Developing Effective Pedagogical Skills, Strategies & Innovations in the Classroom

Written by Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur

Pedagogy Skills, Strategies & Educational Innovations in the Classroom

Pedagogy is the study of how best to teach students. It includes examinations of how children learn, various teaching methods, and the impact of the classroom and school environment. Research in educational psychology and different philosophies of education are used when developing pedagogical methods. Learning a pedagogy-based teaching method is important for prospective and current teachers. Educational research is ongoing, and new developments can help students learn, remember, and utilize all types of knowledge. The best pedagogy skills may vary depending on the particular subject being taught but using innovative strategies in the classroom will help students learn and grow to their full academic potential.

Bloom's Taxonomy: The Foundation of Teaching Pedagogy

Benjamin Bloom, along with his colleagues Max Englehart, Walter Hill, Edward Furst, and David Krathwohl, created a way to categorize the goals of education in 1956. This framework is known as Bloom's Taxonomy, and it is a foundation of teaching pedagogy. It included six main categories that moved from lower levels of educational goals to higher ones:

• Knowledge refers to fact-based information that students learn and the basics of how to do tasks.
• Comprehension deals with an understanding of the material that has been presented.
• Application allows learners to use the knowledge they possess and utilize it in appropriate situations.
• Analysis enables students to discover relationships between pieces of knowledge or ideas.
• Synthesis lets learners see the whole picture of how various ideas relate to each other.
• Evaluation empowers students to make judgments about what they have learned.

In 2001, this taxonomy was updated to reflect modern educational theory, with verbs taking the place of the nouns used in the original version. While all the educational goals are important,

• Remember teaches students to recognize and recall information.
• Understand develops skills such as interpreting, classifying, and summarizing.
• Apply enables learners to use what they have learned in different situations.
• Analyze shows students how to make connections between ideas
• Evaluate develops the ability to make judgments and defend them.
• Create encourages using what has been learned to develop something new.

Pedagogy in Education: Bloom's Taxonomy in the Classroom

The role of pedagogy in teacher training is an essential one. Prospective teachers must learn how to use pedagogy in education to be the most effective educators they can be and help learners succeed. When looking at using Bloom's Taxonomy in the classroom, it can be helpful to develop a classroom assignment or activity for each level. The following examples are for a basic math class.

• Remembering: Young students are learning how to add. They use manipulatives to solve problems and work on memorizing addition math facts by reciting them each day.
• Understanding: The students are challenged to use their new addition knowledge to solve basic problems, such as "Julia has four cookies, and Juan gives her two more. How many cookies does Julia have?"
• Applying: Children can use their knowledge of addition in tangible situations. For example, adding various denominations of money to determine how much they have.
• Analyzing: Students can be asked to compare different addition problems to determine which problem will give them a larger answer.
• Evaluating: Children can be asked to find different numbers that add up to the same number.
• Create: Students are encouraged to develop their own addition problems to use with the class.

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Teaching Techniques and Pedagogical Strategies

Taking advantage of different pedagogical strategies and teaching techniques can help keep students engaged in their learning. Some examples of pedagogy at work in a classroom include the following.

Pedagogical Approach to Project-based Learning

One pedagogical teaching method in project-based learning. Students spend significant time working to solve a challenging problem or execute a task in this pedagogical approach. In the process of seeking a solution to this problem, students have the opportunity to develop meaningful skills and use them in practical ways. Some examples of project-based learning projects that utilize a variety of skills include:

• Creating a blog post or video about a given topic. Students not only have to learn about the subject matter but develop technical skills as well.
• Developing a fundraising campaign for an issue the students care about. This involves researching the issue, deciding on ways to raise money, creating and delivering a persuasive pitch, designing a promotional campaign, and keeping track of money earned.
• Tracking the growth of plants raised in different circumstances, such as differing amounts of light, fertilizer, or water over a set period of time. This requires creating an experiment, caring for the plants, tracking data, and analyzing the results. A presentation could be created to demonstrate the experiment outcomes.
• Create a business plan. Students can develop entrepreneurial skills by creating a business idea, analyzing the market, determining costs, and documenting their plan to share with prospective investors or to move forward with selling their product or offering their services.

