Teacher Educators
I began my quest with the goal to examine how I can better prepare pre-service by asking, what is a good teacher educator? What knowledge, skills, or competencies should a teacher educator possess? Little is known about the professional quality of teacher educators (Koster, Brekelmans, Korthagen, & Wubbels, 2005; Zeichner, 1999). It is problematic that many assume that an effective teacher will make a good teacher educator (Korthagen, Loughran, & Lunenberg, 2005) or conversely, that an effective teacher educator will make a good teacher (Ritter, 2014). These views suggest that teacher educators are neither particularly specialized nor highly valued (Korthagen et al., 2005). As noted in Chapter 1, these assumptions are inconsistent with the growing body of research describing the expertise required for teacher educators (Korthagen et al., 2005; Koster et al., 2005; Loughran & Russell, 2007; Murray & Male, 2005). Additionally, when viewed through a constructivist lens, the importance of the teacher educator is heightened when one acknowledges that the teacher educator facilitates the students’ development of their own knowledge and skills (Korthagen et al., 2005).
Shulman (1986) also highlights the importance of the teacher educator. University instructors often are content specialists while in schools of education an instructor may be viewed as a pedagogical specialist. Shulman argues that for a teacher “content knowledge is likely to be as useless as a
The differences were connected with a teacher’s original preparation for the teaching profession, licensing in the particular subject area to be taught, strength of the educational experience, and the degree of experience in teaching along with the demonstration of abilities through the National Board Certification, in which all of these facets can be addressed through policy (Darling-Hammond, 2010).America has not produced a national method containing supports and reasons to guarantee that teachers’ are adequately prepared and equipped to teach all children effectively when they first enter into the career of teaching. America also does not have a vast collection of methods available that will maintain the evaluation and continuing development of a teacher’s effectiveness in the classroom, or support decisions about entry into the field of teaching and the continuance in the profession of teaching (Darling-Hammond, 2010). n order to reach the belief that all students will be taught and learn to high standards calls for a makeover in the methods our system of education in order to be a magnet for, train, support or uphold, and cultivate effective teachers in more efficient ways. A makeover that is contingent in a certain degree of how the abilities or skills are comprehended (Darling-Hammond, 2010).In the last few years there has been increasing
Teaching is an extremely important profession as we are responsible for training up the future generations of our community, country and in effect, the world. In order to be a successful and effective teacher there are some basic skills and competencies that one must possess. The experiences that students have inside (and outside) our classrooms, schools and various other institutes will shape and mould their approach to our subjects and to life in general. Therefore, it requires a certain level of skill and training to be deemed professionally fit to enter into this career path and even then, continuous
The National Education Association feels that the education profession involves a unified labor force attending the needs of all students and the term “educator” extends to the support personnel as well. The educator believes in the value and pride of each student, recognizes the extreme significance in the search of the truth, and devoted to excellence. The defense of the freedom to learn, teach, and guarantee the equal educational opportunity for all are essential to the goals of an educator. The educator will identify the extent of responsibility essential to the teaching process. The educator hopes to obtain the respect and confidence of their colleagues, students, parents, and
As a student in the Education Department at Saint Mary’s College, I have been assigned a set of eight standards to fulfill before graduation. Having these standards guides all students in becoming the necessary well-rounded teacher candidates needed to go into the field of education and ultimately becoming a successful teacher in the future. Each standard relates to a different area, including having a broad and comprehensive understanding of learning processes, the professional environment, and content. Throughout the last two years, I have had a number of opportunities, both in the field and in my classes at Saint Mary’s, to meet these eight standards.
Being a teacher is one of the most difficult professions in the world. We are responsible for the education of all the future citizens. As teachers, content will always be a major component of what we do but it should not be what drives us. Kottler, Zehm, and Kottler (2005), authors of “On Being a Teacher: The Human Dimension”, believe that the “goal of education is not to teach subject matter but to promote the development of productive and positive human beings.” In order to accomplish that,
The authors’ collaborative research began by exploring the future of education and the teaching profession. Through their research, they swiftly concluded a vast majority of people shared the notion that the most important factor that effects student learning is the quality of the teacher. Andy Hargreaves and Michael Fullan continued to take a closer look at how one can maximize the cumulative effect of many quality teachers over time, and the favorable lasting impact this would have on the education of students for many years to come. The ultimate goal of Professional Capital is to increase human capital or the individual teacher’s talents, skills, and capabilities. However, this human capital needs to be distributed and
In theory the more education and preparation a teacher has, the higher the quality and delivery of such content. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act does its best to recruit the most qualified teachers but falls short of covering other practices that “accommodate student diversity, develop the habits of reflective practitioners and gain a full understanding of the teacher’s changing roles” (Thompson & Smith, 2005, p.74). Without
Best practice methods of preparing teachers for the classroom were addressed in an article by Cochran-Smith, et al. (2011). This study reviewed research on how to best prepare teachers for the classroom. 6 different genres were reviewed. Qualitative studies were conducted to help understand policy and practice for the best ways to train teachers. The genres that were tested were teacher certification, educational background, entry pathways, teacher preparation, age of beginning teaching, and life history. Studies consistently found that university bases preparation helped pre service teachers. The research showed that there was evidence that teacher characteristics and school workplace conditions affect teacher retention. According to the article, further research is needed to understand more about teaching practice and retention. They recommended using more federal funds and grants to research best preparation practices more.
