Follow-up to Sunday's Post

Okay, part 2. So many of the tactics and strategies that we come across are ones that are either unappealing, or they just don't seem applicable to our classes. Many teachers feel comfortable teaching as they were taught--some variation of the Socratic dialogue in which they attempt to "extract" information from the learner. Lately there has been the misconception that lecture/Socratic-type lessons are improper ways to teach. My response to that is that each can be a valuable part of the student's classroom experience, as long as we somehow involve them in that experience. Many books describe a lecture as an attempt by the teacher to pour knowledge from his or her head into the learners' heads--I said it, and therefore they are learning it. The reality is that very few people out there, adults included, can learn effectively this way, especially when there is no context for the learning. We quickly discard information that we feel is unimportant and irrelevant; therefore, if a lecture is given, make it part of a larger task that students are working on. The lecture should be framed in such a way that they see the information presented as valuable and usable. That's just one way to make lecture/Socratic dialogue more effective. I'll elaborate on my second suggestion in a day or so.