Managing the Pressures of Teaching

Practical Ideas for Tutors and Their Students

Stephen Cox, Ruth Heames

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2005
• Print ISBN: 9780750708364
• eBook ISBN: 9781135708832
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

A lively, accessible, and practical book of suggestions for ways in which tutors can manage their workloads (and stress levels) and help students manage theirs. The ability to cope with stress is not merely a question of 'making it through the day'. When pressures are managed effectively the need not contribute to the burden of maintaining standards in a time of diminishing resources. resources. Aimed at teachers in further and higher education, it will also be of benefit to school teachers.

Chapter 1

Introduction: Managing the Pressures in Teaching

When I am hassled about something, I always stop and ask myself what difference it will make in the evolution of the human species in the next million years, and that question always helps me to get back my perspective. Anne Wilson Schaef (1990)

Introduction

The climate in education has changed and will continue to change. A major factor has been the increase in direction and control from central government, not least in the imposition of so called ‘efficiency gains’— cuts. This has created an environment in which tutors have to react to demands and circumstances under seemingly ever-increasing pressure.

This book is written to encourage you to take time out from that ‘I’m too busy’ syndrome and consider your role as a tutor and how you manage that role on a daily basis. It has been designed to offer you practical ideas for reducing the pressures for both yourself and your students within the teaching and learning experience.

In this context the story of Handy’s (1990) frog is an illuminating allegory for our times.

A small frog lived in a shallow pond in a tropical area at a time of rapid climatic change. He found that he could adjust to the warming climate by making a series of small adjustments to his lifestyle that enabled him to cope without too much personal discomfort. For instance, as the water in his pond became progressively warmer, he found he had to spend more time on his lily-pad, with the result that he began to suffer from progressive deterioration of his skin. His diet also changed, because with the warming climate, the insect life over his pond changed. This meant that there were fewer and fewer of his favourite insects for him to eat, and he began to get more and more digestive problems. However, by making these and other similar small but constant changes to his lifestyle, he managed to survive, although in gradually escalating discomfort. Occasionally, he had vague, disquieting half memories of a happier time gone by, when life seemed to be more comfortable and enjoyable, but as he was forced to concentrate more on thinking about when was the right time to enter the water because it was getting too hot or wondering if a new insect would be good to eat, he had less and less time to think about the past and what life had been like. This process went on for a considerable time, and there was a continual decline in his living conditions and the frog’s life became less and less enjoyable, and more and more of a strain— until one fatal day, he leapt from his lily-pad into the pond, and died almost instantly—because the water was boiling.

Many tutors find themselves in a position analogous to that of the frog. Through a continual series of small adjustments over the years in response to pressures in their environment, they find themselves in a new and, in some cases, potentially life threatening situation. To pursue the frog analogy one stage further, one restorative strategy might be to migrate to a new and deeper pond further north (or south) where conditions are once more life-enhancing. This does not mean that we have to cease being (frogs) tutors, but that instead we adopt carefully thought-out strategies and practices that are compatible with our new and considerably changed surroundings.

The impact of these changes is also felt by students.

Students have also been placed under increasing stress. The transition for post-secondary school students from small, tightly-knit, closely-supervised groups studying three or four subjects, to different large groups of one hundred or more in each of up to eight modules can be very traumatic. They now have greater financial problems than ever before, and are taught in larger groups, often working on their own or with their peers for long periods…. (Cox and Heames, 1997)

There is a lot at stake: quality assessment, league tables, contracts all add to the pressure that tutors and students are under.

Tutors have always had a multi-dimensional role, including those of assessor, tutor, counsellor, researcher, administrator, manager, consultant, scholar and curriculum developer. These, combined with the additional external pressures, mean that role conflict, overload and role stress are now becoming commonplace. Financial exigencies have forced institutions to appoint more tutors on parttime, short contracts. They now tend to have less support from their institutions than in the past, and they often miss out on staff development programmes, information and other activities.

