Students Weigh In On Characteristics of Effective Teachers

(cross posted at http://www.techlearning.com/section/Blogs )

Last year, I wrote about the advice a group of recent high school graduates gave to a group of pre-service teachers in the CT Alternate Route to Certification program. This past weekend, I spoke to this year's group of ARC candidates about urban school issues and educational technology and there was a group of high school seniors there to give some input on what they feel makes a good teacher.

It was a great discussion with the students giving information, advice and opinions and the ARC candidates asking questions and asking for the student's thoughts on different topics and issues.

The first comment made by a student was that students don't like, and will become unmotivated to do work, when a teacher doesn't have a plan, is unprepared, and "wings it" each day for lessons. The discussion moved on to homework and how it has to be meaningful, should not be too long (quality vs. quantity), should prepare students for tests, and should not be due the next day. Students have many different classes and activities and need multiple days to get homework done. They also said that they like it when a teacher posts the homework ahead of time so that they can start it early if need be. They also said it was important in math and science to have the answers or solutions available so that the students can check their homework and learn from their mistakes instead of getting frustrated.

Many students remarked that they have teachers who give out busy work for homework and classwork (like puzzles and way too many problems) and that this does nothing to help a student learn. They stated that they feel like the class was a waste if that was all they did.

An ARC candidate asked the students how they thought teachers should handle discipline issues in the classroom. The consensus was that teachers need to address students who are disturbing others, but should take them aside and not berate them in front of the whole class. It was mentioned though with some students that is the only way they listen. They stated that teachers should be nice, but serious, and not feed a student's anger or get into an argument with that student. It was interesting to hear this coming from students since this is a concept taught to teachers.

One student stated that they absolutely hate when teachers don't get work or tests graded and back to the students in a timely fashion. They said it's hard to know how you are doing in a class if you don't get any feedback. True That!

Most of the students agreed that the best teachers are enthusiastic and excited about what they teach, make it fun and interesting, use projects in class, and make their classroom a safe place to be. "If the teacher isn't excited about the material, why would we be?"

Projects were listed as something they all loved. The were able to apply what they learned to something and not just sit in class doing problems or writing a paper. They all agreed that they learned more through projects than just listening to a teacher talk or doing homework.

Technology was also discussed with the students wanting teachers to use technology to communicate with them, post resources, and make learning more fun. Facebook was brought up, but most students saw Facebook as a social thing, not necessarily for education. They did like when teachers use web sites and email though and want teachers to be accessible via email for help.

Along the lines of help, they stated that teachers need to be available after school for help, especially the day before a test. Students have to have access to teachers for help as much as possible.

Mutual respect was also a big topic. Students wanted to see teachers interested in their students as people, trusting their students to do the right thing, and talk to the students with respect. Teachers need to make students feel comfortable in asking for help in class.

It was a great discussion and I was pleased to see that what the students want in a teacher is what we try to teach teachers to do.

A note: these students were all high level, self-motivated students, but I think that their advice is good for all levels of classes.

Thanks to the 2009-2010 ARC Class, Science Methods Instructor Glenn Couture, and special thanks for their time and insight, high school seniors Emily Lavins, Kenzie Bess, Nick Quadrini, Andy Rumore, Will Marr, Dom Kruszewski, Matthew Lee, Jason Parraga, and Anthony Lato.

(Photo coming)

Do you want to know what works in education...ask your students

Research studies, professional development, graduate programs, articles, and more all talk about what works in education. Much of this is written by researchers and others that haven't been in a classroom in years, if ever. I find that much of their advice is good, but I often wondered what the students thought.

I am also an EMS-Instructor and CPR instructor. Both systems require that an evaluation form be filled out at the end of the course so that it can be used to improve the programs. I do this with my students also. I give them the evaluations at midterm's and finals and use the results to modify or change my teaching. The evaluation forms ask about the manner of teaching, how effective lectures, homework, projects, and labs were, how did they like the textbook, and what did they like about the class and what did they not like or want to change. I then look at the results and modify my teaching and the learning experiences based on the feedback I receive from the students.

