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A great teacher from a deeper perspective: Teaching scripts
Zahra Safaei1, Nikoo Yamani2, Peyman Adibi3, Athar Omid3
1 PhD Candidate, Department of Medical Education, Medical Education Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
2 Department of Medical Education, Medical Education Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
3 Department of Internal Medicine, Isfahan Gastroenterology and Hepatology Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| Date of Submission | 20-Feb-2023 |
| Date of Acceptance | 06-Jun-2023 |
| Date of Web Publication | 31-Aug-2023 |
Correspondence Address:
Dr. Athar Omid
Associate Professor, Medical Education Research Center, Department of Medical Education, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan
Iran
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/jehp.jehp_236_23
How to cite this article:
Safaei Z, Yamani N, Adibi P, Omid A. A great teacher from a deeper perspective: Teaching scripts. J Edu Health Promot 2023;12:297 |
How to cite this URL:
Safaei Z, Yamani N, Adibi P, Omid A. A great teacher from a deeper perspective: Teaching scripts. J Edu Health Promot [serial online] 2023 [cited 2023 Sep 26];12:297. Available from: https://www.jehp.net//text.asp?2023/12/1/297/384708 |
Dear Editor,
If we are asked to name some great examples from our teachers, we will all remember some of them. What exactly was in their teaching that now is known as a distinguished teacher? When we look a little deeper at this issue, we see that it is nothing but the behavior of the teacher; as students, we have seen the teacher's behavior and found him or her superior to others. Let us have a deeper look again: Where does this behavior come from?
This is where we come to the theory of “script” with this definition of the script: a cognitive structure to organize information and to understand and respond quickly and efficiently to situations that one encounters.[1] In the field of education, the teaching script originates from this theory. In this regard, we refer to Schulman's theory. He describes a distinctive and specific form of knowledge necessary for teachers, as “pedagogical content knowledge” or PCK, which includes content, learners, pedagogy, and context knowledge, and integrates all of these into scripts.[2] Scripts are formed from teaching experiences. The cognitive processing of knowledge makes the teacher's reasoning and action. A teaching script allows to predict learners' common mistakes and misconceptions, have educational targeting learners according to the level of education, and be able to respond to learners' knowledge gap.
Why was the decision of a top teacher different from the decision of another in the same field, which made him or her excellent? Excellence in teaching requires a deep and fully connected understanding of the content in the field of expertise and mastery of different methods of transmitting this knowledge to learners at different levels. Teaching script is a strategy that many teachers use to enhance efficiency and impact on learning and expert teachers modify it over time based on their experiences, observations, and reflections on how it works to aid learning.
Expertise development in education is classified in five stage according to Dreyfus and Dreyfus model as shown in [Diagram 1].
The difference between a novice and an expert is in the areas of interpreting class phenomena, recognizing the importance of events, using commonplace, predicting class phenomena, judging ordinary and unusual events, and evaluating performance, responsibility, and emotions. Hypotheses and predictions are much higher in experienced teachers than in novices.[3] They are also more sensitive in choosing the right teaching aids and teaching methods appropriate to the characteristics of the students or the content. They make decisions based on different experiences and the formation of different scripts to teach key concepts.[4] Achieving these professional scripts is a time-consuming process, and is there a way to shorten this path for novices?
Considering theories such as Piaget's theory of schema, parts of Bandura's theory of social learning, the scaffolding theory of Vygotsky, and the fact that “teaching practice can be taught - it is a craft that can be learned and honed; one does not have to be 'born' a teacher in order to learn to practice well,”[5] it is suggested to extract professional teaching scripts (in basic or clinical sciences) and present them to novices—not as a substitute for their experience, but as a professional model—to develop their expertise in teaching.
Financial support and sponsorship
This study is a product of the project registered by Isfahan Medical Education Research Center in Iran, No. 3400637.
Conflicts of interest
There are no conflicts of interest.
| References | |  |
| 1. | Abelson RP. Psychological status of the script concept. Am Psychol 1981;36:715-29.  |
| 2. | Shulman LS. Knowledge and teaching: Foundations of the new reform. Harvard Educ Rev 1987;57:1-22. |
| 3. | Berliner DC. The Development of Expertise in Pedagogy. Washington, DC: AACTE Publications; 1988. |
| 4. | Wolff C, Jarodzka H, Boshuizen H. See and tell: Differences between expert and novice teachers' interpretations of problematic classroom management events. Teach Teach Educ 2017;66:295-308. |
| 5. | Gadd R. Developing novices' professional scripts for teaching: An Investigation of Teacher Education Practice [dissertation]. Michigan: University of Michigan؛ 2018. |
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