Teaching as an Art and a Science
Almost every person knows that a student today can take classes in both the arts and the sciences. Any school can hire educators who specialize in both or one of these areas of study. But the concept of teaching itself is an art and a science. Once engaged with a particular, individual class, teachers must learn the best ways of opening the door of knowledge and inviting the student into a new way of looking at the world. A teacher must approach every learning opportunity with a clear objective and lesson plan, or destination in mind, although the journey of learning, based on the student's different learning styles and cognitive capacities may take unexpected twists and turns for both the student and the teacher. Ali Sanwar, a computer science educator notes in the journal Mathematics and Computer Education "teaching is a scholarly activity and a life-long learning process with no single method or pedagogy that is always most effective," for every student in a scientifically reliable and predictable pattern. (Sanwar, 2005, p.1) This is why teaching is an art, even when teaching a highly structured discipline like a computer science course. Sanwar suggests, as, just like any art, teaching is enhanced by years of experience with
The artistic canvas of the social makeup of the classroom likewise varies from day to day, and a teacher must respond to it. Yes, a student must meet his or her grade objectives by the end of the school year. But the classroom must still be a spontaneous and interactive place, for students to gain the full benefit of the learning process. The idea of self-efficacy is a key bridge between these dual concepts of teaching as an art and a science. To foster self-efficacy, a teacher must be clear about his or her expectations with scientific precision, yet understand the child's own sense of self, whether it be fragile, or aggrandized. Learning, regardless of the subject is "an acutely human enterprise. It concerned the stories of people's lives and I knew that I had a sacred obligation to listen to those stories, to understand them deeply, and to retell them with integrity. I knew, unequivocally, that affirming, trusting relationships are the fibers that weave together students with extraordinary teachers." (Griffin, 2005, p.2) Griffin notes that, regardless of the competency of a math teacher's knowledge, if the teacher cannot overcome a potentially talented student's math phobia, his or her knowledge of the correct way to introduce different concepts will be for naught. A teacher cannot always view the world through a student's eyes-but through responsive yet critical engagement, the teacher can better impart his or her knowledge to students. One of the most moving examples of this delicate balance perhaps is not to be found in the catalog of students garnering awards for achievement, but in the examples of visually impaired students learning to become more mobile, through confidence-building and tested techniques to enable themselves to become oriented in a busy street with
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Approximate Word count = 1208
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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