Teacher as a performer

Classroom interactions: Teacher as a performer

Marta Chudzik
Faculty of Education
University of Warsaw

Teacher as a performer

Abstract

This paper describes particular subjects in the context of teachers performance. The first discussed point is
miming and gestures which help students understand and hear the language better. This point includes and
describes also as classroom routines. Subsequently, the paper moves to teachers voice as a crucial point of
effective classroom management and also to the importance of teacher location in the classroom. Next
aspect of my work focuses on holding learners attention using tools. There advantages and disadvantages of
working individually, in pairs and as a group are presented. These descriptions could be helpful in deciding
which type of grouping would be the best in your classroom. Also, examples of activities and tasks that are
suitable for every formation were given. These are the points that my work finishes with. Throughout the
paper, you can find suggestions on what teachers should pay attention to and to what they should attach
greater importance to.

Teacher as a performer

The range of images the teacher uses about themselves indicates range of views that they have about
their profession. Sometimes teachers say they are like actors because feel as if they are always on the stage.
Other talk about themselves as orchestra conductors because they direct the conversation and set the pace
and tone. Yet other feels like gardeners because they plant the seeds and then watch them grow. On the other
hand, worldwide methodologists describe variety of roles like facilitators, participant, controller, prompter
or tutor (Harmer, 2012). Every single teacher act differently and very often they fulfil few roles
simultaneously, but Harmer (2007) indicates to consider also how teachers should be playing their roles
rather and not only what roles they are actually playing so he describes teacher performance styles.
Depending on the activity in which students are involved, teachers should perform differently. During team
games teachers should perform energetically, encouragingly, clearly and fairly. On the other hand, teacher
reading aloud demands being interesting, dramatic and commanding. In this paper, the role of a teacher as a
performer will be discussed.
In their role as a performer, the teacher acts as a teaching aid (Harmer, 2007). There are many ways
in which the teacher can help hear and understand the language, like miming or gestures, that may influence
the learning in various ways, because it is an integral part of every act of communication where people
speak and listen to each other. At the very beginning of the course, teachers gestures can be a little
exaggerated, because they need to be a conscious, deliberate element of performance. Moreover, students
need to understand them and if gestures are exaggerated they are less ambiguous. Nevertheless, it has to be
balanced and cannot interfere with the language which is taught. Excessive gestures can be silly and counterproductive. Mainly, teachers use mime and gestures to convey the meaning of language. There are a lot of
vocabulary items which can be indicated quickly and efficiently through it. In some situations, it is worth
adding some facial expression if possible to act as in real-life situations. Moreover, teachers can introduce
special gestures, to help convey the meaning or highlight aspects of the form of the language. Therefore, it is
crucial to teach learners the meaning of our gestures and we need to be sure that they understand them
correctly in order to avoid ambiguity and confusion. Additionally, gestures may be also applied for
managing the class, for example to reinforce instructions. Every teacher should have a personal set of
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Teacher as a performer

gestures which help them to cope with the class and make students feel safe. These gestures may turn into
classroom routines, when students know what will happen after particular teachers gesture or sign. It may
be used in various situations, for example instead of saying listen to me, you put a cupped hand behind the
ear. Other gestures can be introduced when we would like our students to repeat in chorus, get them into
pairs, stop an activity, indicate what is good, what is wrong or appreciate a learners interesting idea for
example by raising eyebrows. Moreover, gestures are used as a teaching aid to add visual interest, to
increase pace or to cut down the amount of verbal explanation. This is particularly important at lower levels
where long explanations can be confusing and difficult to understand (Gower, Philips, Walters, 2009).
Another teachers tool is his or her voice. The way teachers use their voices vary enormously.
Depending on the activity, the size of the class as well as classroom conditions teachers naturally change
their way of speaking. Using the voice to get the learners attention is much different from correcting errors,
but the aim is to act as naturally as in a casual conversation with one or two people. Of course, if the class is
large, teacher is forced to increase the volume, widen the voice range and raise the pitch. Moreover, for
example, by giving an instruction in an enthusiastic and lively tone of voice the teacher may encourage the
students to do the task. We can also energize a class easily and increase the pace of the lesson by a slight
raise of the volume of voice. For sure teachers need to be audible so even the students at the back can hear
clearly. But they should not shout- it sounds unattractive and when teachers shout too often, students no
longer listen. Roger Gower, Diane Phillips and Steve Walters claimed that the greater the variation in the
voice- providing it is appropriate- the greater the effectiveness and the greater probability that the students
will not get bored. Additionally, the teacher need to look after their voice, because it is an inherent element
of their job. They should try to relax their shoulders, breathe properly and make sure that there are moments
in every lesson when the voice is not strained (Harmer, 2011).
The voice can help teachers to hold the students attention. Sometimes, attention may be easily lost
because of too quiet or too slow teachers speech, or because of monotonous, unvarying the pitch of the
voice. In this case, the role of the teacher as a performer is clearly seen. It is crucial how teachers say
something rather than what they say and it has significant impact on keeping learners attention. Therefore,
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Teacher as a performer

