Chapter 3 - Teaching Techniques
TEACHING TECHNIQUES
The US SAILING book Teaching and Coaching Fundamentals for Sailing is the
fundamental document for teaching hands on skills both in the classroom and on the water.
The following materials are adapted from the US SAILING windsurfing instructors manual,
Teach Windsurfing Right. They are presented in a slightly different fashion but serve to
support and enhance the materials presented in the Teaching and Coaching text.
Teaching is both a science and an art. This chapter will cover some of the fundamental
concepts and techniques the science of teaching that will help your effectiveness as an
instructor. It will also touch on the importance of attitude and personality which can make
the difference between an outstanding instructor and a competent one. All of this will serve
as a foundation on which you will add the techniques and insights learned through
experience -- as you develop the art of teaching.
The Learning Process
Learning is achieved through direct experience, demonstration, explanation, and indirect
inquiry as in philosophical propositions. All students learn through seeing, hearing, and
feeling, but each will respond differently depending on their individual cognitive
preferences. But first hand experience will always engage any student more than second
hand, or interpretive instruction. It has been observed that Students retain 10% of what they
read, 20% of what they hear, 30% of what they see, 50% of what they see and hear, 70% of
what they say, and 90% of what they say while they do something.”
A teaching methodology facilitates the learning process by establishing a familiar pathway of
learning for your students. The following teaching pattern, will improve your effectiveness
as an instructor as well as accelerate your students* learning process.
•
•
•
•
•
Introduce the skill
Demonstrate the skill
Practice the skill (land and/or Water drills)
Give feedback and correct faults/mistakes
Review the skill briefly (highlighting key points)
The basic sequence of instruction also has an important impact on the learning process. It
should be based on a building block approach starting with fundamental skills and building
on them.
The role of an instructor is to facilitate this learning process.
3-1
Chapter 3 - Teaching Techniques
Basic Teaching Concepts
In order to teach an instructor must communicate. Some concepts which greatly enhance the
effectiveness of a lesson are: delivery, motivation, and reception. These concepts can help
develop the skills necessary to become a better instructor, however, true excellence will
come only from combining your own personality and experience with a sound teaching
method.
Delivery – Is the manner in which you convey information to your students. A good lesson
maintains “flow” in the learning process, and this begins with your delivery. Good delivery
grows from a knowledge of behavior, pathways of learning, and presentation. The notion of
behavior calls attention to one*s own patterns of speech, gestures or body-language, and
attitude. With experience, you will be able to switch your delivery to best suit each situation.
It will vary depending on the size of the class, the material being covered, as well as
different interpersonal dynamics, body types, and weather conditions.
Motivation students come to a class with a certain motivation to learn. What you do to
direct and enhance that motivation determines the success of your lesson to a large extent.
You can gain a lot of insight into your students* motivation, attitude, and concerns during
the initial registration and introduction period.
It is important that each student should feel accepted and part of the group. You should
make every effort to call students by their name. This helps to create a personal atmosphere.
It is also important that you respond to improvement and mastery of each new skill that
your students accomplish. Rather than taking the results of instruction for granted, you
should confirm your students* progress with them. Each student must be observed, brief
calls by name with reasons why something was good or right and recognition of good effort
should reach the student immediately whenever possible.
During practice, singling out good performances is highly motivational.
Motivate your students through participation. Remember participation has a big impact
on retention. Involve your students as much as possible, and make sure you don*t ignore a
student(s) while working with others. Ask questions and separate friends and relatives to
increase participation.
When organizing a change in activities, you must always focus on tackling the more difficult
concepts and drills first. Games and races tend to spoil students, and keep them from
wanting to move on to something more valuable.
End each classroom session by showing students how far they*ve come along in the learning
process. Make reference to what is to come next.
3-2
Chapter 3 - Teaching Techniques
There are definite indications of a loss of student motivation, which brings up the concept of
reception.
Reception -- The notion of passive versus active listening is key to interpreting the quality
of your students* comprehension arid motivation. Eye contact, body language, and verbal
response will tell you whether your students are “turned on” or “getting it.”
Basic Teaching Styles
The democratic style of teaching students help determine the broad-based classroom
curriculum; lessons are centered around the students; the instructor isn*t necessarily in the
foreground.
