So…What is Effective Teaching? Some insights from the literature.
Fran Sokel
First thoughts…
What do you consider as effective teaching?
Today’s Areas of Focus
• Defining the concept of effective teaching
• Teacher Effectiveness Research – a brief overview
• Pupil engagement
• Authentic pedagogy
What do we mean by effective teaching?
'Although a great deal of research has focused on
teacher effectiveness,….it is not exactly clear what
'effective teaching' is. (Patrick and Smart, 1998)
_____
‘… there is no single agreed outcome…‘ (Wragg et al 1996)
____
• 'Several terms have been used… ‘ and the different terms ‘…are sometimes used interchangeably’
(Turner-Bisset 2001:2)
(e.g. good, quality, best, effective, successful)
However…in considering that teaching must surely involve learning…..
‘Within their classrooms, effective
teachers create learning environments
which foster pupil progress.’ (Hay McBer:2001)
From my observations….
The ‘field’ has little patience for ineffective
(English) teachers: parents, school
principals and pupils themselves want to
see that learning is going on from the outset.
So….
We have to teach so that learning happens!
So…how can teachers best foster learning?
• The research shows that there is no
one way to do this.
• There are many factors involved in achieving this goal.
Teacher Effectiveness Research : From past to present
• TER - a body of research
• Presage-product research
• Process-product research
• TER in the past two decades…
Why the changes in the nature of TER in more recent times?
• Teaching as a profession – a knowledge base
• Learning theory
A synthesis of recent research
Context relevance
(eg. ELL, EFL, L1 literacy instruction)
Pupil engagement
-a recurring theme
What is engagement in learning?
• Procedural engagement : ‘…observable behaviours, such as paying attention
in class and completing assignments’ (Gettinger and Seibert 2002)
• Substantive engagement… ‘… a sustained personal commitment to and
engagement in the content of instruction’ (Gettinger and Seibert 2002)
comprises an emotional component (as identified by Skinner and Belmont, 1993 & Hargreaves, 2003)
The research indicates that:
‘Significant academic achievement is not
possible without sustained, substantive
engagement.’ (Nystrand and Gamoran 1991)
Substantive engagement can be achieved,
in turn, through authentic pedagogy.
Authentic Pedagogy…
…is rooted in constructivist learning theory and involves:
authentic academic work leading to….
authentic learning , leading to…authentic achievement assessed
by… authentic assessment methods.
Authenticity in Pedagogy: 3 underlying criteria
• Knowledge construction
• Disciplined inquiry
• Value beyond the classroom
Knowledge Construction
‘… using or manipulating knowledge as in analysis, interpretation, synthesis and evaluation, rather than only reproducing knowledge in previously stated forms.’
(Newmann 2000)
Disciplined Inquiry
‘…gaining in-depth understanding of limited topics, rather than superficial acquaintance with many, and using elaborated forms of communication to learn and express … conclusions.’
(Newmann 2000)
Value Beyond the Classroom
• Connections to the world beyond the classroom. (Knobloch 2003)
• Value beyond school: the production of discourse , products, and performances that have personal, aesthetic or social significance beyond demonstration of success to a teacher. (Newmann 2000)
Let’s consider some of the more common exercises found in the text books…..
1. Match the present form of the verb to its past form.
2. Complete the sentences using the words in the bank.
3. Choose the correct sentence for each picture.
Do such tasks fulfil the criteria for authentic tasks?
Do they facilitate/reflect…
The construction of knowledge?Disciplined inquiry?Value beyond school?
Examples of authentic tasks Topic-based research projects
Shorter informative written tasks –an ID card for a character, a description, a Facebook profile page
Creative writing/oral tasks – write an interview, make a book cover
Elaborated discourse – in-depth discussion about a topic of relevance
What does this mean in practice?
No need to completely ‘ditch’ the standard
exercise … but don’t let it stop there!!
Make sure you also provide authentic
tasks that…
• …are open-ended, allow for various possible responses.
• …do not have clear right/wrong answers.
• …do not rely on memory only but make pupils think and
share ideas.
• …have meaning and relevance beyond the classroom
So…what did we talk about?
• Effective teaching leads to learning
• TER research
• Pupil engagement
• Authentic tasks that do not merely rely on memorising but demand:
Knowledge constructionIn-depth inquiryRelevance beyond the classroom
So, please …..
• Take a look at what you do in your lessons.
• Consider how much time is spent engaging pupils through ‘authentic pedagogy’
• Make more opportunities to do so and…
…become an (even more) effective teacher !
References• Gettinger, M., and Seibert, J.K., 2002, Best Practices in Increasing Academic Learning Time, In A. Thomas & J. Grimes
(Eds.), Best practices in school psychology (4th ed., pp. 773–788). Bethesda, MD: National Association of School Psychologists. Accessed from http://www.aea1.k12.ia.us/docs/gettinger.pdf
• Hargreaves, A., 2003, Teaching in the Knowledge Society; Education in the Age of Insecurity, Teachers College Press, New York.
• Hay McBer, 2000 Research into Teacher Effectiveness: A Model of Teacher Effectiveness Report, Department for Education and Employment , UK
• Knobloch, N. A., 2003, Is experiential learning authentic? Journal of Agricultural Education, Vol 44, No. 4, pp22-34
• Newmann, F.M., 2000, Authentic Intellectual work: What and Why? Research/Practice newsletter Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement (CAREI), University of Minnesota, Volume 8, Number 1 Accessed from http://www.cehd.umn.edu/carei/reports/rpractice/Fall2000/newmann.html
• Nystrand, M., and Gamoran, A., 1991, Instructional Discourse, Student Engagement, and Literature Achievement, research in the Teaching of English, Vo. 25, No. 3, pp 261-289
• Patrick, J., and Smart, R.M., 19989, An Empirical Evaluation of Teacher effectiveness: the emergence of three critical factors, Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, Vol. 23, No. 2
• Skinner, E.A., and Belmont, M.J., (1993), Motivation in the Classroom: Reciprocal Effects of teacher behavior and Student Engagement Across the School year, Journal of Educational psychology, Vol. 85, No. 4, pp571-581
• Turner-Bisset, R., 2001, Expert Teaching: Knowledge and Pedagogy to Lead the Profession, UK, David Fulton Publishers, • Wragg, E.C., Wikely, F.J., Wragg, C., M., and Haynes, G.S., 1996, Teacher appraisal observed Routledge, London
