Abstract
As I am a teacher in the University, I have to deal with a lot of techniques and strategies of teaching in order to make my classes interesting and useful for students. My aim as a teacher is to give knowledge to those who want to take it and convince those who do not want that study can be easy and interesting. That is why I use different methods in my practice and one of them is called Peer Practice.
Main text
The Peer Practice Strategy is directed at the increase of students’ work in class because it presupposes teacher’s work with small groups, namely pairs of students. If in a usual group the number of students is too large for the teacher to cope with them all, Peer Practice presents a good opportunity to involve all students in the process of studying.
On the whole, the Peer Practice consists of three stages – preparation of students, their joint work in pairs and, finally, discussion of results. My class starts with the introductory word in which it is necessary to introduce the students to the strategy. Then I will tell them about the use of Peer Practice and show them a video of such a class where students were busy with this very strategy. My next step will be defining the topic for the Peer Practice Class. The topic will be the practice of the text that we have read in class before – the play by Shakespeare titled “Romeo and Juliet”.
The second phase of the Peer Practice Strategy will be in dividing the students into pairs and letting them practice the strategy. The students will have to be separated into pairs and discuss the play, recollecting its plot and main topics raised in it. One member of each pair of students will be called “coach” as his or her role will be in asking questions and giving instructions, another one will be “player” or “doer” whose work will be to answer the “coach’s” question.
Thus, both students of the pair and, respectively, all pairs will improve their knowledge of the object of their work. The “coaches” will be given special cards with auxiliary questions and hints for “players” that will facilitate their work that will lie in recollecting such details of the play by William Shakespeare as the main characters of the play, its main idea, the major conflict and, maybe, even some special vocabulary from the Shakespeare’s masterpiece.
The third, and at the same time, the last phase of the Peer Practice Strategy will be the discussion of the results that we will get from this kind of work. At the beginning of the discussion the students will be reunited in a single class, and I will share my ideas of what the Peer Practice gave the students. The next step will be the discussion between the teacher and the students. They will express their thoughts as to whether this strategy is necessary or not and whether it is helpful.
Some of the students will support the strategy saying that it helps them to recollect the information that they have forgotten, makes them closer acquainted with their peers and allows them to study more freely, as they feel relaxed with peers, while with a teacher some of them can feel worried.
Summary
This practice has a considerable difference from usual methods of teaching. Usually a teacher has to face the whole class and is often unable to control the attention of all students during the class. This practice is helpful to teachers and for the students who plan to get as much knowledge as possible. Besides, this strategy will be of considerable use for all students outside the classroom as it develops one’s interpersonal communication skills and makes the process of making friends and communication with unfamiliar people easier.
Works Cited
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom Strategies for Interactive Learning. International Reading Association; 2 edition.
Silver, H., Hanson, R., Strong, R., Schwartz, P. (1996). Teaching Styles and Strategies. Silver Strong & Associates; 3rd edition.
Silver, H. (2006). Getting Comfortable with New American Lecture. Silver Strong & Associates.