teacher as facilitator: optimizing learning for students...
TRANSCRIPT
Teacher as facilitator: Optimizing learning for students’ L2 success
Dr. Fennema-Bloom
The University of Findlay
Graduate TESOL/Applied Linguistics Program
KSAALT 2017
Write down three ideas you have in regards to what makes an effective teacher.
Teaching-Learning is Symbiotic not Cyclical
Teach
• Facilitate
• Provide Information
• Plan lessons and activities
• Model engagement
• Develop resources
• Assess outcomes
Learn
• Make connections
• Comprehend ideas
• Think critically
• Practice retrieving information
Acquire
• Use knowledge
• Perform
Know
• Demonstrate knowledge
• Explain knowledge
To be an effective teacher1. Understand how the brain works in the learning process
Information Processing Model
http://jaredmgriffin.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/information-processing-model.jpg
SightSound TouchSmellTaste
How much can your WM hold?
• Two items of informationPreschoolers
• Three – seven items
• Average of five itemsPre-
adolescence
• Five – nine Items
• Average sevenAdult
Sousa, D. (1995). How the brain learns: A classroom teacher’s guide. Reston, VI: National Association of Secondary School Principal, p. 15.
Factors that Affect Memory Processing
1. Perceptual register • In just a millisecond it uses the individual’s experience to determine the
data’s degree of importance. • This is influenced by Long-term Memories, aka prior* or background*
knowledge.
2. Threat • Anything that is perceived as a threat takes higher priority diminishing the
processing of data.
3. Emotion • When an individual responds emotionally the limbic system overrides the
conscious thought/complex cerebral processes.
Types of Knowledge
Background Knowledge
• Implicit Knowledge that a learner has gained through exposure to society and interaction with others
Prior Knowledge
• Explicit knowledge that a learner has gained through formal training
How does learning occur?
Sense Meaning Learning
The sense that something is relevant and/or meaningful to the student
Comprehensible input and output
What can influence sense and meaning?
Cognitive Belief System
Our belief system and view of the world around us.
Self-Concept
The way we view ourselves in that world, developed through a series of experiences.
Purpose of teachingTo create as many pathways and associations as possible in order to access long-term memory
Visual
Auditory
Kinesthetic
RetentionLecture =
5%
Reading = 10%
Audio-Visual = 20%
Demonstration = 30%
Discussion Group = 50%
Practice by Doing = 75%
Teach Others/Immediate Use of Learning = 90%
After 24 Hours
Sousa, D. (1995). How the brain learns: A classroom teacher’s guide. Reston, VI: National Association of Secondary School Principal, p. 43.
Retention within a Learning Events
http://mwalker.com.au/Originally from Sousa, D. (1995). How the brain learns. Reston, VA: National Association of Secondary School Principles, p. 38.
Some simple “truths”
• The brain goes through physical and chemical changes each time we learn.
• More neural pathways are created when repeated stimulation occurs and the number of associations increase.
• There is almost no long-term retention without rehearsal.
• During a learning event, we tend to remember best what comes first and then what comes last, often the middle is thrown away (SLA –Perceptual Salience Theory).
Every time we retrieve something from long-term memory for active use in short-term memory we are “relearning” it.
