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Teaching styles
Teaching styles is a broad and complex subject that is not easy to be specified and categorized. Just as people have different individual learning styles, teachers have personal teaching styles that works best for them. Felder & Soloman, 1992 stated “When planning and developing instructional materials, strive for a balance of teaching styles to match the various learning styles.” Lage, Platt & Treglia, 2000 had the rationale that students will gain more knowledge, retain more information, and perform far better when the teaching styles match learning styles. However, it is important to note and recognize that it is difficult to match with every learning style. Our personality, our way of thinking, our preferences for pictures, sounds or actions determine our learning style. People can become efficient learners if they understand their way of learning, evaluate their own strengths and weaknesses, and learn from past experiences to plan for the present and future. Teachers do have their personal preference for specific learning styles which will subsequently influence their teaching styles. For teachers to make their teaching styles effective, they need to understand their students’ learning styles and adapt their teaching strategies accordingly. Everyone needs to learn how to learn, but teachers have to do something more, they have to learn how to help others learn. Some good teachers even go a step further by helping others learn how to learn. Teachers’ teaching styles can be expressed through the behaviours, characteristics and mannerisms that reflect their teaching philosophy, and the role they prefer to take when conveying information in the classroom. There are four basic teaching styles: 1. Formal Authority – Teacher-centred approach where the teacher is responsible for providing and controlling the flow of content which the students are to receive and assimilate. The teacher does not concern himself/herself with creating rapport with the students nor is it important if the students build relationships with each other. 2. Demonstrator or Personal Model – Teacher-centred approach where the teacher demonstrates and models what is expected and then acts as a coach or guide to assist the students in applying the knowledge. This style encourages student participation and utilizes various learning styles. 3. Facilitator – Student-centred approach where the teacher facilitates and focuses on activities. Responsibility is placed on the students to take initiative to achieve results for the various tasks. Only students who are independent, active, and collaborative learners thrive in this environment. Teachers typically design group activities which necessitate active learning, student-to-student collaboration and problem solving. 4. Delegator – Student-centred approach where the teacher delegates and places much control and responsibility for learning on individuals or groups of students. The teacher will often require students to design and implement a complex learning project and will act solely in a consultative role. Students are often requested to work independently or in groups and manage various interpersonal roles effectively. One way to look at teaching styles is to consider differences between adult learning (andragogy) and child learning (pedagogy). The pedagogical style is teacher-centred where the teacher decides what is taught and how it is taught. As a result, the learner is dependent on the teacher for everything, direction and content. The focus of learning is to build a foundation of knowledge that may be useful later. The andragogy style is learner-centred where the learner takes a more active role in directing what they need. The focus of this learning is more on application of knowledge and the development of competency in skills for immediate use. The teacher’s role is more as a facilitator of learning and a resource to the learner, as adult learners take responsibility for their education. There are situations where each style is effective. At times the teacher should take control of the learning situation to ensure that the learner has a solid base of knowledge for future use. At other times, learners must be encouraged to assess their own needs and direct their learning. Everyone naturally has a personal preference of teaching styles that has been formulated from their own past experiences, but knowing the best approach is often just a matter of knowing your students and their needs.
Teaching styles is a broad and complex subject that is not easy to be specified and categorized. Just as people have different individual learning styles, teachers have personal teaching styles that works best for them. Felder & Soloman, 1992 stated “When planning and developing instructional materials, strive for a balance of teaching styles to match the various learning styles.” Lage, Platt & Treglia, 2000 had the rationale that students will gain more knowledge, retain more information, and perform far better when the teaching styles match learning styles. However, it is important to note and recognize that it is difficult to match with every learning style. Our personality, our way of thinking, our preferences for pictures, sounds or actions determine our learning style. People can become efficient learners if they understand their way of learning, evaluate their own strengths and weaknesses, and learn from past experiences to plan for the present and future. Teachers do have their personal preference for specific learning styles which will subsequently influence their teaching styles. For teachers to make their teaching styles effective, they need to understand their students’ learning styles and adapt their teaching strategies accordingly. Everyone needs to learn how to learn, but teachers have to do something more, they have to learn how to help others learn. Some good teachers even go a step further by helping others learn how to learn. Teachers’ teaching styles can be expressed through the behaviours, characteristics and mannerisms that reflect their teaching philosophy, and the role they prefer to take when conveying information in the classroom. There are four basic teaching styles: 1. Formal Authority – Teacher-centred approach where the teacher is responsible for providing and controlling the flow of content which the students are to receive and assimilate. The teacher does not concern himself/herself with creating rapport with the students nor is it important if the students build relationships with each other. 2. Demonstrator or Personal Model – Teacher-centred approach where the teacher demonstrates and models what is expected and then acts as a coach or guide to assist the students in applying the knowledge. This style encourages student participation and utilizes various learning styles. 3. Facilitator – Student-centred approach where the teacher facilitates and focuses on activities. Responsibility is placed on the students to take initiative to achieve results for the various tasks. Only students who are independent, active, and collaborative learners thrive in this environment. Teachers typically design group activities which necessitate active learning, student-to-student collaboration and problem solving. 4. Delegator – Student-centred approach where the teacher delegates and places much control and responsibility for learning on individuals or groups of students. The teacher will often require students to design and implement a complex learning project and will act solely in a consultative role. Students are often requested to work independently or in groups and manage various interpersonal roles effectively. One way to look at teaching styles is to consider differences between adult learning (andragogy) and child learning (pedagogy). The pedagogical style is teacher-centred where the teacher decides what is taught and how it is taught. As a result, the learner is dependent on the teacher for everything, direction and content. The focus of learning is to build a foundation of knowledge that may be useful later. The andragogy style is learner-centred where the learner takes a more active role in directing what they need. The focus of this learning is more on application of knowledge and the development of competency in skills for immediate use. The teacher’s role is more as a facilitator of learning and a resource to the learner, as adult learners take responsibility for their education. There are situations where each style is effective. At times the teacher should take control of the learning situation to ensure that the learner has a solid base of knowledge for future use. At other times, learners must be encouraged to assess their own needs and direct their learning. Everyone naturally has a personal preference of teaching styles that has been formulated from their own past experiences, but knowing the best approach is often just a matter of knowing your students and their needs.
