Commitment of Any Teacher

When we spoke on the quality of school experience (QSE) survey last week, I was thinking about the passion and values teachers bring into the classrooms. Such passion and values will reflect the teachers’ belief about who they are and what it means to teach.

The relentless demands of the teaching of 21st century competencies to students does requires the school to provide extensive individual, social and academic support, affecting both instructional and management responsibilities in schools. And both teaching and managing requires leadership. The forming of a committee to set the goals and direction of such implementation is a start. I believe that teaching of these 21st century competencies will also grow out of a lifetime of experience as learner and teacher.

The school management – whether school leaders or middle managers are all charged to guide instructional guidance and implement school improvement efforts. I also see such professional work done by our teachers or senior teachers, whether within classrooms, professional learning teams or departments. Expanding the middle manager’s role to include “instructional leader” is well intended, but even a great teacher turned school leader cannot “lead instruction” in every classroom. My own experience is that real learning happens because of what teachers and students create together in the classroom – hence the important of teacher-student relationship. Curriculum is not just the content found in SOWs and in textbooks. Rather, it is the combination of the teachers and students that run the lessons together. Hence, it is important for everyone to make effort in improving our students’ liking for our class, the school. I believed that my principal’s creating the position of “Cohort Dean” has these ideas in mind. In addition, I see the Cohort Dean as been able to serve those students who may have been neglected currently. I personally find that the teachers’ beliefs and values about teaching does influence practice within and outside the classroom. This path to creating conditions for students leads teachers of different beliefs and values to take actions at various levels.

I also realised that what teachers know and can do is the most important influence on what students learn. As teachers, there is a need to know content, how to teach it and how to fully engage a class of forty plus individual learners. Teachers without the necessary competencies and is unwilling to learn will not be able to level up the students learning at all. I believed that what our students need to know and be able to do, our teachers likewise must know and be able to do. Hence, there is also a need for teacher development as well. Competent teachers strive to create a positive classroom environment for student learning. Committed teachers working on behalf of students learning bring all aspects of life experience and professional knowledge into the classroom and the school and turn it into a place where everyone wants to be included including the teacher – who breathes some “life” into the curriculum.

I must say that schools are not easy place to work. Teaching well, whatever the conditions, is not easy too. However, if we are fully committed to belief that teachers can make a difference to the lives of our students, we will be able to observe and recognise the many facets of teaching, and the various dimension of practice will become evident.