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Teacher profession and professionalism
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Introduction An effective teacher will excite, inspire and motivate students to be active in their learning, investigate new areas of knowledge and make connections to future learning (Whitton et al 2010). When a teacher is successful, their students are motivated, mutually respectful and ready to build on their knowledge and solve real-world problems. To be a teacher of value, one must have many skills and qualities to cater for a diversity of learners and their individual development; this includes many personal traits that are noticed students. In today’s society, teachers are faced with ongoing challenges and need to be equipped with a range of teaching options and strategies so they are able to make the best possible decisions in their lessons. A teacher needs to be equipped to make appropriate decisions and consistently reflect on their effectiveness. This essay explains how professionalism, teacher reflection, decision making, classroom management, effective questioning and adhering to the constructivist model of thinking are all elements contributing to a valued professional in today’s society. Teaching For teachers to be effective their classrooms should be open, encouraging and safe environments, where a strong student-teacher relationship can be achieved (Marsh, 2008). Students should be treated with respect in order to meet their need for belonging (Eggen&Kauchak, 2010). The layout of the room and resources need to be well considered allowing different areas for different activities (Bennett &Smilanich, P. 1994) keeping in mind space for easy movement and creative work. Seating arrangements, noise level and room temperature all need to be taken into account when planning the classroom to maximise productive lea... ... middle of paper ... .... pp. 149-151 Whitton, D., Barker, K., Nosworthy, M., Sinclair, C., &Nanlohy, P. (2008).Communicating as professionals. South Melbourne: Cengage Learning Whitton, D., Barker, K., Nosworthy, Sinclair, C., Nanlohy, P. (2010). Learning for teaching: Teaching for learning. South Melbourne: Cengage Learning Wassermann, S., (1991) The art of the Question. Career and technical education: Childhood education (Summer) p. 257. Johnson, R., (1997). Questioning techniques to use in teaching. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 68(8), p.45-49. Bond, N., (2007). 12 Questioning Strategies that Minimize Classroom Management Problems. Kappa Delta Pi Record, 44(1), p.18-21. Marcos, J.M., Sanchez, E., Tillema, H.H. (2011). Teacher Reflection: What is said to be done. Journal of Education for Teaching: International Research and Pedagogy, 37(1), p.21-36.
In the article “Never Say Anything a Kid Can Say!” Steven C. Reinhart shares his struggle of finding the fundamental flaw that existed in his teaching methods. He is a great teacher, explained mathematics well, he was dedicated and caring, but his students were not learning and with low achievement results, Reinhart had to question his teaching methods. He began to challenge himself. He committed to change 10% of teaching each year and over many years he was able to change his traditional methods of instruction to more of a student-centered problem-based approach. This article promotes students to engage through the use of questioning.
The thesis of Stephen D. Brookfield’s book, Becoming a Critically Reflective Teacher, is that teachers usually have specific assumptions about what effective teaching really means and what it entails. In this regard, teachers embark on imparting knowledge and new skills to their students based on what they assume to be the best approaches as appertains to effective teaching. Additionally, Brookfield (1995, p. 9) goes on to propose that these teachers never really pose to examine the nature of these assumptions, which essentially guide the way they intuitively instruct their students. Some of these assumptions might be well-meaning but they might not necessarily translate to effective teaching. This is especially the case where the students being taught are either specialized or prone to holding their own opinions regarding the effectiveness of their teacher, which then affect the way they respond to a specific teacher’s lessons.
"Through their experiences in the classroom, workshop or workplace and the feedback received from learners, peers and through appraisal, teachers will hear messages about their subject expertise (P1) and their skills and knowledge as a teacher (P2). The process of reflection and planning should produce continuing professional development that is highly individualized; featuring activities that respond to the teacher understands of the currency of their practice". (Davies,
Using a constructivist approach, teachers facilitate learning by encouraging active inquiry, guiding learners to question their tacit assumptions, and coaching them in the construction process. This contrasts with the behavioralist approach that has dominated education, in which the teacher dissemina...
Petty, G (2009). Teaching Today - A Practical Guide. 4th ed. Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes Ltd. p1-2
Cohen, L. Manion, L. Morrison, K. and Wyse, D (2010) A guide to teaching practice. London: Routledge.
Successful teachers develop the whole child by making integrated efforts to promote their student’s academic, social and emotional learning. Children need to be aware of themselves and others; make responsible decisions, and be ethical and respectful of the people around them.
