Student learning, for better or worse, stems from teaching strategies we use in the classroom.
That’s a bold claim, I know, but teaching strategies are necessary if we want students to navigate the choppy waters of communication, to unlock the secrets of challenging texts, and to unleash critical thinking in many contexts required of students (and, in general, people) today.
Back in my day (says the old-timer writing on this newfangled computing device on the Google) teachers used teaching strategies, certainly–but I remember them really falling into the camp of a command, a task, feedback, and repeat: “Read this and then write this,” they’d say.
From there, I think they’d read my paper before applying a mark of distinction or dread (an A, B, C, D, or even F) and sometimes a qualifier to chip at the pride or lessen the sting (an A- or a C+, for example). Rinse and repeat. Discussions of texts boiled down to “Read chapters 1 through 20 and then talk about it.”
Today’s classrooms, for better or worse, don’t work this way.
The teaching methods and strategies of old, say, lecturing at a room of high school students for 50 minutes, don’t translate well to the always-connected, oft-disengaged youth of today.
This shift requires us, as the professionals, to adjust and adapt our teaching methods and strategies.
Let’s be honest…adapting and adjusting feels (and is) daunting. We need teaching strategies, differentiation, creative curriculum, planning, prepping, data…everything:
Read on, then, to find the 10 Most Effective Teaching Strategies for English Teachers in a convenient, easy-to-reference teaching strategies list below!
Teaching Strategies Examples
- Active Reading and Close Reading
These are powerful teaching strategies for reading. With close reading, we teach students to analyze texts closely, examining language, structure, and literary devices to deepen understanding.
With active reading, we teach students to actively engage with texts using strategies like annotating, summarizing, questioning, and making connections. Put these two things together, and students are reading beyond plot and beyond their reactions as readers to the text.
- Vocabulary
This is another of the teaching strategies for reading (that actually fits well with #1 above). Teach vocabulary in context, using words from the texts students are studying.
Teaching word parts (like prefixes and suffixes) and how to use context clues can help students’ understanding and retention of new and unfamiliar words. (For you high school educators, this is all the more valuable considering the vocabulary emphasis on the Digital SAT many of our students take.)
- Reader and Writer’s Workshop
When possible, plan workshop and conferencing time where students engage in independent reading and writing activities, receive feedback from peers and from you (the expert), and revise their work.
The workshop model fosters creativity, autonomy, and growth as readers and writers. These student-teacher conferences are also good times to connect and build relationships and to discuss short- and long-term goals with students (which connects with #10 below).
- Collaborative Learning
This is an extension of #3 above as collaboration shouldn’t be just for special occasions.
Instead, we should implement group activities, discussions, and projects where students work together to analyze texts and solve problems.
Collaboration enhances communication skills–and we know that speaking and listening are important skills for an English language arts class–and encourages students to learn from one another, not just from us, the teachers.
- Literature Circles/Book Groups
Divide students into small groups, each assigned a different piece of literature–and it would be ideal if the students had some choice in selecting this literature–to read, analyze, and discuss.
*Bonus teaching strategy here: students can jigsaw the reading, each taking a different part of the text to analyze and to lead the group’s discussion on.*
(This could pair well with #1 above as each student could be responsible for actively reading a different element of the text, for example.) This approach promotes independent reading, comprehension, and discussion skills.
- Inquiry, Problem-Based Learning
Pose thought-provoking questions or problems related to literature, language, current events, etc. that require students to investigate, analyze, synthesize, and draw conclusions independently or collaboratively.
The inquiry approach cultivates curiosity, research skills, and deeper understanding of content. For this, you can even take inspiration from real-world situations students might find in the news–for instance, one might challenge students to argue the best way to combat disinformation online.
- Multimodal Instruction
As you’ve probably seen, screens are everywhere–in students’ faces and hands, on students’ wrists and tabletops. Indeed, it’s good to get students off screens often–but it’s good to put those screens to good use, too.
Integrate various forms of media like videos, audio recordings (like podcasts), visual aids, and tech tools to enhance learning experiences and cater to different learning styles as technology can provide teaching strategies for differentiation for student learning.
Multimodal instruction can help promote focus in the classroom and give us teachers the power to compete with the dopamine hits of students’ taps, pinches, and zooms on their personal screens.
- Performance-Based Assessments
Ever ask a student to write something and suspect that a student didn’t write it? Been there. It used to be that we could do a Google Search or check Turnitin.com and know for sure–but we can’t be sure anymore. (Thanks, ChatGPT.)
A good teaching strategy, then, to ensure student work is authentic and genuine is to assign projects or presentations where students demonstrate their understanding of literary concepts, language skills, or creative interpretations through performances, debates, or multimedia presentations.
Authentic assessments are much harder (at least at this point) for students to AI-chatbot their way through, and honestly, they are often more interesting to assess than essays.
- Socratic Seminars & Class Discussions
Discussions based on open-ended questions about a text or topic are valuable for having students support their opinions with evidence from a text or other sources (like their experiences or observations) and for fostering critical thinking as they respond to an audience in real-time.
These discussions are even better if they are student-led, giving students responsibility to engage their peers. (This could also be paired with #7 above as students could have a discussion synchronously in class or asynchronously using technology and something like a discussion board.)
- Reflection
This is a powerful teaching strategy when it’s purposeful, for we should provide opportunities for students to reflect on their learning, set goals, and assess their own strengths and areas of growth. (Note that we don’t call them “weaknesses” anymore as we work to promote that ever-coveted “growth mindset.”)
This reflection can be tied in with specific and explicit English Language Arts goals and skills–but it can also extend to Social Emotional Learning and Executive Functioning as students can reflect on how they solved problems, how their emotions impacted their performance, how they managed their time, etc.
This reflection on the past will, we hope, then lead to changes and continued growth and success in the future.
I end with reflection here because it’s a teaching strategy for the classroom, but reflection is also what we as educators are doing always, every moment, each day.
It might be why you’re reading this blog right now: you reflected on your teaching strategies and realized you wanted or needed something more.
Some ideas. Some change. Some confirmation.
Indeed, teachers are oftentimes the best learners, and by fine-turning our teaching strategies, we can help our students become better learners, prepared for the ever-changing present and future.
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