Demonstrating an understanding of the connections between the content...

Demonstrating an understanding of the connections between the content that was learned previously, the current content, and the content that remains to be learned in the future

By: Rachael Davis

The current lesson should be related to lessons learned previously as well as to the ones that are going to be taught in the future. For example, in the early years of the students’ learning careers, students who learn music must be taught the value of a note or rest before they are taught the name for the symbol. Students should know the length of each note or rest. Once a student is taught this, she or he can be taught more complex concepts. The student will eventually be able to read a piece of music that may contain sixteenth notes, eighth notes, and other types of notes.

The lessons that are taught should fit within the structure of the subject matter. The lesson should be a part of something bigger than itself. An example of this would be addition and subtraction. These concepts eventually become a part of a more complicated subject called mathematics. Mathematics includes addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and calculus. Therefore, the big picture math teachers are trying to paint for their students is the overall field of mathematics.

One of the worst possible things for a teacher to do is to represent the content of a lesson inaccurately. An educator must know the entire discipline before he or she can teach it in an effective way. For example, suppose a teacher were to give a lesson on World War II and say that Pearl Harbor was bombed because the United States attacked first. The teacher would be teaching the content inaccurately. Not only is the teacher entirely wrong, but also the teacher neglected to teach historically accurate reasons for the attack. If the subject were on World War II, then the teacher should know all the correct information and pass it on to the students as accurately as possible. Teachers must present the content of the lesson correctly. If this were not done, the students would never even begin to understand the material.