In this chapter we will explore:
- what theory is;
- why theory is useful;
- behaviourism, cognitivism and constructivism in the classroom;
- reflective practice.
Introduction
If I had a penny for every time I have been asked âwhat is the point in theory?â while I have been working in teacher education, I would be a very rich person. It is usually a question asked by new recruits to the teaching profession towards the start of their studies to gain professional qualifications in teaching. Quite often itâs asked at the point of their having to submit their initial assignment for the course when many students struggle to build a bridge between the (frequently contradictory) theories that they find in the books recommended for the course and their own practice. The books can make the art of teaching look deceptively simple and it is difficult to reconcile the theory they read about with the messy, and often frustrating, reality of their own classroom practice.
To be honest, at this point I find it very difficult to give a succinct, meaningful answer as what many of them are really looking for are the answers to two very different questions â âwhat use is theory to me in my classroom?â and âhow can learning all this stuff help me to be a more effective teacher?â. In other words what they really want to know is how this thing called âtheoryâ connects with their practice and how knowing âtheoryâ will be of use to them in their professional practice. The glib answer to their question, and one that is often found in books, is probably something along the lines of âknowing theory helps us to become more effective educatorsâ but that really doesnât explain why or how familiarity with educational theory will have any connection with their personal experience of teaching. Like education itself, discovering the point of theory is an individual journey of exploration. It is frustrating, perplexing, enlightening and full of moments of darkness and confusion dispelled by the âlight-bulbâ moments of realisation and comprehension in unequal measure. The times when the light-bulb moments occur are unpredictable; they depend on the individual, their context and the situations they experience as they discover more about teaching and classroom practice â but they always happen. To explore the connections between theory and practice, we would like to introduce Sasha. As a new teacher studying for a teaching qualification Sasha keeps a journal. By looking at extracts from this journal we will see how theory can be used to develop classroom practice.
Figure 1.1 Sashaâs story
Case study
Sashaâs journal
Got a new job! Well done me! Made it into âproperâ teaching at a college at long last â Iâve been teaching apprentices at work how to do their job for years and though I say it myself I am a really good teacher. I teach them just the same way I was taught by my teacher.
Theyâve sent me a load of paperwork to have a look at â schemes of work and lesson plans and the like but I donât think I really need much help â I just need to get started â I just need to teach them what I know. Oh, and they want me to take a teaching qualification, apparently I need to know the theory of teaching â donât really see the point when I will already be teaching, but itâs part of the contract so Iâll have to do it.
Looking at this journal entry it is clear that Sasha thinks that having an understanding of the theory of teaching and learning is far less important than practical experience. Korthagen and Kessels (1999) and Spenceley (2014) note that there is a strong relationship between teachersâ preferred way of teaching and the way in which they have been taught. Sashaâs current practice is with apprentices; and as Lave and Wenger (1991) point out, apprenticesâ learning is normally embedded within the activities they undertake, the context in which they work and the culture of the organisation. Apprentices learn by modelling themselves on their teachers and the patterns of behaviour they observe but Sasha seems to think that this form of teaching will work in a different context â that of a more formal educational setting. However, it is unlikely that Sasha would expect a doctor or a dentist to practise without knowing the theory of how different drugs might affect human beings (rather than just knowledge gained from practice), so why is it that Sasha thinks that theory is less important than practical experience when it comes to teaching?
What do we mean by âtheoryâ?
Before exploring why Sasha may be underestimating the role of theory in effective classroom practice itâs important to look at what we mean by theory. Regrettably, Sjolieâs research indicated that at the beginning of most teacher education courses students tend to dismiss theory as being something which was âboringâ, âvagueâ, âout of touch with realityâ, âobviousâ or âverbose nonsenseâ (Sjolie, 2014, p741) which had limited relevance to their practice and experience of teaching. Theory is generally seen as a set of ideas or general principles which can be used to explain a fact, event or opinion, but it can also be seen as a set of rules which have the potential to guide action (Dye, 1999). In this sense theories are something which are a form of abstract knowledge, other peoplesâ (or experts) thoughts and experiences (Sjolie, 2014, p731). These are often applied directly to classroom practice which, as Knight (2015) suggests, leads to them being regarded by most people as divorced from reality. Used in this way theory becomes a set of abstract, general rules which can be applied by teachers to either explain or guide their teaching practices. If this is the case then it can be argued that simply using existing theory to inform their practice will reinforce the status quo, leaving little room for change and the development of the innovative practices associated with teaching and learning in the twenty-first century.
There is, however, an alternative view of genesis of theory â grounded theory. Glaser and Strauss (1967) argued that theory could emerge from practice in a specific context rather than through the application of abstract analytical constructs and pre-existing theory opening up a space for the development of new theory. In other words, grounded theory is based on experience, what the practitioner finds âworksâ in a given situation to resolve a problem, and which they might refer to in future to guide their actions should a similar situation arise; an approach which leaves room for the growth of new theories which might be more suited to the changing context of education. So now we have two forms of theory: theory which is abstract and deals with general principles which Aristotle described as epistemic theory and that which is derived from practice or âphroneticâ theory. Both these explanations of theory are valid, but neither answer the questions raised by students earlier in the chapter: âwhat use is theory to me in my classroom?â and âhow can learning all this stuff help me to be a more effective teacher?â â in other words, how is theory related to practice?
Case study
Sashaâs journal
Iâve got to keep a journal for this course â I gave up writing diaries when I was a kid, but I suppose I will have to do it. Iâve survived the first part of the year â bit of a baptism of fire but Iâve just about coped. Some of the other teachers have been really helpful and told me what to do about the routine stuff. Some of the students seem to be learning alright but most of them donât seem to remember what I say to them. Itâs their fault they donât remember â they just donât pay enough attention to me when Iâm talking to them about the basics. They donât seem to grasp that they will need to know the basic principles before they can progress to the really interesting stuff later. Sometimes they just donât seem to be interested in the subject at all and if they arenât interested why are they doing it?
Oh yes, and I have started my training. Seems a bit boring and that makes it difficult to concentrate sometimes and I havenât learned a fat lot about how I can teach better yet either. She says I have to use quotations â well hereâs what I think so far. Itâs all âwords, words, words, Iâm ⌠sick of wordsâ â thatâs from some song or other but I canât remember which one. As far as I can see itâs all about writing things down and thinking about them â as if Iâve got time for all that!
Activity 1.1
Review what you have read so far and make a list of the things that Sasha is finding difficult.
One of the things which is probably top of your list is the comment that Sasha makes about students not understanding that they âwill need to know the basic principles before they can progressâ. Every subject is governed by theories or general principles which students need to understand before they can grasp more complex aspects. What Sasha doesnât see is that his difficulties in engaging students in learning stem from the same thing â the need to have a basic understanding of the principles (or theories) which underpin effective teaching and learning.
Case study
Sashaâs journal
OK â Iâm beginning to get it â well some of it anyway. I tried out some of this behaviourism theory we looked at, going over and over the same information with the students, but they were really bore...