I accomplish this goal through the use of what I call Lecture Sheets, which were alluded to earlier in the Teaching Philosophy section. Every lecture is accompanied by these sheets that contain an outline of the days lesson, problems, diagrams, and inquiry questions. To see a sample lecture sheet click here.

As stated in the Teaching Philosophy section, the questions are designed for a special purpose. As the lecture progresses and we get to one of those questions, I will have one of the students read the question, and then I will have them think about their answer and write it down without talking to anyone. After they have finished, I open the class to discussion. We hear the different opinions and answers, and I will ask them to argue their case to see if others will agree or disagree. Finally, after narrowing the ideas to two or three, I will bring it to a vote. After voting, I disclose the answer and move on to the explanation.

The inquiry questions, labeled question on the Lecture Sheet, are used to help stimulate critical thinking, by asking questions that go above and beyond the two levels of Bloom's Taxonomy , which was outlined in the Teaching Philosophy section. So, these questions do not ask students to recall what they just learned, or what they learned yesterday. These questions probe deeper and ask the students to take what they just learned and apply it to a different situation, or to compare/contrast what they learned with what they already knew, or to piece together a new concept with their previous knowledge. The interactive lecture method helps to facilitate the desired outcomes as stated in the opening paragraph of this section, and is outlined below:

To learn more about the theoretical framework behind the aforementioned methods and outcomes, you can read the "Literature Review" section of my Master's paper by clicking here, which was also available in the Teaching Philosophy section.

Teaching Strategies
Throughout my research on effective teaching strategies, four techniques were found to be linked to the positive effects listed above:

As I evolved as a teacher each year, I keep these four things in mind whenever I make decisions to add or improve a certain aspect of my class. The following paragraphs describe each item and how they are implemented in my class.

Teacher Enthusiasm
  One of the most important aspects of teaching is the teacher's enthusiasm. Nobody is inspired by a teacher who comes across as not wanting to be in the classroom. I believe students feed off of the teacher's mood. Even if they come in with an attitude of not wanting to be there, an enthusiastic teacher can turn that around within the period. In fact, studies have shown that enthusiasm increases the students' internal motivation to learn, and bolsters their willingness to work. (See article under references below). Therefore, one of my teaching strategies is to simply be excited during my lectures. I want the students to be entertained as well as informed. I enjoy the interaction that I have with the students, and the interaction between themselves. Every period is different because I never know what funny things may be said, or what I might do to liven up the lecture. So, I definitely do not consider lecture time to consist of me being the only one talking.

In an effort to inject enthusiasm into my class, I make sure I move around the room. I especially enjoy walking between the rooms while I talk, and while I wait for students to draw a particular sketch, or make a computation. This does two things: it helps maintain discipline, because students are less likely to talk or doodle, and it helps students to pay more attention, because they are more alert when the teacher is right next to them.

I also make sure to use a lot of hand gestures, even sometimes exaggerating them to make a point. Non-verbal cues are important, because they actually convey to the students your actual level of interest and excitment.

I vary my tone of voice, loudness, and emphasis, all to help maintain better attention. Nobody likes to listen to a monotone uninteresting voice. More often than not, it will put people to sleep. So, I will sometimes talk in a very loud voice, just for dramatic effect, and will go to a soft voice almost in the same sentence, just to keep them guessing. It has often been said by my students that it is easy to stay awake in my class because they never know what I will do or say next.

Student Encouragement
As with all things in life, if you don't get encouragement during a long-term task, such as a one year physics course, you will eventually lose the desire and motivation to continue. It is imperative that students receive positive feedback on their progress, and encouragement to keep on learning. I think it is also important to let students know why they are in my class. I tell them that it is not to leave with a brain full of physics, although that is a goal, but to leave with the necessary skills, study habits, character traits, and determination to succeed in whatever they choose in life. I lay this out from day one by introducing the Behavioral Modification plan.

Another way to encourage students is to praise not only exemplary work, but the work that is an improvement from previous work, even though it may still need some improvement. The key is to not just make a big deal about excellent work, but to bring to attention the work that is also just plain good. Students know who the exceptional people are in the class, and will get tired of always hearing about how good those people are. This will lead to an acceptance of mediocrity, and that if their work is never good enough, why even bother.

The other way to encourage students is to listen to their ideas, and include them when possible in the decision making process of the class direction. If they feel important, they will act accordingly.

Student Participation
Up until now, my entire profile has included ways that I involve students in the learning process. This is done through the investigative experiments, the lecture sheets, and the the class discussions, which are all described in great detail in the previous sections.

I will also include small group discussions into the lectures when appropriate. Usually this will be done when I want them to develop a new concept that is based on a previously learned concept. This is effective when I want them to formulate a definition or explanation, which requires writing a small paragraph.

Peer-to-Peer Interaction
For some of the questions posed during the lecture, the students will write their own answers on the page, but instead of discussing it as a class right away, I will have them discuss their answers in pairs. After that, we carry on like usual, discussing the question as a class and vote on the best answer. A study done by Elaine Coleman (1998), focused on a very interesting strategy that yielded very good results. When time permits, I have the students discuss the lecture in pairs. One student explains the lesson while the other student listens. In fact, it doesn't matter which student does the talking or the listening, the study showed that both benefit from the exercise!

Instructional Planning Strategies
The overall strategy that I try to implement with each unit is the 5E instructional model, which consists of five phases: