ECEC5012 COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES AND STUDENT LEARNING

COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES AND STUDENT LEARNING

Scenario

The whole class lesson was based on silkworms that the students have observed since they were eggs. The graduate teacher started the lesson by saying eyes eyes, eyes on me to which the students repeated back so the teacher knew if the students were listening and tuned into what she was saying. The teacher explained the task along with visual ques to help introduce the task by posing the question what have you observed repeating the word observed. The students were asked to draw a picture of what they had observed in the past four to six weeks and write a sentence below. Throughout explaining the activity, she also repeated key words and created a model of what is expected so that the students could grasp the concept further. As the students were sitting on the mat, they had the ability to do a think, pair, share activity with one another. This encouraged the students to think about what they were going to share and then share with a partner to further their knowledge. The teacher then sent the students off to work individually and roamed the class and helped students that required further assistance. Overall the teacher was very impressed with how the students went about their work so quickly and enthusiastically. The students listening throughout the explanation was shown as they only asked questions when needed and not about what the task actually was.

Communication strategies

The verbal communication strategies used throughout the video is:

• Teacher talk


• Questioning


• Student answering


• Classroom talk


• Think, pair, share


• Repeating the task when necessary


• Positive reinforcement

The non-verbal communication throughout the video was:

• Had live silkworms to base the topic on


• Active listening


• Busy learning environment, although the focus area of work was large to draw the students in


• Gestures


• Model and demonstration

Verbal communication event

During the think, pair, share activity at the beginning of the task the students were able to have their own thinking time as well as a share time with a partner. The teacher then encouraged students to share with the class igniting more classroom discussion. Having a classroom with plenty of talk allows students to construct meaning from each discussion as well as adding many more layers and perspectives to each student learning. (Khong, T. D. H., Saito, E., & Gillies, R. M. 2019) During the video the teacher displayed limited wait time for the students to really think about their own concept. As discussed in the Victorian Department of Education and Training, (2017) High impact teaching strategies, wait time is a very important aspect of questioning. Without sufficient wait time the students were unable to develop their thoughts and ideas before sharing. To further facilitate student learning the student teacher could give the students more time to think. Allowing the students to think more will enable them to have further discussion around the topic that is prompted by the teacher. This allows the students to stimulate, extend and advance their own and others learning. (Gillies, R. M. 2016) The feedback loop for the activity think, pair, share is constant. Both the teacher and the peers can offer feedback and further ideas. The instruction being to think of something that the students have observed then sharing with the students demonstrating peer reflection. This can then ignite a response from other students about what has been said for further feedback. The feedback can be given by the teacher when the students are working on the task and she is roaming the room. She can offer further ideas, like when she gave explicit examples of what the drawing could be. For example, she states the students could draw the cocoon or maybe the moths. This therefore can help to extend the students thinking.

Verbal communication improvement

What can be done different to expand the students ideas?

The teacher included the students in the discussion prior to the task by asking simple questions that could be answered quickly by the students. During the time the students were sitting the teacher did not ask the students many open-ended questions to challenge and further their thinking. According to Wang, A., Chai, C., & Hairon, S. (2017), it is thought that the teacher asks too many of the questions that limit the amount of student engagement. Whereas if the teacher had more of a focus on open-ended questions for the students to discuss and respectively debate on it would further their knowledge and understanding. Also, when the teacher implemented the strategy of the think, pair, share the think area of the task could have been implemented better. A crucial part of questioning according to Victorian Department of Education and Training, (2017) is leaving adequate wait time for the students to develop their thoughts. When the teacher allows enough time for the students to gather their thoughts it can give the teacher immediate feedback on students understanding. (Victorian Department of Education and Training, 2017, pp. 22)

Non-Verbal communication event

During the silkworm activity the student teacher had many different models and demonstrations as well as having live silkworms that had been observed previously. The live silkworms and the observation prior to the lesson is an incredibly helpful teaching tool as the students have watched them grow and are invested in the animal and therefore the schoolwork that follows. According to Ewing, R. Lowrie, T., Higgs, J. (2010) and the transactional model, communication consists of more than just talking such as models and representations. The teacher in the short clip demonstrates this with her own example of what is expected. This is a helpful resource as it gives the students a clear idea of what is expected. On the other hand, the students had not involvement in creating the demonstration causing implications such as not being as interested and actively listening leading to the students not understanding the task to the best of their ability. According to Ewing, R., et al (2020) active listening can also provide the speaker, in this instance the teacher with feedback as the. students are trying to develop an understanding of the task.

Non-Verbal communication improvement

How could the teacher increase the students active listening skills?

Although the students all displayed excellent listening skills the teacher could have improved the model of the task through including the students in the creation. As Ewing, R., et al (2020) states active listening skills can provide the teacher with feedback about the students understanding. If the teacher had of created the model piece of work with the students it would have enabled her to call upon different students for her to acknowledge which students understood the task. If the teacher had of implemented the demonstration this way it would have aligned with the Victorian Department of Education and Training, (2017) HIT strategy worked example. This way the students would be aware of the adequate steps they need to take to have a successful final product. The students would also then have a greater understanding of the task.

Action plan

GOAL: Implement more wait time for the students

To improve the class lesson based on silkworms the teacher can implement or extend on other communication strategies for the best outcome in student learning. For the verbal communication area, the teacher should aim to expand her knowledge around wait time. To do this the teacher should research the area to develop a clear understanding of what is required. By expanding her own knowledge, the teacher can develop an understanding of the importance of wait time to be able to explain an implement it to the best of her ability. She can then implement this in her teaching through explicitly explaining to the students that she will focus the lesson on giving the students adequate time to think about their answers. The teacher can also explain to the students the importance of the goal and wait time in their education. The goal can be measured by the students displaying deeper thinking in their answers. (Victorian Department of Education and Training, 2017) This includes moving away from simple one-word answers and more extended and fuller responses. Therefore, the teacher will ignite more a classroom discussion that all students can participate in. (Ewing, R., et al., 2020)

GOAL: Enhance students active listening skills

Active listening is a skill that demonstrates to the speaker that the listener is trying to understand and process the information being delivered. (Ewing, R., et al., 2020) If the students in the video improve their active listening skills the teacher is then able to instruct and challenge the students more. This goal has many similarities to the one above and both relate to questioning element of the HITS. (Victorian Department of Education and Training, 2017) A specific goal for this teacher could be to implement the three active listening skills in her class discussion:

• Clarifying: The teacher can ask pertinent questions to establish that the question sent has been received as intended (Ewing, R., et al., 2020., pp. 141)


• Paraphrasing: The teacher can get the students to explain the task back to her in their own words


• Reflecting: The students can restate and explain what the class discussion was about

The goal can be measured by teacher observation. If implemented correctly the students will demonstrate the three skills listed above. The teacher may like to keep a running record of the students that are achieving the skills to further enhance her teaching skills.

Both of the goals explained above are ongoing and will take time to perfect and excel at the implemented area. For both goals the teacher should use a range of data such as the running record and observation of the students success. (Victorian Department of Education and Training, 2017) The students success will supply the teacher with data about how well the strategies have been implemented.