Knowledge for Teaching

Teaching The nature of the job – what challenges does it offer us? The necessary knowledge base

Physical challenges On the move On your feet Multi-tasking …..

Organisational challenges Being at the right place Being on time Having the right stuff Doing the preparation Following up the loose ends

Emotional challenges Students’ achievements, enthusiasms, moments of insight, creativity, humour, gradual personal development Students’ failures, worries, personal circumstances, stubbornness, cussedness Colleagues’ enthusiasms, stubbornness, cussedness Hundreds of interactions with about 100 people a day

Intellectual challenges Teaching a topic on a foundation degree Getting to the heart of a concept for younger students Understanding why someone has difficulty learning Understanding why someone is not cooperating Dealing with novel ideas

Moral challenges Keep out of the News of the World But also Recognise the power imbalance between students and teachers and don’t misuse it Make sure what you do is worthwhile In other words: ask not just “How do I do X?”, but also “Should I do X?”

What kinds of things do we need to know to tackle these challenges?

Teachers’ Knowledge Base Shulman LS 1987 Harvard Educational Review 57,1 pp1-22 content knowledge general pedagogical knowledge curriculum knowledge pedagogical content knowledge knowledge about the learners knowledge of educational contexts knowledge of educational ends, purposes, values

Teachers’ Knowledge Base Shulman LS 1987 Harvard Educational Review 57,1 pp1-22 content knowledge general pedagogical knowledge curriculum knowledge pedagogical content knowledge knowledge about the learners knowledge of educational contexts knowledge of educational ends, purposes, values

Teachers’ Knowledge Base Shulman LS 1987 Harvard Educational Review 57,1 pp1-22 content knowledge general pedagogical knowledge curriculum knowledge pedagogical content knowledge knowledge about the learners knowledge of educational contexts knowledge of educational ends, purposes, values

Theories of learning – an example Vygotsky

Insights into classrooms and professional learning tools Object Community Div of labour Subject Rules

Tools

Classify as odd or even AND as having 1, 2 or 3 digits

1 digit2 digits3 digits Odd3, 5, 7, 911,….273…. Even2…32…250…

So what tools do students need? Literacy skills Numeracy skills Using tables, graphs, flow charts… Information search skills – library, web … Skills of critical analysis of sources ICT skills Interpersonal skills Intrapersonal skills ……………

So two challenging questions… Do your students have these things as tools? Do they affect the way they see the world, hold problems in their minds, play with solutions? Or are they arid, meaningless rules to be obeyed? What can we do to make them function as tools? What tools do you need to continue your own learning as a teacher?

What can we do about it? Instrumental enrichment – Subject specific programmes –CASE –CAME Learning to learn – fhttp:// f Just Google “thinking skills” and stand by to sort 1000s of hits

Subjects

How do the subjects affect learning? “Find out what the pupils know and start from there.” (Ausubel) Student misconceptions But also Expectations – what counts as learning, why we bother, how to learn, what to do when you are stuck? Personal history; educational history Personal consequences of failing Values with respect to learning Awareness of the rules of the game Available resources

The rules of the game 258 people are waiting for a lift to the 10 th floor. The lift takes 25 people How many trips will it take to get everyone to their destination? 258/25 = 10 r 8 so 11 trips 11 trips – too long – some will walk – about 10 trips (perhaps only 9) Middle class students are more likely to give the first answer

Relevant factors So the critical characteristics of the subject are likely to be affected by such things as: Class –(eg affecting available resources and knowing the rules) Gender –(eg girls don’t do engineering) Ethnicity –(eg learning is about absorbing wisdom) Life history –(eg people think I’m great) Educational history –(eg whenever I ask a question I get shouted at)

So some challenging questions… How do you get to know what you need to know about your students? How much do you have a right to know? What do you know about yourself as a participant in the classroom? How will your characteristics (and those of your students) affect your own learning about teaching?

