EFFECTIVE TEACHER
07.00
IMPROVING
EXPECTATIONS
Good and
Weinstein (1986) and Dweck and Elliot (1983) noted that teacher’ conceptions of
intelegence influence their expectations and classroom behavior. Specifically,
teachers who see intelegence as fixed and
stable are more likely to acquire performance expectations that also are
fixed. They are not likely to make an extra effort to raise student’
performance above the expected level. In contrast, teachers who assume
intelegence to be a modifiable repertoire
of skills and knowledge will not form fixed expectations and are likely to
communicate to student that (a) individual different in rates and modes of
learning are normal and (b) each student has the ability to improve regardless
of current status.
A reasonable approach is to assume a
modifiable view of intelegence, communicate rigorous expectations to all
student, and teach in accord with the expectation that all student are capable
of grade-level performance or above.
Because of their low expectations,
many teachers blame student for poor achievement and interpret failure as a
need to provide less challenge and fewer opportunities for learning. A more
productive view is to interpret poor performance as a need for more instruction, more clarification, and more opportunities
for learning (Good, 1983; Good & Weinstein, 1986).
Finally, a seemingly self-evident
strategy for overcoming the self-fulfilling propechy is for teachers to become
aware of the behaviors they have that transmit low expectations, to be aware of
the effects of these communicated expectations, and to change accordingly.
Teachers also should look past linguistic deficiencies, student appearance,
school location, average school SES level, and similar factors and refuse to
adopt the self-fulfilling attitude that “this kid can’t learn”
CLASSROOM
MANAGEMENT
It is
not necessary to reiterate the entire contentd of Chapter 4. However, a good
point to remember is that classroom management and good instructional
strategies are closely interwoven. Good management procedures primarily reduce
opportunities for distractions, boredom, and disruptions and thus increase
academic engagement and opportunity for learning.
Inset 5-1 summarizes most of the
ideas and principles in the teacher training study conducted by Anderson,
Evertson, and
INSET
5-1
Principles
of Effective Teaching
Using and
experimental approach, Anderson, Evertson, and Brophy (1979, 1982) increased
the effectiveness of first-grade reading teachers by helping them master some
research-based principles derived from the literature on teaching
effectiveness. The general principles included the following:
1. Maintaining active engagement
and sustained focus on the content, largely through good organization and
management.
2. Using tasks and questions that
are sufficienly clear and easy that a brisk pace may be maintained, yet with
high success rates.
3. Providing frequent opportunites
for reading and responding to questions (followed by clear feedback about
correctness).
4. Mastering skills to an
overlearning level.
5. Closely monitoring progress and
providing whatever instruction is required for learning.
Turning to
specific recommendations (which are condensed from an even lengthier list),
Anderson, Evertson, and Brophy (1982) recommended the following:
In the area of programming for continuous progress,
effective teachers
1. Successfully manage both the
teacher-led small group and students who are working independently.
2. Provide independent workers
with appropriate assignment, rules, and routines to follow when help is
needed.
3. Provide independent workers
with activity options for when they finish their work.
4. Move through the curriculum and
specific activities at a brisk pace, using small steps and a high success rate
designed to produce continuous progress with relative ease.
5. Ask questions that may be
answered correctly about 80% of the time. (lower rates may be expected with
new material. Review responses should be almost 100% correct).
6. Continue practice and review
until correct responding is smooth and rapid.
In the area of group organization, effective teachers
7. Arrange small-group seating so
that the rest of the class also can be monitored.
8. Teach students to move quickly
into the small group, bring needed materials, and make other transitions
between activities smoothly and quickly.
9. Have materials ready in advance
so that the small-group lessons can begin quickly.
10. Begin lessons with an overview
to establish the propermental set and help students anticipate what will be
learned.
11. Make certain all students
understand what to do and how to do it before releasing them for independent
work.
To ensure participation by all student, successful
teachers
12. Have student take turns in
reading or responding so that all have opportunities to participate. (Note:
Although this recommendation contradicts Kounin’s group-alerting principle
described in Chapter 4, Anderson and colleagues argured that taking turns
improves management by reducing students handwaving and other attempts to get
the teacher to call on them).
13. Minimize call-outs. (students
must learn to wait their turn and respect the turns of others. However,
calling out sometimes may be encouraged in order to pick up the pace or
stimulate interest, for example, with low achievers or students who typically
do not volunteer their responses).
