Pacing in Learning Issues - Essay Example

Pacing in learning is concerned with the speed at which the teacher intended to cover the curriculum or lesson. Pacing facilitates learning by enabling students to organize knowledge, maintain attention and seek clarification. The pacing rate depends on the learning abilities of the students and the level of lesson difficulty. This paper will discuss the importance of lesson pacing and differences in lesson pacing for a class of English language learners and a class of non-English Language learners. In addition, the paper will cover learning for difficult subjects in English language learners’ classes.

According to Alan Hofmeister and Margaret Libke, pacing entails both curriculum and lesson pacing. A pacing guide is a written schedule that contains the concepts, topics and skills that are related to the curriculum to be covered within a specified period (Richards & Lockhart, 2006, p. 126). Curriculum pacing is concerned with the rate at which progress is made in delivering the curriculum while lesson pacing is concerned with the rate at which a teacher conducts the individual lessons. From past research, it is evident that low-achieving students learn effectively when lessons are conducted at a brisk pace since more content is covered in the classroom (Hofmeister & Lubke, 1999, p. 19). However, it is assumed that the lesson difficulty will permit the learners to attain a higher rate of success since highly difficult lessons or contents cannot be well learned at an instructional pace. Good pacing provides the students with the right rhythm of the lesson and creates a perception that the lesson is progressing at the right speed (Richards & Lockhart, 2006, p. 127).

Lesson pacing is essential in classroom learning. Lesson pacing acts as an indicator that students use to gauge the speed and progress of learning in a particular lesson. Accordingly, pacing enables the instructors or teachers to align the method of teaching with the objectives of learning and the level of difficulty of the lesson (Richards & Lockhart, 2006, p. 131). Effective pacing enables the teacher to hold the attention of the students thus contributing to effective attainment of the learning objectives in a particular lesson. In this regard, students have a prior perception of the amount of content that will be covered within a certain period thus enabling them to concentrate during the entire lesson period (Hofmeister & Lubke, 1999, p. 27). Lesson pacing helps in advancing from one learning topic to the next during the lesson. In this regard, pacing ensures that teachers deliver knowledge coherently and sequentially since no interruptions such as missing instructional materials occur. Lesson pacing arouses learning curiosity and controls students’ behavioural problems during the lesson. Lesson pacing facilitates contribution from the learners by asking for clarifications, quality questioning and coverage of sufficient content within the lesson period (Richards & Lockhart, 2006, p. 132).

Pacing for a class that includes English Language Learner (ELL) students and for a class that does not include ELL students will differ significantly. For ELL classes, an explanation of certain vocabulary and key terms is essential before teaching the students new concepts (Hofmeister & Lubke, 1999, p. 52). For English Language Learners (ELL), the teacher must move at a slower pace while demonstrating the concepts through body language to maintain the attention of the learners. For ELL students, the teacher must present learning materials and instructions visually by issuing handouts and not relying entirely on oral instructions (Richards & Lockhart, 2006, p. 139). The pacing must facilitate language mastery through the clear outline of lesson objectives and definition of the language objectives. The lesson content must be aligned with English language proficiency and lesson activities must integrate lesson concepts with English language practice opportunities such as writing poems (Hofmeister & Lubke, 1999, p. 87). Group interactions will also support English Language learning while bilingual or native language materials will provide an opportunity for the students to make additional clarifications. Accordingly, a variety of questioning types and paraphrasing must be incorporated to cater for the different English language proficiency levels of the learners. Finally, for ELL learners, the teacher must review the key vocabulary and assess content comprehension and learning progress (Richards & Lockhart, 2006, p. 140).

The complexity of the lesson content will influence the pacing of a class that includes ELL students. In this regard, the teacher must establish the gap between the prior knowledge and expected knowledge content to determine the pace of the lesson (Hofmeister & Lubke, 1999, p. 67). The teacher must preview each lesson topic to gauge the familiarity of the students with the concepts and scripts. Accordingly, all disruptive behaviours must be avoided to enhance the thinking and analytical skills that are essential in complex subjects. The pace must ensure information is delivered in a well-ordered manner starting with simpler concepts to more difficult concepts (Hofmeister & Lubke, 1999, p. 17). In this regard, the teacher must provide examples and explanations that emphasize the important concepts. Students must clearly understand the models and techniques through efficient use of illustrations, worked examples and demonstrations in the classroom. In addition, students must be provided with sufficient time to think about the concepts and maintain their attention. The teacher’s pace must allow the students to seek more clarification and contribute to the learning. The teacher must balance the momentum of the pace depending on the complexity of each topic to enable students to organize information (Richards & Lockhart, 2006, p. 130).

Pacing refers to the momentum or speed of progress in learning. Lesson pacing enables the teacher to maintain the attention of students and clarify key concepts by encouraging student participation. The pacing must take into account language proficiency and the level of difficulty of the lesson to attain the desired learning objectives.