To be an effective teacher2. Understanding the role of the teacher and how this plays out in retention and retrieval
Communicative Approach
• Views language as a system of communication thus the purpose and the goal of language teaching is for the students to communicate in the target language through
Reading
Writing
Speaking
Listening
Roles of a teacher
Facilitator
Information Provider
PlannerRole Model
Resource Developer
Assessor
Roles of a teacher
Facilitator
Information Provider
PlannerRole Model
Resource Developer
Assessor
MentorLearning FacilitatorDisciplinarian
LecturerPractitioner
Curriculum plannerClass Organizer
Student AssessorCurriculum Evaluator
Material DeveloperProject Developer
Student assessor
Curriculum assessor
Good Classroom Facilitators
• Studies in Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) show that teacher talking time (TTT):• Was counter productive
• Leads to student under-involvement
• Leads to a lack of adequate student language production time
• Enables student to take less responsibility for their own learning outcomes (c.f. Dellar, 2004; Lynch, 1996; Scrivener, 2005; Zaro & Salaberri, 1995…)
Reduce Teacher Talk Time and Increase Student Talk Time
Good Classroom Facilitators
• Plan your lessons to focus on the natural brain cycle for a learning event that limits your instructional phase and optimizes student production time
• Adopt a basic five phase lesson plan with the possibility of recursive phases of instruction
Plan lessons to optimize learning
Five Phases Lesson Plan
Opening
•3-5 minutes
•Activities
•Agenda Building
•“Do Nows”
•Baiting
•Reviewing
Mini Lesson*
Presentation
•8-10 minutes
•Activities
•Introduce new material
•Offer clarification
Guided Practice*
Practice
•10 minutes
•Activities
•Model the task
•Guided discussion
•Drill
Independent Practice*
Production
•10-20 minutes
•Activities
•Group/pair production
•Individual production
Closing
•3-5 minutes
•Activities
•Learning summary
•Homework
•Baiting/Foreshadowing
Recursive
Teacher Role in Each Phase
Opening
Teacher Directed
Student Centered –
Role of Teacher
Assessor
Facilitator
Planner
Mini Lesson (Presentation)*
Teacher Centered –
Role of Teacher
Information Provider
Guided Practice (Practice)*
Teacher Directed –
Role of Teacher
Role ModelGuideResource developer
Independent Practice (Production)*
Student Centered -
Role of Teacher
Facilitator
Assessor
Closing
Teacher Directed Student Centered -
Role of Teacher
Assessor
Facilitator
Planner
* Lesson Dependent Recursive stages
Good Classroom Facilitators
Understand how to implement ‘activity systems’
Engeström (1999)
Good Classroom Facilitators
• Select the correct interactional frameworks that best meets the activity’s outcome
• Try to include two-three frameworks in each lesson to optimize movement and construct distinct learning events
Manipulate classroom interactions
10 Interaction Framework Individual Pair Work Collaborative
GroupDivided Group Group
Presentation
Horse Shoe Circular Interaction
Roving TeacherCentered
Traditional
Interaction Framework 1: Individual
Interaction Framework 2: Pair Work
Interaction Framework 3: Collaborative Group
Interaction Framework 4: Divided Group
Interaction Framework 5: Group Presentation
Interaction Framework 6: Horse Shoe
Interaction Framework 7: Circular Interaction
Interaction Framework 8: Roving
Interaction Framework 9: Teacher Centered
Interaction Framework 10: Traditional
Good Classroom Facilitators
Reduce negative emotions and threats
Establish Trust Trust in youTrust in their
peersTrust in
themselves
Know your Students
Background Prior Future
CommunicateCo-
constructionWith them Not at them
Reduce language anxiety
Safe environment
Have funErrors are
natural
References
• Engeström, Y. (1999). Perspectives on activity theory. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Dellar, H. (2004). Rethinking Teacher Talking Time, TESOL Spain Newsletter,
http://www.tesol-spain.org/newsletter/hughdellar.html
• Lynch, T. (1996). Communication in the language classroom. Oxford University Press, USA.
• Scrivener, J. (2005). Learning Teaching. A guidebook for second language teachers. Oxford: Macmillan.
• Sousa, D. (1995). How the brain learns: A classroom teacher’s guide. Reston, VI: National Association
of Secondary School Principal.
• Zaro, J. J., & Salaberri, S. (1995). Handbooks for the English classroom storytelling. UK: Macmillan Heinemann.
Thank you!Contact: [email protected]
University of Findlay
College of Liberal Arts
Department of Language and Culture
TESOL/Applied Linguistics Program
1000 North Main Street
Findlay, OH 45840