ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the importance of the classroom environment on learning and students' motivation to learn. It highlights how the teacher influences the learning environment of the classroom and assists students with the process of learning. Effective teachers structure the content by beginning with an overview, outlining objectives, calling attention to the main ideas, summarising sub-parts as the lesson progresses and reviewing main ideas at the end. It encourages the development of a language for talking about teaching and provides a means for working on developmental priorities for the staff as a whole. The use of classroom observation within the appraisal process has had the unfortunate consequence of equating observation with notions of accountability. The main challenge for the subject or department leader is to encourage team members to view observation as an opportunity to learn about their own teaching practices and a means of improving their teaching.
