By Abdelouahed Oulgout
Much talk among the community of educators revolves around learners’ needs to master a foreign language; yet to be creative in teaching, I believe, is the most required quality a language learner would need to construct his learning. What is it meant by Creative Teaching? On what principles it is founded? And how does a Creative Teacher differ from his traditional fellows?
Teaching creatively resembles teaching effectively. Effectiveness is the number one standard distinguishing Creative Teaching from any other mode of instruction. No teaching is creative without being effective, and no teaching is effective without being simultaneously creative. Creativity and effectiveness to a modal language teacher are as twins to their mother. When learners are able to turn the knowledge and skills they are taught into actual outcomes, authentically and appropriately, one can simply judge teaching to be effective and creative.
CT is so creative because of its variety and openness. To be a Creative Teacher you ought to take off your fashionable black glasses and put on up-to-date ones. You ought to open up new horizons for new ideas and expectations. Teaching is no longer that predictable; everything is possible to happen in a way you have never expected. Think about anything and think up open and varied plans for everything you might imagine or intend to do. Never have one mode of thinking and doing things because the people you are addressing cannot be resumed into one stereotypical category; each leaner has got his own profile- style, preferences, mode, temper, experiences, and even DNA- and should be dealt with differently and accordingly.
A Creative Teacher is a successful thinker, producer and investor. He is not that man who pursues his fellow teachers to consume their plans and thoughts just to fill in the gap and kill the time; he is rather an effective thinker who spends most of his time to produce something new and adjust others’ thoughts and plans by adding his personal touches and leaving his impact and impressions on everything. This is one of the highest ways of modernizing teaching: the personalization of teaching) the meaning of this concept here is different from the concept teachers are familiar with in ELT literature). When a Creative Teacher sits down to plan a lesson his mind works hard, bringing into mind everything that can affect teaching: the audience, the environment, the teaching tools, techniques, process; and any mental, affective, and behavioral action that might affect both teaching and learning. Until his teaching is productive, a teacher will never be successful.
A Creative Teacher always puts the blame on himself. In contrast to teachers who always accuse their students of being stupid, put the blame on their tools to defend their failure, and insult the administration for not providing them with the necessary materials and instruments; creative teachers always try to find ways for their hopes to come true. And because they are self-reliant and believe in their mission, they usually see difficulties in ELT as challenges. We cannot deny the negative impact of many factors on the outcomes of ELT; yet freeing your thinking from those handicaps and negative feelings keeps your thinking positive and triggers your intrinsic motivation to push the wheel of your profession forward.
Abdelouahed OULGOUT | oulgout@hotmail.com
