ABSTRACT
So, beginning with the third week, we would delve into theories of refl ective and issues-centered teaching, and begin working on applying those theories to classroom practice. Classes generally went well, with a mix of readings, demonstration lessons, microteaching, and theory-into-practice fi eld experiences, and numerous question and answer sessions. As an assistant professor, my youthful enthusiasm for the issues-centered approach was such that my methods students seldom questioned it, or at least, bought into my argument that the approach would benefi t all. By the end of the course, students would usually say, “You convinced us,” indicating that in their view the approach was not only possible, but doable, and that it was the best approach to the fi eld. Students would return to class with both success stories of refl ective discussions that energized both students and teachers, and horror stories of failed lessons. Usually, the success stories far outweighed the failures, and students began convincing one another that “Ron’s methods” were very helpful for teaching in the “real world.” Amid the general success, some level of student resistance would oft en continue. By the end of the semester, in many classes, I would have one or two students who continued to resist and would ask, “Aren’t there other ways to teach?”
