Effective Learning and Teaching Key Principles

The overall purpose of this session is: To affirm your own good practices To develop self-reflection on them To identify 4 key principles of effective teaching: ▫Self-reflection and evaluation ▫Effective planning ▫Effective communication ▫Effective assessment

The 4 purposes of self-evaluation are: 1. To identify our strengths 2. Minimise our weaknesses 3. Plan ahead 4. Evaluate the outcomes of this planning Why? Because: ▫Teaching can be a solitary activity ▫Teaching is a moral activity ▫Teaching is a professional activity: standards are involved. HOWEVER:

However: If people simply reflect on their own, there will be no significant change. (Boyd, 1995) A simple enough statement, but having profound implications for: ▫Objectivity (rendering the evaluation objective) ▫Validity (rendering the evaluation valid) ▫Transferability (rendering our teaching better)

Sources for self-reflection include: A reflective diary Focus groups Other groups Interviews Critical friendship Observation Mentoring Questionnaires Closure (transitional and final) One minute papers Think/Pair/Share exercises The muddiest point One sentence summaries tranet/committees/FacDevCo m/guidebk/teachtip/assess- 2.htmhttp://honolulu.hawaii.edu/in tranet/committees/FacDevCo m/guidebk/teachtip/assess- 2.htm

Reflect, Identify, Act, Evaluate Reflect: what is happening in my practice? Identify: where is this happening? Act: what could be done to improve practice? Evaluate: what evidence could be used to validate my practice?

Criteria for self-evaluation include: Those generically identified in the scholarship of learning and teaching Those contained in Framework Standards Those contained in observation forms Those identified through: ▫ peer observation ▫ critical friendship and ▫ mentoring

Pause Time: Any questions, comments or queries? Common Weaknesses (but turn each into a positive):

At the start: An absence of learning outcomes Unclear learning outcomes Few if any links to prior learning Inattention to the environment for learning Teacher dominance from the beginning: one is not going to deviate from this Assuming too much learner knowledge

As class progresses: Imbalance between content and processes Losing sight of purpose: which is??? Delivering content in an undifferentiated manner (very important/less important) No formative learning (assessment): what has been understood/what not? Limited interaction

Leaving students out Ineffective pacing Explaining is imprecise Absence of wait time: thinking time Whole class/didactic teaching Not dwelling on complexities: ▫‘This is complex…’ ▫‘Could anyone explain why it is complex?’ ▫‘It is ALSO complex because…’ ▫‘Do you understand this now?’ ▫‘Who could summarise?’

Effective teaching defined: ‘Effective teaching refers to the extent to which the teacher employed learning outcomes successfully to bring about the intended outcomes for …the programme of study’. (Kyriacou, 1995) ‘…effective teachers employ a range of assessment methods and techniques to monitor… understanding….’ ( Hay-Mc Ber, 2000 )

Learning Outcomes The definition above, emphasising learning outcomes, takes us forward to the next essential, which is planning for learning. In the context of student-centred learning, a learning outcomes model is strongly advocated internationally. So what are learning outcomes?