What Does It Mean to Be an Effective Teacher - Essay Example

Education-What Does it mean to be an effective Teacher? Name Institution Education-What Does it mean to be an effective Teacher? Introduction The main goal of a teacher is to impart knowledge in the learner. At the center, of a learning process are the views about an effective teacher and the teacher’s ability to meet the primary goals of teaching. Therefore, it is essential for every teacher to understand what it entails to be an effective teacher. From a general point of view, an effective teacher should be able to assess his or her students from where they are at, assist these students develop knowledge and get more understanding of their environment. These should be done repeatedly in order to maximize the students learning process. Effective teaching should further be able to model and emphasize honesty, respect, communication and all the desired human characteristics for a healthy community. This essay will discuss what has been covered in this unit pertaining to an effective teacher. There is diversity in the educational community with regard to what it means to be an effective teacher. Some argue that an effective teacher should be able to establish an excellent rapport with students as well as nurturing to provide a caring environment necessary for personal development. Other scholars define an effective teacher as someone who has love for learning; while others believe that it is someone who can activate students to work with more energy towards humane, social order and more just. This essay gives focus to a more robust definition of an effective teacher by considering what various academic sources and scholars say about effective teaching. What in day-to-day, in practical terms is desired of an effective teacher from the student’s point of view. Body Qualities of an effective teacher Creativity of a teacher in the classroom is an overreaching quality of an effective teacher. Creativity along with other related qualities such as originality, self-expression, and imagination has been an educational virtue for over two centuries. Creativity is particularly necessary for both the students and teachers. For a teacher to teach effectively therefore, he or she should encourage the use of imagination. This is effectively done using examples. Allowing students to write an essay from the subject’s point of view for instance, makes the students get into the essay writer’s shoes creatively and emphatically. This makes the students to think creatively and imaginatively. Student’s creativity is hugely broadened, and their learning experience is further enhanced. Creativity is particularly necessary in a learning environment in enabling students to identify with the subject of study. This is achieving through making the students employ creativity and imagination with regard to the subject of study. Furthermore, allowing students to identify with the subject, the interest of the student in the subject is fostered. Therefore, there is a likelihood of a greater grasp on the subject (Killen, 2009). An effective teacher should be able to create a positive environment for learning. He or she should organize classroom ecology in a manner that academic learning time is utilized to its maximum. A teacher is considered effective when he or she is able to manage the physical learning environment, develop procedures and routines in order to give guidelines for students to follow and develop a classroom code. This way, an effective teacher, take full control of the classroom environment. As a result, students develop a more secure feeling within the guidelines that the teacher gives since they know what they are expected of in their duties. Furthermore, students are set to be in an environment that is noise free, no confusion or chaos of any form because the teacher’s guidelines ensures that the students conduct themselves in a manner. Students will be clearly informed by the teacher of the disciplinary measures that will be taken in cases where a student oversteps on the set guidelines. This way the students will be aware of the consequences should they break any of the guidelines set by the teacher. A positive learning environment where there is an active students’ contribution towards the learning process will be achieved. The clear boundaries set by teacher’s guidelines, anxieties that are associated with confusions are reduced. This in itself makes the students to behave in a manner that meets the required standards. An effective teacher at the beginning of the school term or school year clearly set students’ behavior guidelines and class rules (Whitton et al., 2008). This will make students more comfortable with respect to what is expected of them in terms of behavior and listening procedures. Therefore, teacher’s effectiveness is dependent on its clarity on setting the student’s behavioral guidelines. This will affect the learning of the students positively. For example, the video shows how the teacher set up the classroom in a way that will involve and encourage students to participate. Effective communication, as well as listening, is an essential attribute of an effective teacher. For a teacher to convey information correctly to the students, it is very pertinent to consider what is being said and how it is said. Adequate hand gestures, facial expression and body movements, should accompany what the teacher is saying. In addition to this, the teacher should ensure that there is sufficient pausing at every appropriate interval in what is being taught. This is necessary in capturing the students’ attention in the learning process (Barry & King, 2004). In conveying, the lessons instructions, the volume and the pitch of the teacher’s talks should be done in a manner that encourages students to listen, with a lot of attention and focus, to ensure that main points are drowned from the lesson. Ineffective listening poses an enormous barrier to successful communication. Teachers should have good listening skills. This will allow them to listen with a lot of keenness to their students and thus focus on learning of the students. Likewise, their students listening skills will be developed through the example they set. Therefore, an effective teacher listens to the students and everyone else more actively and this way, such a teacher will be able to know the students’ needs, thoughts, knowledge, and concerns. The teacher in the video depicts clear listening skills by paying attention to all class movements and encouraging students to answer posed questions. An effective teacher is therefore, a person who