Another way to get feedback is by using student focus groups. In your class, and in your school, get a group of students together and ask them what works for them in the classroom. Ask them to make a list of what teachers should and shouldn't do, and their best classes and teachers, and why, and their worst classes and why. This feedback can be invaluable to us as educators.

This week, I was a guest lecturer at the Alternate Route to Certification (ARC) program for science teachers. Connecticut uses ARC as a way to get people into teaching as a second career. It runs one program throughout the year on weekends and another one full time during the summer. The program is very successful. I am a graduate of CT's ARC program myself.

The Methods Instructor had some of his former students who just graduated from high school come to the session and talk to the soon-to-be-teachers. The students were very open about how they felt about things in school and what works and doesn't work. Here's a little summary of what they said. Much of what they said are things that teaching programs and good teachers already do, but it was nice to hear if from them.

All the students agreed that they want to be treated with respect and as adults. They all felt bad when a teacher would talk down to them. Along with this, the students stated that the teachers they like the most, and learned the most from, were the ones who got to know the students personally. By knowing the students' interests, home life, and activities outside the classroom, the teachers were able to connect their class to the students' live. The student's all agreed that this makes learning subjects easier and more interesting. They also stated that teachers who make this connection with their students have less discipline issues in their class and the students feel comfortable coming to the teacher for help with school work or other problems.

A point that came up multiple times was that the teacher should know the subject matter and be enthusiastic about it. If the teacher is reading from slides or a textbook, the students feel that the teacher doesn't know the material that well and loses credibility with the students. They also said that when a teacher is enthusiastic and excited about a subject, the students get excited too.

An interesting comment made by one student, and agreed on by the rest of the students, was not to start the first day of class with a list of rules and work to do. The students know the rules, even if they don't always follow them, and giving them a big list of rules the first day overwhelms the students and they tend not to pay attention to them. Their suggestion was to go over the syllabus, a couple of major points on class policies or procedures, and then spend time getting to know the students. I think that this is a great idea and I am changing my first day plan to reflect this idea. I'm thinking of using some kind of ice-breaker with the students so we can get to know each other.

The students all agreed that lecturing for a full class period does not work for them. Break it up a little with other activities. When it comes to PowerPoint, they all agreed that it is a good tool, but needs to be used carefully. They love having pictures, figures, and videos in the presentation, but said that too much text is distracting. No matter what a teacher says, the students will try to copy every word off the presentation. They suggested having the slides available to the students and keeping text to a minimum as good things to do.

Homework was a big issue for them. They all agreed that homework is necessary, but that some teachers really don't think about the homework that they give. The students mentioned that if a teacher gives too much homework, the students won't do it or won't be able to do it because of time constraints. They suggested that homework be given that is meaningful and helps the students learn, but they should have more than one night to work on it. Most high school students have sports, clubs, part time jobs, and 5 or 6 other classes to deal with, so time is tight. They will do the homework if the amount is more reasonable. They also stated that the teacher should go over the material before assigning homework, and then go over some problems when the homework is due. Having students do problems on the board, or help other students with the work is also a positive thing.

Some other topics discussed as positive things: teachers need to be available for extra help before or after school; use games for review - it makes it much more fun; for projects one big a marking period is perfect and let them pick their own partners to make it easier to work on outside of school; use the Internet as a resource - they all agreed that every teacher should have a web site with resources, class handouts, and a schedule on it.

They also want teachers to remember what it's like to be in school and be flexible with students. Allow students enough time to do their work, remember that they have other things outside of class, and that they have other classes.

I found this time with these students to be a great experience. I immediately started to think about my teaching and how their advice can help me be a better teacher and provide my students with a better experience.

Thanks to the Summer 2009 ARC Class, Methods Instructor Glenn Couture, and special thanks for their time and insight, recent high school graduates: Mike Bloom, Courtney Ellis, Liz McLean, Devan Yoder, Michelle Scatamacchia, Despina Sidiropoulos, Eric Heberton, and Rafique Vahora.

Please share your thoughts and ideas too!