The educational world of today’s society demands accountability from its teachers, because, teachers have possibly the greatest opportunity to shape a students life, not just in terms of knowledge but how they view themselves and interact with the society around them. The increased accountability has lead to the necessity for being able to identify and quantitatively assess the characteristics of a quality teacher. In its most basic form a teacher's primary purpose is to provide direction, motivation and knowledge to students ( , ), however the effectiveness of a teacher should not be determined by their ability to impart knowledge alone, the scope in which they achieve this is also of immense importance ( , ). While the effect a teacher can have on a student is undeniable, the dynamics of how a teacher produces an effective result, however, has been of vast debate (Jacobsen, Eggen & Kauchak, 2002; McBer, 2000; Killen, 1998).
There has been an inability amongst academics (Campbell, Kyriakids, and Robinson, 2003; Muijs, 2006) to agree on a set or method for quantifying the characteristics of what makes a teacher effective. This stems from societies progression over time, as the needs of communities have shifted so to has what it deems necessary, and in turn what it requires from its students and teachers. Many theorists () have presented varying, yet interrelated, characteristics of what, at the time, was considered “effective practice” ( , , p. ), however, it would not be feasible to discuss all of these in the scope of this paper. The following aims to address the most frequently mentioned characteristics of an effective teacher including; being professional and proactive,
Teachers that have a tertiary issued degree and belong...
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Teachers of the highest caliber exist, and can be developed with a focus on efforts to develop and acquire actual teaching performance. A knowledge base must be established and continuously updated to aid in the development in the quality of the educator. Effective teaching exists, but it appears that there is a need for definition, and measurement related to student achievement.
In Chapter 13, we learn about Linda Michael. She made interesting points about the way she works with gifted students. Self-contained classroom, inquiry based lessons, and flexible schedules are all part of her methods.
Accordingly, in my Overview of Education course my instructor, Professor Means granted us the opportunity to accumulate a team of intelligent and creative colleagues in order that we may be able to discover, ideate, investigate, and interpret what an effectual educator is and the multifarious qualities they heartily possess. Through successful collaboration amongst one another, we were able to paint a portraiture of an effective educator. Collaboratively, we deduced that an effective teacher is not only one who instructs students in an effective manner, but also one who is fair to all students and humble in all of his/her actions in and out of the classroom. An effective educator is also one who is goal-oriented, intrinsically motivated, and passionate towards the students emulating him/her. Individually, we utilized a supplemental resource, in which we interviewed any teacher of our predilection and integrated an expansive range of concepts, and...
Question: Discuss in detail ways that teachers can set up the learning environment in order to maximise teaching and learning, and the advantages and disadvantages that belong with such implementation.
Teaching entails an analysis of these aspects, questions, decisions and reflecting on them gives me an idea that, to become a teacher one must reflect on all of its components. This essay will show just four parts from the unit that has been taught so far, Professionalism and ethics, strategies that can be used to motivate students, a positive classroom environment and proactive classroom management. What needs to be shown is how effective a teacher can be from the knowledge that they are given.
“What does it take to be good at something in which failure is so easy, so effortless?” Atul Gawande (2007) said this in his book Better referring to the medical field, but that question can be used in the context of many fields, specifically education. The question of what it means to be an expert at teaching has taken on some urgency in the effort to reform public education (Sternberg and Hovarth, 1995). Theories of expert teaching vary throughout the educational community (Shulman, 1987; Sternberg and Hovath, 1995). Sternberg and Hovarth (1995) state that a model must be developed in teacher expertise to those teachers who are expert at teaching students from those who are merely experienced at teaching students.
Everyone knows that when it comes to making a difference in a child’s academic and life achievements, their teachers play a large role. A teacher’s ability to relate to their students, and teach them to achieve both socially and academically contributes to how effective they are. What does it mean to be an effective teacher? Overall there seems to be an emphasis on teacher effectiveness related to how well their students are performing on standardized testing. As teachers we know there is more to being an effective teacher then just teaching our students based on tests. This paper will identify different definitions of an effective teacher along with how to assess teachers on being effective.