can relate and make an effective communication with the students. He or she is, in a position, to instill a vast amount of learning information to students in a number of ways. This way, the students will not have any difficulty in approaching the teacher for any question or clarifications in the learning since the teacher will not have any trouble in answering the questions. The students will in turn get more help from the teacher and parents in their learning process (Whitton et al., 2008). During individual assessment of literacy lesson, the teacher gave students story sheets to identify various build ups in the story. Majority of them identified them with no much difficulty while others needed assistance from the other teachers. Some students sought clarification on what the teacher wanted them to identify, which shows how effective communication is between the student and teacher. The teacher should reach every student within a classroom (Mohan, 2008). An effective teacher assesses his or her students first. This will enable him or her to find the necessary ways in which students learns. This way, he or she will employ a number of methods in the teaching process to reach each student in the classroom. For a teaching process to be done effectively, a teacher should incorporate a lesson plan. This will enable the teacher to cater for all students given the fact that students have diverse learning needs. Such a teacher puts into practice the behavior of influence. Thus, an effective teacher will be a exemplary role model to the students as this will allow students to grow both socially and effectively (Hurst & Cooke, 2010). Every student within the learning environment has different needs. It is the teachers responsibilityto ensure that all the students adapt well to the learning environment. Furthermore, all students should be accommodated in order to make them succeed in their varying learning endeavors. Therefore, an effective teacher ensures that students receive the kind of education they deserve. It is vital for a teacher to remember that teaching is all about making a difference in the students’ lives. A teacher should then clearly know how to effect the students’ goals (Hurst & Cooke, 2010). An effective teacher incorporates all the needs of various students and thus, will appoint other guest teachers to help during the class activity. The guest teachers, for example, will look into the needs of middle ability children, those with hearing impairments and special needs students. Both social skills alongside bookwork should be done equally. This should be done the point where concepts are fully understood by the students. This is demonstrated by the student’s ability to apply concepts in the real world. Being able to reach all students, and positively motivate them is a desired attribute of an effective teacher. This means that a teacher should have very high standards for his or her students pertaining to showing respect and receiving respect in return. This way, the teacher will not only demand more from the students but will expect more from them. Therefore, an effective teacher should be able to reach all students in the teaching process by use of all possible learning styles. This will allow students to focus and share the teacher’s passion for the subject (Mohan, 2008). A teaching process is considered effectively done when all the aspects needed by the student both in the environment and the school curriculum are catered for. An effective teacher knows his or her students inside and outside and thus he or she does not need employ any means of discipline in their classroom. This way, the subject matter, will be conveyed effectively to the students. This will be done with having a solid grasp of management of the classroom, and developing love for the learning content and the working relationship with the students (Hurst & Cooke, 2010). To be an effective teacher, requires an individual to have a passionate love for his or her job. This love will propel the teacher to do his or her best and nothing less. A teacher will then be able to modify his or her instruction in a manner that all students will be fully reached (Mohan et al., 2008). An effective teacher does what he or she is suppose to be doing and thus students are learning what they should be learning. Apart from trying to come up with citizens who are academically upright, an effective should as well be able to teach students have the desirable characteristics of good citizens. This is achieved through the teacher’s ability to make better people from the students by effectively combining arts, academics, and community building. An effective teacher should not only care about education but also should be dedicated to the students’ success from all the possible aspects of life. This means that every teacher should get a way of utilizing the immediate environment in order to improve the day-to-day teaching and quality of learning. It is necessary for teachers to ensure that students understand that learning does not only involve the academic teaching aspect but also importantly involve developing human beings with strong personalities (Barry & King, 2004). Students’ best interests dominate an effective teacher’s minds at all time. Thus, such teachers know their teaching content as well as the best of ways to teach the content effectively. Their well-established knowledge of their students enables them to make judgments on the most effective teaching method is needed by every student. This way, the teacher will be flexible and in a position, to adapt to any arising changes within both the teaching environment and the students needs. It is therefore, very basic for an effective teacher to have a personal relationship and respect with the students while behaving in a highly professional way (Fetherston, 2007). To reach fully to all students in the teaching process, with all the required materials, teachers need to ensure that students have a positive and safe learning environment. The skills that most importantly required of a teacher are; maintenance of a robust classroom control, ability to motivate students, engaging and the desire to make the students succeed. Thus, students should be taught what they need to understand making them move on with their academics. This can be achieved through application of the multiple approaches and proper utilization of the learning resources available (Groundwater-Smith et al., 2007). To be an effective teacher, needs one to be well informed and should have a greater understanding of all the content areas being taught. Such a teacher will at