The teaching metaphor that best aligns with my teaching philosophy is a shepherd watching over her flock, which I also see as the “guide on the side” metaphor. It will be my duty to lead my students towards deeper learning and guide them in a general direction. However, they will not need to all arrive there in the same way or at the exact same time. The flock moves towards the same goals but can attain them in different ways. As the shepherd it will be my job to guide them in the correct direction and provide necessary assistance and feedback.
The students need some guidance and some pushing to know which way to go and what needs to be learned. You do not want your students scattered throughout the classroom without any sense of direction or purpose. The flock is not meant, in any way, to convey a sense of everyone is doing exactly the same thing. There can be differentiation and uniqueness in how students move within the flock towards the big learning goals.
The teacher, or shepherd, is supposed to guide her flock. The students will take a cue from the teacher as to how to begin, but will move towards their goals in their own way. The teacher will never be too far away to offer support.
Students can learn a great deal in this metaphor because they are given a general direction and the necessary supervision to get the task done. Students need to be able to take a direction and go with it and explore on their own, but with a framework that provides help and guidance.
Overall, the shepherd watching over her flock seems appealing to me as a teaching metaphor because it seems a nice mix of goal-directed learning and teacher support and also allows room for students to wander and discover, as long as they are not straying off too far. And when it is necessary, a shepherd can gather her flock all together.
5 comments:
I really like your metaphor of a teacher as a shepherd watching over her flock. When I originally thought about a shepherd as a teacher I thought about structure and a limited amount of space for individual differences. However through your description I gained an understanding of the way you envision a shepherd. During our Elementary Math class we have viewed multiple videos and engaged in activities structured in similar ways as you explain. For example, you state, “the teacher, or shepherd, is supposed to guide her flock. The students will take a cue from the teacher as to how to begin, but will move towards their goals in their own way.” Last week we watched a video in which a first grade classroom was asked to discover the number of seeds they would have with a specific number of seed packets. Students were “able to take a direction and go with it and explore on their own, but with a framework that provide[d] help and guidance.” Through activities similar to the one witnessed and experience, it seems that self-discovery is likely to provide students with more than knowledge, but also understanding.
I really liked your teaching metaphor because it gave me a different perspective on teaching. I often view teaching as nurturing and supporting, but "guide on the side" has been lacking from my teaching methods and philosophy. After reading your metaphor, I realized that I had been leaving out a crucial piece in creating successful students. Your metaphor shed light on the idea that it is important for the teacher to let the students be more independent by giving them purpose and directionality. Giving students the means to work independently yet always have support is critical in teaching.
I liked your metaphor of a shepherd watching over her flock because it shows that students will get all of the support and assistance that they need from their teacher, yet they will still be able to work independently as well. A shepherd does not physically pick up each sheep and move him to where he is supposed to be. Rather, she guides each sheep toward his goal, allowing each sheep to go at his own pace and in his own direction so long as he does not stray too far from the flock. This is a good metaphor for teaching because it emphasizes the important role the teacher plays, but also the role that each individual student plays.
Your metaphor captured a different element of teaching that I had missed out on. I liked how you allowed for individual differences among a group to play a role in your metaphor. This metaphor understands that not everyone will get to the same point at the same time but rather to reach a point. The guide may not be doing the same thing for every sheep but providing more support and structure for those that need it and then allowing some more independence to get there. Thanks.
Allison--
I like your explanation of the sheep in the flock (students) working towards the same goals but arriving at those goals in different ways. Something for you to continue thinking about is how you, as a shepherd (teacher) will deal with those who may go astray. What happens when students get off-track? How will you bring them back around to the learning goals?
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