Classroom Tasks

Task 1

Look at Ur’s list of patterns of interaction below. Decide whether each interaction is either more student-centred or more teacher-centred. Justify your answers.

Group workStudent-centered;In this type of interaction, the teacher’s role is only to walk around the classroom, listen to students work in small groups and intervene as little as possible. The students remain very activewhile the teacher is only receptive.

Closed-ended teacher questioning
Teacher-centered; Even if the teacher asks referential questions, it’s the teacher’s activity that predominates in this typeof interaction. The student does not need to elaborate in the response. A simply yes / no answer would be enough. The teacher is active and the students are mainly receptive.

Individual workStudent-centered; The students are mainly focused on solving a task. They may not be interacting with their classmates but they are interacting with the material or set of tasks that have been given tothem. The teacher monitors and assists only when needed. The students are active and the teacher is mainly receptive.

Choral responses
Teacher-centered; Even though the interaction in this type ofactivity is more or less balanced, it is the teacher who is in control of the activity and the students’ role is mainly to repeat what they are told by the teacher.

CollaborationStudent-centered; Students work in a similar way as they do in “individual work”, but here they work together, usually in pairs, to achieve a common goal. Cooperative learning comes to mind when thinking about thisinteraction. The students are very active and the teacher is only receptive because he may or may not intervene.

Student initiates, teacher answers
Teacher-centered; In this interaction pattern ,the students may ask the teacher to clarify a specific point they did not quite understand at first. Then, the teacher clarifies, explains or provides more exercises to help the students in their...