What makes a good teacher 1996

They did not make any special arrangements either, which is typical of most teachers. A slightly mischievous twinkle in his eyes, he challenges pupils regularly. The team observed him teaching Class Two in Punjabi in a lively, spontaneous style.

He was teaching geometry, rarely taught in schools. He explained the difference between a square and a rectangle through real life examples, e. He showed children a square and said: Teacher: What is this? Pupils [in chorus]: It is a square Teacher: No, this is a rectangle.

Pupils [in chorus]: No, no it is a square.. Teacher: Is the Ustad lying? Pupils in chorus : Yes, Ustadji Teacher [laughingly] You are right. He then asked the children to run around the school and identify things representing the different shapes.

Teacher 2 Shahida Jabeen: 25 years old, M. A neat, clean and active teacher, smiling, confident, with a very attractive presence. She looks you full in the eyes when talking. She recited a beautiful poem in an attractive and effective style. She has full confidence in her children. Every child answered questions confidently, even in her absence. She gave a lot of importance to her children and their abilities. Shahida assists the head, who has joined recently, in office matters with pleasure rather than considering it a burden.

She idealizes and models her father, especially his honesty, commitment and hard work. She wants to continue his mission. She considers teaching a profession of prophets. While the other teachers, who are married, like to talk of family and children during spare time, Shahida prefers to read a book. She believes a teacher should learn continuously, and the department should provide them opportunities for training. Ed, 5 years experience, teacher of Class 5 at Talent Hall, a private school in Lahore for lower and lower middle class children.

A friendly, confident and pleasant teacher, she answered every question thoughtfully in a soft voice with correct pronunciation. Saima enjoys teaching. She always links a new lesson to the previous one also observed by the team. She is kind to children but also firm. She is flexible, accommodative and treats children fairly.

Children like her very much. She is very friendly with her colleagues and often assists the head. She often consults the head and colleagues on how to make the lesson more effective. She deals with parents in a very respectful manner. During her spare time she listens to music, and read books on Islamic history, general knowledge and autobiographies. PTC, 5 tears experience, teacher, Govt. A neat and clean teacher, simply dressed, confident, active, with a soft and attractive voice.

All my family members are educated. I had the freedom to adopt any profession. I studied in a school in Parachinar. My teacher impressed me and I decided to become a teacher. Today when I work, I feel that I do all the things that she used to do. For example, when her children do something correctly she encouragingly says: "You do it even better than me.

She goes to the class fully prepared. She always tries to use AV aids during teaching, and makes all efforts to obtain them. She also has a good handwriting. She does not simply teach children but ensures that children learn. She checks children copies at home. She says that she teaches out of interest rather than doing a job. Shabana is always eager to learn.

If she finds anything of interest to children, e. She is very fond of poetry and writes poems and national songs for children. She considers her colleagues her friends and a source of strength. She assists the head in all possible ways. She had no complaints about anything. For example, she said that it was good if there was no furniture, as she had more space for activities and group work. She is very popular. All the teachers praised her. She said that it had made good teachers out of even ordinary persons.

The average scores on these behaviours is given in Annex Five. The average score of. Since most teachers were observed only twice this indicates excellent teaching. Thus it was not possible to observe all aspects of a lesson e. Despite these limitations most teachers have demonstrated excellent teaching skills, justifying their selection as outstanding teachers. Keeping the limitations of the small sample size in mind we have ventured to draw some conclusions about the variations in teacher performance in relation to different teaching behaviours, and within different categories of teachers.

The average scores of female and urban teachers is somewhat higher than that of male and rural teachers, but the difference is not large enough to be significant, particularly when the number of teachers assessed was small.

However, the Peshawer females and the Kasur male teacher have scored better than teachers of other categories. In analysing specific teaching behaviours the following conclusions can be drawn: All the teachers started teaching without wasting time, had a clear and loud voice, and used simple language to explain.

Most teachers gained attention of pupils at the start of the lesson more male , created a pleasant environment for learning, gave examples to clarify concepts, checked that each pupil had understood, used blackboard appropriately, spelled words correctly, provided pupils opportunity for practice, encouraged positive behaviour, and maintained discipline.

Many teachers asked thought-provoking questions, avoided scolding more male , assessed past knowledge, used correct pronunciation, explained topic and objectives of lesson.

