What does great teaching look like?

What does great teaching look like?

Teaching is about students learning...and creating independent and motivated learners.

Creating independent learners means then having a clear understanding on what is expected of them.

How can teachers empower learners and what do leaders look for in their teachers - to define great teaching?

Most important is that teachers have a deep and fluent knowledge and understanding of the content they are teaching but they are also willing to take input from students and show a flexibility in their own conceptual understanding according to the changing environment. Inspired and passionate teachers are contagious.

The ability of a teachers to develop a good relationship with the students, and inspire them to interact with the teacher and each other, in a blame free environment based on mutual respect, care, empathy and warmth is always visible where great learning is going on.

Personalising learning means being positive about each students individual needs, culture and work ethic, or ability to organise themselves and helping them find their own way without negating or demotivating them with perhaps a test culture.

Making sure that the teachers learning objectives are clear and that the students can rephrase them as well us students understanding what they should be doing but also providing a clear rationale, of why and the relevance of what they are learning.

A good teacher should be able to respond and interact according to the individual students thinking, or background knowledge and understanding and provide advice to guide their learning and opportunities to work through any misconceptions - but always have high expectations and trust - a safe learning environment,

This also goes with clear expectations of behaviour - most important inspiring a climate where using questions and dialogue to promotes elaboration and cultivates student thinking.

Assessment can be used to inspire deeper learning -helping students to plan, regulate and monitor their own learning, understand curriculum expectations and using self and peer assessment to re-activating or check prior knowledge and build connections to current learning.

Perhaps the following may provide generic guidance in different settings.

1) Always begin a lesson with a short review of previous learning and make sure that students are able to relate and personalise it. Allowing some thinking time - 3-5 minutes at the beginning of the lesson for them to engage according to the teachers objectives - and provide relevance and continuity form prior learning...? ( and also at the end of the lesson to reflect on what they have learnt )

2. Presenting of new content gradually and checking student understanding and application slowly - allowing them time to produce visible evidence of learning but also allowing time to practice...not rushing through the curriculum but taking the lead from learners.

3. Asking many deep questions number of questions allowing all students to respond to each other - in an orchestrated manner involving all students.

4. Providing models and guidance to inspire them as a passionate teacher.

5 Always checking for understanding and allowing students to present or talk / write about it and develop self belief - but also be ready to provide support for difficult tasks

The use of modeling and demonstrating new skills or procedures provides students opportunities to learn and adapt or apply providing personal interpretations and promoting learner motivation developing autonomy.

Good teaching

Good teaching is about impact- where students learn more. Simply understanding how students learn is the key focus to improve learning.

Whatever the curriculum or objectives, it is?about developing an environment that empowers learners to chart their own learning outcomes & developments that are relevant, valuable and transformational in order to make a difference in today's very volatile world.

I would appreciate you comments and other tips that work...

Tassos Anastasiades