Exemplary teaching: some possibilities for renovating and stimulating didactic practice

Abstract

Exemplary teaching is directed to the essences of a lesson theme and provides possibilities for successfully implementing the essential conditions for educative and formative tasks. A particular example is not chosen to serve as a first learning step but because the essence of a greater whole is reflected in it. This gives teaching a depth where originality is pursued at the expense of completeness. In practice the aim is to use a particular example to give pupils the opportunity to experience the essence of a matter or phenomenon. Exemplary teaching does not force the learner to master vast quantities of factual knowledge. As a fundamental didactic form it presents a solution to rigidity in teaching, as well as to the problem of over‐burdening the pupil.

Keywords:

• didactic practice
• form and content
• forming (Bildung) reduction to essences (elementals)

Additional information

Notes on contributors

C. J. Van Dyk

From C. J. van Dyk (1970) Eksemplariese onderwys: enkele moontilkhede vir vernuwing en bervrugting van die didaktiese praktyk. Suid‐Afrikaanse Tydskrif vir die Pedagogiek/South African Journal of Pedagogy, 4 (1), 44–51. The essay was translated by George D. Yonge, Emeritus Professor of Education, University of California at Davis. The translation is presented with the permission of the Faculty of Education of the University of Pretoria.