves as well as others.

That is important for middle school students especially. Much like it is important for pre-school and kindergarten students to feel safe and secure, middle school students need to feel a sense of belonging and be able to express themselves in a welcoming, safe and community environment. They need to feel like they belong.

So, I will turn those rows into groupings of 3-4. I will turn those worksheets into open-ended discussion and debate. I will turn those weekly videos into project-based, hands-on units and I will turn those stale, incarcerating reading groups into free choice where the key requirement is you challenge yourself with your next selection.

But most importantly, I will not be labeled as a math, science, language arts or social studies teacher. I will be a teacher of early adolescents. I will meet the curriculum standards and requirements set by the state, district and school by first meeting the developmental needs of my students. I feel if I do that, the learning will come.