It is expected that the profession of teaching embraces many qualities of any other professional practice. Teachers must possess a combination of many qualities beginning with a strong academic background and wide-ranging knowledge. The National Framework for Professional Standards for Teaching (2003) it is the knowledge of students, curriculum, subject matter, pedagogy, education – related legislation and the specifically teaching context that is the foundation on effective teaching, and a firm foundation on which to construct well educated judgments.
...imensions of reflection: A conceptual and contextual analysis. International Journal of Progressive Education, 1(3), 58-77.
The teacher encourages the students to think and talk about concepts and ideas by asking them direct questions (Cutting and Kelly, 2015). Linking back to constructivism, the teacher’s role is to prompt and facilitate discussion. Therefore, the teacher’s main focus is on guiding students by asking questions that will lead them to develop their own conclusions/thoughts on the subject in question (Siddiqui, 2009). This can then be fed back to the class teacher helping to scaffold the children’s learning, in a constructivist learning environment, feedback is also a vital part of the process (Gensburg and Herman, 2003). It can be seen in the medium term plan in every week there is talk or discussion either in pairs or in groups with a large variety of questioning, this helps students to engage in the lessons and build on their knowledge, questioning will help them to construct their own knowledge helping to scaffold their learning, Vygotsky (1986) emphasised the importance of working with students of a higher ability, discussing ideas in order to clarify, change and further our understanding while also learning new concepts (Wilson,
For everything we do, even if it is our best performance, there is always room for improvement. It could not be different in a career such as teaching. Teachers are always self-reflecting to analyze and evaluate their own teaching methods in order to find out what works and what needs to improve. With this information in hand, teachers can come up with strategies to improve certain areas of their teaching. There are many tools teacher can use to self-reflect. As a teacher, I will continually evaluate the effects of my professional decisions and actions on students through self-reflective journals, video recordings, students’ formal and informal assessments, peer support, student and parent evaluation, and suggestion box.
This week had the biggest impact on my professional growth. During this week, I learned that meaningful reflection is " the practice or act of analyzing our actions, decisions, or products by focusing on our process of achieving them (York-Barr, Sommers, Ghere & Montie, 2006). There are many benefits of reflecting in the field of education. The most influential is the effect that reflection has on the learning that your students gain. If a teacher meaningfully reflects on their practices they will create lessons to better impact students. According to Carol Ann Tomlinson (2003), “Teacher reflection inevitably attends directly to students ' need for affirmation, contribution, power, purpose, and challenge.” Each time a teacher reflects on their work, they empower their students to learn more. Students recognize their teacher’s reflection and mimic their behavior. I feel like learning about reflection impacted me most because it showed me that I should reflect on the good and the bad. Everything that I teach should be reflected on. The more that I reflect on my work, I will be closer to becoming an expert teacher. Reflection has the biggest impact on professionalism as a teacher. If I am willing to learn from my strengths and mistakes I will impact my students to strive to the best they
Being a teacher is not an easy task as many people could think. To be a teacher does not only imply to know the subject to be taught, it also includes being willing to constantly improve oneself integrally, as much as updating the resources and materials one uses in teaching. Reflecting and analyzing over and over again the best way to teach to learn and how to make students to extend what has been learned. The many hours spend in the classroom will never be enough to plan lessons, prepare materials, review pupils tasks and exams, as well, all the administrative requirements one has to cover for whatever institution we work. Besides all this a good teacher, a professional one, will have to find the time to keep preparing to improve oneself.
Teachers face a lot of daily choice problems, such as, how classrooms and curriculums should be organized, how students' behaviors should be interpreted, how learning time can be protected, and others. Sometimes these problems seem to be so ordinary that, the teacher needs to solve the problem automatically. But in the teaching process there are also complicated choices about difficult problems that, if left unaddressed, often increase. These difficult choices call for teachers to engage in sophisticated reflection (including self-reflection). Expert teachers tend to adjust their thinking to accommodate the level of reflection a problem situation calls for.
In this course I experienced an important change in my beliefs about teaching; I came to understand that there are many different theories and methods that can be tailored to suit the teacher and the needs of the student. The readings, especially those from Lyons, G., Ford, M., & Arthur-Kelly, M. (2011), Groundwater-Smith, S., Ewing, R., & Le Cornu, R. (2007), and Whitton, D., Barker, K., Nosworthy, M., Sinclair, C., Nanlohy, P. (2010), have helped me to understand this in particular. In composing my essay about teaching methods and other themes, my learning was solidified, my knowledge deepened by my research and my writing skills honed.