Creating a Learning Environment
“Failure to prepare is preparing to fail”
Good teachers are always in a state of preparation. Being alert to new approaches and fresh ideas, turning over old ideas to see a new perspective, and searching for ways to refine and polish good ideas into great ones are all methods of finding new and better material for constructing lessons. As a teacher assembles ideas for an upcoming lesson, it’s important to consider the subject, students and facilities; consult with peers for feedback and ideas; research new information; and reflect on previous lessons and experiences.
CREATING A LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
In learning a sport or physical activity, the quality and quantity of the experience are often measure by the opportunity students have to freely explore ideas and beliefs, gain new insights, and practice useful skills. Creating an organized and thought-out learning environment to promote these activities is critical if students are to receive the greatest benefit from the available instruction time. This requires carefully guiding the instructional activity, the students’ actions, and the use of the equipment and learning space.
One factor that strongly influences the creation of a learning environment is the number of students to be accommodated. If a lecture is deemed appropriate, then it matters little if 1,000 or 1.100 students are listening as long as all students can see and hear. But sport and physical activity lessons are not intended to provide learners with information they can only see and hear. In most cases, they are intended to improve the learner’s performance by providing time to practice movement skills and interact with other learners. The number of students standing before the teacher, therefore, will strongly influence the creation of a positive and progressive learning environment.
Individual Instruction
Individual learning focuses attention on the needs, interests, abilities, and motivations of a single student. Individual instruction holds several advantages and a few disadvantages for both the teacher and the student. On one hand, serving the needs of a single learner makes the organizational part of the lesson relatively easy depending on the content to be taught. Large amounts of equipment, paperwork, and other details associated with conducting classes are unnecessary. With one student, a teacher has less demand for large spaces, expansive facilities, or extensive supplies, and a single student permits more flexibility in making changes once the lesson begins. The full attention of the teacher can be focused on the learner’s particular needs. On the other hand, teaching a single student holds some restrictions. Partner and group activities are not feasible, so a teacher needs to plan for an extensive number of individual activities. A single student will also lack the comradeship that accompanies group learning and cannot derive motivation or sense of collective achievement that comes from being with others. The teacher represents the sole source of social and emotional support for the student during the learning process. Lessons with a single learner are best reserved for students with exceptional needs so that a teacher may devote full attention to the learner’s special requirements. Individual sports and activities, such as swimming, golf, bowling, fencing, gymnastics, and skiing, are good candidates for teaching using individual instruction.
Group learning
Small group instruction or dividing a large class or team into smaller groups has several advantages as well as disadvantages. First, small groups allow students to use one another as resources. Students supporting, encouraging, and assisting one another in the learning process builds a community of learners that may propel learning in ways the teacher is simply unable to accomplish alone. Group learning involves students more personally in each lesson because, as part of a group, the learning of others will, in part, depend on their involvement. A teacher is supposed to help a student learn – That is a given. But when students help each other learn, it goes beyond the expected in most cultures and into the realm of an extraordinary learning experience.
Second, group learning demonstrates the independence of learning. That is, students-discover that it’s not only the teacher who can play the role of instructor –students can, too. Third, teachers may find it easier to organize and manage several small groups than one large group.
In coaching situations, each coach can capitalize on the expertise of other coaches through group learning. In football, for example, defensive players can work with defensive coaches while offensive coaches work with offensive players. It’s also possible to have athletes rotate to different instructional areas-during the practice. A baseball or softball team could be divided into three smaller groups. One group might begin the session with batting, then move to fielding practice supervised by a fielding specialist, and then finish the practice with base-running drills organized by a base coach. Another group would begin the practice with fielding, move to base running, and finish with batting, while the third group would begin with base running, move to batting, and finish with fielding. The small group setting allows the players to receive the benefit of each coach’s expertise in a more individualized environment.
Using smaller groups does present more challenges for the teachers and students. In small group instruction, a teacher may have to do more planning to accommodate the individual and collective nuances of the group members. Not all groups will progress at the same rate of work on the same tasks. When a teacher devotes his/her attention to one group, it may mean leaving the remaining groups without supervision or support. Finally, procedures need to be in place for students to get needed assistance and guidance when the teacher’s attention is with another group.
When organizing small group lessons, teachers must pay attention to the students’ skill level. Students who are near equals in terms of skill and fitness levels, motivation, and experience are more likely to find a better fit in small group instruction than a group where the abilities and interests of the students vary widely. Small group instruction may be best suited for learners who are beyond the beginner level in learning and who have more advanced levels of maturity, motivation, and independence. Sports and activities that are normally conducted in small groups, such as basketball, tennis, sailing, or dance, are well suited for small group instruction.
LARGE CLASSES
In larger classes, everyone performs the same learning activity at the same time and at the same rate. The advantage is that the teacher can efficiently explain or demonstrate the skill or concept to 30 students or more as if he/she were explaining it to 5. With all students practicing the same skill or activity at the same time, the teacher can also monitor the class with greater focus, allowing him/her to identify common errors among the several learners and offer one correction that applies to many. Feedback to one student may also help another student struggling with a similar problem.
Large classes require a great degree of management and organization. One student being off-task or one unclear direction can derail the learning of several, if not all, students. It is therefore, essential that a teacher instructing a large group give careful attention to the positioning and movement of students as well as the rules and procedures to guide in-class behavior. Where students will be for instruction and how they will relocate from one area to the next should be carefully planned. New teachers often underestimate the importance of relocating students.
A clear signal should also be planned and reviewed with the students so that transitions from one area or activity to the next can be made with a minimum loss of instruction time. Routines can be helpful here. If a teacher makes the students routinely meet or warm-up in one area at the start of a lesson, students will naturally go there for each lesson opening. If the same signal (e.g., voice command, musical instrument, or whistle) is used to start and stop activities, students in large groups will become accustomed to the signal and respond more appropriately.
Although having many students in a class may often prevent teachers from giving each student individual attention, there are some benefits to large classes. The most obvious benefit is economy. One teacher with many students is cost-efficient – provided the instructional quality is sufficiently high so that the students are indeed learning. Large groups also lead to a sense of “team”, and motivated students can help spur the learning of the less motivated. Activities that require or incorporate many people, such as soccer, aerobics, hockey, lacrosse, volleyball, or rowing, find this instructional climate useful.
