Week 2 - Pedagogy Table

PEDAGOGY	WHAT DOES IT ‘’LOOK LIKE’’ IN PRACTICE	WHAT DOES IT NOT LOOK LIKE IN PRACTICE
Facilitating deep knowledge through higher order thinking	Dr Judy Willis discusses how Higher Order thinking in the brain can be achieved by teaching students the way in how to process information and to come to a conclusion themselves. In practice it is important for the student to develop the tools to critically think about a situation and gather knowledge to be able to work out scenarios etc	Although important for some test/exam situations, simply being able to recite and recall facts does not allow for high order thinking.
Facilitating collaborative learning in which conversations are important	Group activities and group/classroom discussions all support collaborative learning. In my experience, students find this learning fun and can bounce ideas off each other and can feel more comfortable in suggesting ideas.	Collaborative learning still needs to be managed by teachers to ensure that all students are treated fairly and equally within the group.
Supporting students in knowing how they learn best	Students are all diverse and learn in different ways and therefore cannot all be taught and educated in the same way/using the same method. Some students are visual learners, some students learn best through rote learning and some students learn through a variety of methods. Therefore a good teacher will have a variety of ways to teach their students and will be flexible in their teaching method to best support their students learning. This is not only about the teaching of individual students but about the difference in generations and is especially true with Generation Z and the extent to which Gen Z learns through/with ICT and the large role it plays in their everyday lives.	Although this was the case in a traditional classroom, it is no longer appropriate for the teacher to simply stand at the front of a class and deliver information to their students. Rote learning has its place in a classroom, but is no longer considered to be the best method of teaching and cannot be used for all students.
Planning learning that is problem-based, and situated in real life contexts	Students need to relate to what they are learning for them to be engaged and interested in it. It is also important that when educating students they are not simply taught the facts but the application so they can then use this information in a variety of contexts. Dr Judy Willis explains this in further detail in her YouTube Video in Week 1 titled ‘The Science of Learning’. It is also important for students to be given problem –based questions and scenarios to think about as to represent real life issues. This is supported in Blooms Taxonomy in analysis, synthesis and evaluation.	Whilst learning needs to relate to real life, you  need to ensure that it is age appropriate for the students and something that they have an interest in.
Is relevant to students, and connects to their background knowledge	If the student is not connected to what they are learning and does not find the information relevant then their brain will go into boredom mode (which is the same as when the brain goes into stress) and the student simply will not retain any information.	Whist it is important for learning to connect to the students background knowledge, due to the large diversity of students in classrooms, this will need to be managed as to not have everyone always working by themselves and not being able to collaborate with other students.
Supports learning that is owned, controlled and managed by students themselves	It is imperative for students to always participate in learning. If students do not participate then they do not retain any information that is being presented. As mentioned by Dr Judy Willis, the use of a personal whiteboard for the students to write on and display answers on is a great idea. This way the student is managing their own learning without the fear of making mistakes.	Guidance must always be given by the teacher as although own learning is valuable for students, this could be misused and result in students falling behind or not learning what is required.
Is socially supportive, engaging, and values cultural knowledge	There is a growing population of culturally diverse students in today’s classrooms as well as students from different socio-economic backgrounds (as demonstrated in Sparks and Honeys slide show in week 1). It is therefore extremely important that the teacher is inclusive in all of their teaching practices and utilizes these opportunities. To not only support the diversity in the classroom but also to help educate the other students	Although as a teacher you do not make ‘exceptions’ for culturally diverse students you must still give all students the same opportunities to learn and follow an inclusive practice. A teacher who allows students form other countries to not participate in activities in not supporting cultural knowledge
Is supportive of the development of active citizenship, and strong group identity.	By educating students about the local community, you can focus projects/assignments on these issues. This would lead to the students having a sense of belonging in the community and feel like their help has been worthwhile and they have an identity to be proud of. This also allows students to be creative in their ideas and execution of the task. Students developing a sense of citizenship and group identity can also be done internally in the school by having class leaders and special jobs for different students	Projects need to be appropriate for students and everyone should participate equally otherwise the feeling of group identity will be lost.