Teachers as Rolemodels

With stacks of papers to grade, classrooms to manage and maintain, and all kinds of administrative duties, teachers already have lots to do. With all of this work on their plate, do teachers have the responsibility to be good role models? Yes!! Of course they do! This reminds me of something that one of my professors at Touro College always said, " in loco parentis." I'm sure some of you have heard this before but for those of you who haven't, it means "in place of a parent." As teachers, that is exactly what we are. We are their parent figure during their time at school. Many times, students even spend more time with us in school than they do with their actual parents. For this reason, it is vital that we act as a good role model for these children, teaching them how to be successful and how to be respectful citizens in society. Not only do children spend a lot of time with their teachers, but some of them even look at school as an escape from their home life because they are not receiving the attention they need at home, family issues, etc.

As early childhood educators, we are one of the first people to influence our students and start them on a path to a successful future. We will make a huge difference in their lives because education is a part of people for as long as they live. As a teacher, it is important that we treat each student as if they are our own and guide them to reach their full potential. It is also important that we make them comfortable enough to look up to us because we are one of the only influential people in their lives.
Of course teachers have a lot of duties, but they also have the responsibility to be a good role model. Teachers are human so it is only normal that they sometimes feel stressed. Especially in today's school system where teachers are expected to do a lot of paperwork, a teacher can become very overwhelmed. However, it is important that teachers put this stress behind them when they walk into the classroom and do solely what they are there to do - teach our future generations. However, I do feel that this comes natural to most teachers, especially those who really do feel like teaching is their calling. There is a time and place to wear your heart on your sleeve, but the classroom is not it. A classroom is supposed to be a positive and comfortable enviornment for our students. It' a place where our students can open up and be the best they can be. We must model good behavior because modeling is a very important teaching tool. When we model, we are showing the students what is expected of them and giving them an example of how to do something appropriately. As a teacher, we have to model appropriate behavior for our students and be a good role model so that they grow up to be successful and be the best person they can be. Isn't that our ultimate goal, anyway?

Despite all of the time consuming work that we have, as teachers, it is vital that we put that stress behind us and do what matters most, and that is to teach our future generations. We must remember that these students look up to us teachers because we are an important part of their lives. They spend 6-8 hours a day with us in school, more than they spend with many other people in their lives (besides their parents/guardians, of course). Not only do we prepare them academically, but we also prepare them to live in society.  Educators are responsible for stepping into a classroom and putting on a smile, being positive, and guiding their students to make the best decisions possible.  Any outside distractions should not be brought into the classroom.  Students need to feel safe and like family in the classroom setting.

Quality Over Quantity in Academics

If I had the authority to change how schools are run, the first thing I would change is the amount of paperwork that teachers need to do. In recent years, the focus has turned from student's education to the metrics they rely upon to see if students are learning. They have started to focus on metrics as an end point as oppose to a means to an end. I believe we need to refocus ourselves on what's important, the students, not the student scores. Obviously the two are related but we seem to have lost sight of what is really important. 

During my semester of student teaching, I got to experience this first hand. My cooperating teacher and her colleagues were very stressed with the amount of paperwork they had to complete before a specific time. Rather then giving the students the opportunity to be immersed in their classroom studies, they were constantly being pulled out of class to be tested. I think that, unfortunately, the stress was unnecessary. I feel like most teachers, if given the autonomy to teach as they see fit, would be more effective. The policy of teaching for the test scores should be thrown away and replaced with teaching for the student's needs. 

Another policy that I would like to change if I had the authority to is that Students with Disabilities are being forced to follow the same curriculum as students without disabilities. Although teachers are given the opportuniy to modify the curriculum, the state should provide a curriculum specific to those students with special needs. Students with disabilites do not learn the same way that general education students do and should have their own curriculum to follow. If it takes them more time to understand concepts, how are they supposed to keep up? Not only should should it be modified to fit their needs, but I also believe that depending on the developmental levels, the curriculum should be less academic and more functional to teach daily life skills. The end goal should result in the student living independently and becoming an active part of a community. Oh, and let's talk about state test. Students with disabilities are also required to take the same state tests as the general ed population. How is it that all of their other tests are modified, except the one that is portrayed as the most important? There may be small modifications made to them but overall the tests are the same.