Methods, Materials and Management — and Mentoring for Morale
Learning to teach is a kind of journey. The trip may be voluntary, planned, and anticipated, or it may be mandatory, unexpected, and causing concern. You may have questions: how long will it take to get where you need to go? Will you run into obstacles — roadblocks, detours, bumpy roads — along the way? Will it be fun, or stressful?
On road trips you may run into construction sites that cause you to consider alternate routes to your destination. You may discover a more scenic route that may speed or delay your arrival. No matter where you’re going, you may consider ways to make the trip less complicated and more memorable — not only for you but for those who accompany you as you go from point A to B, and beyond.
Learning to teach is no different. Just as you use road maps and atlases, GPS devices, or lists of directions provided by those who’ve been where you’re going, you can find a variety of teaching tools to guide both novice and experienced instructors. Successful teaching involves methods, materials, and management techniques that inspire your students to learn the knowledge and expertise you’re there to share.
Methods — how you share what you know about your subject matter — are adapted as you get to know your students and their learning styles. When you implement a variety of methods — pairs, small groups, full class instruction — your teaching is more targeted and leads to learning that is likely more absorbed and applied. You’ll discover which methods and materials are more effective as you travel through learning experiences with your students.
Materials for your course may include a variety of resources — digital media, chapters in texts, printed handouts — to help you on your journey. A well-planned course should include concepts, definitions, and terminology to guide travelers in the right direction. Travel directions may include references to signposts or landmarks so that you and your students will know you’re on the right track.
Management is about organizing those methods and materials so that you and your fellow travelers have a worthwhile and memorable trip. Learning to teach efficiently involves mapping ways to spend your time. Charting your course by adapting methods and organizing your materials are keys to successful teaching. Plans are determined according to requirements or prerequisites of specific content areas and adapted to the needs of your students. Learning goals are your destination, and your itinerary is your lesson planning.
Seek mentors to support you along your journey. Mentors may be veteran or early career educators who’ve traveled similar roads. Through sharing your successes or difficulties, you’ll benefit from what they’ve learned about methods, materials, and management strategies that have worked for them. You can apply those ideas to your own lesson planning when appropriate. Their experiences help you realize you’re not alone, boosting your morale and encouraging you to continue the ongoing journey that is learning to teach.
As you travel, we encourage you to tweak
those methods, materials, and management strategies
so they work for you and best engage your students.
We invite you to return to this website often as we upload new and tried and true methods, materials, and management ideas for you!