Observational Learning
Teachers must manage the classroom by modeling the
behavior they want to see imitated by their students. I learned many teacher
techniques by sitting in the classroom for twenty years (kindergarten through
12th grade, four years of college, two years of a masters program
and one year of a credential program). I have observed teachers from the
perspective of a student since the mid 1960s, and I have stolen from the best!
Students will imitate teacher behaviors, especially if they perceive that those
behaviors are noticed and rewarded by other powerful adults. When I go to work,
I dress up as if I’m attending a corporate board meeting in San Francisco. In other words, I wear slacks
and a tie four or five days a week, and if I attend a public event such as Back
to School Night or a district board meeting I wear a suit. My outfit radiates
professionalism, purposefulness, maturity, wealth, and ambition. Parents
mistake me for an administrator or district official and ask me questions,
because I look like I am in charge. Students notice this attention, deserved or
not.
Would I teach better in jeans and a flannel shirt? My dress
does not alter my teaching nor does it change my classroom technique one way or
another. However, my outfit does generate more respect from both students and
parents than if I wear jeans and a flannel shirt. I feel that as an
uber-authority (in the students’ eyes) I will be subject to less acting out
than the teacher in jeans and the flannel shirt. I will enjoy less disruptions
and more successful lessons. I advise all high school teachers to dress up like
business professionals unless they are preparing science labs, art projects, or
physical education programs. Unfair as it is, a kid will construct a poor first
impression of a teacher that looks like a grounds keeper. He will maintain that
impression for a long time, saying to himself, “If he doesn’t have respect for
his appearance and his profession, why should I?” I want a student’s, parent’s
and administrator’s first impression and subsequent sentiments to be working
for me, not against me. Psychologists state that visual clues are used more
than other modalities. Abraham Lincoln bought a new suit so voters would not
“judge the peanut by its shell.” You may be subject to some mocking by your teacher
peers who dress like fast-food workers. Accept the teasing in good cheer. It’s
still worth dressing up.
Similarly, I do not want to discount our power and prestige
by belittling our remuneration. I tell students that this profession pays a
middle class salary and allows me to stay on the same yearly cycle as my
children, and unlike a lot of jobs, I really enjoy the work. I do not criticize
the school board for remuneration issues while at work, nor should you. Save
those conversations for your union meetings.
What to do right now: Dress for success and count
your blessings. You get paid to work in the world of ideas and you get to help
kids.
How the Best Teacher Models
Perform
My own best teacher models, my astronomy professor father,
music professors Gene Graves and Frank
Sumares, and psychologist James Temple, were performers. I observed their
techniques on how to attract and hold an audience. My dad used to throw chalk
in the air and catch it behind his back. He showed slideshows of galactic cataclysms
and metaphorically elucidated the expansion of the universe by pretending to be
a raisin in a loaf of baking raisin bread. A teacher doesn’t have to be the
center of attention, but that attention must be channeled somewhere in the
classroom and not allowed to dissipate.
Physical Fitness and Teaching
Success
Teachers who don’t direct attention to a class project must
direct it to themselves and “work the crowd” like a musician, comedian or
stumping politician. The more the teacher directs attention to himself, the
more energy the teacher must expend, and therefore a teacher that uses this
style often must get enough rest, proper nutrition and exercise. Many, if not
most, successful people say their daily workouts are a key part of their
success. George W. Bush ran on an Air Force One treadmill on his trips to Europe. Barack Obama loves his gym workouts, golf, and
basketball. I recommend doing something vigorous every day, and I often
exercise early (5AM) so I’ll be sharp for my 7:25 class. Ironically, many of my
students, 17 years young, near the peak of their physical prowess, shuffle in
as if they are being led to their execution. They didn’t get enough sleep, have
breakfast, or enjoy a workout. If I get my workout finished early, the students
(and staff) benefit from my alertness and tranquil mood. My equanimity cannot
be disturbed by adolescent angst.
I found an unintended benefit of exercise early on in my
teaching career--showmanship. I hold the attention of students that are more
impressed by physical strength than mental acuity. I tell these kids that I can
do more pushups than they can do. Then I do the pushups when the class needs a
break. Students love this, whether they are athletic or not, and this
intervention often leads to a breaking of barriers and increased respect from
hard-to-motivate kids. See below.
Physical Fitness and Teaching Success
Out-of-shape teacher ------ less respect from “physical"
students------teacher works harder-----teacher is more tired
Physically-fit teacher-----teacher is sharp and
“on”------more respect from “physical” students-----teaching is more successful
and fun
Looking Good and Having Fun, While Modeling Somewhat
Conventional Attitudes
As you may have surmised, a teacher that dresses as I have
suggested and exercises at 5AM exudes preparation and ambition, zest for life,
drive and purposeness, and success. No bohemian attitudes radiate from my
display. Radicalism and counterculture attitudes are not inherently shocking,
but education stakeholders—colleagues, parents, administration, school board
and students—tend to be fundamentally conservative when dealing with the young.
After stakeholders digest your personal appearance and vivacity, they evaluate
your attitudes and teaching philosophy. I base my attitudes toward teaching on
a simple unarticulated mission statement borrowed from jazz writer Michael
Zwerin (Close Enough for Jazz,
Quartet Books, London):
“You can’t beat fun.” Learning must be fun for the students, and teaching must
be fun for you. When I visibly enjoy myself,
acting in a friendly way, smiling, telling stories and jokes about the
historical subject, acting, and giving demonstrations to explain something in a
novel way, the students usually enjoy themselves too. Students, when they like
what they do, work “in the zone” of efficient and deep learning, and the task
becomes play rather than work. As I stated earlier, I want to encourage an
internal, implicit enjoyment of learning and avoid an externally-based reward
for learning which leads to education being looked at like work. (I get “paid”
for it, so it must not be fun.) Thus I model enjoyment and excitement by
learning publicly. When I have the time, I read along with the in-class reading,
remarking to disruptive students that they should not interrupt my learning. In
addition to getting a good laugh, this comment shows students that knowledge is
inherently valuable. I do not read in order to better my grade, make more
money, or impress anyone. I do it because it’s fun. What could be more powerful
than modeling learning for learning’s sake in front of your students? Teaching
and learning must be interesting and exciting. If it’s not, why bother? Neither
you nor the kids are then getting anything out of the partnership, and the
profession doesn’t pay enough to do it only for the money.
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