Subject: principles of teaching

Subject: PRINCIPLES OF TEACHING UNIT III: Chapter 2 — SELECTION AND ORGANIZATION OF CONTENTS “ There are dull teachers, dull textbooks, dulls films, but no dull subjects. ” Guiding Principles in the Selection and Organization of Content 1. One guiding principle related to subject matter content is to observe the following qualities in the selection and organization of content: a. Validity — this means that we ought to teach according to national standards. It also means teaching the content in order to realize the goals and objectives of the course as laid down by the basic education curriculum. b. Significance — What we teach should respond to the needs and interests of the learners, hence meaningful and significant. The content or subject matter will contribute to basic ideas, concepts, principles, and generalization to achieve the overall aim of the curriculum, then it is significant. It is also significant if it will develop learning abilities, skills, processes and attitude. Subject matter is significant if it will develop the cognitive, affective and psychomotor skills of the learners. It can also be significant if the cultural aspects will be considered (Bilbao et. al, 2008). c. Balance — content includes not only facts but also concepts and values. The use of the three-level approach ensures a balance of the cognitive, affective and psychomotor lesson content. d. Self-sufficiency — Content fully covers the essentials. Learning content is not “ mile-wide-and inch-deep”. The essentials are sufficiently covered and are treated in depth. e. Interest — Teacher considers the interest of the learners, their developmental stages and cultural and ethnic background. f. Utility — Content has use to the learners and must be functional. What is learned has a function even after examinations are over. g. Feasibility — The essential content can be covered in the amount of time available for instruction. 2. At the base of the structure of cognitive subject matter content is facts. We can’t do away with facts but be sure to go beyond facts by constructing an increasingly richer and more sophisticated knowledge based and by working out a process of conceptual understanding. Here are few ways cited by cognitive psychologists (Ormrod, 2000) by which you can help your students: * Providing opportunities for experimentation * Presenting the ideas of others * Emphasizing conceptual understanding Here are some specific strategies that can help you develop conceptual understanding in your students (Ormrod, 2000): * Organize units around a few core ideas and themes * Explore each topic in depth * Explain how new ideas relate to students’ own * Show students that conceptual understanding of subject matter is far more important than knowledge of isolated facts * Ask students what they have learned * Promoting dialogue * Using authentic activities Reporter: @jashinrosal