Teaching Hints

 

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Sensory Preferences  A Class of... Roosters? Rabbits? Dragons?
Beyond Status  Feedback  Power  Find the essence of your subject
Entertainers and Guides  Meditation  Who's teaching who?
Teaching is Sharing  A game-enjoy it!   Preparation, Pacing & Back-Up
Expectation and Ambition 


The Unofficial Osho Ko Hsuan Hints for Teachers

This is a rough guide for teaching at Ko Hsuan. By no means is it a rule book. Each person's path here is highly individual and you may find totally different truths from what is outlined here. All this is a compilation of different ideas and experiences a few of us have found in the time we have been here. We hope they may be of some use to you but that's it! Enjoy the ride!

Sensory Preferences 

The following will be totally familiar to anyone with NLP or hypnotherapy training, Here it is condensed and simplified to go on one page: People tend to have a sensory preference. That is, they receive most immediate information through one sense. This has enormous implications for teaching, If, for example, the teacher is using a blackboard for most of the lesson this may be fine for pupils who are primarily Visual but not for those who are Auditory. The distinctions go like this: 

Visual people receive most immediate information through the eyes, Auditory people through the ears,
Kinesthetic through touch, feeling and movement.

There are others, but they can all relate to the above three. For example, olfactory (smell) is related to kinesthetic
The basic message from this is to vary your teaching:
 
~ Use visual aids like pictures, videos. Drawings, pictures and flow charts on the board can be more effective than simple linear lists. - 

Tell stories and play music for the auditory people. 

- Create some movement, practical work, for the kinesthetics. 

All of the above suggestions are likely to challenge your preferences! To find out who has which preference, ask them (they may know already from previous work) or test them. One method is to get them to write a description of a walk in the woods or on a beach. Notice whether feelings (cold, hot, hard etc.), sights (colors, light, 'it looked like' etc.) or sounds (wind, rustling, silence etc.) dominate the passage. Another way is to get them to say what they enjoy doing the most and why. 
Note: Kinesthetic kids tend to suffer the most in class!  If there's no action, get them to run round the field once or go and fetch something for you. Otherwise, just allow them to sit at the back and roam around!

This is a very condensed introduction! To get more information I recommend you read 'Accelerated Learning' or 'Superlearning and talk to people who have worked with and talk to people who have worked with this before.
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A Class of... Roosters? Rabbits? Dragons?

A class is an animal! If you find out the dominant Chinese sign in your class, it could be both fun and useful.
For example, when I discovered one of my last exam classes consisted almost entirely of Goats, it helped to know that Goats respond poorly to discipline, preferring to wander and learn for themselves, particularly so their imaginations can develop freely. I found I couldn't force them to work or even encourage them particularly - but when I made it clear that I was around and available to help, with no investment in results, they produced some excellent work.
One of the current classes has a lot of Roosters, all wanting you to take notice of them. It makes for very noisy but lively teaching sessions! For deeper insight get a book on Chinese Signs.
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Beyond Status
Status is a game played in all areas of society; the only thing is, few people realize it is a game. Let's have a look at some of the rules: A low status individual will: be subservient, make only tentative (hesitant) eye contact, be silly, untogether, clumsy, funny, relaxed. A high status individual will: be dominant, make clear eye contact (or not at all), be very together, firm, serious, tense. Most types of relating play the status game. You have probably noticed how you adopt a low status when confronted by some forms of authority - the reverse can happen when you have an authoritative position. In teaching it helps to be conscious of this game and to adopt a variable status. In his book Impro', Keith Johnstone talks of three teachers he had at school: One teacher was extremely authoritarian (high status) - the kids never fooled around in class and always did the work; outside of class everyone would tense up when he was around. Another teacher was very relaxed and could never establish order in the class; yet the kids enjoyed having him around out of class. A third teacher would establish order in class very efficiently, get them to work, and on the street

 would be very relaxed, smiling and making jokes. Johnstone realized that this last teacher was an excellent status player; that is, he wasn't stuck in one role and he could vary his status according to the situation. It helps to be able to play the game! If you are interested, I recommend you read Johnstone's book. It's excellent. Then forget the whole thing and just be yourself.
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Feedback

