Effective teaching methods

‘One way of making full use of reclaimed classroom spaces, whilst building collaborative and pro-social skills and behaviours, is Socratic Circles.’ English and History teacher Steven Kolber explains how to use this technique in your own classroom, the benefits and outcomes for students, and the role of the educator.

How do you support and celebrate neurodiversity in the classroom? What strategies do you use to ensure all students in diverse classrooms thrive at school and beyond? In this article, we outline five further readings which explore neurodiversity in education, and offer strategies for effective and informed teaching.

The leadership team at Suncoast Christian College in Queensland has been working hard to open up classrooms, encourage greater sharing of practice, and make the shift to a more collaborative model of planning, teaching and assessment. We find out more from Principal Greg Mattiske and Director of Teaching and Learning Haley Whitfield.

In today’s article, Dr Erin Leif, Dr Laura Alfrey and Dr Christine Grove describe how teachers can integrate the Universal Design for Learning framework and High Impact Teaching Strategies in a complementary way in the classroom in order to teach more inclusively.

‘Schools are increasingly being asked to support the mental health and wellbeing of our children and this has created an opportunity to reframe the teaching the learning environment.’ Ben Sacco discusses three elements – safety, relational trust, and shared language – that can directly support schools to improve teaching, learning and wellbeing.

In Creating Trauma-Informed, Strengths-Based Classrooms, Dr Tom Brunzell and Dr Jacolyn Norrish share what they’ve learned about working with students who present unmet learning needs in the classroom, including research, theory and lots of practical tools and strategies for educators to use and adapt to their own context.

A recent focus group study involving gifted students in Grades 5 to 8 has revealed what actions show a teacher is being an effective listener during classroom discussions, and how these actions have an impact on their students’ motivation to learn.

‘A teacher can be effective, efficient, inclusive, and strategic. Still, unless they are professionally kind along with these things, the learners suffer.’ In today’s reader submission, Professor Nan Bahr argues kindness is an essential general trait for all people, but it is also applied expertise for the teacher and should be a professional standard.

‘Let’s face it, when cooperative learning, in the form of group or teamwork appears on the classroom agenda, most students utter a groan of discontent.’ Dr Karin Oerlemans discusses the key steps to a successful experience, and how they can be supported by technology.

Reducing the disparities in the schooling experiences of students was one of the issues identified by Teacher columnist Professor Geoff Masters AO in his influential series on the ‘big five’ education challenges facing Australian schools. What does the latest evidence say, and where do we go to from here?