ERIC Number: ED335301
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1990-Aug
Pages: 86
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
On Teaching. Draft.
Leinhardt, Gaea
Teaching is complex and layered. The premise of this paper is that teaching is worthy of being an object of systematic inquiry, and that such inquiry will help to clarify and potentially improve the character of teaching. It has also been assumed that a useful approach is to differentiate within teaching those aspects which can and usually are routinized from those which must be uniquely constructed from new arrangements of knowledge. It is acknowledged that the task of teaching is quite different when it is carried out under different models. The differences in tasks are reflected in the routine aspects and in the nature of the knowledge base required for action. Systematic inquiry about the nature of teaching is valuable but should not replace the continued efforts of educational reform based on the understanding of the nature of learning. Reform should be guided by an understanding of both the nature of learning and the nature of teaching, but efforts at reform should not be confused with efforts of investigation and efforts of investigation should not be confused with efforts at reform. Examples of classroom dialogue are included in the document. (LL)
Publication Type: Information Analyses; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Office of Educational Research and Improvement (ED), Washington, DC.
Authoring Institution: Center for the Study of Learning, Pittsburgh, PA.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Note: Partially funded by a grant from the James S. McDonnell Foundation.