This can be one of a teacher's best friends and, like all best friends, it can tell the truth. It comes in the guise of: The kids: their response is fairly immediate. They also write in their own reports at the end of the term, outlining which subjects they liked, didn't like etc. It can feel fairly crushing when they don't like you and ego-fulfilling when they do. It helps to remember that their feedback tends to be honest - but also subjective, relating to individual feelings and preferences. If they don't like your hairstyle you might have had it till you get a haircut! Whether they're learning or not they may not realize till later. Also, a few brief lessons close to the end of term may make more impression than the term as a whole. Other teachers: may not actually witness your teaching but they will most likely hear things from the kids - and from you! This is probably an area that could be developed considerably, where we support each other by sitting in on classes, helping, giving advice etc.
HMl: are 'Her Majesty's Inspectors'. They visit regularly (currently about once a year) and their arrival has become, in contrast to earlier days, something to be looked forward to despite apprehensions - 'I'm not a good teacher' etc. They have a lot of experience in dealing with kids and schools and have been, up till now, very appreciative of Ko Hsuan. Their advice is definitely worth hearing. If they sit in on your class, enjoy it - and they probably will too!
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Power

"After talking in English about D.H. Lawrence's views on power, I wrote a title for an essay on 'Wuthering Heights' on the board.
It said: 'Power in W.H.'
Giving it some thought, Masta put up her hand and said, 'WHAT exactly did W. H. Smith say about power?'
W.H. Smith is a national  retailing company in the UK
From the Ko Hsuan Anecdotes

Power is one of the most basic issues at Ko Hsuan. There are many reasons for this. One is that here you are dealing with kids who are relatively unconditioned. They are in their power. The chances are that you and I have been denied our power in childhood through extensive religious and social conditioning, hence, being here can often be quite scary. In terms of esoterica, this is largely third chakra stuff, with issues of being 'oneself coming to the fore. The kids can teach you a lot about power, about being oneself. This is far-removed from the current world's perception of power which includes bullying, dominance and what is a basic misuse of power. Pure power is creative and it is authentic. When it is not creative and not authentic it tends to become aggressive and hard, a way of pretending to be in control. Also, as you give your power away, you are likely to tend towards blame and accusation. ("It has to be someone else's fault!") The people you are most likely to blame are the other adults - because the kids are not going to buy it! The best way out is to be honest. Ask yourself: Are you scared? Lonely? Angry? The kids will respond to you if you're real, as will the other adults. (See the 'Teaching Is Sharing' section.) Here there is power in being oneself.

Expectation and Ambition Adults often project their own unfulfilled ambitions onto kids. This is no good and it's no fun! Forget it!

'Nobody fails, nobody passes - it is just that a few people are speedy and a few people are a little bit lazy - because the idea of failure creates a deep wound of inferiority and the idea of being successful also creates a different kind of disease, that of superiority. Nobody is inferior and nobody is superior. One is just oneself) incomparable...'
Osho

It's quite normal for us to feel good about a kid who does exceptionally well in class but our congratulations etc. can hurt those who don't do so well. This is a very difficult thing for a teacher to recognize, but it's definitely worthwhile showing equal respect to everybody in the class. Somewhere Osho mentions - not teaching to the mean or lower levels but to pitch the level of classes fairly high. During a lesson we can practice this by ensuring we make eye contact with every pupil, not just the ones who are high achievers. It can help in an exam class if you give them plenty of support and encouragement but profess a lack of attachment to final grades - make sure it's sincere though! If you leave your ambitions outside of the class and don't expect anything from the kids they may surprise you. Also, if you don't expect anything from yourself, you may surprise yourself!
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 Find the essence of your subject

