EDN550 Essay for Portfolio Assignment 2b

What do you understand an effective

teacher to be?
By Melissa Da Silva
32195547

The image I chose represents a teacher who is well-groomed, friendly and

approachable, and highly engaged with student learning on a personal
level. To me, these are critical qualities I feel that every teacher needs to
have. In order to be an effective teacher, one must be open and
approachable (and physically appear this way too). They must be
constantly reflexive in all aspects of their practice and motivate
students through building strong relationships and learning student
interests.

As a prac student beginning my first week at my placement school, my

biggest focus initially was my physical appearance. Like the teacher in my
chosen image, I made sure I was well-groomed and dressed professionally,
to make a good impression on both my mentor teacher, the school staff
and the students. Once I was certain I had gained a good first impression
aesthetically, I moved on to creating what Clare M. Kosnik and Clive Beck
refer to as a positive classroom environment which they note (and I
believe) are essential for the wellbeing of the students and teacher alike
(Kosnik and Beck, 2011, p. 44). I did so through my engagement with the
students. For me to effectively create an environment that was safe,
positive and engaging, I needed to demonstrate that I was a positive and
approachable teacher. So beyond the professional attire and well-groomed
appearance, I put my best foot forward and was open and friendly to all
students. I would go around the classroom assisting students that needed
it and engaging in friendly banter with each student in order to get to
know them. This is why the image I chose is appropriate. The teacher in
the photo is central in the classroom, closely surrounded by students and
everyone in the photo is interacting and engaging. And for me, this social
engagement is a quintessential quality I feel every teacher needs to have.
Being friendly and approachable not just aesthetically, but
mentally/emotionally is needed to effectively engage individual and whole
class student learning.

Reflexive practice, is where a teacher constantly reviews their

pedagogical methods and strategies to improve their teaching(Churchill,
2011, pp. 437-438). I feel that this is critical for all teachers to do, no
matter how experienced, in order to ensure that their teaching is always
effective. The image I chose illustrates this in the way the teacher is
highly engaged with the task at hand. I interpreted her thoughtful
disposition to be a reflective one, where she considers how well her lesson
is going. This reflexivity is the first thing I have learnt to acquire as a
prac student. While on placement, I observed my mentor in practice and
began reflecting on what I would do differently and what I admired about
their teaching approach. It only occurred to me how valuable this exercise
was when I conducted my first lesson with the year 10s and was met with
what I dreaded most: a silent and apparently disengaged class. I was
fortunate enough to reflect on this experience and teach the same class
(more successfully) a few weeks later. This experience made me realise
that it is important to reflect on each and every lesson, not just for the
teacher to improve their own practise, but also to see what kind of
students they have so that they approach each lesson with optimal
teaching strategies to ensure the whole class is engaged.

In order to teach effectively, I believe that a teacher must engage

effectively. The primary method for a teacher to do this, is through
learning about their students interests. Examples include building positive
relationships through which interests can be integrated into the
activities/tasks wherever possible. Churchill states that student motivation
stems from behavioural management strategies. One notable strategy is
the external stimuli teachers use commonly referred to as rewards
(Churchill, 2011, p. 119). In my chosen image, the teacher appears to be
happy as she speaks. Her facial expression suggests that she is likely to
praise her students for good effort, maybe when they read aloud. For me
to become an effective teacher I feel it is vital for me to praise my
students for doing good work, with intrinsic or extrinsic rewards. This way
they are aware of what is expected of them, and are rewarded when they
have achieved more than that. This also shows that the teacher values the
student and thus a positive relationship is formed. This positive
reinforcement is important as it is likely to effectively increase motivation
and productivity in students.
Thus teachers need to build a positive relationship with students through
a reflexive mindset and a friendly/approachable demeanour so that they
can teach students effectively and engagingly.

References (APA):

Churchill, Rick. (2011). Teaching: making a difference. (2nd ed.). Milton,

QLD, Australia: John Wiley and Sons.

Kosnik, Clare M., and Beck, Clive. (2011). Teaching in a nutshell:

navigating your teacher education program as a student teacher. New
Tork, USA: Routledge.