Educational Innovations: Flipped Classrooms

When considering educational innovations to use in a classroom, it can be helpful to consider creating a flipped classroom. In a flipped classroom, students do what is generally considered in-class schoolwork at home and traditional homework activities during the in-person class. Before class, students read or watch a video about the subject matter. Students have the opportunity at the beginning of class to ask questions about what they read or viewed to clear up any confusion. The teacher might present some of the material differently or offer a demonstration to provide additional instruction.

The teacher then allows students to use what they have learned in a meaningful way to help reinforce learning and keep students actively engaged with the material. Students may work in groups to encourage collaborative learning opportunities. The teacher circulates the room at this point, helping students who need assistance and offering feedback where appropriate. The teacher may also provide additional resources to encourage further learning.

If a flipped classroom were being used in a science class, the teacher could have the students read over the lesson and watch a video demonstrating a science experiment before class. In class, they could discuss the material, and the teacher could clarify any scientific concepts students were struggling to comprehend. The students would then replicate the previously-watched science experiment in class. They could have access to the video to follow along at their own pace. The teacher would supervise, providing help and instruction when necessary.

Personalized Learning

Teachers who use personalized learning in the classroom tailor education to meet individual needs. It enables students to succeed because teachers meet them where they are instead of using a generic approach designed to meet the needs of an average learner in the room. To incorporate personalized learning effectively, teachers need to assess students frequently to determine how well they understand the material and where they need extra help or additional challenge. Such assessment does not need to be tested; it simply requires frequent communication with the students about how they are doing in a class.

Some ways to incorporate personalized learning include:

• Using educational technology to customize lessons. Many online educational learning apps and programs adjust automatically to a student's level. Students can also use these tools to focus on areas they are struggling with or to move ahead to more challenging material.
• Offer multiple activities to complete a lesson. Giving students control over activities allows them to pick projects that align best with their learning styles.
• Have learning stations set up throughout the class so that students can choose what they want to work on at given times during the day.
• Allow students to set individual learning goals approved by the teacher. The teacher can then support the student's progress toward those goals. Giving students ownership of their goals helps increase their motivation to learn.

Jigsaws and Peer Teaching

Jigsaw is a peer teaching and cooperative learning method that helps students play an essential role in the educational progress of a class. In a jigsaw lesson, each student is like one piece of a jigsaw puzzle. The puzzle cannot be completed without all students taking part. A jigsaw lesson has several steps.

• Teachers begin by assigning students to small groups of five or six students. These groups should be as diverse as possible, with different races, genders, and abilities reflected in the group.
• The educational lesson is broken into five or six components. Assign different components to each student in a group
• Students use teacher-provided materials to learn about their section. Alternatively, students may be responsible for researching that aspect of a topic.
• Students may meet with other students in the class assigned to that same section to compare ideas and ensure they know all they should about the subject.
• Students then return to their original groups, where each student presents and teaches the material on their particular component.
• Teacher supervises the sharing of material; so all students are being listened to and have an opportunity to teach the others.
• Teachers provide an assessment at the end of the lesson so that students know that this activity should be taken seriously.

Inquiry-based Learning: Teaching Method

What is an active method of training students to be involved in their learning? In inquiry-based learning, students can ask questions and solve problems. This teaching method is a student-centered pedagogical approach that can help build creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. Students often work in groups in inquiry-based learning, which helps enhance their ability to communicate their ideas with others and work in a team environment.

Because students are working on solving real-world problems, inquiry-based learning illustrates how to use educational knowledge in tangible ways. This allows the educational process to be more meaningful to students than simply learning the material just to pass a test. Depending on the situation and the desired educational outcomes, students may work to solve a problem assigned to them by the teacher or come up with a question to pursue on their own or in a group.

Inquiry-based learning is often used in science classes. Students can state a hypothesis and create an experiment to test it. They can then share the results of their experiment with the rest of the class.