Every subject has its essence - that is, underneath/beyond any facts, knowledge or skill being taught in a subject, there is a single unifying principle. (Sorry that's in New Age jargon, I couldn't find another way to say it!) As an example, I found that English was basically about communication',. Looking deeper, and exploring the language with the kids, it became clear that it was about sharing. (This will be true about other languages too.) Once this was established for me I found that the lessons developed a drive and an excitement of their own, making them very easy to teach. This has to be due in part to the fact that the lessons actually started to mean something personally to the kids - and to me. Other subjects will have their own essences. As an example, I found that Science promotes a Sense of Wonder in us, also of objectivity: 'meditation looking outwards'. But you may teach the above subjects and find different principles behind them. fun.
Find the essence of your subject' can be a koan for you! Have

Entertainers and Guides

Some teachers like to think of themselves as entertainers rather than pedagogues (very serious). (English Key Stage 4 Note: 'Entertain' comes from the French, 'entre' -between - and 'tenir' -to hold: 'to hold between.' Amazing!) And let's face it, kids love to be entertained. This seems to be the more extrovert aspect of teaching. 'entertainer' enjoys being on stage and performing! enjoy the attention! If this is  you, enjoy.
Another aspect is that of the guide. This seems to be a more introverted way of teaching by itself but in actuality the entertainer must be aware of it as well; otherwise, his/her ego gets too well-fed! In this situation, the teacher is working side by side with the student rather than giving a 'performance'! He/she is taking the students on a tour of a topic and pointing out the resources that are available. This function comes up a lot on a one-to-one level when kids are trying to solve a problem and the teacher is giving them support to find the answer for themselves rather than telling them.

'The teacher should only be a guide to show you the right channel, to show you how to use the computer, how to find the latest book. 'He is not imparting knowledge to you, he is making you aware of the temporary knowledge, of the latest knowledge. He is only a guide.'
Osho
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Meditation

"Trying to help Abha tap into her creative source, her mother, Premdasi, told her to close her eyes.'
"Just forget about the outside world,' she said.'
"What outside world?" said Abha."
From the Ko Hsuan Anecdotes

In Osho's 'Five Dimensions of Education', meditation is part of the fifth dimension. We have a class, '5D', set apart specifically for that but meditation can be a part of teaching as well. It adds a lot of juice to the subject - and kids are actually very natural with it. "The job of the teacher is not just to teach little things o geography and history, and alt kinds of nonsense. His basic function is to bring the students to a better consciousness, to a higher consciousness. " Osho An issue that has come up in the past is a reaction against meditation due, in part, to adults' tendencies to turn it into a dogma, into something that one 'must' or 'should' do. One generation of kids here had a collective nausea around kundalini - partly because they detected a 'religious' aura around other peoples' attitude to it. When kids sense a playfulness and a lightness around meditation they are naturally drawn to it. One thing that helps is to remove the label 'meditation', because that carries connotations of 'doing'. There are many ways to bring it into the classroom:
- Guided fantasies are very popular as are relaxation exercises. - Mystic Rose techniques, such as gibberish or laughter, are often good ways to begin a lesson.
- There are 112 meditations to play with in Osho's 'Vigyan Bhairav Tantra'. The original wordings are summarized very beautifully in Paul Reps' 'Zen Flesh, Zen Bones'. Many of these are neglected yet they are often very popular with kids because of their playfulness.
- The section 'Find the Essence of Your Subject' relates in some ways to meditation, The above are just some suggestions. You can make your own list. Have fun.

"When the child is surrounded by the mysterious all around, everything just a mystery with no answer, with no question, he is exactly at the point the sage ultimately reaches."
Osho

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Who's teaching who?

'Be respectful, be understanding.'
Osho

Contrary to popular belief, teaching is a two-way process. Your function here is more that of a guide than a teacher in the traditional sense. For sure, you may have considerable knowledge and experience which you can share with the kids but that's about it! In other areas they are likely to outshine you. This may seem rather obvious to a sannyasin but it's worth bearing in mind both in and out of class here. Try and be aware of what you are learning from the kids. You are, for instance, likely to be confronted with issues from your own childhood, giving you the chance to finally resolve them. A lot of your own conditioning will be constantly challenged, forcing you to question some very deep-rooted beliefs. It won't always be easy. Some lessons are learnt with great difficulty. It is a two-way process though! Your feelings and opinions are as valid as anyone else's.

