Lecture & The Learner

Welcome to BLOG #4!

So many topics & so much time. 

Today’s Blog is about the notion of teacher as “sage on the stage.” And what better represents this teaching style than the lecture.

I love a lecture.  Spoon feed me your digested, assimilated knowledge anytime and I will gladly listen!  A great lecture is truly a joy.  But I have an idea- let’s use the lecture not just to teach….but also as a chance to invite students into learning about learning.

Lecturing quietly expresses: “I am the expert, I am all knowing, you are the sponge, you are all seeking.” It is the dark side (glazed over students passively sitting, sneaking a peek at the phone, day dreaming, God forbid falling asleep) that needs to be addressed.

Brain research finds that 10 minutes straight of lecturing without an aside in the form of a joke or emotionally laden story is all an audience can take.  See John Medina’s book “brain rules” for much more http://www.brainrules.net/.  Lecturers must “buy” time from an audience.  Teachers can use 2 minute breaks for discussion between 8 minute lectures.  But what can be done to address the divide between the “sage” and the “sponge”?

Let’s bring students in on the secret: a good lecture is a piece of brilliant composition.

Variables:

Pace

Clarity

Humor

Repetition of ideas

Emphasis on what is really important

Connections to other material/ideas previously covered

Suspense

Hints at future material/plant seeds

To name a few…

Creating a great lecture requires VARIABLES THINKING.  Since this iconic form of teaching is here to stay, I propose a piece of curriculum that is flexible and adaptable.  The goal is to allow students to pay attention to their attention (a form of metacognition) while getting acquainted with key elements of lecture.

Curriculum:  11^th grade any discipline (this could be assigned in Science, History, etc.) 

Locate 1 lecture on the Internet.   As you listen/watch pay attention to 3 things. 1-Your engagement (tuning out versus riveted.)  2- Your connection to prior knowledge (meaning does the content of the talk “hook up” with anything you know already.) 3- Pace (your ability to keep up/follow.)  Take notes and report back to the class on these 3.

Not “science” just “subjective self-observation” designed to address where the rubber meets the road (where attention drifts and why.)  Curriculum rarely addresses this.  This basic understanding should not be reserved for the learning specialist to discover, it should be part of a holistic approach to learning.  After all, knowing something about one’s attention is a life skill.

Thanks for reading (more soon.) –L