all the times strive to have better lessons that improve the existing lesson. This will make the students understand the learning content much better. An effective teacher reflects and observes the students surroundings and happenings in order to judge any changes after the teaching process (Hurst & Cooke, 2010). All students in a classroom should be made to feel safe in the sense that, they get any information they want without being laughed at or ridiculed. An effective teacher therefore, lets all the students that he or she cares about all of them on an individual level (Fetherston, 2007). One should be able to spark the learning interests of all students in order to make the teaching process effective. This way, the teacher will be able to create the category of students who want to learn, and those who are in a position of developing and expressing their opinion, and those who are able to emerge successful in the society. As a result, each of the varied students varied desires are respected and cared for. Thus, the teacher turns out to be a role model to be looked to for some help (Lyons et al., 2011). Teachers should put the students’ learning and their wellbeing above everything else. An effective teacher teaches with objectivity what is meant to be taught in the lesson. These should be accompanied by good assessment of what it has been taught. In order to understand whether, the students have developed a clear understanding of taught outcomes in the learning process. This way, the teacher will be in a position of knowing if the students understood what he or she has been teaching or a repetition in lesson areas is necessary (Barry & King, 2004). Conclusion With respect to these findings, an effective teacher makes students know that they are more understood in the learning process. This way, such students will feel that their teacher was more of help to them. Consequently, the learning lesson was delivered in a more interesting and enjoyable manner. Students further feel that their teacher is easy to be along with coupled with the feeling of being cared for and well understood. Furthermore, an effective teacher should activate the students learning energy to work towards achieving a more social order and a just humane society. This far, an effective teacher should have among other qualities good listening skills, should be creative, should be able to cater for all students. This is achieved by bearing in mind their diverse background. Furthermore, teachers need to be a good role model to students. Therefore, an effective teacher should comprise of both life skills and good academic results for students they intend to inspire. References Barry, K. & King, L. (2004). Beginning teaching and beyond (3rd Ed.). South Melbourne: Social Science Press. Fetherston, T. (2007). Becoming an effective teacher. USA: SAGE publishers. Grellier, J. & Goerke, V. (2010). Communication skills toolkit: Unlocking the secret of tertiary success. South Melbourne: Cengage Learning. Groundwater-Smith, S., Ewing, R., & Le Cornu, R. (2007). Teaching challenges & dilemmas (3rd. ed). South Melbourne: Thompson. Hurst, C. & Cooke, A. (2010). Introduction to Teaching. South Melbourne: Cengage. Killen, R. (2009). Effective teaching strategies: Lessons from research and practice. New York, NY: Cengage Learning. Lyons, G., Ford, M., & Arthur-Kelly, M. (2011). Classroom Management: Creative positive learning environments. South Melbourne: Cengage Learning. Mohan, T., McGregor, H., Saunders, S. & Archee, R. (2008). Communicating as professionals. South Melbourne: Cengage Learning. Whitton, D., Barker, K., Nosworthy, M., Sinclair, C., & Nanlohy, P. (2008). Communicating as professionals. Oxford: Oxford university press. EDP120 SP1 2012 ASSIGNMENT TWO: LESSON PLAN STUDENT NAME: ID: LESSON PLAN Learning Area Year Time Date English 6 Topic/ Lesson Title Literacy – How to write an effective piece of narrative (action and dilemma) PREPARATION Follow up lesson for Video – Literacy, http://www.schoolsworld.tv/node/2056?terms=64,86,250 Rationale / Goal The purpose of the lesson is to look at two components in literature. Action and dilemma as observed in a narrative. Brainstorming is the main idea, but inclusive in the concept are question listing, reading, writing and listening skills. Learning area links as per curriculum/syllabus Writing, listening, reading, participation, communication, materials, technology process. Children’s prior knowledge/experience Introduced the topic (literature) and defined some of the common parts in a narrative, which include opening, build up, dilemma, events and residential (reflection of characters in the narrative). Read the story in class. Objectives At the end of the lesson the children will be able to: Able to identify the structure of a narrative Understands clearly what each component entails and how they relate to each other Defines the basic components of how a build up comes in a story and lists down some of the main parts. Preparation / Resources Independent writing skills emphasized thus will need sponges and whiteboards. Radio for those with hearing impairments. PROCEDURE Introduction/Motivation Brainstorming on previous class by introducing a concept map on previous readings map in class. Students to identify the matching definitions of concepts displayed and give a reason why they chose the definition (support their answer). This gives a clear reflection on what areas need emphasis. Main Body of the lesson Focus question is build up by referring to action and dilemma. Understanding checked by involving students in mentioning the attributes relating to build up. Students list and mention the aspects then teacher clarifies for them. This will give them a clear picture on what the inquiry is all about and enables them follow through the class teachings. Teachers use demonstrations and illustrate examples with relevance to narrative. Closure/ Student reflection Give them an assignment to work on individually to access their understanding of the inquiry. Allow those with questions to forward them and engage the rest of the class in answering them. Assessment Concept maps construction, Writing generalized statements, Early work revisit, Peer assessment, Cooperative learning, Self-assessment, Whole class instruction. SELF REFLECTION My teaching was effective since all students were considered during the class work. Allocating visiting teachers to help in caring for the needs of other students enabled me attain all required goals and objectives of the lesson. Motivation, communication, listening Ethical in relating with students Creative. Read More