Category Archives: 1 Prof. Values & Personal Commitment

What does it mean to be a professional?

Virtues of a great teacher…

When considering the list of virtues that a great teacher should be associated with, the list is endless. Therefore I will delve into five of the most important attributes I believe every teacher should possess.

Compassion

From my experience of school life, I always enjoyed classes where the teacher was caring and friendly. School can be a daunting place for children and therefore it is our job as future teachers to make the classroom a friendly and enjoyable place to learn. I want to be a teacher which the children are not scared or frightened to approach when they are struggling or have any problems.

Patience

Patience is a great virtue for every teacher to have. It is important to understand that as a teacher you will deal with children from all different walks of life. Therefore some children may not be as fast to grasp certain skills as the rest of the children. However, it is important that as a teacher, the child is not left in the corner to fend for itself and try to keep up. As teachers, it is our responsibility to give extra time and help where it is due so that the child is given the best education that is humanly possible.

Equality

Fairness is possibly the greatest attribute every teacher should possess. It is of great importance that every child experiences the same opportunities regardless of their background, race or religion. Every teacher should also make clear the importance of equality among other pupils. Every child is equal. Without this key attribute, the classroom is exposed to many serious problems, bullying undoubtedly one of them.

Respect

As a teacher it is vital to be respected by the children. If you do not have the respect of the children then it becomes very difficult to control the classroom. However at the same time, to be respected by the children you have to show them respect back. It is also important to respect other staff members and people who make up the school environment. Respect is the foundation of a relationship, therefore without respect it is near impossible to work together as a whole school community.

Honesty/Integrity

As a teacher it is vital to lay down moral standards in the classroom. Children view the teacher as a role model therefore it is important that these morals start from the teacher and are developed by the children throughout their school lives. This is of great importance to becoming a successful teacher.

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Unit 1_B_managing my learning (2)

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Unit 1_A_identifying skills and abilities (2)

Social media: Friend or Foe

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One of the greatest problems for teachers in today’s society is undoubtedly social media. Although social media can be a great way of interacting with others and sharing great memories with friends and family, it also has a dark side when it comes to our profession. Today, everyone is using some form of social media, even Primary School children are using the likes of Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. One of the worries with this is that they are able to find teachers’ profiles and look through personal photos, information or even contact them through social media. It is therefore vital that teachers’ remove any inappropriate information from their profile, change their account to private or even create a new profile when it comes to their personal lives.

I feel that therefore being a teacher means your life is very much restricted at times. You can’t be seen “having too much fun” on a night out with friends. You have to read over and change what you write at times, in case it comes across as inappropriate and offends other people. Yes, I understand that when applying to become a Primary School teacher, I was very much made aware of this. I believe that we must be especially careful of what we say on social media and what photos and information are shared. However, I disagree that we should have to live some sort of secret social media life so nobody can find us. I find this completely and utterly ridiculous and believe that something has to be addressed to change this perception.

How gender affected me as a child…

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Growing up as a child and throughout my time at primary school it was obvious that there were cases of gender stereotyping. First of all every teacher in my primary school apart from the Principal was female therefore as a boy I felt very much second best at times. I feel that the teacher cared for the girls much more than they did for the boys. This included hugs at the end of school, holding hands during break and lunch and chats about “girl stuff”. As a result I feel that during class girls received much more attention than boys, which does not add up to this concept of equality that is taught at school. From my own experience I feel that this very much has to change. I believe that there needs to be an increase in male primary school teachers and people need to get out of their heads that primary teaching is a job solely for women. From my volunteering last year at my old Primary School it was still apparent that girls receive much more attention than the boys. For the short time I was there every week the boys were firing questions at me such as “what football team do you support” proving the lack of attention they are receiving in class. I felt that the boys were genuinely excited to see me and as a result indicated further that I wanted to pursue teaching as a vocation. I also feel that at primary school there is an idea that it is acceptable to shout at boys and punish them for doing something wrong. However when you replace the boy with a girl a lighter approach seems to be taken. This is another issue I feel needs to be addressed.