| Chronology | Current Month | Current Thread | Current Date |
| [Year List] [Month List (current year)] | [Date Index] [Thread Index] | [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] | [Date Prev] [Date Next] |
Carpenters, to select one of many kinds of craftworkers, know a lot about wood and joints, nails and screws and glue, and varnish and paint. They know their tools as well. Mainly, though, carpenters know designs. They know how to make what you want. You just want a chair, but a master carpenter knows that there are hundreds of chair designs. Some of those designs are good because they work well, as the have strong joints and comfortable seats and others are lousy because they fall apart and hurt to sit on. Even among the good designs, there are some designs that are better than others because they are not only structurally sound but also well-suited to the situation. The master carpenter finds the design that meets the needs of the client, transforming acceptable into great. A brilliant carpenter adapts even great, well-suited designs to the very person likely to use the chair, making the chair narrower or wider, taller or shorter, yet remembering that
some changes will damage or weaken the overall strength. No carpenter can succeed without understanding the basics of woodworking, but knowing the skills is insufficient without the judgment of when and how to use them.
So, it is also true of teachers. Teaching is a craft with knowledges, skills and judgment. Teachers must know their subjects and they must know methods of instruction. They should know that there are lots of ways to teach, but they also must know that not all of them work. Even among the methods that work, some are better in some situations and with some students better than others. Master teachers have the judgment to select the right technique for the right time, even knowing when to pick something that wouldn't work most of the rest of the time. Brilliant teachers know how to fashion the instruction for the student in the moment with the tools at hand.
Like most crafts, teaching is hard to learn. The combination of engineering knowledge and judgment is not easy to obtain. Individuals can learn on their own from experience but it is slow. Perhaps it is time return to apprenticeships where masters help the novices learn.
Marc "Zeke" Kossover
The Jewish Community High School of the Bay
San Francisco, CA