LESSON
PLANNING
The
need for careful lesson planning
The
need for careful lesson planning is best understood in relation to two related
concepts: efficiency and effectiveness.
The time allocation for the Arts and Culture learning area is generally
limited and hence the time allowed for each of its components (fine arts, drama,
and music) is even more so. Time
must be utilised with maximum efficiency to ensure the highest possible level of
outcome achievement. The most
efficient learning activity is that which is effective in achieving more than
one outcome.
Outcomes-based
lesson planning
All decisions
regarding how the allocated time is to be used should flow from a clear idea of
which outcomes are to be achieved.
It may be that one or more outcomes have been prescribed by a
curriculum, but these are usually formulated quite broadly, e.g. to demonstrate
an intermediate level of technical ability on one’s instrument. The
outcomes for a single lesson must be accountable in relation to these but
obviously must be much more specific, for example, to perform musically a
particular technical study. “To
perform musically” implies several yet more specific outcomes related to
specific performance elements such as rhythmic accuracy, appropriate phrasing,
articulation, tone, dynamics, and so on. Again,
remember that the means to the achievement of one outcome may simultaneously be
the means to the achievement of others.
Determining
which outcomes should be achieved
From
the above, it should be clear that even when teaching in accordance with a set
curriculum, the teacher will need to make decisions as to the specific outcomes
for each lesson. In this
regard, teachers in the arts are generally allowed more discretion than teachers
in other learning areas. Making
the best possible decisions requires a thorough understanding of who the
students are and what they are already able to do.
The logical
way to proceed is to start with the longer-term outcomes, for example, those for
the year, semester or term, which often are prescribed by a curriculum.
If it is up to the teacher to determine which longer-term outcomes
are to be achieved, the decisions will be made on the basis of what the teacher
regards as most important. Ideally, these
decisions should take account of and accommodate students' interests and
goals. Given
that the time allocated for teaching is restricted, the question of which
outcomes should be prioritised is crucial.
A praxial
approach to curriculum development has as its primary criterion the
extent to which the achievement of outcomes will result in real, tangible
empowerment of students. It is
generally agreed that the primary outcome for music education should be
students’ ability to demonstrate musicianship, that is, to do the things that
musicians do. Comprehensive
musicianship implies competence in five broad skill areas - the abilities to:
perform, create, describe, read and write music (in each of which, listening
skills are implicity).
In the author’s view, these have been ordered according to importance
from most to least. Many successful
musicians are musically illiterate, but competence in reading and writing
music opens so many doors of opportunity in terms of the kinds of musical
engagements the musician can pursue. Again,
the amount of time allocated and the kind of student(s) one is responsible for
will be the key factors in deciding which outcomes to prioritise and to what
level they should be achieved. The
rudimentary notation devices associated with the Kodaly approach (hand signs,
relative solfa, rhythm names and stem notation) may be all that is feasible in
consideration of those factors.
When it has
been established what the longer-term outcomes are, the students need to be
assessed in terms of their present levels of achievement in relation to these
outcomes. Let us take as an
example a class of intermediate phase students for whom a long-term outcome is
the ability to improvise vocal melodies using solfa syllables.
The students have had no experience in this but are already able to sing
a major scale in solfa. They can do
this ascending and descending but are not able to move around the pitches freely
to create melodies. They also have
no experience of using hand-signs to denote the pitches.
What would be
logical specific outcomes for the first lesson with this class? Certainly,
one would be their ability to follow vocally some if not all of the hand signs
for the pitches of the scale. They
would obviously get this more easily with conjunct melodies where pitches move
mostly in a scalar way, especially ones that are familiar, for example, the
first verse of “Nkosi Sikelel' I Africa”.
It would not be unreasonable to expect that they should also be able to
improvise short pitch sequences using a limited number of pitches, e.g. d – r
– m.
The
key criteria in outcome determination are relevance and achievability.
If the long-term outcomes satisfy these criteria, it can be safely
assumed that the same will be true of shorter-term outcomes provided that their
achievement clearly constitutes progress toward the achievement of the broader,
longer-term outcomes. Outcomes
are necessarily hierarchical and one of the crucial skills a teacher needs is
how to logically sequence outcomes. This
entails the same ability as is demonstrated in mind-mapping.
This is called subordination and, as applied in constructing a
curriculum, means the ability to construct top-down hierarchies of outcomes,
from general to more specific. A
good example of such application is The
School Music Program, a curricular guide for teaching music used in the
Devising
appropriate learning activities
Having
determined the outcomes for a lesson, it might seem logical that one should then
decide on the teaching methods one is going to apply.
But it makes more sense, to the author at least, to first consider the
kinds of learning activities that will most effectively and efficiently lead to
successful outcome achievement by the students.
In keeping with OBE philosophy, the activities should be those in which
each student is an active agent, not a passive receiver of knowledge.
Indeed, the words ‘know’ or ‘knowledge’ should probably never be
used in formulating outcomes. Bloom’s
taxonomy makes clear the reason why. Even
though all cognition relies on knowledge, there is no real cognition unless the
knowledge is processed in some way. There
needs to be some level of application for anything meaningful to be achieved.
Devising
learning activities for a lesson is greatly assisted by applying appropriate
conceptual frameworks, of which there are many.
Bloom’s taxonomy is such a framework, as are the Simpson and Krathwohl
taxonomies, as are various theories of development such as those of Piaget,
Erikson, and Kohlberg, They
are also useful in deciding how activities should be sequenced.
