Patience

It is extremely important for a teacher to be patient. When teaching your class a new topic it will take time for the pupils to understand what they are being taught, what they are being asked to do and how to carry it out. Some pupils may be able to understand what it is they are doing quite quickly where as others may take a bit longer. It is important that the teacher is able to be patient and understanding with the pupils who may be struggling a bit more than others. If the pupil sees that the teacher is getting fed up or impatient with them they may begin to believe they are doing something wrong or are being ‘bad’. It will also discourage the pupils if they feel as if their teacher can’t be bothered with them anymore or doesn’t have the time for them. If a pupil is left feeling like this they may start to misbehave, muck about and give up altogether which can have implications for their entire learning, not just that one topic.

Empathy

Being able to show empathy is an important trait for a teacher to have. Pupils who are struggling may need extra support from their teacher and if the teacher is empathetic towards them it will make the pupil feel less nervous and more comfortable about asking for help. Showing empathy towards pupils will also make them feel more appreciated and recognised in the classroom, an environment which may seem quite daunting, especially to pupils who may find it harder to speak up or ask for help. Pupils who are struggling may find it comforting to know that they are not the only person with this issue with the work, which it can sometimes feel like if you have no-one to talk to, so the teacher being patient with the pupil and showing an understanding for how they are feeling and what they are going through could be very useful and encouraging for them and may allow them to proceed further with encouragement and a little assistance.

Self – Control

Teachers need to be able to demonstrate and carry out self – control. If a teacher has had a bad day outside of the classroom they need to be able to put these issues aside and not take the feelings of upset or anger into the classroom. It is also vital that  teachers do not hold grudges with pupils due to their past behaviour, it is important to start every day as a new day and not hold feelings of anger or dislike towards their pupils for incidences which have past. Finally teachers must be careful not to get annoyed at pupils for something another pupil in the class has done. For example, a teacher must not get impatient and angry at a pupil who is simply struggling with a piece of work because another pupil in the class has been being disruptive and misbehaving all day.

Tolerance

Much like patience, it is extremely important for a teacher to have a high level of tolerance. Teachers need to be tolerant of pupils who find it harder than others and struggle more as getting angry with them or becoming impatient may cause them to become upset, worried (more than they already are), or start to misbehave as it is easier for them to refuse to do the work they are struggling with than sit and look their work and be able to make no sense of it when they are getting no help from a teacher. Teachers must also be tolerant of pupils who are misbehaving, it is ok to tell them off and teach them that what they are doing is wrong by taking away certain privileges such as minute of golden time etc. but if a teacher is constantly screaming and shouting at pupils for misbehaving it may act as encouragement for those misbehaving as they might find this funny or entertaining, and it will also create an unpleasant classroom environment meaning that even  those who are behaving and trying hard will not enjoy their learning either.

Justice

I believe that one of the most important traits of a teacher is to be just and treat all pupils as equals. Singling out pupils and treating them differently to others for any reason will promote inequality within the classroom and pupils may pick this up and then go on to treat people outside of the classroom unequally and unjustly which will build up an unpleasant and unhappy society. Treating pupils differently for reasons such as their academic status may also make pupils feel unhappy or uneasy as it singles them out as different to others and may cause them to be teased or bullied by their classmates and could also make them unhappy at school and stop them from trying with their work or even coming to school atall, which will severely impact their learning.