Over the last thirty years a number of writers in the United Kingdom have identified particular teaching styles and related them to philosophies of teaching or to specific learning outcomes. There are two important findings. Firstly, that integral to teaching styles is its effect on the involvement of students in the learning process. Secondly, while it is acknowledged that many teachers have their own individual styles of instruction, relying on personal preference is an unstable basis for effective teaching and that selection of a teaching style must be done on a more logical and scientific basis.

By far the most detailed analysis of teaching styles and behaviours came from work originated in the United States by Mosston (1966). His ideas on the interactions between teacher and student have been developed since his initial publication and have provided a framework for teaching physical education in different contexts all over the world.

The Spectrum of Teaching Styles

The Spectrum established a framework of possible options in the relationship between teacher and learner (Mosston & Ashworth, 1986). The Spectrum incorporates ten landmark styles based on the degree to which the teacher or the student assumes responsibility for what happens in a lesson. This describes a continuum, where at one extreme is the direct, teacher-led approach and at the other lies a much more open-ended and student-centred style where the teacher acts only in a facilitatory role.

The teaching styles are:

Style A Command: Teacher makes all decisions.

Style B Practice: Students carry out teacher-prescribed tasks.

Style C Reciprocal: Students work in pairs: one performs, the other provides feedback.

Style D Self-check: Students assess their own performance against criteria.

Style E Inclusion: Teacher planned. Student monitors own work.

Style F Guided Discovery: Students solve teacher set movement problems with assistance.

Style G Divergent: Students solve problems without assistance from the teacher.

Style H Individual: Teacher determines content. Student plans the programme.

Style I Learner Initiated: Student plans own programme. Teacher is advisor.

Style J Self Teaching: Student takes full responsibility for the learning process.

The Spectrum offers a range of options to teachers that can accommodate students' diverse learning styles and meet the learning intentions of a teaching session more accurately.

Related pages TGFU   Sports Education

Publications by Mosston

Devlopmental movement Muska Mosston 1965

Teaching physical education: from command to discovery Muska Mosston 1972

The spectrum of teaching styles from command to discovery Muska Mosston and Sara Ashworth 1989 

Framework for teacher preparation based on the spectrum of teaching styles Muska Mosston 1982

The spectrum of teaching styles from command to discovery Muska Mosston and Sara Ashworth. 1990.

Useful Links

Discovery Learning www.thinkingink.com/_contents/edu/phd_archives/EPRS8500_DiscLrngThry.PDF

Teaching Styles www.snowbird.com/imagelib/mtnschool/mspdf/ms_tstyles.pdf