Online Educatation Blog

“Even the best curriculum and the most perfect syllabus remains dead unless quickened into life by the right methods of teaching and the right kind of teachers”

Method is the means of reaching predetermined ends. It forms the most important link in the total teaching-learning chain with the goals and purpose on one hand and results and values on the other. Method is the middle link connecting in the objectives with its value. Method determines the quality of results.

All decisions regarding teaching procedures in civics should be governed by the objectives of teaching. The objectives are the specific goals or purposes of a particular unit as well as the nature of the content area of the unit. These would largely determine the methods to be used in teaching or dealing with the unit. In order to achieve the objectives of teaching civics, methods are needed to expose the pupils to knowledge and experiences helpful in the development of understanding, critical thinking, practical skills and interests. The procedures adopted should also provide training in constructive thinking, reasoning, and critical judgment. The goal, expectations in the teaching of civics involve deeper and extensive participation of students in learning. Hence lecture or merely question-answer method would not be adequate. If comprehensive objectives of teaching civics are to be realized in students, the child should be exposed to a variety of learning experiences involving book learning, observation, interviewing, surveying, interpreting, reviewing, recording, reporting and evaluating. The need to make him an enlightened, discriminating, dynamic, productive and democratic citizen would make it imperative to provide him learning experiences geared to that end.

 
Reason for a variety of methods:

The civics teacher must be conversant with the theory and practices of different methods of teaching the subject due to mainly, two reasons:

1. There is no royal road to successful learning. The teacher should be able to use a permutation and combination of methods, devices and techniques to make the subject interesting, vital and living. He may use lecture or discussion method or a combination of these two, to lend color to class-teaching.
2. Avoiding monotony. If a teacher uses the same methods in every lecture, then it becomes monotonous. In the past few decades a tremendous increase in equipments, materials, means and teaching procedures have been witnessed to provide variety and color to civics teaching. Children should be exposed to varied experiences to create and maintain their interests and avoid monotony.

So, no single method is suitable for all situations, and with all teachers and pupils. The method of teaching civics should emerge out of the abundance of information and skill o the teacher and should harmonize with the content to be taught. This requires every teacher to of civics to be familiar with the different means of for reckoning the desired ends.

The Characteristics:

1. Producing change in behavior: Arranged on an individual as well as group basis, it should provide a group of related experiences and activities specially designed to produce certain changes in terms of knowledge, understanding, habits, attitudes and skills of the students.
2. Creative Expression: It should give scope to the creative expression of the child’s individuality.
3. Rousing Interest: Rather than being a mechanical device for passing of facts and figures, it should arouse a large range of interests in the minds of the students.
4. Shift in Emphasis: It should shift emphasis from verbalism and memorization to learning through purposeful, concrete and realistic situations.
5. Self study and Knowledge: It should train the students in the techniques of self-study and the methods of acquiring knowledge through personal effort or intuition.
6. Stimulating: It should stimulate the desire for further study and exploration.
7. Awakening Insight: It should awaken an insight in the materials and techniques used by a successful teacher. It should enable students to know varied interpretations of events and clash characters.

 
So, basically a good method is the one through which the teacher can make the students understand the subject matter, inspire them to learn further by themselves and make them interested in studies.