Taylor Crosby
What
Makes a Good Teacher
It is a question that all concerned with education
struggle with: “What makes a good teacher?” Though there are varying answers to
this controversial question depending upon the opinion and perspective of the
one answering, it seems that there are four qualities that are absolutely
necessary in the development of successful teaching. Above all, a teacher
should be organized/prepared, creative, aware, and passionate.
When reviewing a good teacher, probably the most
important and necessary quality is to have organizational and preparatory
skills. Organization skills are a key
part of becoming a good teacher. This includes organization of units, lesson
plans, homework assignments, assessment systems, scheduling, degrees of
punishment, and so on. Planning is at the base of all classrooms. A
well-planned classroom makes way for a successful
classroom. A teacher who is not well-organized takes time away from both class
and personal time trying to improvise or quickly create a successful lesson. In
the long run, improvising eventually leads to a colossal, disorganized mess in
which achievement is almost impossible However,
by keeping oneself organized, the teacher creates an open and goal-oriented environment
within which learning is not distracted or taken away from. Being organized is
a part of being prepared. Within the context of a teacher, being prepared helps
avoid possible problems in the future. Anything can happen at any given moment.
Controversy is a teacher’s worst enemy. It lurks around every corner and
presents itself in the most unexpected ways at the most unexpected of times,
threatening jobs. A teacher should be prepared for any controversy that may
arise from any lesson, book, etc. A prepared teacher is a teacher ready to take
on any task with a well-organized and understanding nature. Teachers should
also be prepared for unruly, rowdy, or distracting students and how to appropriately
handle them in order to help guide them to inspiration and success. Without both of these important skills, not
only is a teacher going to have a very difficult time doing his or her
extremely important job, but he or she would also be wasting valuable
development for each student in a tornado of confusion.
While the previous qualities are important, creativity is
also a necessary quality to obtain. A teach is only as good as the success of
his students, and how can one’s student be successful if one cannot even engage
the students to participate in the first place? The answer is: they can’t.
Students are very easily bored. They don’t want to be sitting in class
listening to their teacher ramble about measuring the meniscus correctly or how
to convert decimals into percentages all day. To them, there are much better
things they could be spending their time doing. School is the last thing on
their minds. Thus, teachers need to dig deep into their inner youngsters and
start getting creative—songs, plays, projects, movies, games, discussions!—there
are so many different ways that teachers can introduce and teach topics or
curriculum, and the more creative they are, the more likely they are to engage
the students’ interests. All students learn differently and, due to these
different learning styles, teachers need to find new ways to connect to each
and every student in order to help them to success.
While creativity is important, teachers also need to
understand that while being creative, they also need to watch out from straying
too far from the subject matter. Lessons need to be both informative and fun.
If the lesson allows for too much fun then the students will become distracted.
One also must make sure that the creative lesson is not inappropriate or can
lead to controversy. If a lesson might appear to be a little risqué, then
permission slips should be sent to each student’s parents to notify them of the
upcoming lesson plans. Creativity needs to be seconded to appropriate learning.
Thus, creativity must be accompanied by a third, very important quality:
awareness.
Awareness refers to many thing in terms of good teaching.
In regards to creativity, teachers need to be aware of youth culture. In other
words, they need to be aware of what is modern. Creativity, in exchange of
class participation and engagement, is great, but, if students are unfamiliar
with certain outdated teaching tools, they, in turn, will become bored and,
thus, the teacher will be stuck at square one again. For example, a teacher might want to give the
students a visual representation of their lesson on volcanoes. While the
teacher might think a documentary from the 60’s might be a highly educational
and fun way to engage the students, they might not think so. Not only is the
film outdated, but it was also not made to appeal to a younger audience. Most
outdated documentaries feature voice-overs of monotonous males stating facts as
the camera slowly pans over stagnant shots of the subject matter. The film, if
anything at this point, just serves as nap time for the students. They lay
their heads down in their arms crossed on top of their desk and snooze. But say
that the students watched a YouTube video made by some comedic scientists on their science YouTube
channel about volcanoes (there are many) which proves to be both hilariously
entertaining while, at the same time, expelling facts and demonstrating the mechanics
of a volcano and why they erupt. They might be more likely to pay attention.
There are all sorts of scientific related shows on television that may serve as
better visuals than some outdated documentaries (Mythbusters, Bill Nye, Mad
Science, etc.) Thus, if a teacher is aware of the times and modern youth culture,
then that are more likely to be able to relate to and engage the students.
Awareness
is more than just an awareness of the times. Awareness entails awareness of
students and student behavior. Which students are and are not comprehending the
material? How can this be helped? Which students seem isolated from the rest of
the class? Which students are being bullied? Which student are having a hard
time working in groups? Which students roll their eyes or yawn when you are
giving a lesson? Which ones have learning disabilities? Which ones receive free
lunch? Why might they receive free lunch? All students come from different
backgrounds and these differences in backgrounds influence who they are as
students and how they think. Teachers need to be aware of these specifics and
factor them into their teaching tactics and plans in order to ensure equal
opportunity and attention to all students.
Awareness
here also refers to the awareness of the expectations and goals of parents, the
school, the community, the nation, and, most importantly, the self. A teacher needs to be aware of all of these
differences of view and bring them to a happy medium, while still keeping/ sticking
to their own teaching beliefs. This is very important. The teacher is the one
who has been trained to teach students. While the teacher needs to be
understanding of all opinions and needs to take them into consideration, the
teacher also must not stray from their teaching beliefs or methods.
Finally,
the last quality that makes a good teacher is passion. Passion is extremely
important for any teacher to have. If a teacher does not have a passion for
their subject matter, a passion for children, a passion for learning, a passion
for teaching, or a passion for knowledge, then what is the point? Inspiration
feeds off of passion when it is ever-present. If a teacher feels passion for his
or her job then this passion will radiate outward in every lesson, every activity,
every spoken word, and will eventually reach students. One must think of it as
such: If the teacher doesn't want to be there then why would the students? Passion
is what keeps a class moving forward and progressing. A passionate teacher
encourages learning and never gives up on a student. They are determined to
make a student succeed, because their passion for learning, teaching, and
knowledge allow them to push forward and inspire others. Passion is the fire
that keeps a teacher going. Without passion, there is little hope for those
being taught.
Overall,
a teacher needs to have organizational and preparatory skills to act as a glue
to hold the class together, creativity to grab the attention of the students
and reach all types of students, awareness to pinpoint issues and avoid them,
and passion to keep the class’s energy up and to encourage them to stay
determined in becoming successful students.
