You attain the "art of teaching" only partially when you implement a teaching technique correctly.  Although you use a particular approach quite expertly, another approach may be more effective in a given situation with a particular student.  The art of teaching involves assessing the situation on an ongoing basis to determine if modifying the approach might yield better results.  This is a process similar to determining appropriateness and effectiveness of patient management.

Develop the habit of reflecting on a brief segment or "snapshot" of your interactions with the student at intervals.  Recall the student's response and the evidence of learning that you observed.  Were you satisfied?  How might you modify your approach in the future?  If you are not satisfied with the results of your approaches and cannot think of alternatives, ask the faculty member for suggestions.  Consult with the faculty member about specific difficulties during the course of the practicum, so that the feedback you offer at the time of summative evaluation contains no surprises or dilemmas about whether the student has satisfied expectations.

Sometimes a particular approach is not effective because of the student's competence with respect to the task at hand.  In the discussion of the learning vector, a more directive approach is needed when the topic is new to the student.  For example, the student may not respond well to your request to tell you what his or her objectives are for the practicum.  The student may not have adequate information about your practice setting, or may not have had sufficient experience to appreciate the amount of practice required to master certain components of the role.

Observe student responses to evaluate your teaching as well as the student's performance.  Throughout the duration of your experience together, each of you will validate effective practices and find opportunities to improve.

At the conclusion of the experience, you may note some areas in which the student has not fully achieved objectives.  You will have more valid data to support this conclusion if you have tried a variety of approaches to assist the student.

Pinsky and Irby (1997) surveyed a group of physicians who were distinguished clinical teachers and asked them about episodes of failure in their teaching.  In the conclusion of their report, the researchers write that "Learning to teach involves a process of turning instructional failures into improved teaching."  (p. 976).