pottery, teaching, learning and the curriculum what is good teaching and learning (and how do we...

Pottery, Teaching, Learning and the Curriculum

WHAT IS GOOD TEACHING AND LEARNING

(AND HOW DO WE KNOW IT WHEN WE SEE IT)?

CURRICULUM

• Expect the expected, hope for the unexpected, expect the unexpected (Curtis and Rachel, 1994)

• A subject or topic, knowledge about something. Being told what I need to know and learn to pass a test (Eleanor, 2014).

CURRICULUM• Evolving knowledge through thinking and sharing these thoughts.

• Being able to confidently challenge viewpoints and perceptions.

• Learning something new.

• Learning from each other.

• Actively participating in the development of ideas, thinking and knowledge .

• Taking risks with ideas.

• Learning with the tutor’s guidance.

• Researching and questioning.

• Passing the essay

• Lifelong learning

• Making a contribution to the curriculum.

(Medway BA (HONS) EYL students, 2014)

CURRICULUM AS POWER• Societal power

• Governmental power

• Marketplace power

• University power

• Programme power

• Tutor power

• Student power

• Power of relationships and partnerships?

The Craft of Pottery as a Metaphor

by

Tony Ross-Gower

ORGANIC CURRICULUM

GOOD TEACHING AND LEARNING REQUIRES EXPERT KNOWLEDGE

The ‘what’, ‘when’ and ‘where’: facts; history; equipment; specialist vocabulary; firing temperatures; ingredients; etc.

GOOD TEACHING AND LEARNING REQUIRES SPECIAL SKILLS

The ‘how’: wedging; throwing; turning; glazing; firing; cooling; shaping; etc.

GOOD TEACHING AND LEARNING REQUIRES UNDERSTANDING AND APPLICATION

The ‘why’: reasons for studying the discipline; different vessel shapes – dependent on context/need; use of different clays; firing processes; etc.

GOOD TEACHING AND LEARNING:WHAT ELSE?

• Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK: Schulman, 1992)?

• Performing skills (DfE, 2011; www.cirquedusoleil.com)?

• Inclusive and egalitarian teacher/learner relationships (Dewey, 1903; Freire, 1996, Booth and Ainscow, 2011)?

• Emotional engagement with the curriculum – whether philosophy or pottery (Easton, 2009; Krathwohl, Bloom and Masia, 1973)?

• Empathy, trust, respect, humour, love (Bowlby and Ainsworth in Bretherton, 1992; Campbell, 1984 – moderated love; hooks, 1999 – professional love)?

• All that other stuff…

GOOD TEACHING AND LEARNING: THE UNEXPECTED AND/OR THE UNKNOWN?

curriculum

skills

knowledge

understanding

REFERENCES

Dahl, R. (1986) Four Tales of the Unexpected. London: Heinemann/Octopus.

Dewey, J. (2012) Democracy and Education. Hollywood: Simon and Brown.

Easton, F. (2009) ‘Educating the whole child, ‘head, heart and hands’: learning from the Waldorf experience’, Theory into Practice, Volume 36 (2), pp. 87-94.

Freire, P. (1970, reprinted 1996) Pedagogy of the Oppressed. London: Penguin.

Great Britain, Department for Education (2013) Teachers’ Standards: Guidance for school leaders, school staff and governing bodies. Nottingham: DfE.

hooks, b. (1999) All about love: new visions. New York: HarperCollins.

Krathwohl, D. R., Bloom, B. S. and Masia, B. B. (1973) Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: the Classification of Educational Goals. Handbook II: Affective Domain . New York: David McKay Co.

Shulman, L. (1992) ‘Ways of seeing, ways of knowing, ways of teaching, ways of learning about teaching’, Journal of Curriculum Studies, Volume 28, pp. 393-396.