Learning to teach, teaching to learn.

Gloria Dall’Alba writes her account of teaching development in universities for experienced university teachers in her piece, ‘Improving teaching: Enhancing ways of being university teachers’ (2005), and it was interesting to see how I reflected on my perceptions as a student entering the PgCert in Academic Practice as an academic with no prior experience.

There was a lot of mention of ontology and epistemology (areas of philosophy) within the educational context, terms which I still find a little difficult to fully grasp. I tend to try and simplify the definitions to ontology as what the knowledge is, and epistemology as how knowledge is obtained. As epistemology is an area of philosophy that is concerned with the creation of knowledge, individual epistemologies will differ depending on the lens in which the world is seen through (e.g. feminist lens). The text really expanded upon how you can learn from each other, through understanding each others epistemologies to expand your knowledge and to develop empathy through other perspectives.

Dall’Alba considers the pedagogical relationship and suggests that the conventional student-teacher model (in other words, the hierarchical top-down approach) as inappropriate, noting that ‘no one form or site of knowledge has privileged status’ (Dall’Alba, 2005 p.363). I like to break down hierarchies and to encourage a more mutual form of learning, where teachers facilitate these spaces of knowledge exchange, to spark an interest or to suggest further readings. 

Although I am in agreement of the collaborative approach to teaching and learning, it did cross my mind that this is a very Western style of education and questioned what things could be put in place to be supportive of students who are not familiar or used to questioning what they perceive as the authority or contributing so freely during class without the fear of ‘mistakes’. The teacher-centred classroom is still common practice in Japan, and I think it is important to consider how to break the balance whilst managing expectations. Perhaps preparing the students in advance with topics of discussion prior to the session, giving notice to come prepared to the class with views, experiences or thoughts to contribute would be helpful.

‘Against the background of this wealth of experience, I see the course as a form of collaboration among colleagues in which we all learn, in contrast to a conventional student-teacher model.’ (Dall’Alba, 2005 p.365)

I hope to be active in my learning as a new academic, and to heed the advice of ‘critical friends’ through discussing teaching methods/techniques. The paper noted how it is difficult to teach a toolbox of skills to be a ‘good teacher’, and highlighted the importance of the continuing process of learning as a teacher. Dall’Alba concludes by noting how important it is to continue ‘to be reflexive about teaching practice as the contexts in which we teach change’ (p.371). Lessons I have learnt through this is that lived experience can be a mode of knowledge, and the responsibility of learning is shared between teacher and student. I will aim to always be flexible and adaptable in my teaching by reading the room and being reflexive and modify when necessary.

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References

Dall’Alba, G. (2005) Improving teaching: Enhancing ways of being university teachers. Higher Education Research & Development. [Online] 24 (4), pp.361–372. [online]. Available from: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07294360500284771 (Accessed 06 February 2021).