The autocratic style of teaching the instructor determines the lesson plan; instructions are
given; activities are assigned; lessons are delivered; lessons are centered around the
instructor.
Most instructors use a combination of the two teaching styles. You should be able to shift
from one teaching style to the other and know when to do it.
Qualities of a Good Instructor
A good instructor will have the following qualities,
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
A professional attitude
Excellent communication skills
Strong boating skills and knowledge
Excellent teaching skills
Enthusiasm
Confidence
Patience
Sensitivity
Judgment
Ethics
A sense of humor
and will work constantly on improving and updating these qualities.
Having a professional attitude means:
•
•
•
•
•
Having a neat appearance
Being prepared
Being organized
Knowing your material
Starting lessons on time
3-3
Chapter 3 - Teaching Techniques
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Knowing how to use the training aids
Being able to answer questions and provide feedback
Being flexible
Being an active listener
Being sensitive to students* needs
Maintaining control
Establishing a rapport with the students
Being fair and objective
Encouraging student participation
Evaluating students* progress
Minimizing distracting mannerisms
Ending lessons on time
Not bringing your problems to class
First Impressions and Other Communication Techniques
Impressions are the first step in building communication skills on the road toward becoming
an effective instructor,
First impressions are important, and the first judgment the students make about you, their
instructor, is certainly not going to be how expert a boathandler you are. If that is your main
qualification, you had better work on these equally important assets: being patient,
sympathetic, friendly, engaging, understanding, willing to help, enthusiastic, imaginative and
reliable. It*s only after your students have gotten some on-the-water experience that your
boathandling qualifications will be judged.
You must be impartial, show no favoritism, The student-instructor relation should be
preserved. A good relationship with the students (as a group) is essential to successful
learning and teaching.
Don*t flaunt your credentials. This indicates little self-control and less regard for the
students, and they quickly lose interest, become irritated and uninspired. Students have little
regard for uncertain, arrogant and self-serving behavior by the instructor.
Be aware that your students will use you as a role model. As their instructor they will have
great expectations of you; and your speech and mannerisms will convey your attitude toward
them, and your commitment to their successful learning. Stay tuned to your students*
reaction to you.
The single most important section of any course is the introduction. The first impression
is the most important “you never get a second chance to make a first impression.* Students
will either tune their instructor in or out.
The other dominant factor in communication skills is the instructor*s ability to demonstrate
confidence. Your confidence will contribute to your students* self confidence during their
3-4
Chapter 3 - Teaching Techniques
learning process. You must have a thorough knowledge of the material and know your
“lines,” i.e., the lesson plan.
Eliminate distracting mannerisms or nervous habits. In general, they are the result of a
lack of knowledge or self-confidence. You may not be aware of them, and it may be helpful
to have a colleague critique your presentations. Make a conscious effort to eliminate them or
at least minimize them as much as possible.
Use gestures to reinforce your words, but do not overuse. As an example, use your hands to
demonstrate wind direction.
How you use your voice plays an important role in communicating effectively. Avoid a
monotone and use inflection. Make sure your volume is great enough so everyone can hear
you, both on land and afloat. Speed is important too. A common problem for an
inexperienced or nervous instructor is speaking too fast, but don*t slow down too much or
you*ll put your students to sleep. Again, input from a colleague can be very helpful.
Your attitude is another important factor in communication. It reflects directly on the
student. Be positive, healthy, confident, optimistic, and prepared. Your attitude is often
conveyed initially by your attire and posture. If your operation does not have a uniform, your
attire should still be neat and clean.
“Always try to put yourself In the students* shoes.” It is all new to them. Do not assume
the students know anything. Teach to the lowest level.
Maintain control of the class by leading the class and sticking to a lesson plan. Use flash
cards, if necessary Eye contact with your students is an important factor -NEVER wear
sunglasses when teaching.
Teaching Techniques
Know your student – Much more important than age is the physical maturity of your
students, which means your students* fitness. This is vital, because fitness indicates a
person*s physical abilities, such as endurance, strength, speed, motor development and
coordination. Each individual has developed differently, depending on expectation and on
participation in other .sports. You must adapt the demands according to the capabilities at
hand, while encouraging students to strive for improvement.
Boating terminology is second nature to you, but not to your students. Speak to your
students! level so they don*t become flustered and confused. Avoid nautical terminology
and: start off with everyday terms that your students will understand. Use ‘front” and “back”
to define hand positions as they relate to the front and back of the boat.
