Teaching Styles

30/11/18

Teaching Styles

Given this large array of intelligences that students are likely to have and respond to, it is important that teachers understand different teaching styles and approaches to learning to harness the strengths and limit the weaknesses of students. In this essay, I am going to focus on six different approaches to learning before answering the question as to the assessment approach I wish to promote: 1) behaviourist, 2) cognitivist, 3) humanist, 4) social & situational, 5) critical/transformative, and 6) self-directed.

Behaviourist theorists believe that learning can be conducted when the required behaviour is learnt through a task being repeated by the teacher accompanied with feedback. To discourage mistakes instant correction is made. For example, Ivan Pavlov’s famous study in 192O’s, were he taught dogs to salivate upon hearing a bell which was shortly followed by food. When Pavlov stopped feeding them after the bell they continued to salivate at the sound due to the learnt behaviour. Pavlov coined the term ‘classic conditioning’. Cognitivist theorists hold the view that we should create scaffolding learners (learners that think for themselves). Building learners to think for themselves. The teacher can do so by allowing for experimentation, letting the learner learn from mistakes and build on their knowledge. Deep learning is encouraged over superficial learning.

Humanist theorists believe that learning comes from intrinsic factors for one to accomplish their potential. The individual must be self-motivated and seek new knowledge. A teacher can encourage this by engaging students in topic of interest to the pupils. Social and situational theorist believe that students learn through social situations and real-life experience. This can be brought into the classroom through peer work as they can share each other’s opinions and mistakes. This is shown to develop a growth mindset. Self-directed theorists believe that intrinsic motivation in that the drive to learn comes from the persons own initiative. Whilst all teachers should encourage and instil this in their pupils the culture of ‘spoon feeding’ we have here in Ireland disables the learners to have such initiative when it comes to self-directed learner and this is reflected in the third level environment. Pupils often struggle at third level due to lack of drive to find information for themselves.  

Critical and transformative theorists   believe in challenging students’ thinking by encouraging them to use critical thinking and questioning to consider if their underlying assumptions and beliefs about the world are accurate. In other words, students are encouraged to think beyond what they are presented with and challenge conventional wisdom in favour of something different. They are encouraged to push boundaries and criticise what exists but then present something new – transformative in the place of that which they criticise.