Dispositions Essay
Being a professional, ethical English teacher entails more than just being a superficially satisfactory teacher. First, the teacher must be dynamic and constantly conscious of the changing needs of his or her students. The use of a diverse range of teaching strategies and lesson plans that incorporate cutting edge technology or ideas is vital to the classroom. Especially in modern times, the traditional approaches to English Language Arts have advanced and may not necessarily work for the newer generation. The voices and opinions of students should be heard and English teachers should be able to help students express themselves, whether it is through texts than can relate to or exposing them to new literacies. Effective teachers are also ones that keep Rosenblatt’s notion of a “live circuit” alive in their classrooms. Teachers need to constantly challenge their students, showing them that they are not limited but can achieve anything. The passion and positivity teachers exude in their classroom can light up a classroom and lead to more productivity. Lastly, I believe a professional, ethical English teacher shows his or her student the path to greatness beyond success in the classroom. They are the teachers who teach their students skills that they will use later in their lives or to help improve their community. A professional, ethical English teacher not only improves him or herself during their employment of service, they improve their students.
There are several issues that a good teacher would come across during the daily tasks of planning, conducting and evaluating lessons. In planning, the teacher must think about each class and what serves them best. For example, one class may enjoy performance activities while another class enjoys technology related activities. While a teacher should give them a good balance of activities, if a class learns best with one method, a teacher should consider this for his or her lesson plans. For conducting a class, again the teacher will need to rely on his or her judgment as to what would best fit the class. From group work to individual work, from a pod set up of desks to desks set up in rows, the conduct of the class goes back to the students. For evaluations, rubrics and handouts which clearly state the requirements and grading system need to be distributed to students and their parents. This way, evaluations can be done fairly since the students and their parents were made aware of the expectations.
As educators, there will never be a point in time where we know everything we need to know to be the best teacher possible. The need for a teacher’s constant education is extremely important not only for their own knowledge, but to be a better teacher for their students. With the creation of hundreds of online blogs and conferences taking place across the nation, a teacher who does not take advantage of them does not pass along any benefits being offered to his or her students. Also, continuous interaction with colleagues and peers is important to receive constructive feedback or to gain insight from their experiences. While the input of others definitely should not overshadow the personal opinion and teaching approach of a teacher, they should take it into consideration and perhaps even modify it to fit their teaching style.
Regarding important and controversial issues that may arise in the classroom, the best policy is honestly. Teachers who try to hide issues to stray the conversation away from them are robbing their students of an opportunity to have a healthy discussion about them. Controversy, when treated with respect and with care, can bring about positive experiences in the classroom. Literary works are also a great resource for students to be more informed about issues and make their own minds up regarding their personal opinions. The student body is so diverse in regards to life experiences, cultures and societal norms that these divisions and issues beg to be discussed. A successful teacher would acknowledge this and use it to his or her advantage in the classroom.
There can never be a concrete definition of a professional, ethical teacher as in a matter of minutes the definition can change. However, putting the academic and personal well being of students, taking the time to educate themselves, being able to inspire positive change and growth within a student, partaking in self reflection and helping students confront important issues are all aspects of a good teacher that will never change with time.
There are several issues that a good teacher would come across during the daily tasks of planning, conducting and evaluating lessons. In planning, the teacher must think about each class and what serves them best. For example, one class may enjoy performance activities while another class enjoys technology related activities. While a teacher should give them a good balance of activities, if a class learns best with one method, a teacher should consider this for his or her lesson plans. For conducting a class, again the teacher will need to rely on his or her judgment as to what would best fit the class. From group work to individual work, from a pod set up of desks to desks set up in rows, the conduct of the class goes back to the students. For evaluations, rubrics and handouts which clearly state the requirements and grading system need to be distributed to students and their parents. This way, evaluations can be done fairly since the students and their parents were made aware of the expectations.
As educators, there will never be a point in time where we know everything we need to know to be the best teacher possible. The need for a teacher’s constant education is extremely important not only for their own knowledge, but to be a better teacher for their students. With the creation of hundreds of online blogs and conferences taking place across the nation, a teacher who does not take advantage of them does not pass along any benefits being offered to his or her students. Also, continuous interaction with colleagues and peers is important to receive constructive feedback or to gain insight from their experiences. While the input of others definitely should not overshadow the personal opinion and teaching approach of a teacher, they should take it into consideration and perhaps even modify it to fit their teaching style.
Regarding important and controversial issues that may arise in the classroom, the best policy is honestly. Teachers who try to hide issues to stray the conversation away from them are robbing their students of an opportunity to have a healthy discussion about them. Controversy, when treated with respect and with care, can bring about positive experiences in the classroom. Literary works are also a great resource for students to be more informed about issues and make their own minds up regarding their personal opinions. The student body is so diverse in regards to life experiences, cultures and societal norms that these divisions and issues beg to be discussed. A successful teacher would acknowledge this and use it to his or her advantage in the classroom.
There can never be a concrete definition of a professional, ethical teacher as in a matter of minutes the definition can change. However, putting the academic and personal well being of students, taking the time to educate themselves, being able to inspire positive change and growth within a student, partaking in self reflection and helping students confront important issues are all aspects of a good teacher that will never change with time.
