TRAITS OF SKILLFUL TEACHERS

BERNADETTE D. REGALA

Teachers are like coaches. They demonstrate how to do something, and then explain why it should be done in a certain kind of way. Then, the students have to do the assignment.

Teachers step in when there are corrections, until a student performs at a high standard. Students have to a task over and over again until they do it right, and then they get feedback from the teachers, which include grades.

Good teachers know that the success of a class is related to the character of the students in a classroom. When there is adversity, the students overcome this with character. The attitude of one student affects the entire class.

Teachers would rather have a good student with a great attitude than a great student with a bad attitude.

Students should learn patience and perseverance, how to stay positive amidst challenges. They should have self-control, tolerance, compassion, humility, and self-assertiveness. Teachers should continue working on their students’characters and should recognize the importance of these values for academic mastery, as well.

Students should be able to take a holistic view of their lives, examine their relationships, and assess their strengths and weaknesses. They should learn to set goals for their academic, athletic, and personal lives.

Teachers, on the other hand, should strive to create learner-centered classrooms, emphasize high expectations for their students and create positive interpersonal relationships, in the process also creating a positive climate for learning and honoring students’voices and perspectives.

Schools, for their part, should provide its students with academic support, character development, and career guidance.

— oOo— The author is Teacher III at Tinajero Elementary School, Bacolor North District, Bacolor, Pampanga