Article archive / December 1, 2013
Originally published: . Volume 5, No. 4. Source pages: 12.
Designing Teaching Strategies: An Applied Behavior Analysis Systems Approach by R. Douglas Greer
I am currently reading Dr. Greer’s 2002 book, Designing Teaching Strategies: An Applied Behavior Analysis Systems Approach. Dr. Greer states, “When teaching is treated as an art, good teaching is an accident. When teaching is treated as a science, good teaching can be replicated across many professionals in a reliable fashion.” What follows is a blueprint for “good teaching,” in fact, how to provide expert teaching. Dr. Greer’s book draws on decades of behavior analytic research to introduce the reader to a behavior analytic systems approach to all aspects of schooling applicable to any learning environment whether it be centers, schools, or clinics. Chapters 4 and 5 and been especially instructive for me, both relate to expanding particular repertoires of the teacher. Chapter 4 describes how and which strategic questions to ask when faced with teaching and learning challenges and Chapter 5 describes teacher repertoires for early learners and includes some common learning and teaching challenges, possible sources of challenges, and tactics from the research literature that may remedy those challenges. The book also illustrates the importance of analyzing moment to moment responses by both students and teachers and describes the steps for efficient analyses of those real-time responses.
Designing Teaching Strategies has expanded my teaching repertoire, in part, by outlining how to become more adept at analyzing my own teaching behaviors and how those behaviors interact with and impact learner behaviors and outcomes.
This article is part of a historical newspaper archive. Read the original issue for its original layout, photographs and graphics.