What can we do about it? Listen to student voice Let students take more control of their learning. But… “Are we aware that, despite our best intentions, our interventions may reinforce existing conceptions of students that tend to deny their agency and capacity to take responsibility for what they do ‘and perhaps also silence [their] own ability to speak and be heard’?” (Alcoff 1991/92, p. 26). And as one masters student found Students do not always want to share their insights. “I knew what was good and what wasn’t about that work but I didn’t want to discuss it with my group or my teacher.”

Objects, & outcomes tools Object 1 CommunityDivision of labour Subject Rules Object 2 Today you will learn to: a) b) c)

So two challenging questions? How can you take a more nuanced view of objectives for your students’ learning? What are your objectives for your own learning when you meet your mentor; what are their objectives; how do all of these get changed during the activity of the meeting?

One approach…. Do a mind map of objectives for a new topic with the class to find out what they want to learn

And remember to look at outcomes as well as objectives “Very nice dear, but I asked you to draw an orange”

Broader issues in ITE College teaching Object 1 Rules Community Division of labour Subject Tools Object 2 Object 3 Object 2 University- PCE course Object 1 Community Division of labour Subject Rules Tools

Broader issues for the NQT Classroom experienceMentor discussion Object 1 Rules Community Division of labour Subject Mediating artifacts Object 1 Community Division of labour Subject Mediating artifacts Rules Object 2 Object 3

Ideas on motivation Motivation = personal element + task element Motivation can be quite difficult to change

Teachers’ Knowledge Base Shulman LS 1987 Harvard Educational Review 57,1 pp1-22 content knowledge general pedagogical knowledge curriculum knowledge pedagogical content knowledge knowledge about the learners knowledge of educational contexts knowledge of educational ends, purposes, values

Teachers’ Knowledge Base Shulman LS 1987 Harvard Educational Review 57,1 pp1-22 content knowledge general pedagogical knowledge curriculum knowledge pedagogical content knowledge knowledge about the learners knowledge of educational contexts knowledge of educational ends, purposes, values

Teachers’ Knowledge Base Shulman LS 1987 Harvard Educational Review 57,1 pp1-22 content knowledge general pedagogical knowledge curriculum knowledge pedagogical content knowledge knowledge about the learners knowledge of educational contexts knowledge of educational ends, purposes, values

Teachers’ Knowledge Base Shulman LS 1987 Harvard Educational Review 57,1 pp1-22 content knowledge general pedagogical knowledge curriculum knowledge pedagogical content knowledge knowledge about the learners knowledge of educational contexts knowledge of educational ends, purposes, values

Teachers’ Knowledge Base Shulman LS 1987 Harvard Educational Review 57,1 pp1-22 content knowledge general pedagogical knowledge curriculum knowledge pedagogical content knowledge knowledge about the learners knowledge of educational contexts knowledge of educational ends, purposes, values

Two models of using teacher knowledge Schulman’s model of pedagogical reasoning The model of reflective practice

Pedagogical reasoning Comprehension Reflection Transformation Evaluation Instruction

Transformation preparation representation instructional selection adaptation

Pedagogical reasoning Comprehension Reflection Transformation Evaluation Instruction

A MODEL OF REFLECTIVE PRACTICE PLAN ACT EVALUATE RECONCEPTUALISE theory, context, values theory context values theory, context, values reconsider theory determine to change context reconsider values

Reflective Practice By ‘theory’ we mean:  subject knowledge - including knowledge of the nature of the subject  pedagogical knowledge - knowledge of theories of teaching and learning  informal personal theories of teaching and learning (craft knowledge)

Reflective Practice ‘Context’ means characteristics of the college and class which will affect the way you teach and the impact of that teaching. Elements include:  the resources available  the nature of the teaching space  the nature of the students  the expectations of students, parents/ carers, colleagues, governors  the formal policies of the college  the national context

Reflective Practice By ‘values’ we mean:  national values related to education and the conduct of teachers and learners  your personal values related to teaching