Post 3: Teaching and Observing

On Tuesday, we split up into groups for a teaching exercise. Each member of the group had 12 minutes give a lesson on anything relating to technology education. I felt comfortable writing the lesson and it seems to make sense when read, but I don't seem to be completely clear when I teach. I appreciate being given the opportunity to practice in the class and I hope to find more opportunities. I'm interested to read the feedback from my peers as well as Dr. Geoff Wright.

The most memorable moment of the activity was feedback from Dr. Wright following one of the teachers. He asked what the purpose was. Why did you teach what you taught? It seems to be a trend to teach specific technological tools or skills without theory. It seems backwards to teach how to use a hammer before teaching about architecture, style, and developing an appreciation and love for the craft. Tools should be available to aids us in producing what we want and we should be skilled enough to find and learn how to use the tools we need. It seems odd to pick up the tools in front of me, and then decide what I can make. Teaching how to use a piece of technology should be less about that specific tool and more about how to learn new technologies and find those tools that will help you produce what you have created.

On Thursday, we observed Junior High technology courses. I observed a 7th grade CTE Business class, the morning announcements, and a 9th grade computer class. The teacher did a lot of great things. She was organized and very clear with all the students. It was easy to see many of the things that we have talked about in class. She gave a pretest and went over the instruction and objectives so that everyone understood. All the students participated. The students were given the opportunity choose the specifics of what they were doing. I could go on and on. She was a pitch perfect teacher. The problem is I was bored.

During the 9th period class, she was teaching Word. They were taking notes on "Save." We came on a less exciting day because the entire period was note-taking. The teacher would give a vocabulary word, read the definition, and the students would write it down. It was good that I came on this day because perhaps that is the harsh reality of teaching, although I still believe it isn't. 

One criticism was that the teacher seemed to be giving the lesson despite the students students questions or concerns were brushed aside to get through the content. It's true that if she had addressed every question, then she wouldn't have made it through the lesson and it's probably a pretty safe bet that their question would be answered eventually or their question didn't carry much importance. One example: A 7th grade student asked if the border of the word art could be blue and black. The teacher responded that it could. "You may choose any color you want." He was actually asking how to use two colors, not if the colors he wanted were acceptable to her. She moved on with the lesson. Does it matter? Is he worse off for not knowing how to use multiple colors in his word art? If she would have stopped and tried to understand his question and then explain how to do that, it may have caused the other students to lose interest and stop listening and maybe she wouldn't have finished her prepared lesson.