This article discussed specific
characteristics that describe effective teachers who can teach students from
all backgrounds. It was interesting to read the article written from the
perspective of higher education programs and their role to teach teacher
candidates. While reading, a few key points stuck out to me: culturally
responsive teaching, using self-knowledge to change, communication and collaboration
skills, and management skills.
Culturally
responsive teaching believes that all students can learn. I really appreciated
how the article defined culturally responsive teaching. The author said that
teachers must hold high expectations for all students and believe that they can
all learn; teachers must also be able to connect to the families and build a
community of learners in the classroom; teachers must continually be learning
and change their approaches to instruction in order to meet all the needs in
the classroom; teachers must know students’ skills and use them in teaching;
and finally teachers must be, “introspective about themselves,” and monitor
their beliefs and actions in the classroom. I want to be culturally responsive
and make sure that I am always evaluating myself and making sure that I not
only believe but also take action on what makes a teacher culturally
responsive.
A
teacher also needs to be able to understand how their knowledge and beliefs
impact their teaching. I need to know how my ethnicity, language, and culture
influence how I teach and are able to relate to my students. I need to make
sure that I can still communicate and reach students despite differences. The
article says that this can be done by making sure that teachers are open-minded
about their mistakes and are willing to learn from them to become more
effective, and that teachers need to be responsible in holding themselves
accountable for their teaching.
Communication
and collaboration skills are key to build trust and commitment despite ethnic,
gender, socioeconomic, or language differences. I naturally was able to easily
collaborate with my colleagues but it was much harder to communicate and
collaborate with parents and guardians. In the future I want to be able to
build a close partnership with families so that we both may have the students
achievement as a goal.
Management
skills are key to have a successful learning environment. The article states
that management skills are developed during field experiences. During my
student teaching I learned many management skills but this is an area that I
hope to improve in. The article says that teachers with good management skills
have the students involved in learning and in the decision making process; the
students ideas are used in order to create a democratic classroom.
