How to proportion classroom activities

Hello everyone,

As you reflect on your teaching, a thing to consider is the proportion of time to each activity in your instruction.

There are only a certain number of things a teacher can do in the time allotted.

You can talk; your students can talk; you can do something kinesthetic activity ( i.e., you could do a demonstration of something); your students can do something (i.e., practice what you demonstrated); you can read; your students can read; you can write; your students can write; you can solve problems; your students can solve problems.

Each of these ten things--as all things in life, I suppose--may be either good or bad in proportion. For instance, students need instruction from you, but it's bad if you talk too much; students need to communicate with each other, but it's bad if they out of turn or use vulgar language. Make sure that each activity is appropriate, instructional, and in good proportion.

Let me give a few ideas that you should consider as you proportion activities in your class.

In general, the less you talk, the better. However, don't reduce the amount of talking you do to a point that you are superfluous in the class, or no instruction is happening at all. Sometimes you simply need to lecture; keep in mind, however, that lecture is generally a poor way of teaching something.

When students talk, you need to monitor what they say. They must be on task and accountable. In another email, I will give suggestions on how to start and sustain a discussion. Good discussions are a very efficient way of delivering information, expanding on that information, and assessing.

I think that, in general, it's better to have students do an activity that allows them to practice skills than it is to describe the skills to them. A role play that allows your students to write their own constitution will teach them more about constitutions than a half hundred lectures. Foreign languages must be spoken to be learned. Find ways to have your students use their skills practically, and you will find that they retain their skills much better.

I have found that students rarely read at home, and that it's difficult to hold them accountable for at-home reading, but it's very easy to hold them accountable for at-home writing. Therefore, I proportioned my classes so that we did a lot of reading in class and a lot of writing at home.

Practically speaking, problems solved outside the teacher's supervision are frequently copied from other students and not solved at all; further, problems solved by the teacher are rarely absorbed. Find ways to have your students achieve mastery in problem solving in the classroom so that they practice at home, and the inevitable cheating is minimized in scope and effect.

If I were planning an English class, keeping in mind that I will meet with the students for one hour, and they will have 45 minutes of homework from me, I might proportion the class this way:

5-10 minutes free writing in class.
10 minutes of lecture helping students access the day's reading.
30-45 minutes of combined reading, classroom discussion on the reading, and role playing based on the reading. (Some reading may be done at home.)
5 minutes of oral assessment (may be combined with reading and discussion) covering the day's reading.
35-45 minutes writing (most will be done at home).
NOTE: All management (taking roll, passing out/collecting papers) is done simultaneously with the above. There is no "free time."
TOTAL: One hour, 45 minutes

In summary then: You talk less; they think more. Get them into practical applications, role play, and movement as much as possible. Necessary reading is done in class; writing is frequently done at home. Essential problem solving mastered in class, practiced at home.

I'm speaking of ideals, and my example is only in language arts, but I hope you get a reasonable idea on how to set up priorities and make proportions.

Jeff Combe