Critical energizing components for teachers.
Understanding where someone has been is important to learning. Creating an environment for people to be encouraged to learn from you is even important. Check out some validated principles for charging an environment for creative learning.
Long (2002) provides a list of positive
characteristics of the kind of teacher necessary to teach for learning, e.g.
they are creative, flexible, risk-takers, friendly, learner-centered, have a
sense of humor. In addition, a teacher should be able to nurture students, is
optimistic, positive, self-confident, enthusiastic and passionate about the
subject matter (Long, 2002, p. 39). In sum, an effective teacher is one who is
self-aware.
After dealing with the necessary attributes of
the teacher, Long promoted six critical elements of a proper teaching context. Teachers
seeking to create energizing environments are encouraged by Long to follow
these ten critical energizing principles:
(1) create activity oriented environments;
(2) provides opportunities for students to
exercise control;
(3) goal are perceived by students as
useful/relevant;
(4) content and goals of the context are at
an appropriate level of challenge;
(5) facilitation of feedback;
(6) is nonthreatening;
(7) frequently uses humor and other
anxiety-releasing activities;
(8) prior abilities/knowledge are applied;
(9) students exercise choice among the
senses/styles for expression and appropriate options are available; and
(10) students are helped to address
attitudes and state conditions that serve as distractions as needed
(pp. 112-113).
From personal experience, I wholeheartedly agree with
the qualities that an effective teacher must possess as well as the energizing
principles for unleashing student creativity/energy.
Long, H. B. (2002). Teaching for Learning:
Professional practices in adult education and human resource development. Malabar,
Florida: Krieger Publishing Company.
Comments
Post a Comment