Reflections Of A Teaching Philosophy: Qualities Of A Good Teacher

If you ask people who their mentor was or to name a person that played a major role in their lives, chances are many people will tell you that it was their former teacher. Teachers hold a unique position in our society. Therefore, they must teach specific materials to us, and they are able to do so in means that examine our perception and unlock our intelligence. If you wish to be named as a person who motivated or inspired someone else, learn how to be an effective teacher.

Effective teaching is truly measured based on the success of the students in the class. Reflections by the teacher as well as a revision of the methods used in the classroom indicate a teacher that is willing to grow professionally. Teachers have a great deal of autonomy; therefore, it is up to the individual, in large part, to become the best teacher he or she can be.

Becoming a better, if not the best teacher is something all educators should be concerned with. Good teachers are effective classroom managers and communicators who can adapt to a variety of learning styles and effectively instruct a large percentage of the class. Improvement of teaching in the classroom can be obtained by putting together a plan of action and following it through. Teachers who create the further effort to develop their teaching can mark an important effect on the lives of students.

Being in the public service for almost 12 years, working together with the crowd of good teachers, and coached by the best teachers, I have acquired and been trained that as teachers, we need to constantly reinvent ourselves, as well as our teaching styles, for us to adapt to this fast - paced changing world.

We teach so that students will learn, and when learning doesn't happen, we need to be willing to devise new strategies, think in new ways, and generally do anything possible to revive the learning process. It's wonderful to have a good methodology, but it's better to have students engaged in good learning.

We should routinely think about and reflect on our classes, our students, our methods, and our materials. We must compare and contrast, draw parallels and distinctions, review, remove and restore. Failing to observe what happens in our classes on a daily basis disconnects us from the teaching and learning process, because it's impossible to create connectivity if we've disconnected ourselves. If we reflect honestly and thoughtfully on what happens in our classes, we will often find dilemmas we cannot immediately resolve, questions we cannot answer. Our teaching benefits if we can live for a little while with a question, think and observe, and let an answer develop in response to the specific situation we face.

Good teaching is not a static state, but a constant and changing process. We have new opportunities to become better teachers every day; good teachers are the ones who see more opportunities than they miss. And I hope that all learning and experiences I have in the past, will be applied inside the four corners of our classroom, for the benefit of not only me, but most importantly for my students.