Despite the research and progress made within the field of teaching and learning, in recent years the techniques and resources used within classrooms have changed relatively little compared to traditional teaching procedures.

However, this fact is beginning to change and change is evident, among many other things, with the emergence of didactic strategies . Throughout this article we will talk about the characteristics of these, as well as their form of application, their utilities and their benefits.

What are teaching strategies?

The concept of didactic strategies refers to the set of actions that teachers carry out, in a planned way, to achieve specific learning objectives .

More specifically, teaching strategies involve the development, by the teacher, of a learning procedure or system whose main characteristics are that it constitutes an organized and formalized program and that it is oriented towards the achievement of specific and previously established objectives.

As mentioned above, in order for these procedures to be applied on a day-to-day basis within the academic environment, it is necessary for the educator to plan and schedule this procedure . To do so, he or she must choose and perfect the techniques that he or she considers most appropriate and effective when it comes to achieving an effective teaching-learning process.

To this end, in addition to planning the procedures, the teacher will also have to carry out a work of reflection in which the whole range of possibilities that exist within the teaching-learning processes will have to be taken into account, and then make decisions regarding the techniques and activities to which he or she can have recourse in order to achieve the established objectives.

These techniques or ways of proceeding within the school environment may be especially useful for the transmission of especially complex information or knowledge , as well as for teachings considered to be more arduous or complicated, such as some mathematical procedures or the initiation of reading.

Finally, these strategies appear in response to traditional teaching methods. The reason is that these newer systems, in addition to compensating for the shortcomings of traditional teaching procedures, are often more stimulating and motivating for students, which increases their level of attention and helps to improve academic results.

How do they apply to education?

At the beginning of the article, we already mentioned that one of the main characteristics of the didactic strategies is that they require previous planning and organization. In order for these strategies to be applied in the classroom, the teacher must take into account the following aspects:

  • Establish the specific objectives to be achieved within a particular subject, discipline or learning.
  • Possess the necessary knowledge for the transmission of the information
  • Provide and prepare all those materials or objects that will be necessary for teaching.
  • Emphasize the important aspects of the information you want to convey.
  • To promote the association of theoretical knowledge with the practical aspects of these.
  • To promote the autonomy of the student when generating their own learning strategies.
  • The educator must be aware that his or her role is only to facilitate learning and to guide the acquisition of learning strategies.
  • To carry out periodic evaluations to check the progress of the students.

Furthermore, it must be considered that these didactic strategies are based on a constructivist vision of teaching . This also means that, in addition to elaborating the construction of learning, the techniques and strategies used should be modified in relation to the progress of the students.

Similarly, when setting objectives, the educator should build on the knowledge base of the learner; therefore, a prior assessment of these can be particularly useful.

The use of this type of didactic strategies, enhances the acquisition of knowledge and skills previously considered as important or objective. However, despite this planning, the educator must pay attention to whether these are being fulfilled or achieved.

To do so, these techniques must be equally innovative and different from those used in the traditional way. The tools and activities carried out within the teaching strategies must be attractive and interesting for the students , thus ensuring that they maintain their attention throughout the class.

What are the benefits?

The use of didactic strategies in the day-to-day of the classroom , has numerous benefits when it comes to achieving much more effective learning.
At first, these techniques favour a greater involvement, both of the teacher and the student, in the teaching-learning processes, also generating interaction dynamics in which the teacher and the group of students work together in the construction of learning.

In this way, students acquire an active role, developing a sense of responsibility for their learning. In addition, the development of the student’s autonomy favours the creation of their own learning strategies, which they can also apply to other similar areas, generating in them feelings of self-sufficiency and usefulness.

Finally, if the didactic strategies are correctly developed, the educator will manage to optimize the acquisition of knowledge, favoring the learning of the students of those skills or competences that have been pre-established as important.