The alternative teacher preparation program that this research will address is Teach for America (TFA). TFA is a popular program that provides many school districts in rural and urban areas with teachers. The founder, Wendy Kopp, does not have a background in education, but gained her interest in the profession after hearing about the national teacher shortage and the issue of uncertified teachers in urban and rural areas. While Kopp was conducting research for her thesis, she contacted the director of the National Education Association with her idea, and the director thought it was interesting, but said it would only be effective if the recruits were “career educators”
UAB School of Education is dedicated to educating and providing support to future professionals who wish to become an educator. UAB provides prospective teacher candidates with field experience in diverse settings to prepare them to be an effective teacher and professional after graduation. Prospective teacher candidates are assessed for their performance and effectiveness as a teacher throughout their time in the pre-TEP and TEP programs. This essay will answer four prompts that will be both informative and reflective in nature to demonstrate my understanding of the assessment framework in which I will be assessed during my time as an undergraduate at UAB. As a prospective teacher candidate, I appreciate and respect the assessment
Teaching is an undervalued profession. Being a teacher requires a lot of time commitment to your students and classroom. Teachers are often times looked at as an easy profession to go into and do not really get recognized for all they do. With so much technology coming out teachers are having a harder and harder time being able to use it because their school does not offer the use of technology. Students no longer want to learn out of textbooks they want to learn with projects and learn through technology because technology is an important use in their everyday lives. Students also want to be more engaged in projects because this will help them make decisions and to collaborate with others. If teachers were paid more and schools were modernized this would help schools become more appealing to students.
The first of the five is aptitude. Being a post secondary history teacher means you need to have good aptitude. According to the bureau of labor statics“Aptitude means the ability to do something or the natural ability to do something.” You need to be able to do basic skills but also be able to learn new skills. The bureau also states“A postsecondary teacher needs to have good critical thinking skills to conduct research experiments.” As a teacher you would need to go out into the field and learn/ study about you topic. A third thing the bureau says is “These teachers need good Interpersonal skills to work well with other and have good communication skills” When you are teaching you will be in front of students teaching or talking about the subject and without communication skills you would not be able to teach. According to the college board“A good post secondary teacher needs to be resourcefulness they need to be able to adapt their teaching style to the student's learning style.” You need to be prepared for any type of student who walks into your classroom. Also according to the college board“The teacher needs to have good writing skills in order to publish their findings and research” As i said before you will be publishing work you find. Without good writing skills you will not be able to do this task.
It is important to have frequent interactions with children as this enables them to know us and vice versa. When we get to know them it is easier for us to know about their likes and dislikes, their interests, preferences and this helps us to organise activities for them. It is important to have caring and respectful interactions as when the children feel that the educator care for them they will feel safe and will be able to trust the educator. The trust will bring confidence in the child. When the educator respects the children the children will respect the educator in return.
When I think about teachers that I have had in the past, several different ones come to my mind. Each of these educators stands out in my mind for a variety of diverse reasons. Whether it is their sense of humor, their tactfulness, their love of the subject matter, their fanatical and sporadic behavior, or their yearning to be childish themselves, I can still remember at least one quality of every teacher I have ever encountered. Every one of these teachers conveyed subject material to their students just as they were educated and employed to do. However, I trust that every professional in the world has an abundance of opportunity for improvement; teachers could discover and improve themselves merely by having
Yeban (2002) continued that new imperatives are forcing teacher education institutions to re-visit and re-think their assumptions, theories, and practices about the kind of teachers that must be produced. The current curriculum where the respondents of the study belong is deemed insufficient to address these concerns. Issues such as the growing gap between theory and practice, failure to make teachers