Teaching approaches in enterprise education: A classroom observation study

This paper outlines research which was conducted into teaching approaches in the context of enterprise lessons. The teaching resource material and associated literature supporting enterprise education in schools strongly suggested that the teaching approaches adopted during mini-enterprise were student-centred. There was, however, an absence of research evidence to support or refute this assertion. This research represents an initial investigation into the teaching approaches adopted by teachers in enterprise classrooms. The purpose of the investigation was to ascertain the extent to which teachers were engaging in more student-centred practices in enterprise lesson in comparison with their non-enterprise lessons. Teachers were observed over a period of a year using a specially designed observation schedule which was used to record specific teacher-pupil interactions. Details of the design and use of the enterprise teaching observation schedule (ETOS) are provided in the paper along with the major findings from the study.