Why do we need pedagogy?
The need for different approaches to education and learning was first
mentioned in the 16th-17th centuries. In his Didactica Magna ("Great
Didactics"), the Czech philosopher Jan Amos Comenius developed the main
points of the "universal art of teaching everyone, everything". He was
prompted to do so by his own negative experiences in the educational
process. Comenius argued that with the right approach anyone can be taught
anything, not just those with extraordinary talent. It was Comenius who
theorized the advantage of the classroom taskwork system (as opposed to
individual learning, which was widespread until the 17th century), and he
also called for the accessibility of education to all.
Later in the 19th century, Johann Friedrich Herbart laid the foundations
for scientific pedagogy. In his theory of teaching ideas, he identified four
stages of learning new things, which are used by teachers to this day.
Presentation, as the initial introduction to the material.
Association, the search for connections between new concepts and
ideas with old ones. System, the generalization and deduction of
some rules, the search for leads. And the most important stage,
Method, which is the application of acquired knowledge in practice.
Herbart was an advocate of nurturing learning, the process of acquiring
knowledge, in his opinion, went hand to hand with the development of
character and the versatility of the individual.
This idea is reflected in the German pedagogical tradition, which describes
pedagogy as a social science that investigates education and improves the
quality of the learning process. In German, the word "education" can also be
defined as "nurturing," so in the Germanic model, pedagogy studies the
various factors that influence the social and individual development of a
person, as well as the processes and some components of human personality
and identity formation. The main representatives of this school were Johann
Gottlieb Fichte, Johann Friedrich Herbart, Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi,
Wolfgang Brezinka, and Wolfgang Sünkel.
In contrast to the German school, the Anglo-Saxon school describes pedagogy
as the study of teaching methods and activities where the focus is on the
educational process itself. The Anglo-Saxon school now dominates the
university environment, so in many ways, pure personal development remains
the entitlement of the school. The main representative of this school is the
philosopher John Dewey, who was a clear proponent of a practical approach to
learning through experience and the awareness of that experience through
special scientific methods.
The reality, however, is far from ideal. In fact, university professors show a high level of resistance and, in some cases, contempt for methodical teaching practices. This leads students to face monotonous and superficial instructions. According to a study by Stephanie Cushman and Richard West, poor teaching is one of the reasons (5%) that college students burn out today. Other causes include overload (49%), which arises from exaggerated demands in courses, financial and time management problems (24%), lack of personal motivation (13%), and mental health problems alongside physical limitations (5%), and of course other causes. Therefore, student motivation and well-being have become the starting point of many international studies by aiming at analyzing the educational environment that teachers create, as well as studying the role of student motivation.
A Good University Teacher, What Is He Or She Like?
In first Western universities, the teacher's job was limited to imparting
information to the student, there was no interaction between the professor
and students. Teachers were hired by the students themselves, and they kept
the ones they thought were doing a good job, otherwise, they get fired.
As universities and academic life evolved, professionals sought to form an
objective criteria for evaluating teaching. In 1987, Arthur Chickering and
Zelda Gamson identified seven famous principles that are still used
in higher education today, even though they are based on results from more
than thirty years ago.
The first principle, a good university instructor should
encourage students' desire for contact. One of the main reasons students
leave school universities is the sense of isolation. Therefore, establishing
good contact between teachers and students plays an important role in the
educational process. The professor should know his students by name, invite
them to discuss problems, give students personalized feedback on homework
and share professional and personal experiences, because he does not only
impart knowledge but also acts as a role model.
The second principle is to develop cooperation and mutual assistance
among students. A good education is a "collective" and "social" education,
not an "isolated" one. A 2015 study by Eva Hammar Kiriak of the Department
of Behavioral Sciences and Learning at Linköping University in Sweden shows
that when teachers give team tasks, students perform better, they become
more motivated and feel better about themselves. Therefore, it is useful to
encourage students to work together and research projects, participate in
exam preparation groups, join various clubs on campus, and so on.
The third principle is to encourage active learning. Students cannot
learn much just by sitting in class, listening to teachers, and memorizing
ready-made answers to problems. They must be able to talk about what they
are learning, write about it, relate it to past experiences, reflect on new
information and new knowledge, and most importantly, apply it to everyday
life. In this case, a good teacher should use active learning techniques,
such as asking to analyze a real-life situation or present their work to the
class. Besides, he or she should encourage critical reflection on ideas,
discussions, and even respectful debates.
By the way, university professors can share their personal opinions. However, before they do so, they must draw a clear line between the theory they teach and the personal point of view they express, since it is not based on research and may be questioned. A good lecture is a combination of fundamental knowledge and critical reflection on the information received.
The fourth principle is prompt feedback. Students need help
assessing their current knowledge and abilities, not only at the end of the
course but throughout the course. This does not mean that feedback should be
daily or even weekly, but it should remain constant, and giving it is a
direct professional responsibility of the instructor. It is also important
to give informative comments that point out students' mistakes and suggest
ways to improve. Discussing the results of homework and exams both with the
class and with individual students plays a big role. Saying "you got an F"
is not enough; you need to explain to the student what they know well and
what they can improve on. The main difference between a student and
yesterday's student is a higher level of independence. In the
teacher-student relationship, partnership comes to the fore, which implies
working together on problems. This not only makes the educational process
more interesting but also contributes to the development of the university
staff themselves.