14. Monitor the progress of
everyone in the small group with questioning (each student must receive
feedback and achieve mastery).
In the area teacher questions and student answers, effective
teachers.
15. Concentrate most questions on
academic content rather than personal experiences.
16.Wait for an answer if a student
is thinking and may be able to respond. (The teacher should stop waiting if
the student seems confused or might become embarrassed or if the rest of the
group might lose attention).
17. Provide help with responses by
simplifying or rephrasing the question or by giving clues when needed.
18. Answer the question themselves
or call on another student when a student cannot respond. (Attention should
be focused on the answer, not the students failure).
19. Acknowledge that the answer is
correct with a brief “correct” or “right”, unless the correctness is obvious,
as during fast-paced reviewing.
20. Use follow-up questions to help
students integrate relevant information when needed. (Questioning also may be
extended to help students see logical conclusions).
21. Use feedback that explains the
steps or method necessary for reaching the answer if an answer requires
problem solving or reasoning. (Even if the answer is correct, other student
might need help to understand why the answer was correct).
Regarding the use
of praise and criticism, effective
teachers
22. Specify what is being
praised-the academic correctness of the response-unless it is obvious to the
student and the rest of the group.
23. Always provide corrective feedback
for incorrect responses, but focus the correction on the academic content.
They do not criticize.
24. Specify the behavior that is
being criticized and desirable alternative behavior if criticism should be
necessary (e.g., for a behavior problem).
|
Brophy
(1979, 1982). This project was designed to increase the effectiveness of
first-grade reading teachers. Many of the principles derived from it relate
directly to increasing engagement via good management, along with ideas for
increasing clarity, eliciting and reacting to student responses, and monitoring
student progress and mastery.
ORGANIZING
AND STRUCTURING LEARNING
Orgnizing
and structuring teaching activities to improve learning is not independent of
maintaining high academic engagement. However, the focus is more strongly on
procedures that make the learning process clearer and more rewarding for
students and more efficient for everyone. Better use is made of the engaged
time, and teaching is more effective.
ORIENTING
STUDENTS, REVIEWING, AND PRESENTING OBJECTIVES
Students
must be oriented to learn new material. Such an orientation often includes a
review of homework, a review of previous material and skills, an explanation of
the purposes and objectives of the new material, and a statement of the
relationship of the current lesson to previous material. Ausubel (1978) would
say that such orienting comments serve as advance
organizers that help make the new material more meaningful, easier to
relate to what students already know, and therefore more learnable.
There has been much attention in the
literature on teaching effectiveness to the importance of opening reviews
(Berliner, 1986; Good, Grouws, & Ebmeier, 1983; Rosenshine, 1986). For
example, Rosenshine stressed that at the outset of a lesson effective teachers
will spend approximately 5 to 8 minutes reviewing previous material and
relevant prior knowledge, making sure that assignment. The daily review is
particularly critical for teaching material of a cumulate nature, material such
as mathematics, reading, foreign languages, or computer skills that will be
necessary for subsequent learning.
The teacher can review homework
assignments, ask about items that were particularly difficult, provide extra
instructions and practice with facts and skills that need reteaching, and then
review concepts and skills needed for today’s lesson and tomorrow’s homework.
Berliner (1986a) confirmed that opening homework reviews are indeed critical,
although, he said, we must clarify more precisely when they are needed and when
they are not. Berliner also noted the keen ability of some effective teachers
to use the opening homework review to inform “themselves about the difficulty
of the assignment, identify students who are not prepared, are having trouble,
or who are breezing through and could easily become bored”.
Not only daily reviews, but weekly
and monthly reviews help supply the repetition, elaborate, and overlearning
that aid students in remembering and using the material at a more automatic and
effortless level.
In presenting new lessons, teachers
should orient students to the new material by explaining lesson purposes and
objectives and how the material will be useful (Hunter, 1984), perhaps using an
outline or overview. Objectives, outlines, and overviews help focus students
attention, reduce the complexity of the presentation, and help students relate
the new material to previous knowledge and skills. The objectives, outline, or
review also help the teacher stay on target. They may be posted or handed out
and referred to whenever necessary to help maintain focus.
Opening reviews and introduction of
new material comprise a good portion of Rosenshine’s (1986) six principles of
explicit teaching.
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