·
There are 4 ways to be a responsive teacher.
o
Who
we are teaching. You have to take into account each student that you are
teaching, not every student is going to be the same. There are a variety of
factors that shape students as learners. These factors include gender, culture,
personal interests, backgrounds, experience, intelligence preferences, and
abilities that make them unique. You have to work diligently to understand and
honor both the individuality and commonalities that are represented in a
classroom.
o
What we
are teaching. Curriculum gives students the knowledge, understanding and skills
they will need to use to move powerfully through life. Though the district’s
curriculum is a great blue print to planning instruction, it is not the only
tool that you can use to be a responsive teacher. You have to plan to work
backward for some students to pick up key elements and also work forward to
challenge and engage your students who are further ahead. You have to find
space in the curriculum to extend to the varied interests of her students.
o
Where we
teach. The learning environment that you have in your classroom can be the
element that makes or breaks your students in becoming the best that they can
be. There is a matter of caring that adds to each student’s ability to learn. You have to make every single student feel
welcome no matter their differences.
o
How you teach. You
have to teach to the readiness level of the child. You have to have a goal that
you will have flexible instruction. This means that you will teach to the whole
class and in small groups when it is appropriate. The how we teach part Is
known as differentiated instruction!
There is not a one size fits all when it comes
to education and the classroom. You need to be able to teach to an individual student not just a whole class.
You need to have a very
positive learning environment for students to feel comfortable and for them to
learn to the best of their ability.
