How can teaching style and positive emotions influence learning?

The learning process is influenced by many factors, including our emotions, mood, impressions of the teacher, and even the timbre of his voice. It is important to note that the method of presenting the material also plays a significant role. For example, information presented in a monotonous manner can cause boredom and reduce learning, while a dynamic and engaging approach promotes better comprehension and retention. Effective delivery of material helps create a positive learning atmosphere and engages students.

Researchers from Hult International Business School have been studying the impact of teaching style on students' emotions and, in turn, their perception of educational material for several years. Despite the mixed results of the pilot study, several significant conclusions were reached. This text briefly outlines the main aspects of the study.

How the study was conducted

To study the relationship between teaching style, students' emotions, and their academic outcomes, an experiment was conducted with the participation of 79 business school students from 30 countries. All participants completed a ten-day course in operations management. On the third day, they were randomly divided into two groups—A and B. Both groups studied the same subjects, but the sequence of teaching styles differed. This approach allowed us to explore how different teaching methods can influence students' emotional perception of the material and, ultimately, their learning outcomes.

In Group A, the first subject was taught in a dynamic format with a high level of emotional engagement, while the second subject (which began immediately after the first, after a short break) followed a traditional lecture format with a low level of emotional engagement.
In Group B, the opposite was true: the first subject was taught in a traditional, "boring" lecture format, and then, after a break, the second subject began in a dynamic format.

The researchers presented a comparative analysis of the dynamic and traditional teaching styles in the table. The dynamic style emphasizes interactive teaching methods, active student engagement, and the use of modern technology. In contrast, the traditional style is based on lectures and passive learning, with the teacher serving as the primary source of knowledge. This analysis provides a deeper understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of each style, as well as their impact on the learning process and student development.

A dynamic approach to teaching emphasizes student active participation in the learning process. In this case, the instructor creates a friendly and comfortable atmosphere, displaying energy and inspiration. In contrast, a traditional teaching style requires students to passively absorb information during lectures, which are conducted in a restrained manner, using slides, with minimal student involvement. It is important to note that the study does not specify whether the classes were taught by different teachers or by the same teacher.

Photo: vectorfusionart / Shutterstock

After each class, students filled out A questionnaire in which students rated their emotional state on a seven-point scale ranging from "Very poor" to "Very good." Two days after the end of the class, students were unexpectedly invited to take a short test. However, only 79 people participated, slightly fewer than the initial number of participants.

The study's authors hypothesized that:

A dynamic teaching style, where the teacher is energetic and students are maximally engaged in the lesson through activities (such as simulations), will induce a positive mood in students. A standard lecture, a leisurely narrative, on the contrary, will not have much of an impact on emotions - the mood of the participants will be neutral.
Students experiencing positive emotions will study better and then reproduce the learned new information than those who do not experience them.

What was the result of the experiment

The researchers made an important discovery regarding the influence of the sequence of events on student performance. They assumed that in courses with a dynamic approach to teaching, students would demonstrate higher results. It was expected that Group A would receive better grades in the first subject, while Group B would be successful in studying the second. However, the results of the study did not confirm these expectations.

Group A demonstrated a more positive attitude compared to Group B and performed better on tests in both subjects. These results supported the hypothesis that satisfied students learn material more effectively and are able to recall it.

Various factors influenced the students' mood. Several years after the study was conducted, important details that were not included in the initial report were revealed. Co-author Amanda Nimon-Peters, in her article for Training Zone, highlighted that Group A started classes on time, while participants in Group B had to wait an additional 30 minutes for the lesson to start. This wait may have negatively impacted the mood of the students in Group B, which should be taken into account when analyzing the results.

It turned out that teaching style had minimal impact on the students. The researchers expected that Group B, which switched from a boring lecture to an engaging lesson, would experience an improvement in mood, while Group A, whose lesson order was reversed, would experience a decline in mood. However, the results showed that students' mood remained stable on average throughout the school day, regardless of the type of class.

Research shows that external factors, such as illness or fortunate events, have a greater impact on students' overall mood than teaching methods. Furthermore, students may not have noticed changes in teaching styles because they had become accustomed to their professors. This could lead them to not appreciate the transitions in teaching approaches, especially if the same professors taught the classes.

Amanda Nimon-Peters later noted that the negative mood of students in Group B could have been influenced by various factors, including delays at the start of classes and an uninteresting presentation of the material by the professor in the first lesson. She offered a number of tools to prevent such situations and maintain a positive mood among students. As an example, Amanda recommended showing enjoyable videos at the beginning of classes. She also provided several methodological recommendations to help improve the classroom atmosphere and increase student interest in the material being studied.

Think about how to create or maintain a positive mood in the first 30-60 minutes (depending on the length of the lesson). If you start on a good note, the feeling will stay with students for quite a long time, so don't immediately jump into a boring list of rules of conduct or similar instructions, says Amanda. It's better to start with an engaging exercise or an interesting insight for the audience, and move on to organizational information after a short break.
Collect information about students in advance: for example, ask them to answer three questions (say, about their unique trait, their learning goal, and the only song they would listen to on a desert island). You can begin the lesson with this information: for example, create a playlist of the listed music. This will help them feel part of the group and engage in the work.

Research shows that both individual teachers and educational institutions can significantly influence the emotional state of students. It's important to develop programs that promote emotional regulation and provide students with useful tools for achieving inner well-being. Such initiatives can not only increase satisfaction with learning but also contribute to a more positive learning environment.

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How can teaching style and positive emotions influence learning?

Contents:

How the study was conducted

What was the result of the experiment