However, most teachers did not use audio-visual aids appropriately, did not give feedback to pupils about performance, and failed to summarize the lesson at the end. Female teachers did better than male teachers in explaining the topic and objectives of the lesson, assessing past knowledge, using correct pronunciation, using audio-visual aids and blackboard appropriately, and summarizing lesson in the end. Urban teachers did better than rural in assessing past knowledge, explaining the topic and objectives of lesson, using blackboard appropriately, spelling words correctly, providing pupils opportunity for practice, encouraging positive behaviour, and maintaining discipline.

On the other hand rural teachers did better than urban in using correct pronunciation, giving examples to clarify concepts, gaining attention of pupils at the start of the lesson, and using audio-visual aids appropriately.

Parents listen to her more than to me because she has a nice style and she is from the village. Their responses are given below.

Many teachers said that the ideal teacher had a balanced voice, a sweet tone neither loud nor soft, not fast, and with correct pronunciation. Almost all said that the ideal teacher was dutiful, regular and punctual. Some other desirable qualities included: honesty, selflessness, courage, problem solving skills, rationality, impressive speech, commitment to teaching, self-help, sympathy, just, and active.

A good teacher should be well trained, a role model, and do social work. The Ustad should transfer them to children. If the teacher is good there is heaven. A few teachers said that an ideal teacher is a continuous learner.

Almost all the teachers said that the teacher should complete the syllabus. Many said that the teacher should revise the lesson. Most of them also said that there should be planning in other aspects of life as well. Almost all the teachers said that the teacher should question students and assess their existing knowledge before providing them new knowledge. A few teachers said that teachers should take children from the known to the unknown, from easy to difficult. Some rural teachers said that the teacher should question children.

The children should be able to understand what the teacher says. Some teachers said that the teacher should explain through activities. Some said that the teacher should teach to the point. Some female teachers in Lahore mentioned the use of discussion to involve children. A few teachers said that the teacher should have good handwriting. Almost all the teachers said that the teacher should use audio-visual aids during teaching.

About half said that the teacher should definitely use the blackboard. However, some mostly female said that the teacher should give less homework e.

A few female teachers said that the teacher should make good use of time, and spend maximum time with children. Suggestions for time management included: giving children work and checking copies; combining teaching, questioning and testing; following lesson plan; discuss daily life matters with children in spare time.

Some rural teachers said that the ideal teacher knows about the home conditions of their students. A few teachers more female said that the ideal teacher teaches in a loving manner rather than beating children. Teachers in Peshawer and Haripur mentioned the use of jokes, stories, songs and poetry.

A few male teachers in Kasur said that the ideal teacher should be close to children like a mother. To handle large classes many teachers more male recommended formation of groups and appointment of monitors to teach more effectively. A few, mostly urban, teachers recommended that teachers use able children to discipline the class.

Some teachers said that to teach more than one class at a time the teacher should teach one class, give them work, and then teach the second class.

Some other techniques recommended mainly by female teachers included the following: attend to children who are inattentive; question children about their work; avoid scolding children if they ask questions; provide recreation along-with teaching; control noise by keeping children busy in work. Most teachers said that the teacher should pay special attention to weak and very small children. Many rural teachers said that the teacher should attach weak students with bright students.

Some recommended seating them in front. A number of teachers, mostly female, said that the teacher should talk to shy children alone, and encourage them to read and speak in the class. Other techniques recommended include talking about everyday matters, and organising games amongst shy children. Many teachers recommended that naughty children be controlled through counseling, they should be appointed as monitors, and should be seated near the teacher under close supervision.

A few teachers recommended reprimanding children who caused damage, while physical punishment was recommended in extreme cases. Some teachers said that the teacher should co-operate with the head. A few teachers in Kasur said that the teacher should respect the headteacher from their heart. I personally went to her on my cycle. I implored the mother to send the child to school.

I also helped her financially, and was able to keep the child in school until the Class five examination. Our problems are quite different. Who will understand them! Many others said that the teacher deals with parents respectfully. Tell them to give time to the child, not make him do chores at home, provide him necessary things.

A few said that good training at home contributes to making a good teacher. Some rural teachers said that the co-operation of students was necessary e. Other factors mentioned included: a cooperative head and positive attitude of administration and staff, availability of AV aids, regular supervision and guidance of teachers by officials mentioned more by rural teachers , healthy psychological environment of school, discipline, good salary and increments, and awards for good performance mentioned by some urban teachers.

