Eric M. Howe
Assistant Professor
Education Department
Assumption College
500 Salisbury Street
Worcester, MA 01612
I believe
that an informed view of (science) teaching depends upon a particular philosophy
for how students learn (science). In this regard, I believe that students
learn foremost when they critically think how the material they are presented
in class connects to and expands upon their existing knowledge, much aligned
with the major tenets of constructivist philosophy.
Therefore,
a responsibility of a teacher is to develop and present lessons to the students
that challenge them to engage with the material so that they indeed make new
connections and develop new conceptual frameworks. An effective way of doing
this is to design curriculum that incorporates open-ended, problem-solving
scenarios in which students must actively develop an understanding of the
material presented. The role of the teacher in this environment is one of
facilitator, helping students to make sense of the material and guiding their
problem-solving efforts. In contrast to more didactic approaches in which
teachers seemingly Òdispense knowledge,Ó,the aforementioned method underscores
the idea that learning is something that a student must do for him or herself,
in contrast to having the teacher learn and transmit the material to them.
However,
teachers must also recognize that the practice of learning is an intentional
act, and in light of this we must also recognize that our students come to our
classrooms with a range of intentions toward learning. Just as it is naive to
believe that each and every student in our class will master the lesson on
their own and with great enthusiasm, it is equally (if not more so) pernicious
to believe that the teacher should shoulder the responsibility for the
studentÕs learning. The latter view denies the recognition that learning
requires a desire to learn. It is not something that the teacher can do for the
student. Teachers can only facilitate opportunities for students to take
ownership of their own learning.
While it is
understood that good teachers must have expert knowledge of the content that
they teach, I also believe that good teaching requires foremost good modeling
of continued learning. We do our best to design lessons that provide students
with opportunities to think critically and to learn, and we do our best to
facilitate studentsÕ learning by engaging them with the material. We should
also do our best to model passion and enthusiasm for the process of learning
itself. This certainly underscores that an effective teacher should strive
to improve his or her own conceptual and pedagogical knowledge and be willing
to experiment with the teaching of their courses as informed by their own
professional development.