INSTRUCTIONAL STUDIES
ASSIGNMENT 02
Unique number:651779
1|P age
, 1.1.
1. Good teaching is as much about passion as it is about reason. It’s about
motivating students not only to learn, but teaching them how to learn, and doing
so in a manner that is relevant, meaningful, and memorable. It’s about caring for
your craft, having a passion for it, and conveying that passion to everyone, but
mostly importantly to your students.
2. Good teaching is about substance and treating students as consumers of
knowledge. It’s about doing your best to keep on top of your field, reading
sources, inside and outside of your areas of expertise, and being at the leading
edge as often as possible. But knowledge is not confined to scholarly journals.
Good teaching is also about bridging the gap between theory and practice. It’s
about leaving the ivory tower and immersing oneself in the field in talking to,
consulting with, and assisting practitioners and liaising with their communities.
3. Good teaching is about listening, questioning, being responsive and
remembering that each student and class is different. It’s about eliciting
responses and developing the oral communication skills of the quiet students.
It’s about pushing students to excel and at the same time it’s about being
human, respecting others and being always professional.
4. Good teaching is about not always having a fixed agenda and being rigid, but
being flexible, fluid, experimenting, and having the confidence to react and
adjust to changing circumstances. It’s about getting only 10 percent of what you
wanted to do in a class done and still feeling good. It’s about deviating from the
course syllabus or lecture schedule easily when there is more and better
learning elsewhere. Good teaching is about the creative balance between being
an authoritarian dictator on the one hand and a push-over on the other. Good
teachers always migrate between these poles depending on the circumstances.
They know where they need to be and when
.
5. Good teaching is also about style. Should good teaching be entertaining? You
bet! Does this mean that it lacks in substance? Not a chance! Effective teaching
is not about being locked with both hands glued to a podium or having your eyes
fixated on a slide projector while you drone on. Good teachers work the room
and every student in it. They realize that they are the conductors and that the
class is their orchestra. All students play different instruments and at varying
proficiencies. A teacher’s job is to develop skills and make these instruments
come to life as a coherent whole to make music.
6. And this is very important, good teaching is about humour. It’s about being
self-deprecating and not taking yourself too seriously. It’s often about making
innocuous jokes, mostly at your own expense, so that the ice breaks and
students learn in a more relaxed atmosphere where you, like them, are human
with your own share of faults and shortcomings.
7. Good teaching is about caring, nurturing, and developing minds and
talents. It’s about devoting time, often invisible, to every student. It’s also about
2|P age
ASSIGNMENT 02
Unique number:651779
1|P age
, 1.1.
1. Good teaching is as much about passion as it is about reason. It’s about
motivating students not only to learn, but teaching them how to learn, and doing
so in a manner that is relevant, meaningful, and memorable. It’s about caring for
your craft, having a passion for it, and conveying that passion to everyone, but
mostly importantly to your students.
2. Good teaching is about substance and treating students as consumers of
knowledge. It’s about doing your best to keep on top of your field, reading
sources, inside and outside of your areas of expertise, and being at the leading
edge as often as possible. But knowledge is not confined to scholarly journals.
Good teaching is also about bridging the gap between theory and practice. It’s
about leaving the ivory tower and immersing oneself in the field in talking to,
consulting with, and assisting practitioners and liaising with their communities.
3. Good teaching is about listening, questioning, being responsive and
remembering that each student and class is different. It’s about eliciting
responses and developing the oral communication skills of the quiet students.
It’s about pushing students to excel and at the same time it’s about being
human, respecting others and being always professional.
4. Good teaching is about not always having a fixed agenda and being rigid, but
being flexible, fluid, experimenting, and having the confidence to react and
adjust to changing circumstances. It’s about getting only 10 percent of what you
wanted to do in a class done and still feeling good. It’s about deviating from the
course syllabus or lecture schedule easily when there is more and better
learning elsewhere. Good teaching is about the creative balance between being
an authoritarian dictator on the one hand and a push-over on the other. Good
teachers always migrate between these poles depending on the circumstances.
They know where they need to be and when
.
5. Good teaching is also about style. Should good teaching be entertaining? You
bet! Does this mean that it lacks in substance? Not a chance! Effective teaching
is not about being locked with both hands glued to a podium or having your eyes
fixated on a slide projector while you drone on. Good teachers work the room
and every student in it. They realize that they are the conductors and that the
class is their orchestra. All students play different instruments and at varying
proficiencies. A teacher’s job is to develop skills and make these instruments
come to life as a coherent whole to make music.
6. And this is very important, good teaching is about humour. It’s about being
self-deprecating and not taking yourself too seriously. It’s often about making
innocuous jokes, mostly at your own expense, so that the ice breaks and
students learn in a more relaxed atmosphere where you, like them, are human
with your own share of faults and shortcomings.
7. Good teaching is about caring, nurturing, and developing minds and
talents. It’s about devoting time, often invisible, to every student. It’s also about
2|P age
