Definitions of Teaching - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Definitions of Teaching

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Definitions of Teaching taken in part from B. O. Smith s Definitions of Teaching Operational Definitions of Teaching – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Definitions of Teaching


1
Definitions of Teaching
  • taken in part from B. O. Smiths
  • Definitions of Teaching

2
Operational Definitions of Teaching
  • "the action of a person who teaches the
    profession of a teacher
  • "teaching is imparting knowledge or skill"

3
Terms defining teaching such as imparting,
knowledge, and skill are often ambiguous
  • imparting --
  • telling? conditioning? constructing?
  • knowledge --
  • knowing? believing? comprehending? understanding?
  • skill --
  • knowing that? (a bike is ridden this way)
  • knowing how? (to ride a bike in actuality)
  • knowing to? (ride a bike when necessary)

4
Descriptive Definitions of Teaching
  • Teaching as Success
  • Teaching as Intentional Activity
  • Teaching as Normative Activity
  • Scientific Definition of Teaching

5
Teaching as Success
  • "teaching is that which results in learning"
  • There are drawbacks with this form of definition.
  • Learning is the responsibility of the teacher!
  • If students do not learn, it is the fault of the
    teacher.
  • This is the process - product approach.
  • students are a product of the system
  • confuses teaching (a task) with learning (an
    objective)
  • By this definition, an external observer cannot
    tell whether or not a teacher is actually
    teaching e.g., cannot observe teacher to see if
    teaching is actually occurring.

6
Teaching as Intentional Activity
  • "teaching is undertaking certain tasks or
    activities the intention of which is to induce
    learning"
  • A teacher can anticipate that certain activities
    will result in learning, but not guarantee it.
  • In short, successful teaching cannot be reduced
    to a set of general rules, or a prescribed
    pattern of behavior.

7
Teaching as Normative Activity
  • "normative teaching requires that the activities
    of teaching conform to certain ethical
    conditions"
  • conditioning (stimulus-obeying behavior)
  • indoctrinating (uniformed belief)
  • brainwashing (conditioned behavior/uninformed
    belief)
  • informing (information with explanations or
    evidence, no experience provided)
  • training (rule-obeying behavior)
  • instructing (training and informing)
  • teaching (processes of verification, concern for
    what student thinks, preparing them for
    independent action)

8
Toward of Scientific Definition of Teaching
  • "teaching is the process of carrying out those
    activities that experience has shown to be
    effective in getting students to learn"
  • a major problem is that there is very little
    research that agrees systematically on anything
  • craft wisdom is frequently good, but sometimes is
    in error
  • a scientific definition is probably not possible
    given student autonomy

9
A Working Definition of Teaching
  • teaching is undertaking certain ethical tasks or
    activities the intention of which is to induce
    learning

10
Relationship between Teaching and Learning
  • Teaching is what teachers do.
  • Learning is what students do.
  • Does a relationship between good teaching and
    student learning exist?
  • To a degree, but how are they related and to what
    extent is unclear.

11
If such a connection truly exists, then...
  • your ability to teach should be judged on the
    basis of student learning.
  • you should be held accountable for student
    learning despite poor parenting, negative
    attitudes, and other social ills.
  • your pay should be based at least in part on
    student outcomes.

12
There is not necessarily a connection between
teaching and learning.
  • some students can and will learn in spite of bad
    teaching
  • some students will not learn even with the best
    teaching
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