Pace your information. An effective way of pacing your material is to prepare about 10
3-5
Chapter 3 - Teaching Techniques
minutes of information, spend 2 minutes introducing it and relating it to previous skills; 5
minutes delivering it, stopping to repeat and reinforce key points; and 3 minutes reviewing
the material and answering questions.
Presentations follow these guidelines for effective presentations:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Choose your location so all students can hear you and distractions are minimized.
Be visible to all your students
Make them short
Make them clear and concise
Speak clearly and fluently
Give them enthusiastically
Direct attention to key points
Allow your students to digest what*s been said
Demonstrations
Demonstration is one of the most successful measures for letting the students picture what
their boat should be doing Take care in setting up the demonstration to ensure that it is
visible for everyone in the group This includes orienting the students so that the sun is not in
their eyes.
When giving a pier side demonstration, assemble the students in a row or semi-circle, so you
can maintain eye contact with everyone.
You should start the initial demonstration by telling your students what you are going to do.
Encourage the class to move around you, so they can see the demonstration from different
angles. If you feel there are certain coordinated students in the group, call on them too, from
time to time. This will have a motivational effect on the group.
It can help to break down the movements of a particular skill into its components, pointing
out wheel, shift and throttle positions. This can be done using stop-frame and/or slow motion
to give the students a greater opportunity of grasping the skill in question. Go through the
stop-frame demonstration two or three times, let the class ask questions, and repeat the
components which relate to their questions. Remember that students will grasp only a few
segments at a time of more complicated skills. Remind your students that practicing the
skills being will tremendously enhance their performance on the water. If they feel impatient
with a drill that seems fragmented, show them a demonstration in real-time, which simulates
the actual maneuvers, and follow it with one or two slow motion demonstrations. Chances
are they will see that there is a lot going on and will feel better about practicing at the pace
you suggest.
3-6
Chapter 3 - Teaching Techniques
Demonstrations afloat should be considered thoughtfully so that the group will be able to see
all your movements.. Keep in mind that you are teaching beginners and that they need to be
taught patiently with care given to examples which they can readily accept as something they
can perform.
The best time for such a demonstration is just before the students will be trying the skills
themselves. Students must, of course, pay attention to a demonstration from beginning to
end, with the emphasis at the end on the skills they are about to perform. Keep close track of
time. Demonstrations should be to the point, and not take away from the student*s own
practice time.
Some guidelines for good demonstrations:
•
•
•
•
Should be technically correct
Should be repeated several times
Should be done from several angles
Should be clearly seen by all
Practice on Land or Water
The exercises done and improvements made by the students should be observed and
supervised from beginning to end- Students should want your approval and critique.
In goal oriented sessions with the frequent use of teaching aids, there shouldn*t be any gaps
in your students* training. Sometimes though, this does happen, and you must be able to
recognize this and compensate for it. For example, simplifying the exercises, and breaking
the learning process down into smaller steps. Gaps in students* learning can generally be
traced back to an omission on the instructor*s part.
Usually the steps students find most difficult are those which the instructor spent the least
amount of time on.
Fault/Mistake Correction
To make sure that an accurate and skillful correction is made, you must:
• Know each movement exactly.
• Practice watching windsurfing skills being performed -- both expertly and poorly.
• Have a personal feel for how one's body masters these movements.
Beginning mistakes are typical errors that Come both from a confused understanding of the
procedure and from a lack of physical development. For example, cross controlling while
attempting to execute a pivot turn is a frequent problem. These mistakes are relatively
simple to correct Most often, the correct procedure just has to be described again.
3-7
Chapter 3 - Teaching Techniques
Accustomed behavior mistakes (habits) are errors that occur most often while practicing
outside the class, but can also have been overlooked by the instructor during the progression
of the class. These errors just “slid in” to the students* technique, and must be constantly
alluded to for the students to adjust permanently to the correction.
Fundamental mistakes mean that students are moving contrary to the correct procedure.
Fine tuning mistakes cannot significantly hinder the students* use of a learned skill, but
they do affect precision boat handling. When correcting mistakes try to determine the cause
of them. Try to judge what the main mistake might be -- the smaller errors may stem from
these.
Try not to drive the students too hard, especially beginners, so that the joy is taken out of
practicing.
3-8