While learning styles may not be as important as many people believe, at least they’re out there. Much less known (at least I hadn’t heard of them until recently) are teaching styles. As educators, we often focus so much on our students we forget to self-reflect. “Know thyself” has been the first step towards betterment and looking at teaching styles allows us to know ourselves just a little bit better.
Dr. Anthony Grasha identified five teaching archetypes through his work surveying teachers. Each style has pros and cons. None are any better or worse than the others; they’re just different. Like any character trait, people are rarely defined by a single style. We exist as continuums of emotions and abilities.
Expert
The expert is a teacher extremely well versed in their field and approaches teaching as a way to transfer their knowledge. The benefit is the teacher’s expertise but they may not understand the struggles of laypeople.
Formal authority
A firm, demanding teacher with a belief in the proper ways of doing things. Many students can succeed here because authoritative teachers often present well-organized lessons with clearly defined objectives. However, other students may chafe under the rigidity.
Personal model
This teacher is open and often relates their personal experiences to lessons. These teachers are good at showing how they would accomplish a task and encouraging students to replicate their successes. The examples might discourage students from trying their own strategies. And if the teacher does not have good class rapport, students may be uninterested in personal experiences.
Facilitator
Facilitators guide students towards their own discoveries. This might be the strongest method of teaching because students push themselves. However, it is a time-consuming method that requires immense student buy-in. Students need to feel comfortable working and making mistakes until finding the appropriate solution.
Delegator
A delegator promotes autonomous student work. These teachers hang back and act as a resource when necessary. Much like facilitators, delegators can get great results from students. Difficulties will arise if students are not mature enough for the level of autonomy necessary. More difficulties will arise if school administrators think delegator teachers are lazy and letting students run the classroom.
The Keasy Depot 