The purpose of this paper is threefold. First, my vision of effective teaching will be further explained and supported. This will be followed by the explanation of a
Teachers’ responsibilities are not limited to the instruction of the student; educators are also responsible for their wellbeing for a goo...
There is an over simplified generalisation often bandied about in Westernised countries that belittles the job of teachers. The phrase goes along the lines of “Those who can, do. Those who can’t, teach.” While the argument against this statement could fill pages the reality is that teaching is by far one of the most demanding but fulfilling jobs in the world. Teaching may be a job that requires a university degree and some on the job training; however effective teaching is a continual process of reflections, questions and decisions. This essay will examine in depth the cyclic process of effective teachers’ reflections, questions and decisions. Effective teachers will reflect on both their own knowledge and critically evaluate their work; they question both themselves and their students in a way that digs beneath the surface and effective teachers make decisions big and small throughout their day and within their planning. An effective teacher is a professional who incorporates reflections, questions and decisions, knowing that these tie together and are part of the very essence of being a teacher (Eggen & Kauchak, 2010).
Educationalists, Lecturers, students and everyday people find it so easy to list the good characteristics that make up a good teacher; unfortunately it is not that easy to become a good teacher just by making a list. There can be no doubt the teacher profession is a c...
Defining and determining the scope and concept of teaching effectiveness is argued to be challenging for researchers (Roche & Marsh, 2000; Young & Shaw, 1999). It is not possible to limit the definition to one dimension, trait, behavior, or classroom procedure totally captures what it means to be an effective teacher. It is believed to be a multidimensional construct, including such issues as content knowledge, or pedagogical knowledge, or personality features of the teacher, and classroom dynamics (Bush, Svinicki, Kim, & Achacoso, 2006; Carnell, 2007).
Clearly, we can pin-point a top-down approach that the government has integrated in the different levels over the years to shape our education system. With such teacher-centric developments flowing in, we can see that the emphasis is now on the stake-holders of the system – the teachers. From my perspective as a trainee teacher, the vision is achievable, however in some instances; I foresee an addition to the countless dilemmas that I would face as a beginning teacher due to the contradicting objectives of the different management levels. It is too simple to pass one-size-fits-all policies and assume it may be carried out in the same way in different schools due to the dynamic nature of schools and students. This essay will be a reflection of determining my role as a teacher and also to look at...
Along these two weeks we have been prompt to make a recall to our own way of learning and why we became a teacher: Was it because coincidence, due to life circumstances, maybe because family tradition, was it a conscious decision or because someone influenced us? Whatever the answer is, we have to face reality and be conscious that being a teacher does not only means to teach a lesson and asses students learning. It requires playing the different roles a teacher must perform whenever is needed and required by our learners, identify our pupils needs and preferences, respecting their integrity and individuality but influencing and motivating them to improve themselves and become independent.
I went to primary school in the early 1980’s; I had a very typical education for the time, Maths, English, Science, with hefty doses of fear, in the form of the threat of corporal punishment. We sat in rows, no talking, no sharing of ideas just copying from the black board into our books; these days it would be termed a behaviorist model of teaching. My classmates, those who didn’t fit the norm, had a very lonely, isolated experience; in some cases I know the experience frightened them off learning forever. When I began my study I knew that there must be a better way to teach all students, and I am very glad to say there is; Groundwater –Smith, Ewing and Le Cornu (2007) state, “ for education to transcend mere schooling it requires that students be recognised as full participants in the learning process” (p.4). So, my reflections, questions and decision are based around my desire to find a teaching styles that place children firmly at the centre of learning, that respects children, and empower them; from my study I can see it is these approaches that get the best outcomes for students, and enable teachers to be truly effective. I have chosen to discuss in detail at some of the elements of my study that are at the core of effective teaching; knowing and understanding students and how to motivate them, positive and proactive classroom management, constructivist theory, and finally behaving professionally and ethically.