How can I use the idea of brief, regular sessions in teaching practice? Boice seems to suggest pre-teaching brevity, not teaching brevity.
I’m wondering about silences in the classroom and their relation to the BRS. I think an inevitable (and necessary) product of brief teaching sessions (dividing the class period into segments) is that there should be a pause between transitions. I don’t mean pauses as in Boice’s previous discussion of waiting—I mean letting the silence linger. What’s wrong with silence in the classroom? My impulse is to rush through material. Sometimes I feel the urge to fill up every moment in class with sound. Either I need to be speaking, asking a question, or the students need to. But what about simmering in the silence? I think I need to employ more uncomfortable silences in the classroom as I transition from one brief session to another. It’s those moments of silent discomfort which promote reflection.
"But what about simmering in the silence? I think I need to employ more uncomfortable silences in the classroom as I transition from one brief session to another. It’s those moments of silent discomfort which promote reflection." I think this is a great idea! When I was in my master's program, I sat in on a professor's undergraduate literature class, so that I could get a perspective on what it would be like to teach lit. The class was largely focused on discussion. Some days, students obviously hadn't read, and so they didn't have much to say. On those days, the professor would try to start the conversation, but if it didn't go anywhere, and if people didn't bring up or respond to questions, the professor would just sit there. In silence. Staring. For as long as it took for students to talk.
ReplyDeleteWhile this seemed really extreme, it worked. After 2 classes the students read. And, if they didn't read, they sat in silence. More often than not, they read. And, they learned how to discuss without the teacher having such a heavy hand.