We feel ashamed to tell anyone that we are teachers. Other factors included availability of training facilities and good quality of training. Almost all the teachers said that the good teacher is fond of studying. Some of the other qualities mentioned included good taste, and being active.

If she does not know something she asks without hesitation. She gives attention to new things. He does not have many expectations from others.

Many teachers more rural said that the teacher had a soft and mild voice. Some teachers mostly Lahore females said that the teacher definitely contacted the parents of children with problems. She deals with them very astutely. Many teachers said that the teacher had good relationship with the head and colleagues. Male teachers emphasised brotherliness, while female teachers stressed respectfulness. Few teachers said that the teacher prayed regularly and had good religious knowledge.

Most teachers said that the teacher had a good command over the curriculum and covered the complete syllabus. They said that the teacher taught with concern. Half the teachers said that the teacher was punctual, while most more females said that the teacher was rarely absent from school. A few said that the teacher also conducted co-curricular activities. Teachers also mentioned some other activities carried out by the teacher during free time: stitching, reading, working for children, checking copies, etc.

Some teachers said that the students of the teacher always got good results. A few male teachers said that the teacher was financially comfortable due to agricultural land. Some teachers said that this planning was also reflected in other things. A number of teachers more males also said that the teacher maintained diaries of what they taught. In some cases they wrote weekly diaries that were checked by the head.

Some teachers used the inquiry method of teaching. Some teachers said that the teacher taught clearly, and explained with examples and actual events. A few rural teachers said that the teacher used the blackboard.

All the teachers said that the teacher gave and checked homework. She gives some homework for practice. Once a child got injured while playing. He took the child to hospital himself, and then dropped the child home.

The children mostly surround him. Many teachers more male said that the teacher paid special attention to weak and shy students. Some teachers formed groups, mixing weak and bright students so that the former could benefit from the latter. Another method mentioned was frequent testing of weak children. Some teachers said that the teacher controlled the class well, and kept children busy more urban teachers.

Different methods to control naughty children included threats more urban females , giving them responsibility such as monitoring more males ; counselling students and explaining the importance of studying; informing head or parents.

Some rural male teachers said that the teacher used punishment reasonably. The qualities described by parents are mainly based on what they hear from their children.

The same are given in the following pages. Almost all parents said that the teacher covered the complete syllabus. He does not just do his duty. Many parents said that the good teacher was highly competent in all subjects. About half the parents said that their children did not study tuition. However, an equal number said that their children took maths tuition. A few said that their children studied tuition in a number of subjects. Many parents said that the teacher was very loving and respectful with children.

He plays with them and relates his childhood stories. Some said that the teacher was generally loving, but behaved strictly or punished children occasionally, usually if they did not do their work. This was mentioned more about boys. Problems of poor performance, lack of cleanliness, and the need for punishment was more common amongst boys than girls. They mentioned use of audio-visual aids, drawing, stories, making objects, planting seeds, etc.

She maintains the interest of children. They do not consider studies a burden. Because of her the English handwriting of children has become good. A few said that the teacher regularly made students write on the takhti at home. Some parents said that the teacher organised co-curricular activities, including national days, literary events, religious events, skits, jokes, plantation, making things, etc.

Often parents were told that they should make their children work hard. A few parents said that they received this advice near the examinations. Asad Sahib called me and asked me to pay attention to him.

Now he comes second in his class. She sent a message to send the girl for a couple of hours so she could complete her assessments. Some said that they met the teacher at school, generally when picking up their child.

A few parents said that they were not called to the school, nor did they go themselves. Now the children are doing much better, so he has not called me. The teacher sent them home for signatures. It is now time to bring these different perspectives together, to compare and contrast, and to identify teacher qualities that are identified by all or most stakeholders, and those which are evident only to a select few.

We also need to consider the factors contributing to teachers becoming and staying good. In this chapter we have used a qualitative data analysis technique, the cross-case display.

The results are then analysed to identify different patterns and trends. The results are given in the displays that follow. In discussing the results the views of children are highlighted using italics. The view of the ideal teacher as being soft, loving and courteous is far more prevalent in girls than boys.

