Of course teaching is a 'performance', just as writing a paper or participating in an interview process. Teachers must not only prepare/rehearse for their 'audience' but they must learn to improvise during their time on stage, or in this case, the classroom. The more teachers connect to their students/audience, the more they will benefit from the dynamic and ongoing exchange between performer and listener or 'experiencer' of this interaction. I would even go so far as to say that the goals of teachers and performers are closer than we think. I do not look for applause, so to speak, as a performer. Rather, I hope to make that personal connection to my audience and in some way inspire them.

In my opinion teaching does have a performative aspect, involving class preparation (equivalent to rehearsal in performing arts) and execution in front of the class ("the audience"). Also, during the performance/class there is a need for capturing the attention of the audience and guiding it through the concept that it is being represented (either a musical composition, or the contents of a course). Possibly the intellectual horizons of the audience will have expanded at the end of a session.

However, there is a the distinctive point in the final goal of the activity. While the teaching process must originate understanding in the students for transferring knowledge, most performative acts usually seek entertainment. Of course teaching can benefit from performative skills in order to improve the learning processm and eventually clapping might arise at the end of a class, though this is not the final goal.

Of course teaching is a 'performance', just as writing a paper or participating in an interview process. Teachers must not only prepare/rehearse for their 'audience' but they must learn to improvise during their time on stage, or in this case, the classroom. The more teachers connect to their students/audience, the more they will benefit from the dynamic and ongoing exchange between performer and listener or 'experiencer' of this interaction. I would even go so far as to say that the goals of teachers and performers are closer than we think. I do not look for applause, so to speak, as a performer. Rather, I hope to make that personal connection to my audience and in some way inspire them.

Two thoughts: first, as I have always thought that my friends from my high school and college days would giggle while sitting in the back of my classroom as I presented information and interacted with students, that suggests a persona on a stage of sorts different from outside the classroom. Second, as a high school English teacher who has always read out loud to his students much of the time, I hope that the readings were performed well enough to captivate--well, at least interest. So, I had the advantage of bringing different voices to my stage. Substitute a mechanized voice from some box of some sort and let me know how it goes.

Teaching to me seems like an extension of my normal self. I exaggerate my actions and use my voice in a different way. So there is clearly some 'performance' in my practice. Some teachers underplay their roles and some ham it up - both these positions are cool with m. But if a teacher doesn't commit to the role of 'teacher' and takes a half-assed approach then they are quickly spotted and lose the interest of their audience. I like Donna's point about connecting with students and I think that each individual needs to find how they can do this best. For me, it is to become and exaggerated version of myself.

I agree with Donna Green, to me teaching is a kind of performance.

To do teaching as a performance you need to have good knowledge in the field you teach, but also knowledge in rhetoric. Necessary properties to give a performance that provides a dynamic exchange that inspires and enhances learning are: presence in the moment, high energy level and vigilance.

A good performance involving connecting, exchanging, intertwining, shifting responsibilities and interacting with the auduence is a high intensity task. It demands for multichannelled attention, readiness to memorize who said what; to respond to the unexpected; to change direction in the planned flow; and to create new lines in the manuscript. You sense if you get through to the audience and that is the ultimate goal, not the eventual applause.