Power and Grace in the Classroom

From Chapter 18 in The Skillful Teacher by Stephen Brookfield:

“Students know I have the power to define curricula, direct classroom activities, assign resources, set evaluative criteria, and then apply these criteria to decide the worth of their work. Until I’ve proven otherwise, many of them are suspicious of how I wield that power.”

In this light, here are his top tips for a great classroom environment in terms of power dynamics:

1. Be aware of the power dynamic

2. Create a positive classroom environment with clear expectations

3. Use transparency and responsiveness to build trust in your correct use of power

4. Model fairness by being consistent and ethical

5. Be ok with not pleasing everyone all the time

Blog post image is my own. Find the original here

References:

Brookfield, Stephen D.. The Skillful Teacher : On Technique, Trust, and Responsiveness in the Classroom, John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated, 2015. Found at ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ufvca/detail.action?docID=1895929.

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