Guiding those who are before me: A lecture on teaching methods and approaches

My professor back in the undergraduate school asked me if I could speak before her class about teaching methods and approaches. She is not just a professor, but she was a benefactor. She used to hand me bills when I was still a student-boarder. She was also there when I spiraled down to one of the darkest points of my life.

As usual, I was again cramming. Schedules were hectic since last week preparing for the documents needed for the accreditation of our four programs in the institute. Well, you worked hard for a master’s degree only to sort papers, cut tags, photocopy documents and ring bind inch-thick mess. It was funny that what kept us awake till midnight, what drained our physical strength and what made us anxious were all clerical works. Accreditation is indeed, anti-faculty and anti-environment.

My lecture was scheduled at 1:00 p.m. yesterday (which happened to be my birthday). But at past one, I was still in the computer trying to polish the presentation. I received a call from my niece informing me that the lecture was about to start. Good God, please be with me!

The audience was less than a hundred. I had some technical difficulty dealing with the laptop. I have been double clicking the touch sensors all the while and the programs did not respond. I thought the computer hanged. Thanks to a student who told me to try to use the other keys. It worked.

I started by saying that I was flattered for the invitation, although there were more senior and tenured teachers than I am, who could share wider and deeper thoughts about methods they have been using in causing students to learn.

I started by asking the question, “How learned are we?” Learning in education is measured by the achievement of the objectives set. So I showed them results of the latest National Achievement Test in the elementary and high school levels. To further tickle their interest, I showed them the very poor performance of the College in the Licensure Exam for Teachers for the last three board exams. At that juncture, I asked them why. Different factors surfaced.

But these all boiled down to the teaching and learning process.

What is teaching? What is learning? Is there a direct line between the teacher’s brains and the students’ brains? This is the reason why teachers employed approaches or methods in teaching.. . make connections with the learners and eventually catalyze change in the learners cognitive, affective and psychomotor skills.

I told them that to make a connection is not easy. Knowing the learner is of paramount importance: their learning styles, their multiple intelligences, their background and their interests. And from where they are, the teacher pretty sure knows where to start.

I challenged them to experiment on new ways of causing students to learn. There is no limitation set. Think out of the box. As long as that “invented or self-made method” proves to be effective then that is worth sharing to the world. But for beginners, I shared with them some of the time-tested methods in teaching.

Before I discussed the details of each method, I presented the most common teaching models and what educators call the ‘paradigm shift’. Teacher centered to learner centered models. I emphasized often that it is not wise to use a method because that is the ‘in’ method in the pedagogy. Adopt the most effective method, the one that generates maximum learning.

I was not afraid telling them that I am 80% teacher-centered in my method. Because it was effective. Again, I shared from experience. I brought them to my beginning years to my challenging years of teaching mixing up all methods. I spoke from heart and I felt the connection.

Towards the end, I shared with them the story of my favorite icon in Science education, Dr. Josette T. Biyo and what PDI columnist Conrado de Quiros said about her and on being a world class teacher.

“Being a world class teacher is a passion and commitment to the teaching profession. It starts from the classroom,” said De Quiros.

“There are still best teachers in the country silently working even without receiving any rewards,” claimed Biyo.

And with that I uttered words of hope that someday, may they would be the kind of teachers De Quiros and Biyo wished for the Philippines. I thanked them for the invite.