mentoring: unpacking beliefs about teaching and learning

1 - Unpacking: Beliefs about Teaching and

Learning

Prepared by: Ana María Hurtado M. for BE

Aim: Exploring my ideas and beliefs about teaching and learning

Typical Teacher I Have Had

Typical Teacher I Have Had spoonfeeder

Exploration of my own beliefs

1.  What is learning? 2.  What is teaching? 3.  What makes a good teacher?

Task break 1_ Drawing of my classroom at school

Transmission Approach vs. Constructivist Approach

From Behaviourism to Cognitive Learning

Vygotsky’s ZPD Zone of Proximal Development

Six elements of constructivist learning model in ELT

1. Situation 2. Groupings 3. Bridge 4. Questions 5. Exhibit 6. Reflection

Constructivism and Language Teaching and Learning

1. about constructing knowledge, not receiving it 2. about thinking and analyzing, not accumulating memorizing 3. about understanding and applying, not repeating back 4. being active, not passive. (Marlowe & Page, 2005)

What type of teacher do I want to be?

What type of teacher do I want to be?

Task Break Drawing of my ideal classroom What is the type of teacher I want to be?

Type of Teacher I Want to Be A learning-centered classroom: •  Focuses on finding solutions

to real-world problems. •  Is about what the students are

doing and what the students can do in the future.

•  There are multiple ways to accomplish an individual task.

•  A partnership and a strong level of trust between educators and students.

Am I aware of my Apprenticeship of Observation? •  12-20 years in classrooms

watching teachers teach •  A repertoire of teaching

strategies with which we felt comfortable as students

•  Assumptions about how students learn based on our own learning styles and strategies

•  A bias toward certain types of instructional materials with which we became familiar as students

•  Asymmetrical, since we formulate a conception of teaching based on perceptions as students, not as teachers

A Blessing & A Curse

•  Enables teachers to function immediately in the classroom

•  This imprint may be difficult to overcome

•  Forms the basis for how teachers carry out their classroom practices

•  Because the basis is imitation rather than understanding, they often follow unchallenged common sense principles

Few teachers have direct experiences in learner-centered classrooms

Tension: Approaches to Teaching Teacher Centred

1.  Focus on teacher 2.  Focus on what T thinks is

important about language.

3.  Teacher talks; students listen

4.  Students work alone 5.  Teacher monitors and

corrects every student utterance

Learner Centred

1.  Focus on students and T 2.  Focus is on how students

will use the language 3.  Instructor models; students

interact with instructor and one another

4.  Students work in pairs, in groups, or alone depending on the purpose of the activity

5.  Students talk without constant instructor monitoring.

Approaches to teaching Teacher Centred

1.  Teacher answers students’ questions

2.  Teacher chooses topics

3.  Teacher evaluates 4.  Classroom is quiet

Learner Centred 1.  Students answer each

other’s questions. T is one information source

2.  Students have some choice of topics

3.  Students evaluate their own learning, teacher also evaluates

4. Classroom is often noisy and busy

Developmental Stages Teachers move through developmental stages focus on self ->

teaching task -> student learning

“Apprenticeship of Learning” Diagram (A. Sheehan)

Mapping the route of your ideas and beliefs: Key influences: Miss Laura: Miss Cecilia: Pop band Puzzled -  Strict - Strict & warm Drama group Political -  Frightening Miss Dora: Friends awareness

- empowering Self-discipline

Autonomy

Pre- school Primary Secondary University

Task Break: Draw your own apprenticeship of

learning diagram

Self-reflection: Can you identify important stages in your development as a teacher?

Task break: What were your best development

experiences?

What was it all about today?

•  How is all this linked to becoming a Mentor?

•  What was the most meaningful? Most useful?

Credits •  Based on: Karen E. Johnson’s ppt Penn State University, January, 2007 •  Diagram of “Apprenticeship of Learning” by Andrew Sheehan, Mentor

Training Course 2005 •  Malderez, Angi & Bodoczky, Caroline (1999), Mentor Courses, CUP •  http://constructivisminelt.wikispaces.com/Constructivism+and

+language+teaching •  Head, Katie & Taylor, Pauline (1997), Readings in Teacher

Development, Macmillan