With the background of constant change in mind, this book provides you with practical ideas that you can use to make your teaching (and learning) a more manageable and pleasurable experience for you and your students. It will enable you to become more strategic, and therefore more adaptable to future change.

How to Use this Book

This book is written to provide ideas and activities to be dipped into as the need arises. Of course, you are welcome to read it from cover to cover if you wish, but afterwards we hope you will return to it from time to time to apply it in your teaching. Please feel free to modify and adapt the ideas and to build upon them in your teaching in the way that suits you. It is not intended to be an inclusive guide to every aspect of teaching. What it does do is to address some of the main issues in organizing teaching and learning experiences and in developing a supportive environment in which students can learn effectively. At the end of most chapters we have included photocopiable proformas of further activities for your use.

The tutor’s main role is to organize and facilitate students’ learning experiences. This book is based on the premise that learning is a partnership between students and tutors, and that the students, if provided with the right support and milieu, can make valuable contributions from their previous knowledge, their reflections and sharing them with their peers and tutors. It is assumed that learning is an active process that involves reflection as a fundamental component. Burge (1989) suggests that when devising and operating courses, tutors might consider:

• promoting reflective learning and asking students to think ‘What have I learned?’ and ‘Why is it significant for me?’;
• using learning contracts as far as possible;
• giving real choices for learners regarding sequence, pacing, content process and assessments of learning;
• supporting risk-taking by learners;
• using project work, analysis of real life situations, theory building and experiential techniques;
• promoting learning partnerships as far as possible.

Taking this approach a stage forward, the book is designed to enable you to engage in its contents and use this as an active learning opportunity yourself. It is for you to identify those components that will help you most and then to take the following steps:

• select the idea(s) from the book that meet(s) your immediate teaching needs;
• assimilate the suggestions;
• reflect on their value in the context of your own teaching;
• plan how to incorporate these ideas into the learning experience for your students;
• implement the plan;
• ask the students to evaluate the session;
• reflect on the session as a whole by
  

  Figure 1.1 Active Learning: A developmental model
  • describing the session as it happened, identifying critical events
  • recording your feelings at particular points
  • noting thoughts surrounding the session and any critical aspects that occurred
  • examining your reactions to the processes and activities in the session (for instance, did you interrupt discussion at an inappropriate point?)
• evaluate the total experience, not forgetting the students’ feedback as well as your own, bringing together an informed judgment on the value of the session for you and your students.

This description of the learning process has been stimulated by the work of Kolb (1984), see Figure 1.1. As shown in the diagram, the cycle is three dimensional since it resembles a spiral in which with each iteration the quality of the learning experience is improved. Furthermore, previous knowledge and practical experience inform the acquisition of new knowledge.

Chapter 2

Helping Students to Reduce their Levels of Stress in the Classroom

Entering higher or further education for the first time is a major life changing event. For some students, the transition is smooth and just another stage in their development. For others, it is a very stressful time with many adjustments to be made.

The first session is an important one; first impressions do count. It is essential that members of the group become familiar with one another and are comfortable working together, as well as learning about the programme of studies and the tasks to be undertaken. If the group is to work together effectively, then the forming of the group is a necessary process. Establishing a sound communication system and group identity should be a priority and ‘getting to know you’ time is invaluable and indispensable, whether the group is formed for a semester, an academic year, or for the life of the course itself. Much learning emerges through the process of communication. If the tutor and the students are not comfortable with the classroom situation and its climate, then their ability to communicate, and therefore to learn, will be impaired.

This chapter identifies a number of activities and strategies that will help students to settle into their new courses or modules of study. They are designed to:

• foster good working relationships;
• identify the expectations and demands of the programme;
• develop a framework for studying;
• help the students to achieve a sense of direction.

Introductions

Ice breaking techniques can be simple ways to remove barriers and enable students to get to know one another and the tutor. They can also begin the important process of building a positive working relationship.