It
is helpful to consider possible activities in relation to general principles of
education. These provide
useful criteria for assessing the educational potential of proposed activities
as well as the subject content, materials and media that the activities will
make use of. The principle of Holism
is a good example. It suggests the
key question: “How multidimensional is the proposed activity in terms of
outcome achievement?”. Obviously,
the best activities are those designed to achieve a range of outcomes, even
though just one may be the primary focus of the activity.
It
also makes sense to consider possible activities in relation to the different
kinds of development that education should be facilitating.
Overall
organisation of the plan
Related
criteria for the overall organisation of the lesson plan are: continuity,
sequence, progression, and time budgeting. It is not
necessary or advisable that a plan be structured according to some rigid
formula, but it should definitely reflect a systematic progression toward the
achievement of the lesson’s outcomes. The
‘five formal steps’ attributed to the German psychologist and educationist,
Johann Friedrich Herbart (1776 - 1841), is
an example of such a formula. While
it most likely would not be appropriate to apply them as a strict method for
lesson planning, the ‘steps’ are useful in different ways.
They identify dimensions of learning activity that are important to keep
in mind in most kinds of teaching and should be considered accordingly.
The
Herbartian Steps
Preparation
In this case, ‘preparation’ does not refer to what
the teacher did before the lesson, i.e. how s/he prepared for it.
Rather it refers to the manner in which s/he prepares the mindsets of
students at the start of the lesson for the new knowledge, concepts and skills
that are to be introduced. There are
many ways in which this can be done, for example:
recalling what was learned in
the previous lesson and indicating how this will be added to and applied;
asking questions based on what
students already know or can do, these leading to a key question, or task,
whose solution/completion becomes the focus of the lesson.
In some cases, a single question (without leading questions) will
suffice;
sharing an anecdote (a short
narrative, usually of something the teacher has experienced) that arouses
interest around the theme/topic of the lesson to follow.
This could alternately be a news report, a legend/fable, or a
scenario that presents a problem whose solution becomes the focus of the
lesson; doing an activity of some kind (e.g. song, improvisation, eurhythmic
activity, game, listening to a recording, watching a video).
Ideally, the activity should relate to one or more of the intended
outcomes for the lesson, but this is not always necessary.
Music classes often begin with an activity (e.g. echo clapping, sight
singing) aimed at long term goals (e.g. improving kinesthesia, rhythmic
memory, vocal quality, etc.). Even
though it may not relate directly to the specific outcome(s) for the lesson,
the activity at least ‘breaks the ice’ and helps to bring about an
appropriate mindset;
attending to work assigned
in the previous lesson;
doing warm-up exercises relevant to activity that will follow.
Presentation
This is where students are guided in the acquisition of
new forms of understanding and skill, which, according to the foregoing
discussion, should involve the students as active agents, even though
explanations, demonstrations and other forms of facilitation will be required of
the teacher.
Association or Comparison
The principles of perception,
integration,
and Outcomes
Based Education highlight the importance of making connections between what
is being presented in the lesson and what students have already acquired in the
way of understanding, skills, and experience.
Especially important, from the OBE perspective, are the ways in which
connections are made between ‘disciplines’ or learning areas.
Comparisons are a useful way of establishing connections.
Rather than treating this as a step in a lesson, it can be
considered a form of guidance that the teacher would offer whenever and wherever
appropriate
Generalisation
As a step, this is where
students would be helped to formulate general concepts, principles, rules,
procedures or key points based on what has been presented or discovered through
learning activity. Again,
it probably is not feasible to treat this as a distinct step in the lesson,
rather as a dimension of the learning experience that the teacher should
facilitate when and where it may be appropriate.
The potential for meaningful empowerment is obviously greater when
students arrive at generalisations for themselves with the teacher guiding them
through appropriate but minimal interventions.
This is what is called heuristic teaching.
Application
This is where new concepts, principles, procedures,
etc. are applied in some form of problem-solving activity and need not be the
concluding step in a lesson. Often,
the students will be expected to apply these in some kind of task set as an
assignment.
Time
budgeting
Inexperienced
teachers (and even many experienced teachers) need to develop a time budget for
the different parts that make up the lesson (e.g. introduction, presentation,
conclusion, application, etc.). Sticking to time budgets is not always easy and
a degree of flexibility is necessary to deal with unexpected circumstances.
Writing
up the lesson plan
There
is no format that is applicable in all situations and, again, the detail of the
plan will depend on a number of factors, e.g. the experience of the teacher, and
whether the lesson is presenting new material or is a revision lesson. Less
experienced teachers generally need to provide greater detail.
If not actually included in a written plan, the following are elements
that the teacher needs to have thought out carefully in preparation for the
lesson.
Routine information - e.g. date, class, duration, subject,
topic
Lesson outcomes - stated concisely in terms of a specific behaviour
or behaviours (actions) that will unequivocally demonstrate achievement
List of required materials - the clear identification of all
instructional materials, equipment and aids to be used. It must be
ascertained ahead of time that all materials are available and in usable
condition.
Background information - a short abstract of what the students
already possess in the way of relevant skills and understanding.
How the lesson is to be introduced - Though this part of the lesson
will take no more than a few minutes, it is crucial in preparing the
students for what is to follow, for activating their interest, and for
establishing a link with what has preceded the lesson. The introduction may
introduce a thought question as a means of providing a focus.
The main activities of the lesson - presented as a clear and logical
sequence.
How the lesson is to be concluded - How the lesson is concluded
depends on several factors, but usually it is here that either a summary of
key points or an opportunity for the application of new understanding and
skills is provided, though such application may be planned as part of an
assignment to be completed outside of class. No lesson should just
"peter out". There should be a clear ending that has been planned
for and for which time has been budgeted.