if the teacher is feeling tired or lethargic and lets it show in his or her voice, students will quickly lose
interest in what is he saying (Gower, Philips, Walters, 2009). Harmer (2007) gives a few tips for getting
learners attention when it is needed. First of all, he advises to start making eye contact with as any people as
possible. Secondly, it is important to establish a gesture that means teacher wants to speak. Thirdly, Harmer
reminds to avoid being impatient or anxious and to enjoy the process of gathering attention. In general
teachers have to project their voices clearly and speak rather than shout. Moreover, they should control the
quantity and complexity of what they say. It is said that teachers should say only what is needed and as
simply and clearly as possible (Harmer, 2007).
This statement is also true about giving instructions. Teacher as a performer has to decide which
language is appropriate for their learners and which technique should be used to give effective instruction.
Most teachers prefer to give instructions in English rather than learners native language but they admit that
there are often so many problems with comprehension and cause a mess in the classroom. (Harmer, 2007)
Therefore, specialists advise how to make clear and effective instructions. Harmer focuses on preparing
instructions and recommend to record yourself giving instructions and ask others for feedback. It helps
teachers become aware of their own instruction-giving. Secondly, he advises to pre-plan essential
instructions and take care of simple and clear language, and to put information in a sensible order. Gower,
Philips and Walters in the book Teaching Practice reminds that the first thing before giving instruction is
attracting the students attention and make sure everyone is listening and watching. They also recommend to
be consistent. In this case, it means to use the same set of words for the same instruction. The learners feel
safe when they hear familiar words and at the same time teachers do not spend too much time for
instructions. Moreover, it helps to avoid confusion and uncertainty. But the most important tip is to
demonstrate, as much as possible, and to use visual or written clues. It is very helpful for the students when
they get a demonstration or an example. Frequently, showing what to do is more effective than telling what
to do. Moreover, if the task is developed or seem to be complicated for the learners, breaking the instructions
down is worth-doing. Teachers can put the instruction into steps, give simple instruction for every single
step and check understanding as they go along. Checking instruction is the following important step which
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Teacher as a performer

teachers should follow. They need to be sure that the students have understood instruction correctly. There
are few ways to check instruction. First of all, teachers can elicit from one learner answer for the first
activity. Secondly, teachers can demonstrate the task and make deliberate mistake to see if students notice
that something is wrong. This kind of checking seem to be appropriate only for advanced and very careful
learners. Others may get confused. Additionally, understanding of the task can be checked by stopping the
task at any stage and ask what students should be doing. Finally, teachers can ask students to translate the
instructions into their L1. This will clearly indicate whether or not they have understood the instructions.
However, introducing learners native language into foreign language classroom break the English
atmosphere.
The above examples present clearly the important role of the teacher in a foreign language
classroom. Even if students talking time should be maximised during the lesson and they should practice
speaking as much as possible, teacher talking time is crucial and plays an important role. Teachers by their
own performance need to provide perfect conditions for learning. Moreover, it is important to create good
atmosphere and their acting in front of the class may affect it significantly.

Teacher as a performer

References:
Cameron, L. (2001). Teaching Languages to Young Learners. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Doff, A. (1988). Teaching English: A training course for teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Ur, P. (1996). A Course in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Harmer, J. (2007). The practice of English Language Teaching. Edinburgh: Longman.
Harmer, J. (2012). Essential Teachers Knowledge. Core Concepts in English Language Teaching.
Edinburgh: Longman.
Gower, R., Phillips, D. & S. Walters (2009). Teaching Practice. A handbook for teachers in training.
Macmilian