Spring 2004

Talking Science

Is Teaching Heading the Way of the Dinosaurs?

A teacher honoured in The National Excellence in Teaching Awards, JAK DENNY, looks at the past, present and future of a profession that must continue to evolve in order to survive.

WHEN I COMMENCED TEACHING in the late 60s, it was very different from today. Discipline was generally very strict, sometimes enforced through corporal punishment; syllabuses were rigidly adhered to; the teacher was the central authority; and students learnt individually through a passive and highly-structured program. External, three hour examinations were the principal if not the only means of assessing our students’ knowledge in years 11 and 12.

In Tasmania at this time, less that 30% of the student population pursued studies beyond year 10 and there was practically full employment. Senior secondary level years were occupied predominantly by students with aspirations for tertiary studies, and our educational system was not designed to offer anything of consequence to the nonacademic student. Family disruptions and the associated social dislocation of children were hidden from public view and largely ignored by the education system.

The technological onslaught that commenced in the early 70s and continues at an even greater rate today was undoubtedly the key factor in initiating the enormous changes in society in general and education in particular. These changes have dramatically affected the function the teacher performs today in the classroom, as well as their status in the eye of the general public.

As a teacher suffering from considerable chronological exposure, I could well be described as an educational dinosaur unsuited to the present day landscape and deserving of extinction. Fortunately, our evolution as teachers is largely facilitated by working with our students and reacting actively to the changing climate. I continually reflect on the key changes that I have undergone in my evolutionary progress.

A principal factor in this change is in the relationship that now exists between teachers and students. The central authority role of teachers has been replaced with an emphasis on cooperative goodwill and collaborative learning. Syllabuses and the teaching approach have moved towards a negotiated situation and learning is focussed more on the individual’s interests and needs. Teachers’ roles are now extended beyond the day-today facilitator of learning to incorporate expected functions such as personal and career counsellor, sports coach, mentor and legal adviser.

Despite these radical changes and new expectations for teachers, there are undoubtedly some fundamental attributes of an ‘excellent’ teacher that hold as true today as they did in the educational Jurassic Park of the 60s. By enunciating the desirable, if not essential, teacher characteristics we can assist in the process of identifying and training teachers for the future. I will limit this difficult task to the area of education that I feel most confident to embrace, that is, senior secondary level.

Above all else, a good teacher must be an utter enthusiast for his or her subject area, believing that there is enormous value for all to be gained from exposure to it. The benefit to students should be demonstrable beyond the simplistic ideals of ‘passing this subject will enable you to go on to …’

A valuable lesson I learnt in my own evolution was to ask myself: ‘Why am I teaching this information/skill and can I justify the need to know about it?’ For a chemistry teacher this is an easy task, as much of my subject area has direct implications to everyday life and we have devised experiments to reinforce these connections between the laboratory and the outside ‘real’ world. Examples of these experiments include those relating to metallurgical industries in Tasmania, polymer preparation and testing, extraction of essential oils and environmental chemistry.

Another attribute that appears high on my list of teachers’ essential characteristics is ‘interpersonal’ skills. The ability to understand the diversity of concerns, problems and differences within the student group allows the teacher to empathise with and understand the enormous strain imposed on young people today from all facets of society. A teacher who can stay in touch with their students’ aspirations and yet not impose their own agenda will win the respect and confidence of those students.

Teaching is a mentally and physically demanding vocation. An excellent teacher needs to be resilient, energetic and eternally enthusiastic. They must make an extra effort to provide assistance to students, show an unerring capacity to meet their work commitments and provide timely feedback. They should always set clearly defined and realistic expectations for standards of work and behaviour. Each student has their own aspirations, expectations and limitations and the teacher’s skill is to nurture these strengths and offer opportunities for each to achieve their capabilities.

Throughout my career as a science teacher I have regarded a keen sense of humour as an essential teaching ingredient and frequently use anecdotes to illustrate situations that may otherwise be less than inspirational or difficult to grasp. Working from the ‘known’ towards the ‘unknown’ is the basis of good developmental learning. As a scuba diving instructor with over 30 years’ experience, I find many instances where diving provides obvious ‘real’ examples to explain quite complex scientific concepts. For example, the gas laws come alive when related to decompression illness, or why pressure changes may hurt your ears if you don’t take the correct precautionary action.

It may be opportune for me to offer some self-appraisal at this juncture. I would hope that my capacity to adapt has maintained the necessary impetus to ensure that my efforts and value as a teacher justify my existence. I am reassured to know that at least some of my students and science teaching colleagues believe this to be true. I had the great honour of being selected to join a team of five tertiary chemistry educators from around Australia to participate in a teacher training project in the Philippines. In this role I was required to give demonstration laboratory lessons employing limited chemical reagents and equipment. The facilities available were far from those expected today in Australia and yet, even within this different culture, the same key attributes of enthusiasm, interpersonal skills and dedicated application to students’ needs were fundamental to the success of the project. I found the process most stimulating and learnt a great deal about teaching from the project.

For the past ten years I have been chief examiner and State moderator for Chemistry, a task that has given me the opportunity to guide the evolution of this and other science subjects. Among our most significant developments are syllabus and assessment changes. Syllabuses are now structured so that students find out how and why things behave the way they do. Understanding and relevance to the everyday world now override previous goals such as the rote acquisition of knowledge and the preparation solely for tertiary studies. Both internal and external assessment is employed and each involves a greater emphasis on comprehension rather than accumulation of facts. Examinations allow access to textbooks and the style of questioning used tests understanding rather than the mere short-term retention of information.

Despite the large number of young men and women leaving universities today who possess all these desirable teacher attributes, we appear to be failing to encourage adequate numbers into teaching. This critical situation can only be addressed by the ongoing promotion of the teaching profession through highlighting the positive benefits to be gained through this most important vocation of all. Our failure to meet the evolving needs imposed by society will see teaching facing the same inevitable demise as that faced by the dinosaurs.

Jak Denny has been teaching Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics at senior secondary level in Tasmania for the past 36 years.

The author owns the copyright in this article. For information related to the reuse of this work in any form please contact the publisher denise.quinn@curriculum.edu.au