Classroom debates are another opportunity to use inquiry-based learning. Two students or two groups of students can decide on a problem to explore, and each comes up with a different way to solve that problem. They will need to research the topic thoroughly and evaluate different solutions to judge which they feel offers the best potential outcome. They then can debate the subject for the class, helping their fellow students learn more about the issue.

Questioning and Discussion

One of the types of pedagogy that can be used in almost any class setting is questioning and discussion. Asking questions that lead to a productive discussion among class members is a way to involve students and keep them engaged with the lesson material.

Open-ended questions do not have one clear answer and can encourage discussion. Students need to offer their opinion based on their understanding of the material and any other personal experiences that inform their position. Students should be encouraged to defend their opinion with facts. Some students may need to be prompted with additional questions to get to the reasons for their opinions. Other students will often respond to the original student, offering their own opinions.

Socratic seminars, named after the philosopher Socrates who valued asking questions and encouraging discussion, foster discussion about a text. Before class, students all read the selected text, whether that be a work of literature, primary sources related to a historical period, or a scientific paper. Students should come to class with comments about the text. Teachers then ask open-ended questions to encourage discussion about the material, encouraging students to ask questions of their peers. The teacher should serve as a moderator of the conversation.

Blended Learning

Blended learning, sometimes called hybrid learning, utilizes both online and in-person education. It offers students some control over when, where, and how they pursue their education. Blended learning can be extremely helpful for students who cannot frequently meet in a physical classroom.

There are four main models of blended learning.

• Rotation: The rotation model asks students to engage in various learning modalities, such as in-person instruction, individual activities, group work, and online activities. In this case, students may have some control over which activities they participate in and the schedule for completing them.
• Flipped: In this model, students use online learning at home, which may include lectures and other materials, to study the lesson and then engage in in-person activities within the physical classroom. In a flipped classroom, students are expected to be in the physical classroom regularly.
• Enriched Virtual: The vast majority of learning in an enriched virtual classroom takes place outside of the physical classroom; however, students are expected to be in class on occasion for in-person instruction and activities.
• Flex: Online learning and in-person opportunities are provided for students on an as-needed basis. Students have a great deal of control over when and how they learn.

Flexible Physical Environment

Flexible physical environments can help create a more positive learning experience for students. Students need variety in their day to keep their brains engaged. Having classroom furniture that can be easily moved for various activities is one way to accomplish this. Chairs, cushions, or mats can be configured in a circle for whole class discussions. Break-out spaces with tables with chairs around them might be used for small group activities or individual workplaces. Having one or two quiet spaces in the classroom, where a student can work alone or calm down if they are having a rough day, can be helpful. Some students might benefit from sitting on a ball, so they can move while doing their work. Being able to push the furniture to the sides of the room to have space for more active classroom activities is also useful.

Teachers can also conduct educational activities outside of the classroom. Some schools allow teachers and students to take advantage of hallways for some activities, provided they don't disturb other students. Making use of a school gym or cafeteria might be another option. Going outside to have class and to observe the natural world is another great option, especially in pleasant weather.

Effective Pedagogy Promotes Learning

Using effective pedagogy promotes learning and well-being for all students. A key component is creating a welcoming, culturally inclusive classroom that models respect and integrity. Teachers can create and promote this positive educational environment in several ways.

• Develop authentic relationships with students built on respect. Seek to understand students and their diverse backgrounds, including challenges they may face inside and outside school.
• Use curriculum materials that reflect the diversity of the students in class and the wider world. Expose students to many cultures and personal differences to encourage respect for all.
• Seek to eliminate any unintentional bias against a minority or marginalized group.
• Present material in ways that appeal to multiple learning styles.
• Allow students to choose how they learn so that all students can use their strengths and learn well in class.
• Be open to feedback from students about the quality of instruction and how they are learning. Be willing to make appropriate adjustments when necessary.
• Offer students constructive feedback on their work and communicate regularly with parents or caretakers about student progress.
• Create learning opportunities in which all students can make a positive contribution and feel valued in the classroom.