Contexts of Teaching: Methods for Middle and High School Instruction [Paperback]

Jesus Garcia (Author), Elizabeth Spalding (Author), Richard R. Powell (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0135981115 | ISBN-13: 978-0135981115 | Publication Date: July 22, 2000 | Edition: 1

This unique new book enters into the middle and high school teaching methods market with an intimate, first-person approach, and an emphasis on reflective teaching. Reader, biography, teaching philosophy, and portfolio activities make this a practical book rich in applications. Teaching is portrayed as a process of ongoing learning, growth and development—and a strong emphasis is placed on multiculturalism and diversity. While most books tend to take a more traditional, skills-based approach, Contexts of Teaching presents teaching methods from a constructivist, inquiry perspective consistent with current educational trends. Chapter topics include Knowing Middle and High School Students, Rethinking Classroom Management, considering Curriculum, planning instruction, Selecting Instructional Materials, Teaching with Technology, Implementing Instruction: Strategies and Methods, Assessing Student Learning, Understanding the Role of Community, Making a Difference in Today's Classrooms, and Reflecting for Professional Renewal. For teachers of middle and high school students.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

PREFACE GENERAL DESCRIPTION

Contexts of Teaching: Methods for Middle and High School Instruction represents a break from the majority of general methods books now available for undergraduate and graduate courses in teacher education. In our experiences as teacher educators, we have grown increasingly uncomfortable with texts that describe teaching in abstract terms and in an impersonal voice. We have come to believe that a credible depiction of teaching must include descriptions of the professional daily work of contemporary teachers, and that lists of general principles of teaching followed by recipes on how to implement particular teaching practices are less and less useful in today's diverse middle- and high-school classrooms.

We suspect that the generic, distant style of many educational textbooks contributes to prospective teachers' perceptions of a gulf separating theory from practice and university coursework from the "real life" of schools. As the title suggests, this book provides the reader with a realistic portrayal of public schools, teachers, and learners in context. We address topics traditionally covered in general methods courses (e.g., classroom management, planning for instruction), cover current issues in middle and high schools (e.g., standards, assessment, interdisciplinary teaming), and integrate some topics which, though often dealt with in separate courses in teacher education curricula, are crucial to a discussion of general teaching methods (e.g., cultural diversity, gender, adolescent culture). Whenever possible, we contextualize topics in the experiences of real teachers and students we know and have known.

Contexts of Teaching is also unique because we contextualize ourselves for the reader. Often, textbooks leave readers wondering, "Did a human being actually write this book?" As a team of authors, we agree that it is critical for readers of this book to be able to answer that question. Therefore, throughout this book we tell stories of our own experiences as students, as teachers in public schools, and as teacher educators, and describe how these experiences have shaped our teaching perspectives and philosophies. We begin each chapter with personal narratives that illustrate how our own successes and failures have helped us to grow and become who we are today as teachers and researchers. In sharing our autobiographies, we risk being accused of "tooting our own horns." But that is not our intent. Our goal is to connect with readers on a personal level and to model the process of reflection that is critical to one's development as a teacher.

This book is multicultural, but not in the traditional sense. We do not present a chapter on the disadvantaged or at-risk learner. Rather, we treat human diversity as an intellectual concept—not as a political imperative. We present the reader with an inclusive definition of multicultural education and infuse this concept throughout the text. The examples we use in the text—schools, classrooms, and students—convey to the reader that (1) issues and problems when viewed analytically may be described culturally; (2) learners, teachers, and administrators are culturally diverse; (3) there is a need for instruction that provides students with national and multiple perspectives on issues and problems that impact our lives; and (4) the educational community can better address the needs of minorities and other groups who traditionally have not performed well in schools.

Throughout the book, we fuse theory with practice. We consistently refer to our own experiences: teaching, researching in middle and secondary schools, and working with professional organizations. Our intent is to demonstrate to prospective teachers the value of integrating university learning with field experiences. In reading the chapters and working through the Reader Activities, prospective teachers are introduced to the interrelationship between research and practice and learn to value this partnership. More important, prospective teachers have the opportunity to conduct research themselves and to identify its role in helping teachers become more effective in the classroom.

Finally, we stress the human dimension in teaching. In the first part of the book we describe our teaching perspectives, contemporary teenage life in and out of the classroom, and the lives of teachers. Throughout the text we provide realistic examples that address issues relating to culture, color, gender, and socioeconomic status as essential to understanding human behavior and identity. All too frequently, culture, color, gender, socioeconomic status, and exceptionalities are described as factors that impede student school success—if they are described at all. We examine these characteristics as they play themselves out in schools. We believe strongly that prospective teachers should learn about teaching in context with the players involved in the teaching/learning transaction: teachers, students, administrators, and other members of the educational community. Rationale

As a team of authors, the three of us have accumulated years of experience with middle- and high-school students and teachers, public schools, and institutions involved in teacher preparation. Each of us has enrolled in and successfully completed one or more methods courses, has been a public school teacher, has taught methods courses, and has reviewed more than a few methods textbooks. Our cultural and educational backgrounds are diverse. Presently, one of us (Jesus) teaches a field-based general methods course; another (Liz) has recently completed a four-year stint at a professional organization creating standards and developing alternative assessments as a means of improving and evaluating student learning; and the third (Richard) is conducting teacher education research in the area of multicultural education. Kevin Leander, the author of Chapter Eight, " Teaching with Technology," is also an experienced classroom teacher who is now an assistant professor at Vanderbilt University.

