Teachers talk too much:
‘My brain leaves the room’: what happens when teachers talk too much?
How Much Should Teachers Talk in the Classroom? Much Less, Some Say
And it's a good idea to speak a little less, if a teacher is tired, or getting on ('old'!) or not feeling 100% - or in danger of burn out:
How to Combat "Teacher Tired"
Teacher burnout and how to avoid it - Education Support
Here's a useful bit of AI feedback from Google:
Here are some ways to reduce teacher talking time (TTT) and increase student talk time (STT): - Use guiding questions: Instead of explaining, present examples and ask questions to help students discover answers on their own.
- Use pair or group work: This gives all students a chance to work on the material.
- Keep instructions short and simple: Avoid repeating instructions or asking lengthy questions.
- Use facial expressions: Use facial expressions to signal when you're making corrections.
- Don't be afraid of silence: Allow for periods of silence.
- Use other methods to transmit information: You can have students look something up, act it out, or draw pictures.
- Use interactive activities: Use mini whiteboards, classroom polling apps, mind mapping, or annotating diagrams.
- Check learning: Use quizzes or other ways to check student learning.
The ideal ratio of STT to TTT depends on the level of students, but it's typically around 70-75% of the lesson dedicated to STT. keeping down teacher talking time - Google Search
Here's an excellent 'list':
- The horseshoe – students sit in an arch shape. This makes it easy for students to interact with partners on each side. They can also see their classmates across the room when they speak instead of staring at the backs of heads.
- Groups of 4 – students sit in groups of 4, facing one another. The teacher is able to walk around the groups instead of always standing at the front of the room.
- Peer teaching – provide opportunities for students to help other students by summarizing, paraphrasing, and reteaching material. During a peer teaching activity, your role as a teacher is to monitor the activity and make corrections. Peer teaching can happen at the end of a grammar presentation, lesson, or unit as a review.
- Walk around your classroom – by not always standing in front of the classroom, you create a learning environment where anyone can participate and lead. Walking around the classroom also reminds you to listen more and speak less.
How to Reduce TTT in the English Classroom - ESL Teacher 365
And here's another set of ideas:
Guiding students to regularly direct their own discussions brings academic rewards as they gain confidence working independently on challenging tasks.
When it comes to teaching literacy skills, for example, Filler notes that research shows students benefit the most from frequent, direct engagement with challenging texts.
A “Progression of Talk” chart, for example, provides students with a series of steps they can take during a conversation to ensure that comments are relevant, build on what was previously said, and provide room for clarifying arguments, disagreements, and elaboration.
Think-Pair-Share is a simple alternative that gets students dwelling on a particular topic or question and independently coming up with as many ideas or insights as they can.
