New wrinkle in demonstration teaching

Title

Language

English

Year

1947

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

'• NEW WRINKLE IN DEMONSTRATION TEACHING - by MAURICIO C. MADRONA District Supervisor .Banate, Iloilo When extension classes were opened last year, my chief worry was how to train the many new high school graduates to become good teachers. It has been our sad experience in the field to observe emergency teachers do unsatisfactory work in the classrooms. In the majority of ca.ses we find these new hopefuls very awkward in introducing and motivating new lessons, in conduct.ing drill and review lessons, and in handling routine activities. We have partly solved this problem of in-service training by holding regular demonstration classes in connection with district Conferences. But in such formal demonstration teaching, we have observed that the .purpose for which it is intended has been defeated. Emergency teachers for whom such demostrations are exclusively held do not usually get the maximum benefit. They only observe, take notes, and after the demonstration discuss the merits and demerits of the demonstrations with the Principals or the District Supervisor. The only time to check the emergency teachers on how much they have benefited irom such demonstrations is whe·n the District Supervisor or the Principal visits them in their rooms. In order 'to improve this traditional way of holding demonstration classes, I tried to experiment by introducing an innovation in which during such demonstrations, emergency teachers are called to handle the classes in order to demonstrate certain steps or principles. This improved demonstration may now be called the supervised demonstration practice teaching. The supervised demonstration practice teaching was experimented in my district on Saturday, August 9, 1947 in connection with the scheduled District Conference. One or two weeks before the /; holding of th e demonstrations · for 1 Grades II and IV, demonstration teachers and critics (Principals) were designated so as to make advanced preparations. Lesson plans were made for Arithmetic, Language, and Reading. Devices, charts, pictures, books, and other materials were made ready ~for the occasion. On the ·day of the demonstrations at 8:00 o'clock in the morning, a pre-conference was held by each critic teacher in which the aims, subject matter, and procedures of each lesson were announced to the observing teachers so that all emergency teachers would be prepared to handle the class during any stage of the recitation. As soon as the pupils were in, the demonstration teacher of each class simply prepared the class for the day's work by haYing them seated properly and by having all necessary materials available anytime. Then started the random calling of emergency teachers who were made to demonstrate certain steps or principles. The emergency teacher thus demonstrating was being coached by either the demonstration teacher or the critic teacher. Since the purpose of the demonstrations was to help the new teache"rs, every possible help was given. During the conference that followed, the emergency teachers expressed their preference of this new kind of demonstration over the traditional one. During the. demonstrations about twenty-f.our emergency teachers"' had a chance to handle the classes. One advantage of this new type of demonstration teaching is th;lt the emergency teachers learn how to teach, not merely by observing but also by actually teaching. 26D

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