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Chapter 18 Developing Your Own Teaching Style Duringanintroductoryteachingmethodsclass,Iwasencouragingmystudents to show enthusiasm for the subjects they teach. I cited research showing that students, teachers, and administrators valued enthusiasm and interpersonal relationships more highly than knowledge and organization of subject matter or plans and classroom procedures. After class, a soft-spoken student came to see me. She talked about a high-school teacher who impressed her students by talking about mathematics with such emotion that the teacher had tears in her eyes. We continued chatting about teaching; all the while something seemed to be troubling her. Suddenly, she blurted out, “I could never be an enthusiastic teacher like you.” Taken aback, I replied, “I hope not.” I continued, “You will develop your own unique teaching style.” She seemed relieved. During the ensuing weeks, I witnessed her and her peers develop their self-confidence and their own teaching styles. The thought of clones of myself teaching in local schools is a horrifying thought. I have a fair number of idiosyncrasies, which I do not want my studentstoemulate .Althoughimitationmaybethehighestformofflattery,teachers need to develop their own styles. Copying another person’s style is not fair to you. You need to develop the artistic teacher within yourself. Teaching styles are as varied as people’s personalities. One teacher may arrive in costume and teach with great dynamism. He speaks dramatically, walks around the room, and interacts with his students, eliciting answers even from reticent students. This teacher is spontaneous, changing his lesson to follow the teachable moment. He exhausts himself with the effort. At the other end of the spectrum is the teacher who conserves her energy and movement. She may not step from behind the podium. Her gestures are few and small, and the lesson is carefully structured. She does not deviate from the lesson. Additionally, sheuses vividdescription,interestinganalogies,andexamplesfromaroundthe world to help her students understand. Though quite different, both teachers 154 Becoming the Teacher You Want to Be are effective. Both teachers have a love of their disciplines, effective communication skills, and great people skills. As you develop your teaching style, remember that many teaching styles are effective. Give yourself the latitude to develop your own. Some mentors have a narrow vision of the variety of styles that will be effective. I have noticed that loud, strict disciplinarians tend to think the best way to control a class is by being loud and strict. Observing other successful teachers shows this to be false. When you observe, experiment, and reflect, you will develop your own effective style. Along the way, you may have a failed lesson or several. A flop, or even a major flop, is normal. You have to take chances and push your skills to get better. Student teachers, interns, and teacher candidates have all expressed that some days are diamonds and some days are dust. If you find yourself in the dust, get up, brush off the dirt, and try again. Tomorrow is a new day. Though I can predict a teaching style that will be effective in the classroom , I cannot predict which style will not be effective. My first comeuppance in prediction came at the hands of a quiet, middle-aged male student. I thought he could not be outspoken enough to teach energetic and sometimes unruly high school students. He was caring, warm, and fascinated by children, so I suggested he also earn an elementary certificate. Later, he began to student teach at a local high school, and I supervised his progress. He had good interpersonal skills and encouraged his students, yet lacked forceful classroom discipline . The students liked him, however, and started reminding one another to be quiet and pay attention. One day when they were noisy, he wrote “S-HH -H” on the board in big letters. The students quieted. This talented man had developed his own teaching style. He inspired the students to help with discipline—his weak area—through the use of excellent interpersonal skills—his strength. I know of no one else who can write S-HH -H on the board and effectively quiet a class. I salute him for developing his own teaching style. What is your teaching style? When do you feel best in the classroom? To answer these questions, forget the “Book of Shoulds.” The teacher’s “Book of Shoulds” is an unwritten code of behavior governing things that teachers traditionally do or are thought to do. For example, teachers give solid lectures; teachers are stern—they may smile but...

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