Without personally knowing you, this is a very tough question to answer. If I knew you, I could tailor my answer to focus on which of your personality traits could help you become a better educator.
I've been teaching for thirteen years, so I do consider myself an expert in my field; however, there is always room for improvement in my own pedagogy. I would also like to say that there is no single...
Without personally knowing you, this is a very tough question to answer. If I knew you, I could tailor my answer to focus on which of your personality traits could help you become a better educator.
I've been teaching for thirteen years, so I do consider myself an expert in my field; however, there is always room for improvement in my own pedagogy. I would also like to say that there is no single best mold for a teacher. Different teachers of different ages and different subjects all have different styles. What works for one teacher may or may not work for a different teacher, but I do believe all good teachers share some personality traits. I will discuss a few of those, and you can compare those to your own personal qualities.
One trait I believe is integral to being a teacher is patience. Regardless of the age group you teach, patience is going to be important. You will need patience when a class doesn't understand the lesson you are teaching. You will need patience when dealing with students who misbehave. You will need patience when dealing with parents who think they know more about how to do your job than you do.
I also believe most good teachers are creative thinkers. That doesn't necessarily mean being creative with arts, crafts, and bulletin boards. Creative thinking is necessary when a class of students flat out doesn't understand the concept you are teaching. You will need to come up with a different way of teaching the content, and what works for one class might not work for other classes. You can't possibly hope to plan out everything in advance, which is why creative thinking skills are necessary.
Third, good teachers like kids. If you don't like young people, don't be a teacher.
Fourth, good teachers know how to accept failure and shake it off. There are going to be times when you design a lesson you believe will work flawlessly, and every student will learn amazing things because of the brilliant way you designed it. Then, for one reason or another, it will all blow up in your face. Don't beat yourself up. Laugh it off and make it better.
Good teachers are honest with their students. If students catch you in a lie, you lose all credibility for a very long time. If you don't know something, it's okay to admit it.
Good teachers have a flexible attitude. There are going to be times when a lesson is going great. Kids are learning and having fun, and everything is on schedule. Then the fire alarm will ring. Everything will be thrown off, and you will have to adapt to the new situation you could not have possibly planned for in advance.
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