The type of teaching style I prefer can be best describe as:

Almost three quarters of teachers who responded to this poll prefer to be a facilitator or demonstrator in the classroom, with less than 10% difference between the two responses. Teachers who prefer to be delegators or use formal authority were almost equal in the number of respondents.

There are as many different teaching styles as there are teachers. People have individual styles and just changes in voice and mannerism makes the delivery of material different from teacher to teacher. Unless we find a way to clone what we determine to be the perfect teacher, we will always have variation even between teachers who prefer the same teaching style. These variations are actually beneficial to students because no two students are exactly alike either. One teaching style may not resonate with a student but another teacher's style might be right on the button.

Facilitators and demonstrators seem to offer the best compromise between formal authority and delegators. The latter two either prefer complete control or allow the students to control work flow. Teachers who use facilitation and demonstration to guide the flow of work allow students to take an active part in the educational process. In this way, students may feel more focussed on course material and take some responsibility for their learning. Depending on the demographics of any particular classroom and the personality of the teacher and the students more or less control may be necessary and even advantageous.

Our educational system requires teachers to pass levels of training and gain certification. Within these guidelines there is ample room for teachers to develop their own personal teaching style. Many teachers who have been in the field for a number of years, have a style that has been honed over those years and adjustments to presentation depending on class demographics are subtle and effective. Newer teachers often take a few years to develop a style they find effective.

Considering that so many teachers fall into the same two categories of teaching style it is amazing that students can feel like they get a new style every year. As the saying goes, variety is the spice of life and keeping students interested and energized by school is a major accomplishment.