The fifth principle is to set aside time for assignments. The
learning process takes time and energy, and students need time to "digest"
new information. The results of numerous surveys link excessive workload
with increased stress and inability to relax, and also with a negative
impact on health. Schoolchildren spend on average up to 6 hours a week on
homework. Therefore, effective time management skills are crucial for both
students and teachers. One survey on Twitter showed that some teachers work
more than 60 hours a week. If you put too high expectations on students, the
educational process will not be effective for them, they will feel
dissatisfied and lose motivation. If you do the same with professors, they
will do a worse job. So we must remember that we are all human beings, not
robots.
The sixth principle is to reinforce the drive to succeed. A good
university teacher believes in the capabilities of his or her students and
helps them achieve their best. Positive reinforcement for outstanding work
can be used here. Reminding students that everyone works at different levels
but must strive to advance, helping them set challenging goals for their own
development. Also, it is important to encourage students to try their best
rather than focusing on grades. Most students today are focused on what
grade they will get, but that's not their fault (rather, it's a problem in
today's statistics-driven, ratings-driven society). But if you want to get
deeper knowledge, you need to think about what you're doing, not about your
grades.
And at last, the seventh principle is to respect
individual talents and different ways of learning. No two people learn the
same way, so students should be allowed to absorb information the way they
feel comfortable. Four common styles of information perception are well
known today: visual, auditory, reading, and kinesthetic. And, according to
educational psychology, each person has either one of these styles or a
combination of them.
Later, in 2009, Jeremy Gibson added that an excellent university teacher is
defined by personal characteristics in addition to education and experience:
enthusiasm, ease, and a healthy and measured degree of eccentricity.
However, practice shows that the impact of these traits on student
motivation and performance is not easy to measure: from 1998 to 2018, only
13 studies have looked for a relationship between the two factors.
Theory and practice - finding the balance
Recall that as far back as Johann Friedrich Herbart said that education
must necessarily combine theory and practice. Theory is needed first and
foremost for general erudition and the development of critical thinking and
higher metacognitive skills. If we exclude it, we get just vocational
training. When you have an idea of different theories that describe
different processes in the world, you can compare them and use different
arguments from them. If a person does not have a critical thinking mind,
then he will just reproduce the information received somewhere, without
analyzing it. For example, after hearing a report in the media about a new
universal cure for cancer, he will not have any questions of this sort:
should this report be trusted, should it be criticized?
It is impossible to say how much theory and how much practice should be in
education because today there are no scientific results that allow us to
derive the ideal formula. Much of the relationship between theory and
practice depends on the professor and his or her awareness of new
discoveries and practical advances in his field. This idea is related to
professional development: to work at a university, a faculty member must be
a lifelong learner. This is especially true in fields such as public
relations, where changes occur literally on a daily basis. In this case, it
may seem a good idea to split the course between two professors - the one
who is mainly concerned with research and can give a good theoretical
background, and the one who can explain the application of theory in real
life.
In addition to the internship, which is an additional option (and burden)
for students, moreover, unpaid, modern pedagogy distinguishes three major
trends in teaching methodology that fully integrate practice into the
learning process. The first is Problem Oriented teaching when
students take apart real-world problems and try to find solutions for them
in the course of classes with the teacher. This approach, for example, is
used in Australia to train nurses who are forced to work as if they were
dealing with a real situation in a hospital.
The second direction is Service Learning. This educational approach
combines learning activities with social work, and practical application of
theory plays a big role here. In addition, Service Learning focuses
primarily on local community problems and the connection between
institutions of higher education with the community in which they are
located. For example, in cities where there is an environmental pollution
problem, biology students can take an active part in solving this problem.
For example, analyzing soil samples or collecting environmental data.
Finally, the third area is Local Learning, which immerses students in the peculiarities of local culture and historical heritage. This is partly similar to Service Learning, but in this case, students are solving problems from another area, such as, how a community can maintain its cultural identity. Students can, for example, do projects that will raise awareness of local culture and traditions.
Online learning and anxiety
During the pandemic, communications have increasingly gone online,
including educational processes. The transition to the new format has its
challenges. Online learning can be a great experience for both professor and
student, but it is very important to organize an environment that is simple
yet engaging.
Most of the negative comments about online learning today are the result of
fear of the unknown. Technophobia can potentially slow down the transition
to online learning. There are many definitions of the term, but the most
popular include resistance to talking or even thinking about new
technologies, as well as fear and anxiety about them. Research shows that
technophobia has been a serious problem in industrialized economies for the
past 20 years, and the number of technophobes is just under a third of the
world's industrialized population.
Students in online courses, when confronted with problems when using sites, tend to react rather acutely about them. In addition, students experience a great deal of anxiety when they are pressed over time or goals. If technology fails, it can cause anxiety and panic. However, over time, students learned to develop behavioral strategies that help them avoid anxiety despite the circumstances.
Nevertheless, online learning is our future and encouraging students to
learn online and develop their own online skills and competencies is a
direct responsibility of the university faculty.
Many thanks for reading.
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