At Indiana University, where we met, a common topic of discussion was "finding a good methods textbook." Our experiences at Texas A & M, Indiana, Nevada-Las Vegas, Illinois, Kentucky, and Texas Tech Universities suggest that prospective teachers express less interest in their education textbooks when these texts do not contain discussions of real schools or of schools like those they attended. Not surprisingly, they may jump to the conclusion that there is little relationship between book learning and what is occurring in schools or, worse, come to believe that one becomes a teacher by sheer trial and error.

In summary, we wrote Contexts of Teaching because we wished to create a textbook prospective teachers would find engaging, intellectually stimulating, and relevant. At the same time, our intent has been to contextualize and personalize the valuable information presented in many general methods books in order to produce a general methods textbook that equips prospective teachers with the core knowledge they need to succeed in middle and high schools. Organization

In Part One, "Personal Contexts of Teaching," we begin by describing ourselves to the reader and explaining why we decided to write a methods textbook. We move from our own biographies and teaching perspectives to the more general topic of becoming a teacher in a pluralistic society. We then adopt a wide angle lens to give a broad overview of the movement toward multicultural education that gained momentum in the last half of the twentieth century. Next, we focus on students—the context that matters most to teachers. Most important, in Chapter One we introduce readers to a course-long project of constructing a teaching/learning biography, a personal practical philosophy of teaching, and, ultimately, a portfolio that demonstrates their learning and growth in the class. We conclude this part of the book by suggesting that a working definition of teaching and basic knowledge of the worlds of teachers and adolescents are prerequisites for pursuing a career in middle- and high-school teaching. Part One provides the context for the other topics and issues that follow.

In Part Two, "Classroom Contexts of Teaching," we begin with the topic of classroom management—the overwhelming concern of prospective teachers. After describing traditional models of managing students in middle- and high-school classrooms, we suggest a model that focuses on democratizing learning in multicultural environments. We then address the components of teaching: middle- and high-school curricula, planning, instructional materials, integration of technology in instruction, strategies and methods of implementing instruction, and methods of assessing student learning. Interwoven in each chapter are the authors' own stories of their experiences with the topic(s) and descriptions of the practices of beginning and experienced teachers. Because we believe the manner in which students are instructed and learn in public schools will change in the twenty-first century, we adv

From the Back Cover

Designed for use in middle and secondary methods courses, Contexts of Teaching takes an inquiry-based approach that emphasizes reflective practice and culturally sensitive teaching.

This text features:

• Personal biographies an case studies that model reflective teaching
• Reader activities ("In the Field," "Theory into Practice," "Consulting Other Sources," and "What Would You Do?") that provide applications for chapter content
• "Building Your Biography," "Developing Your Personal Practical Philosophy," and "Collecting Artifacts for Your Portfolio" that encourage professional development
• An emphasis throughout the text on multiculturalism and diversity

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Product Details

• Paperback: 398 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall; 1 edition (July 22, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0135981115
• ISBN-13: 978-0135981115
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #146,298 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I'm not sure why the other reviewer took such a dislike to this book., November 10, 2006

By 

Evan A Genest (Hsinchu Taiwan) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Contexts of Teaching: Methods for Middle and High School Instruction (Paperback)

Okay, I am sitting in the library right now and loving this book so much that I wanted to weigh in on it at Amazon. It is the fifth book like this that I have read and it is the best of the lot so I just wanted to share my opinion.

About me: I am a fifth year HS science teacher who is okay at teaching but really unhappy with my planning and how to motivate the students. I turn to these books once in awhile hoping for some inspriration. I have just spent about an hour reading Chapter 9, Implementing Instruction and have learned about Ausubel's "Advance Organizers", some suggestions for closure of a lesson, and two relevant, well-chosen biographical anecdotes from teachers.

I think this book is better than the other ones like it I read, including the one we had to read in Ed School.

5.0 out of 5 stars Refreshing approach to learning about teaching, August 21, 2011

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rancher-rick - See all my reviews

This review is from: Contexts of Teaching: Methods for Middle and High School Instruction (Paperback)

This textbook is a refreshing change from the primarily skills based approach taken by the typical teaching methods book. Readers are given the opportunity to explore their own philosophy of teaching as they prepare to become an educator. There are a number of stories embedded in each chapter that give form to the abstract, thus connecting theory to practice. Topics covered in the book include those found in the typical general teaching methods text. In addition, a truly unique bonus in the text are suggestions for creating a teaching portfolio after each of the chapter topics. This is particularly helpful for those teachers who need a portfolio for job hunting, or keeping records for professional advancement. Overall the book addresses all the traditional topics while presenting them in a humanistic style. This is an enjoyable and refreshing approach to learning how to become a teacher.

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars empty platitudes, January 13, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Contexts of Teaching: Methods for Middle and High School Instruction (Paperback)

Unless you are forced to read this book for a class my recommendation would be to avoid it at all costs. There is precious little useful information or guidance for the prospective teacher.