This seems to confirm the generally observed view that female teachers are more soft and loving than male teachers. It also reinforces the observation that male teachers, even those who are ideal teachers, have to resort to physical punishment, particular since boys are generally more physically active and hence naughtier in class than girls, tend to miss school and not do home work more often than girls.

This view is also supported by the responses of parents — more parents of boys reported that they were called by the teacher to deal with problems of their boys in school.

It also suggests that physical punishment of children by male teachers is generally accepted by boys and their parents. Again boys tend to be less concerned about their dress and more involved in physical activities and games, which do not go particularly well with dressing well. Certain characteristics of the ideal teacher are brought out only by children or teachers. On the other hand some characteristics are emphasized by children but not by teachers, for example harsh, abusive and threatening, frequently gives physical punishment more boys , ignores positive behaviour, manages class poorly, does not explain properly, wastes time.

It is striking that teachers do not see the harsh, abusive and punishing behaviour of bad teachers. No teacher mentioned this aspect of the bad teacher. Nor are the teachers aware of the poor classroom management of bad teachers - understandable since teachers do not experience the physical and emotional abuse that children undergo.

The data strongly suggests that children do not accept this fact, and strongly resent the abusive behaviour of bad teachers. Some characteristics of the good teacher were mentioned by the teacher and children, but not by parents, who have little or no direct contact with the teacher. According to them the teacher is neat, clean, and well dressed, simple but with good taste, a good communicator, cooperates with head and colleagues, a role model for children, appropriately flexible, just and fair toward children, reviews previous knowledge, uses the blackboard, establishes rapport, and pays special attention to exceptional children.

Since the view of the good teacher is overwhelmingly positive, variations by gender and location are not very significant. Only a few points are worth mentioning. Girls more than boys describe their teacher as being soft, loving, considerate, just and fair. This suggests that not punishing boys is truly behaviour to be taken notice of. It is also notable that good teaching behaviours have been mentioned more by girls and female teachers.

This is also supported by classroom observations, where female teachers in Lahore and Peshawer performed better than their male colleagues. The use of activities and role-play and organising co-curricular activities was mentioned more in NWFP, particularly Haripur.

In the view of teachers and heads the key factors contributing to good teaching are a good physical environment school facilities , a supportive administration democratic, respectful, cooperative, trusting, guiding , cooperative colleagues, and refresher courses see Display 4.

They also identified three types of factors outside the work place contributing to teacher development. They included home factors good training at home, role model, conducive environment , education exposure to good teachers , personal attitude of the teacher towards teaching and life in general, and continuous self-development of the teacher, including exposure to the media.

The research clearly brings out the clear, and obvious, difference between good and bad teachers. In this last chapter we will try to draw some conclusions emerging from the study and venture to present some recommendations. Hence this chapter is divided into two sections. Some of the these characteristics which stand out include the following: Good teachers are basically good human beings.

They have a loving personality, they are kind and warm-hearted, patient, assertive in a quiet and humble way, flexible in attitudes, hard-working and committed to their vocation. Good teachers love children and love to teach. In all this they treat children like human beings rather than objects.

Good teachers are primarily child-focused. Their focus is not the textbook, or the curriculum, but the child. They are very conscious of the different ways in which children learn, the differences between children, the need to use different methods to enable the child to learn repetition, examples, individual coaching, peer teaching, etc.

Good teachers are also flexible. They do not view this as a sign of weakness. They also strongly reinforce the self-worth and importance of children. Related to this is the enormous patience of good teachers. They go to great lengths to ensure that their pupils learn — whatever it takes. Repeated explanation, giving and checking homework, meeting parents, all these strategies are designed to achieve maximum learning. There is a quiet assertiveness about good teachers.

They do not have any ego problems. They do not try to live up to the expectations of others e. They are generally very humble, and have an unassuming air about them. They are good. Good teachers generally do not complain about things. This is understandable: if you love teaching and being with children, then facilities, approval, etc. Thus you have the paradoxical situation where teachers who work the least complaint the most, while those who put in the greatest amount of effort have the fewest complaints.

In many ways the good teacher fills a big void in the life of the child. Thus their children are relaxed and full of confidence. It is interesting that in many ways the good teacher is the epitome of the traditional teacher. In the traditional system teaching and learning was closely linked to life rather than confined to certain hours in a school, and social and moral development was integrated with academic learning.

The concept of lifelong and continuous learning is very much evident in the good teachers, whether it is for themselves or for their pupils.

