1. Pair work to begin a lesson
2. A Useful Link for an overview of Instructional Intelligence
Pair Work to Begin a Lesson
For some time now, I have been forwarding newsletters that are sent to me by Don Mesibov, a teacher trainer at St. Lawrence University in NY State and big proponent of student-centred education, to the II Conference. One thing that I read in a recent newsletter really stuck with me: How often do we begin a class with teacher talk? The newsletter stated that the level of student engagement drastically increases when we (teachers) don't launch into some 5-50 minute lecture. Don't get me wrong; there are many times when it's impossible to avoid teacher talk at the beginning of class, but think of a lesson that you have recently done with your students that you initiated with teacher talk. Now consider how you could have altered the lesson so that your role was largely minimized and the students were the ones doing most of the talking/thinking/explaining. One of the benefits to student-centred lesson starters is that we don't really give them a chance to get bored. It's inevitable that some students will be bored no matter what we do, but at least we can try to minimize that gateway to disengagement.
Here is a really simple example. My grade 10s were going to be studying Canada's contribution to the war in the air and at sea during WW1. They write regularly in a history journal that often serves as a vehicle for either beginning a lesson or for closure at the end of the lesson. I had them open their journals, record the date and then I asked them this question:
"If you were given the choice, would you rather travel in a plane or a boat?"
There were puzzled looks in the classroom and some students asked me to restate the question. Some wanted me to be more specific, but I refrained as much as possible. I told them to make their choice and briefly explain it in their journals. Only about 3 minutes of class had elapsed and I had said very little, but the students were already questioning, thinking and writing. I walked up and down the rows (team tables were disassembled for this period because they were too chatty the previous day) and glanced at some papers. Some students asked me to look at what they wrote and I did so, but did not make many comments. I would say things like "Interesting choice" or "I never thought of that" but never said much more.
The next phase involved student movement, which will be the focus of the next newsletter. I had them all stand with their journals. They were instructed to walk around the room until I said stop. Once they stopped, they paired up (a great time for Kagan's Stand Up, Hand Up, Pair Up structure), and took turns exchanging ideas. They moved and shared 2 more times, then were instructed to return to their seats. As they were shared with each other, I eavesdropped, and many interesting things were said. Students expressed fears and past experiences, and some had some funny stories to tell. I didn't ask people to share in a whole class setting due to time constraints, but I conducted a quick poll of how many chose planes vs. boats. All told, that process took about 10 minutes. Invariably, students will say "Why did we do that?" which gives me a great segue into the lesson. It was only then that I told them the focus of the lesson. I asked them to think about whether they would make the same choices if I asked that question in 1914. Many later said that they would do anything they could to avoid a 1914-era plane, also known as a "flying coffin."
We can't ignore the fact that kids would rather talk to each other instead of listen to us; however, we can use that fact to our advantage. Pair or group discussion to begin a lesson allows us to access and assess prior student experience and knowledge, and increases the chances that we will hook the kids into any given lesson. I know that I am always writing about what takes place in a history class, but this type of questioning and student-talk can be used in any subject area.
Useful Link
A while ago, Barrie Bennett was guest editor of OISE's Orbit Journal. He wrote a really good overview of the concept of instructional intelligence. Here is the link to that article. It's a great intro or review.
http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/orbit/core5_teach_strat.html
If you have comments or questions, I would love to hear them. Click the comments link or send me an email via First Class.
