Pace (or 'Making Every Second Count')

Anonym / 14 November 2018 / Categories: Teaching and Learning Blog

We need to make a semantic shift when we think of the meaning and implications of the oft-used word pace in education. We risk assuming that ‘pace’ refers to the speed at which a lesson is delivered to ensure that no student is left with nothing to do at any given moment: Let’s get through the starter and ask some rapid questions and write down some definitions and move on quickly and leave no-one behind but with no-one in front and faster and faster and faster and…

Breathe.

We need to shift our thinking away from speed and towards efficiency. Would you prefer your charge-by-the-hour mechanic to fix your brakes quickly or efficiently? Both words, while initially semantically similar, have different implications: Speed implies a priority of speed over quality of process; efficiency implies an appropriate balance between quality of process and speed.

We don’t need ‘pacey’ lessons; we need efficient lessons.

Of course, not being mechanics, quality of process refers to the quality and quantity of thinking and learning that is happening at any one time in a classroom. So, consider: if you have previously been complimented on the pace of your lesson, begin to consider whether it has likewise been an efficient learning environment too.

This is an adjustment I personally have made this year, where I was asked to consider if the energy and pace in my classroom contributed to strong thinking and learning, or was it simply superficial. Since then I’ve reigned in the sails of my bouncing around the classroom, talking at a rate of knots, and fiercely firing questions broadside and begun to consider not how pacey the room feels, but how much thinking and learning is happening at any one time.

This has meant moments of silent staring, where students have been asked to think deeply about a question; moments of pause and reflection on the correct direction of learning, not blindly following a set of pre-prepared slides all the time; and, as those who know me well will attest, lots more rules and routines!

To finish, here are 3 of my top tips to Make Every Second Count:

1. Silence is golden - where appropriate, silent classrooms are almost always more efficient than classrooms with low level chatter. Even if they are ‘talking about the work’ or doing practical work.
2. ‘Hands up when you’re done’ - for quick tasks (including date and title and copying definitions); this gives you a very visual idea of when to move on and who’s working too inefficiently.
3. ‘3, 2, 1, GO!’ - to start every task. And, if they don’t all start at the same time. Stop them ALL, work out whether the hesitation was laziness or uncertainty, address the issue and get them going again.