The first week of this course looks at what it means to be a teacher. We look at the many roles that a teacher plays and why each of these is important. We consider what it means to be an effective teacher. We look at ways in which we can improve what we do as teachers using a model of continuous professional development. Finally, we consider what a philosophy of education is and how we can develop a philosophy that guides our teaching.

The second week of this course looks at teachers’ sense of identity, and the differing reasons and motivations people have for becoming a teacher. We ask you to consider the influences on you and particularly the people who may have played a part in your decision to join the profession. You will reflect on the nature of transactions in the classroom and the differing ways in which students respond to how teachers address them. The fourth lecture draws on educational theorist Jacob Kounin’s key strategies that expert teachers to manage classrooms effectively.

The third week of this course continues the theme of how your teaching and learning has been influenced by other key people or events. You will learn about the primary motivations that persuade people to take up teaching as a career. How do you communicate with children, or adult learners, in ways that helps them to grasp key concepts and ways of thinking? Reflecting on your teaching and on your students’ learning may help you to have a greater impact as a teacher. The fourth lecture, entitled Asking or Telling address fundamental issues of pedagogy, reminding us that ‘telling’ is rarely an effective strategy for teaching either as a teacher or a parent, whereas questioning requires activity and involvement on the part of the learner.

This week we look at the impact our social identities have on our learning. The four lectures in week four are all related to the theme of difference. It will be important for you to think about your own socialization and how you learned about difference. Is difference something you learned to value or is it something you have learned to ridicule? Think about how you deal with difference in your personal context and in your classroom. We encourage you to write a narrative in which you bring together a reflection on your own socialization and how this impacts on your teaching.