They are personally frustrated in their jobs and perhaps in their personal lives as well , treat children like dirt, are very aggressive, and behave as if they are doing the children a favour by teaching them or simply coming to school. This behaviour is partly related to the fact that the children in government schools generally belong to the poorest families, who have a very low status and power, and are not likely to react to physical and verbal abuse.

Bad teachers prefer to spend the least time with children and the maximum time in other things, with colleagues, etc. Teaching and children are beneath their dignity just as serfs and their problems are beneath the dignity of a feudal lord.

It would be interesting to explore the factors of caste, religion, sect, etc. They feel that praising a subordinate will spoil them. This is also witnessed in feedback that teachers give each other — it is assumed that the feedback should be negative and focus on weaknesses only. Under the circumstances why are good teachers who use minimum physical punishment accepted as good by the parents?

It seems that parents are not only willing but happy to accept a teacher who can be loving and non-authoritarian and yet achieve high pupil learning. It is in a sense a win-win situation in which everyone teachers, parents, officials, and most importantly children are all happy.

What we see here is an intermediate role of a good teacher. Unlike the western teacher, who does not or is not allowed to use physical punishment at all no matter how much he craves to do so , the good Pakistani teacher uses physical punishment as the last resort, unlike the bad teacher who uses it to vent his frustration and aggression.

These include background factors education, training , the role of the school, and personal factors. Many good teachers view their parents or teachers as role models.

They grew up imbibing positive values, which form a strong core of their personality. This core was further developed through education and training. The good teachers were far better educated and trained than the average primary school teacher. They also continued to develop themselves continuously through reading and use of media 2. Thus there is a mutually reinforcing relationship. It would be interesting to explore how different types of colleague and especially head behaviour influence good teachers.

Using activity-based teaching-learning materials and on-going training and supervision the 2 During the study some teachers asked about teaching materials from the researchers, and some from Kasur visited ISS, picked up ideas for teaching and material development, and made copies of materials. Unfortunately the other provinces have failed to benefit from this programme to improve their own schools. Children could describe the structure of a lesson followed by their teacher, the use of peer teaching as a teaching tool, etc.

They were also a highly reliable source of information about their teacher to their parents. Thus if teachers think they can hide things from their pupils, they are definitely mistaken 5.

It is also interesting that children expressed themselves best through role plays. There is already considerable knowledge and a wide range of recommendations for improving the teaching-learning process in Pakistani schools see, for example, Jaffer, We will confine ourselves to those recommendations that directly emerge from the present study. In presenting the same, we will prescribe separate recommendations for the different stakeholders involved. Despite assurances, no action has been taken to follow-up on the ideas.

Lesson Planning Planning of lesson objectives, methods, materials, structure of lesson Teaching methodology Kinds of methods used during teaching different subjects, teaching aids, etc Communication How do you communicate in the classroom? How do you explain things? Planning Do you use planning in other areas of your life? If yes, how? Classroom management Do you have a large number of pupils? If yes, how do you manage?

Do you have to teach more than one class at a time? Do you deal differently with different types of children naughty, shy, slow learners, intelligent. If yes, in what way? They are in their classrooms early and ready to teach.

They present lessons in a clear and structured way. Their classrooms are organized in such a way as to minimize distractions. Great teachers engage students and get them to look at issues in a variety of ways. They ask questions frequently to make sure students are following along. They keep students motivated with varied, lively approaches. Great teachers form strong relationships with their students and show that they care about them as people.

Great teachers are warm, accessible, enthusiastic and caring. Teachers with these qualities are known to stay after school and make themselves available to students and parents who need them.

They are involved in school-wide committees and activities, and they demonstrate a commitment to the school. Great teachers are masters of their subject matter. They exhibit expertise in the subjects they are teaching and spend time continuing to gain new knowledge in their field.

They present material in an enthusiastic manner and instill a hunger in their students to learn more on their own. Great teachers communicate frequently with parents. They reach parents through conferences and frequent written reports home. What No Child Left Behind means for teacher quality The role of the teacher became an even more significant factor in education with the passage of The No Child Left Behind law in Share on Pinterest.

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Please enter a valid email address Thank you for signing up! Placing a greater emphasis on having teachers obtain an academic degree rather than an education credential might be a good starting point for increasing student performance in the technical fields.

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