As I reflect on my personal experiences as a novice teacher, I wonder, could I be considered successful? Does the completion of the first year and the willingness to return the following year classify me as successful? According to Scott Mandel, in Educational Leadership (March 2006) "First-year teachers have one basic goal in mind—survival." Looking back on my experiences, both positive and negative, I wonder, what is success? One may classify a successful neophyte teacher as innovative, creative, and spontaneous in the classroom. This includes lesson plans, extra-curricular activities, as well as the overall classroom environment. Someone else may classify effective classroom management skills as success for a novice teacher. Still others may think that success lies in the amount of material that is "covered" in the first year. And yet we have the standardized tests and observations that some may use to measure the new teacher's success. To me, success is measured by more than just one aspect of the classroom. As teachers, we use several assessments to measure the students' understanding of the material. As administrators, we need to be willing to do the same for novice teachers.
What are the characteristics of a successful novice teacher? To me, when it comes to talking about teaching, the words "successful" and "effective" are synonymous. While first year teachers need the support and time to develop professionally, their long term goal should be to become effective teachers. Here are some characteristics I feel novice teachers should strengthen to become effective:
- Willingness to learn and implement suggested strategies
- Enthusiasm for teaching, learning, and content
- Ability to praise and encourage on a regular basis
- Talent to motivate students to learn or facilitate their learning
- Capacity to treat students equally and fairly (without regard to student ability, ethnicity, or gender)
- Possess knowledge of content and pedagogical skills and how to incorporate them in the classroom
- Ability to move past the "basics" toward the "core" of the content taught
- Capability to implement the curriculum
- Capacity to make sound decisions, plans, and goals
- Possess the skills necessary to manage the classroom context so that students are engaged in learning
- Desire to help students develop positive attitudes toward school and self
- Desire to be a role model
- Compassionate and respectful of students, self, and colleagues
Being an effective teacher takes time, patience, and willingness to learn and change. It is not something that can be accomplished overnight. Reflection is key for those first years of teaching. A successful teacher is able to see when something doesn't work and changes it. They are flexible and thick skinned, able to bounce back when needed. If a neophyte teacher is able to walk away that first year with three or more of these characteristics they are, in my mind, successful. To accomplish this task, however, new teachers need support of the administration and colleagues. While some teachers may never possess ALL of these characteristics, they should always aim for excellence and improve in these areas.
3 comments:
All of your characteristics are right on target. They are all necessary characteristics to possess and carry someone from novice to experienced. The ability to take advice and not let it get you down and to reflect on your performance is very important. I still reflect on what I do each day. It is hard to improve without reflecting on what you did well and what needs change.
While I was writing my blog on this topic, I considered the reading in UBD that discussed the basic and core ideas within content and curriculum. Imagine what it would be like if all new teachers had studied curriculum development before beginning? After the past few readings I have been thinking that instead of drilling Bloom's Taxonomy in undergraduate educational courses, they should actually teach the intricacies of the profession. I mean, if we, as teachers, buy into the whole 'backward design' concept, then shouldn't our teachers do the same?
I really like how you gave a list of things that novice teachers should "strengthen to become effective." That is a good way to phrase it because you are not assuming that novice teachers already possess these things which I think that a lot of people do.
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