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Although you know what you are talking about, this might be the first time your learners have heard it. Therefore, never be afraid of repeating yourself or demonstrating something again. Think back to when you learnt something for the first time, perhaps you didn’t take it all in at first. You need to know this will be the same for your own learners. You can always look for aspects such as body language and facial expressions to help you see that they are taking an interest in the subject. Getting to know your learners from when they commence will help you to support them with any particular concerns or needs they might have.

      It’s best to involve your learners as much as possible to keep them motivated and keen to learn more: for example, by making your sessions interesting and relevant with fun activities. This will help you to engage your learners in the subject and encourage them to leave the session wanting to come back for more. However, you do need to check that they are learning something while they are with you, as well as having fun.

      The requirements of your job role will depend upon how many hours you will be working, and where and how your subject will be taught. It will also depend upon the age and experience of your learners, the environment you are in, and any organisational requirements, policies and procedures. This will all become clearer as you progress through the book. If you haven’t already read the Introduction chapter, this will help set the scene for your role.

      Becoming a good teacher includes being enthusiastic and knowledgeable, being approachable, and taking pride in your work. This should then be conveyed to your learners through your professionalism and passion for your subject.

       Example

       Jim, a new teacher of English literature, always arrives early to his classes. He ensures he has enough books and handouts, and organises the furniture in a way that encourages communication between everyone. He delivers his subject with passion and enthusiasm using a variety of methods. He includes all his learners by addressing them by name and asking each a question at some point. He remains fair with the support and advice he gives, not favouring one learner over another, and is always polite. He encourages his learners to leave the room tidy, and offers to email additional learning materials if required. His learners see how conscientious and professional he is. They begin to emulate this by being early, being polite and submitting work on time.

      A good first impression will help you establish a positive working relationship with your learners. The way you dress, act, respond to questions and offer support, will also influence your learners. They don’t need to know anything personal about you, but they will probably make assumptions about you. If asked personal questions, try not to give out any information. By remaining professional, and not becoming too friendly, you will retain their respect. Most teachers of adults are on first name terms with their learners. However, you will need to decide what is appropriate for your situation and the age range of your learners. Establishing routines will help your sessions flow smoothly, for example, always starting on time, setting and keeping to time limits for activities and breaks, and finishing on time.

      Often, your personality and mannerisms will be noticed by your learners. You might do things you are not aware of, for example, waving your arms around or fidgeting. It is really useful to make a visual recording of one of your sessions if you can, as you may see things you didn’t even realise you did. You might need permission from your organisation and your learners if you wish to do this.

      Personal qualities such as arriving early, being organised and smiling when your learners enter the room, will help you all relax at the beginning of the session. Using your learners’ names when you get the opportunity will make them feel you are getting to know them as individuals. You could use name cards or badges to help you and the other learners remember people’s names in the early stages. Alternatively, you could draw a seating plan and add the names of who sits where. However, this won’t help you if people move to different places. Using learners’ names as often as you can might help you to remember them.

      Observing your learners’ body language will help you to see if they are not understanding something or not paying attention. You can then ask a question to refocus them. Don’t be afraid of regularly recapping points and repeating topics. Remember, you know your subject, but for your learners it’s probably the first time they have seen or heard anything about it.

      If you are new to teaching, you may find you are teaching in the same way you were taught at school or college. This could have included lecturing, reading from a book, or copying information from a board which might not have been very effective for you. You won’t yet know all the other approaches and activities you could use to make learning interesting and engaging. As you become more experienced, your confidence will grow, and you will be able to experiment with different approaches. Not everything you do will suit all of your learners all of the time. However, if you plan effectively, and choose appropriate teaching and learning methods, you should ensure learning takes place.

      If you are ever unsure of anything, make sure you ask someone you work with. You should never feel you are on your own. Teaching can sometimes be an isolated role depending where you work, and you might not always get the opportunity to meet with others regularly. However, there are professional networking sites such as LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com) which have free discussion groups you could join. You could also keep in touch with your colleagues via email or social media.

       Activity

       How could you create a good first impression with your learners? What would influence this? For example, your own previous experience of attending a session, which was either good or bad.

       The teaching, learning and assessment cycle

      The teaching, learning and assessment cycle, as in Figure 1.1, is a systematic process which helps ensure your learners have a positive experience and are able to achieve their goals. The process can start at any stage of the cycle and keep on going; however, all stages should be addressed for learning to be effective. Quality assurance should take place continuously to ensure all aspects are being taught and assessed fairly and accurately (covered in Chapter 11). Don’t worry if what follows doesn’t make sense at the moment as it will be covered in detail throughout the book.

       Figure 1.1 The teaching, learning and assessment cycle

      Your role might follow the cycle, with all aspects focusing on the learner, and will briefly involve:

      • identifying needs – finding out what your organisation’s, your own, and your potential learners’ needs are, finding out why learners are taking the programme and what their expectations are, carrying out initial and diagnostic assessments, agreeing individual learning plans, ensuring learners are capable of achieving their goals and progressing to their chosen destination

      • planning learning – preparing schemes of work, session plans and materials to ensure you cover the requirements of the programme, liaising with others

      • facilitating learning – teaching, training and facilitating learning using a variety of approaches, activities and resources to motivate, engage and inspire learners

      • assessing learning – checking your learners have gained the necessary skills, knowledge and understanding at all stages throughout their time with you, using formal and informal types and methods of assessment

      • evaluating learning – obtaining feedback from others, reflecting on your role, and all aspects involved with the learning process in order to make improvements.

      Obtaining feedback from others, and evaluating your practice can also take place after each stage of the cycle. Running throughout the cycle is quality assurance. This is a system of monitoring all aspects which occur with learners from when they commence the course through to their completion. Good practice for all programmes is to include a system of internal quality assurance (IQA). This might be a formal requirement if you are teaching

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