Does good teaching equal good learning?

Submitted by Alan Maley on 13 December, 2009 - 12:11

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Once we start to consider what good teachers need to do, we come up with
enormously long lists, and come to realize just how complex the job of teaching is. They
need to plan, to control, to present, to monitor, to react to feedback, to offer a model, to
motivate, and so on. And these labels are also over-simplifications. For example, the
teacher needs to simultaneously control what happens while empowering learners, leaving
space for them to learn. Teachers need to provide input yet also to promote learner
discovery. They need to motivate in the short term ('keeping them awake') while keeping
them interested in the long term ('keeping them alive'). They need to plan but not to
become the slaves of their plans but to remain receptive to what is happening 'in the
moment'. Above all, they need to offer engaging, varied, non-trivial input in the form of
content and activities. This implies finding things that learners will find both interesting
and relevant.
But what teachers do is contingent on how learners respond to it. There are some
obvious but nonetheless important differences between teaching and learning. Whereas
teaching is a public, observable act, learning is private and largely unobservable. Teaching
is intentional - the teacher has in mind what he/she wants to teach, but learning is largely
unconscious. Teaching is an intermittent activity (so many minutes per lesson, so many
lessons per week, etc.) but learning is a process which goes on outside these time frames.
The teacher must assume that there is a degree of predictability in the teaching whereas
unpredictability is the only certainty.
This reminds me of Norman Whitney's wise observation: that any classroom event
is unpredictable, unrepeatable, unobservable (in every detail) and has unforeseen,
long-term consequences.
So teaching is very much a process of seeing 'through a glass darkly'. Perhaps the
best teachers are those who, while well-informed and well-trained, are also those best able
to live with the unexpected.
(Adapted from: http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/blogs)

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To come up (l.1) = to arise, to appear / surgir , acontercer, aproximar

to react (l.3) = to respond/to answer back /reagir
in the short term (l.7) = curto prazo
predictability (l.19) = previsibiliade
unpredictability (l.20) = inprevisibilidade
unrepeatable (l.20) = [adj] nico
unobservable (l.20) =[adj] inobservvel
unforeseen (l.20) = [adj] imprevisto
1. Considering what it takes to be a good teacher:
a) has been regarded as an easy task.
b) is completely impossible for anyone.

c) involves a great number of issues.

d) must be discussed by experts only.
2. The conjunction yet in yet also to promote (line 6) indicates
a) contrast. b) manner.
c) place.
d) time
3. The prefixes over in the word over-simplifications (line 4) and un in the word
unpredictability (line 22) convey respectively an idea of
a) exception and unity.
b) excess and opposition.
c) inadequacy and possibility.
d) repetition and absence.
4. The words teaching in Does good teaching equal? (in the title), happening in what
is happening in the moment (lines 9-10) and engaging in they need to offer
engaging (line 10), function respectively as
a) noun, verb and adverb.
b) verb, noun and adjective.
c) noun, verb and adjective.
d) verb, noun and adverb
5. Teachers should get activities their students will consider
a) appealing and repetitive.
b) motivating and meaningful.
c) outstanding and unobservable.
d) trivial and receptive.
6. What teachers do, depends on
a) academic issues.
b) other teachers plans.
c) schools' feedback.
d) students response.
7. The modal verb must in: . The teacher must assume (line 19), conveys an idea of
a) necessity. b) permission. c) denial.
d) possibility.
8. The pronoun This in: This reminds me of (line 21), refers to the fact that the
teaching process is
a) unconscious. b) unintentional. c) unobservable. d) unpredictable.
9. Besides being well-informed and well-trained teachers should have the ability to deal
with:
a) complex contents.
b) difficult students.
c) disordered schools.
d) unforeseen situations.
yet {advrbio} ainda j at agora entretanto nem por isso

- O advrbio YET significa ainda (ainda no) em oraes negativas, e tem o sentido
de j em oraes interrogativas no present perfect. Sua colocao , necessariamente, no
final da orao (end position) e indica expectativa ou busca de informao:
Is Sally here? Not yet. (Sally j est aqui? Ainda no.)
The postman hasn't come yet. (O carteiro ainda no veio.)
Is supper ready yet? (O jantar j est pronto?
yet {preposio}porm
In two areas, Sweden is considered, however, not yet to have fulfilled the criteria.
Em dois domnios, porm, considera-se que a Sucia no preenche os critrios.
Yet these were not the first attacks against the essential infrastructure of Europe.
Porm, no foram os primeiros ataques contra infra-estruturas crticas europeias.

yet {conjuno} [however, nevertheless, notwithstanding, whilst] embora contudo todavia no

obstante
And yet, in these difficult and serious circumstances, we must avoid failure.
Contudo, nestas circunstncias difceis e graves, devemos evitar o insucesso.
Yet a problem is also presented by Mr Blairs support for Mr Bush in the USA.
Contudo, o apoio do Sr. Blair ao Sr. Bush nos EUA tambm constitui um problema.
Yet the Russians are now trying to force these people to return to Chechnya.
Contudo, os russos esto agora a tentar forar as pessoas a regressar Chechnia.