How Effective are these Five Teaching Styles?

Throughout the last century, traditional teaching methods have undergone significant changes; brought on by social, cultural and technological developments.  In the contemporary classroom, five distinct teaching styles have emerged as the primary strategies adopted by modern teachers: The Authority Style, The Delegator Style, The Facilitator Style, The Demonstrator Style and The Hybrid Style. In this article we will be discussing how Effective Are These Five Teaching Styles?

In this article, we’ll explore each of the above teaching types to question how effective they are in engaging pupils in the learning process.

The Authority Style

The authority style is primarily used in a lecture or auditorium setting, whereby the teacher will give a lengthy, one-way discussion on a pre-assigned topic whilst students take notes and memorise key pieces of information.

Though popular in higher-education when there is a large group of students present, the authority or lecture style is less common in the standard classroom setting. This is because the strategy offers little to no student participation, making it impossible to meet the needs of each individual pupil.

The Delegator Style

For subjects that necessitate group work, peer feedback or lab-based learning, a delegator or group style of tutoring is often adopted. As a delegator, the teacher may take an observer role to promote collaboration and encourage peer-to-peer learning.

Despite becoming increasingly popular, some critics consider the delegation or group style to be a poor teaching strategy given that it removes the teacher from a position of authority.

The Facilitator Style

Teachers who adopt a facilitator or activity-based style encourage self-learning in the classroom through increased peer to teacher learning. Unlike the lecture style, teachers ask students to question rather than simply have the answer given to them. In this style, activities are used to promote self-discovery and develop problem-solving skills, which can often lead to the student developing a much deeper understanding of the topic.

There are however, downsides to this technique: as the facilitator, teachers must actively interact with individual pupils, which can be difficult in a large classroom setting, so the design layout of the room should be deeply considered.

The Demonstrator Style

Like the lecture or authority style of teaching, the demonstrator retains authority in the classroom. However, instead of relying solely on a verbal lecture, the demonstrator style combines lectures with other teaching forms, including multimedia presentations, demonstrations and class activities.

This style is particularly well suited to music, art and physical education subjects, where demonstrations are required to fully understand a topic. In other areas of study however, the demonstrator style may not be suitable. Like the authority style, there is little direct teacher to pupil interaction, so it can be difficult to accommodate the needs of all students.

The Hybrid Style

Some teachers adopt an integrated teaching style that incorporates their personality, preferences and interests into their teaching. This strategy is known as the hybrid style, and is popular in subjects like English, Science and Religious Studies. Teachers who use the hybrid style are able to tailor their tutoring for different pupils, incorporating extra-curricular knowledge to develop a deeper knowledge of a particular topic. However, some critics claim that the hybrid style can weaken the learning process, as teachers try to be all things to all students.

How Effective Are These Five Teaching Styles? Knowing how to engage pupils in the learning process across a broad range of topics is important in developing an effective teaching style in the classroom. To ensure pupils receive the learning that works for them, it’s important for teachers to experiment with different styles, and challenge themselves to find a strategy that will reach each and every one of their pupils.