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"Environments for learning". The learning environment is critical

to how teaching and learning takes place.

Look at that first slide, by Gravells.

"A suitable learning environment is crucial

to enable your learners to learn effectively."

Creating positive learning environments.

Let's look at two questions here, or maybe two sentences.

"Does my classroom...?"

And look at the bulleted points below.

Are those characteristics of your classroom?

Does it encourage your students to take initiatives?

Do your students feel safe and secure?

Does it enhance their positive personal development?

Let's personalise the question now. "Do I...?"

Do I help my students to feel safe and secure?

Are my students comfortable?

The learning environment. Think about your classroom at the moment,

sometimes you may not have a classroom. In South Africa for instance, many

classes happen under a tree, because it's very hot in a room

and in summer it's much easier to go outside and to teach.

Think about the layout of your room.

Is it too hot? Is it too cold?

Is the room too large or too small? Are there too many students?

Many classes in sub-Saharan Africa, you could have

classes of 60-70 students in a single class.

Sometimes two or three learners sitting on a single chair.

Is the class too noisy?

Is the teacher unsupportive? So think about your classroom in this way.

And I'd like you to draw a diagram

that thinks about your classroom.

What scope do you have about changing the classroom?

Is it possible for you to move things around,

and rearrange desks and tables?

There are several ways of arranging furniture in a classroom

and all have their advantages and disadvantages

and we're going through a few,

just to look at some of the advantages.

What could work with that arrangement,

and could it work for you? And that is the most important thing.

So, what are the advantages of a traditional classroom layout?

With all the desks lined up and the teacher standing at the front.

Think about what the disadvantages are of that.

What sort of activities would work well in this layout?

And yes, some activities would work really well,

but perhaps one of the things that might be disadvantageous,

it could be construed as that the teacher that is standing up right at the front

knows everything and that the learners sitting down

would just need to receive and take in all the teacher says.

But that's not neccessarily true because teachers

could also be standing at the front, in a traditional setting,

and have a very interactive, participatory class.

Now does your class have a traditonal layout,

but is it a very participatory and interactive class?

Or is it pretty much a one-directional pedagogy,

a one-directional teaching style?

Think about the horseshoe layout,

have you tried that out?

What are some of the advantages to using this method?

What are some of the disadvantages?

Now, you couldn't use this in a very small space with many learners, could you?

So, what sorts of activities could work in a horseshoe?

The wonderful space that's created in the centre

could be very useful for instance for dramas or interactive movement.

So, would this be a layout you could try out?

Now, the cafeteria layout,

I'm sure many of you've used that, particularly for group work with the

learners themselves sit in groups, and

have a conversation or construct knowledge in

ways drawing from magazines or building models, and you may be part of

that discussion as an observer watching how those learners work in those groups.

Let's look at the circle layout.

And the circle layout, and many teachers use this method to try and listen and

get a sense of how the class as a collective feel about a particular issue.

And the teacher in this room might participate in that circle,

but may also chair, or facilitate the discussion

and maybe use the circle to give everyone an opportunity, in a very democratic

kind of way, so that each one can share

or the teacher can process information, or what has just happened.

Now, creating a positive environment: how does the layout of the classroom effect

the interaction between the students and the teacher; the interaction among students;

the nature of the discipline. Of course, all of this is important because

sometimes the very nature of the discipline might

influence how you're going to layout the class.

Now, once a learning enviroment is critical for teaching and learning,

and we know and we've understood the

importance of creating spaces for teacher-learner interaction,

for learner-learner interaction,

but also how these can be specific for the subjects we teach.

But crucial to all of this is discipline, that the environment and how learners feel

safe in this space is also important.

Let's talk a little bit about negative discipline,

and negative discipline is grounded in reactive

behaviors on the part of the teacher.

The emphasis is on catching students doing something wrong.

How about turning this around

and also catching students when they're doing something right?

Do you like the notion of catching students when they're doing something right?

And really validating them and saying, "What you just did there is wonderful,

keep on doing that."

And by reinforcing and validating the students, may

create a very safe, comfortable, warm, validating environment.

Harassment in learning

is something that happens in many classrooms and also in the playground.

Sometimes the harassment, or most of the times, is a learner to

learner, but in many classrooms teachers

are often responsible for harassing their learners.

Sometimes we may feel that we're not harassing,

because we may understand harassment only as physical harassment.

But sometimes the things we can say,

that might be just subtle, that can just

make a learner feel very unmotivated, uninspired and

just not wanting to learn in your class.

So, how we use language - verbal teasing, name calling, threatening and taunting -

is equally as destructive to the spirit as the physical punitive

measures we put in place.

Think about relationship assaults: gossip, destroying relationships,

and teachers in many schools are also responsible for this.

Verbal harassment: words do hurt.

Think about experiences in your class and your teaching when

learners have come to you and spoken to you about learners

saying things to them. How have you responded to that?

How have you facilitated that discussion

and brought attention to the class of how destructive

gossip is and the emotional scars that it can leave on people?

Sometimes, what starts off as verbal leads into physical violence.

Now, what are some of the teaching strategies for positive discipline?

And I'd like you to look at these four points here.

You may be more creative and generate points

that really becomeuseful in your class.

But, put the list up of perhaps ground rules or boundaries that you can create

for your class and make those visible all the time for your learners.

So, whether you have sixty learners in the class,

they all need to understand collectively what the class boundaries are.

And of course, when somebody transcends those boundaries

you can draw their attention to them, "Listen, we've all agreed

to these set of guidelines, and you're not following those guidelines

which we all have collectively come up with."

So, in many ways, you kind of dilute

yourself from the setting of rules for the class.

Teachers with effective discipline are proactive.

Look at the do's and don'ts.

And I won't necessarily just take these do's and don'ts.

Feel free to add on to these do's and don'ts.

Be assertive.

Act, and be consistent. Sometimes we

forget our principles of consistency.

When a learner does something, we may be very hard on that learner.

And maybe just two years later, another learner does the same thing

and we ignore it or we are silent.

That is not really useful,

because there are not consistent messages being

communicated to the learners in that class.

I just think it's so important to treat students with

courtesy all the time.

Personally, I always use pleases and thank yous, just to encourage my learners to

do the same, and I find that the more they see me do it.

"Please will you open the window?"

"Thank you very much for doing that, I really appreciate it."

And maintaining a composure of calm

most of the time is always useful. Being calm

and collected and dealing with your students with dignity

and calmness is always wonderful for them to receive it, rather than you being

anxious and tense with them, because that just feeds fear and tenseness for them.

Let's look at the list of dont's. Being reactive to what learners do

sometimes can be destructive,

and remember our conversations in our sessions of being the adult,

Of, how do we be rational?

How can we be rational?

But most important is how do I announce

the relationship with the student all the time?

Because, remember, being reactive in that moment,

tomorrow is another day where you're going to

have to interact with that student again.

Tomorrow, you'd want to encourage and inspire that student.

So, some things to do next. Think about your best lessons.

How did students behave?

What did you do to encourage this behavior?

Think of a lesson that did not go well. How did students behave?

What did you do to encourage this behavior?

Lastly, how is your classroom organised?

Where do children sit? Could this be changed differently?

Would this session have allowed you to think differently about

perhaps maybe making a couple of changes in your classroom?

Maybe moving desks around a little.

Maybe creating more light in the room.

Putting more pictures in. But also paying attention to how the

interpersonal relationships also play a part in creating an environment

that is welcoming, safe and inclusive for all learners.

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Lecture 5.3

Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Being a Teacher

Meet the Instructors