A game - enjoy it!

'Don't think that you are a teacher so you are in a very serious job. Look at life with more playful eyes...it is really hilarious!'
Osho

RELAX! Have fun you think it's should they? important. with your lessons. Don't take it seriously because very important and the kids must learn! Why It's usually an adult conceit that learning in class is If you see it all as a game then the chances are that the kids will enjoy the lessons with you and will want to learn! However, be aware that games have rules too - otherwise they don't work. Make sure the kids know the rules you all need to enjoy the lessons, e.g. People should let each other speak and be heard.
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Teaching is Sharing

In a class you learn about each other. his requires considerable sincerity and honesty.
Be real - cry when your sad, be angry when your angry, but don't indulge or dump. The kids will respect you for this if you respect them also for being real.
They will also test just how real you are being - if they feel you are being phony (e.g.. Acting clever when your not, brave when you're scared etc.) they'll be ruthless.
Draw on your own experience while you're teaching. Kids love this as they love stories, for they can feel your authenticity. Even if the story is not relevant and it comes up, tell it! It will add juice to the lesson.
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A Game-Enjoy it!

'Don't think that you are a teacher so you are in a very serious job. Look at life with more playful eyes...it is really hilarious!'
Osho

RELAX!
Have fun you  with your lessons. it's should they? important.  Don't take it seriously because you think it's very important and the kids must learn! Why should they ? It's usually an adult conceit that learning in class is important.
If you see it all as a game then the chances are that the kids will enjoy the lessons with you and will want to learn!
However, be aware that games have rules too - otherwise they don't work. Make sure the kids know the rules you all need to enjoy the lessons, e.g. People should let each other speak and be heard.
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Preparation, Pacing & Back-Up

It's always good to have a lesson prepared beforehand. (See the Syllabus section about this.) However, it's also good to be able to drop any preparation and be spontaneous. There are no clear rules, except maybe: Sometimes preparation works, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes unprepared spontanteify works, sometimes it doesn't. Have both available! (Psssst. I'll let you into a secret: sometimes nothing works, Go and have a cup of tea.) Pacing, is fairly instinctive. You can sense when the kids are getting bored because you probably are too! So it's important that you spend longer than you thought necessary on some areas and skip quickly over others. Timing a lesson beforehand can be quite tricky so be prepared for variations on your plan. Back -u p is an invaluable tool for any lesson. This can take any form. What it is is a kind of 'reserve lesson' that you have stored at the back of your mind for when everything goes wrong, or you finish earlier than expected! This gives you a lot of flexibility and can take many forms. Here are some suggestions: o Videos are popular back-up but shouldn't be relied on all the time. o Have some different worksheets or ideas in reserve. o Games - good for many subjects, including English. - Books kept near at hand for reading aloud. Clearly, the longer you teach at Ko Hsuan the more back-up material you'll have, so it actually gets easier as you go on!
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Expectation and Ambition

Adults often project their own unfulfilled ambitions onto kids. This is no good and it's no fun! Forget it!

'Nobody fails, nobody passes - it is just that a few people are speedy and a few people are a little bit lazy - because the idea of failure creates a deep wound of inferiority and the idea of being successful also creates a different kind of disease, that of superiority. Nobody is inferior and nobody is superior. One is just oneself) incomparable...' Osho

It's quite normal for us to feel good about a kid who does exceptionally well in class but our congratulations etc. can hurt those who don't do so well. This is a very difficult thing for a teacher to recognise, but it's definitely worthwhile showing equal respect to everybody in the class. Somewhere Osho mentions not teaching to the mean or lower levels but to pitch the level of classes fairly high.
During a lesson we can practice this by ensuring we make eye contact with every pupil, not just the ones who are high achievers. It can help in an exam class if you give them plenty of support and encouragement but profess a lack of attachment to final grades - make sure it's sincere though! If you leave your ambitions outside of the class and don't expect anything from the kids they may surprise you. Also, if you don't expect anything from yourself, you may surprise yourself!
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