There are many introductory activities that help students to get to know one another. This example is effective and straightforward to operate. Proforma 2.1 is included on see page.

How to run the activity: Introductions

1. Setting the scene
   Say to the class:
   The content of the discussion will remain within the group. You are encouraged to talk openly about yourselves but there is no compulsion to do so. Therefore, it is important to respect each others’ information.
2. Working in pairs
   Divide the group into working pairs, then say:
   Each of you will interview your partner in turn for five minutes. I will tell you when time is up.
   (If there is an odd number in the class then form a group of three, or take your place as one of a pair.)
   Tell the students when to start, when to change roles and when to finish.
3. Screening
   At the end of the interview phase, say:
   Will each member of the pair please check out with your partner if they disclosed any information during the interview which they do not wish other members of the group to know at this stage.
4. Feedback (for groups of 16 maximum)
   Say to the class:
   Will each member of each pair please introduce his or her partner to the whole group, taking about two minutes each to do so.
5. Feedback (for groups of over 16)
   Progress by ‘snowballing’:
   Say:
   Will two pairs please join together to form a quartet and will each member of the group please introduce his or her partner in turn, taking about two minutes each.
   (Time allocated for this phase, 10 minutes)
   Say:
   Please will you ̀snowball' again, forming octets. Will those in each octet then compile a list of the hobbies and interests that members have and elect a spokesperson.
   (Time allocated 15 minutes)
   Then say:
   Will the elected spokespersons please introduce members of their octet to the whole group, and inform the whole group of the octet’s interests.
   (Time allocated n groups×5 minutes)

Building Teams

Adjusting from being a pupil or worker to being a student can be very stressful. It can be easy for new students to misunderstand what role is expected of them. Working and communicating within larger groups can also be very daunting. For example, many new students come from classes of fifteen or fewer in school or college and very rapidly they have to adjust to being a member of a cohort of 80, 100 or even 500.

For the tutor, managing the learning environment involves much thought and planning about helping individuals to come together as a cohesive group or set of groups. Group dynamics are very influential in the progress and achievements of the group.

Frequently, student groups are asked to subdivide into smaller units to progress a task, for example to brainstorm ideas, to form buzz groups, or to carry out a practical exercise. Initially this can be threatening for students. It is all too easy for a more dominant member of the group to assume the role of leader or become the ‘expert’ and monopolize the whole activity.

A team building exercise can be a very useful mechanism through which to prepare the less confident and assertive students to develop skills of participation and acceptance of new roles and responsibilities. Equally, it is a means through which the more dominant students can experience different roles than those they normally assume or are assigned in groups. Such an activity assists the total communication process, making the group situation feel more comfortable and less stressed. Burton and Dimbleby (1995) state that ‘The quality of verbal and non-verbal interactions will determine the strength of the group’.

There are many ideas for developing teams to be found in management training and life skills manuals. The activity described here is enjoyable and effective for students. Proformas 2.2 and 2.3 for the game and the debriefing phase are included on see page.

How to run the activity: Building Teams

CREATE A GAME

1. Equipment
   Ensure that the following equipment is available to each team:
   
   a watch
   pens and large sheets of paper, e.g. flip chart paper scissors, string and glue
2. Setting the scene
   Set the scene by discussing the aims of the session. Say to the class:
   This activity will enable you to get to know one another; give you the opportunity to practise working in groups; give you the opportunity to experience and reflect on group processes. Divide the class into teams of five or six, ideally, but this will depend on the working space available, and the size of the class. Give out the proformas.
3. Game design
   Teams must appoint a team leader and then undertake the task.
4. Feedback
   
   Reassemble the class.
   Call for volunteers to form groups to de...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• List of Photocopiable Proformas
• Acknowledgment
• Chapter 1
• Chapter 2
• Chapter 3
• Chapter 4
• Chapter 5
• Chapter 6
• Chapter 7
• Chapter 8
• Bibliography