e-Learning Ecologies MOOC’s Updates
When I "Misbehaved" in the Classroom - Didactic Pedagogy in the 1970s
As I think about the difference between didactic and reflexive pedagogies, a memory from my own childhood education keeps popping up. I usually got in trouble for doing one of the two misbehaviors.
1. Talking to my classmates when we were supposed to be working on our ditto sheets.
2. Standing up at my desk to complete my ditto sheets.
Now that I'm an educator, I know I process information best when I can discuss with it someone else and I concentrate better when standing up.
If I had a time machine and could go back to that classroom in 1978, what would I suggest the teacher do differently?
1. Let the students work in small groups to complete the ditto sheets.
2. Let the students stand at their desk if they want to while working.
Now over 40 years later, I'm wondering how I can apply these two learning methods into my own class as I transition to remote instruction.
As a private language school teacher, I had meetings where we went through several class groupings, and once of them was the chat, where the teacher sat down. It was a relief to know someone had finally understood the value of informality in formal contexts! Their production varied, there were mistakes, but I always felt like they were more willing to participate, and all I did was sit down. You can compare it with the pointing to a student in front of the class kind of approach. We try several of these techniques in language teaching. The roles get reformulated. I don't want to make this case-specific, but an overly informal classroom will eventually lead to problems; but it still depends on social settings.
Hello, I am in the same situation. I think, as you recognize, it's about supporting their needs and giving them freedom so some of the things that we did in our classroom can still be transferred into remote learning, like offering choice and asking students to share ideas in a group chat. I guess it is up to us and our colleagues to find the online platforms that will support us. I feel like I am suddenly thrown into new territory and while I am open minded, there is a learning curve, not only for me but for my students. And, there are almost too many options: do I use Facebook, Twitter, Flipgrid? Each time a new site is used, students will face frustrations learning to use it. Now I am thinking that I will just choose one to try and once students are successful, I can add another into our repertoire.
@Heather its about changing teachers mindset. This is not an easy task, but through this crisis schools and education departments will realise how far behind in the e-learning ecologies principles. It will take courage to make this massive shift, but we all need to embark in this journey otherwise the next generation will leave school earlier to develop their true potentials elsewhere.