Grace Shangkuan Koo, Ph. D.
University of the Philippines
“What makes a good teacher?” I frequently ask myself and my students who are training to be teachers. What do you appreciate in a teacher? On the first day of class, as I walk into a classroom, I could feel the quiet tension among students as they carefully study me. Students rate teacher constantly, with or without an evaluation instrument. The school administration measures, even if inadequately, how teachers perform. Teachers are encouraged or threatened by assessment results.
Who is your favorite teacher? As many teachers as you have in your life, so are there varieties of excellence. Still, there are common basic expectations of teachers. My own teachers, through 27 years of normal schooling and countless informal learning, provided me a study on how I would want to be as a teacher. When schools asked me to speak on teacher-training or help them to construct Teacher Evaluation Scale, I was ready to share. I always wish for teachers who show excellent in the following non-negotiable criteria.
COURSE COMPETENCE
A foremost requirement of a teacher, for me, is mastery of his/her subject. A math teacher should be a math expert. No charm could cover up course inadequacy. No packaging can substitute for substance; no techniques can replace content. A competent teacher knows the most important concepts of a course and is highly capable to translate complex studies into simple language. A competent teacher is able to expound on an idea in depth and to use analogies or illustrations from other fields – in different perspectives. A great teacher relates new ideas to old, and always touches base with the fundamentals of the subject. Whether explaining a concept to an expert or a child, a master teacher does so skillfully – deductively or inductively – presenting big bottom-lines and small details, similarities and differences. A teacher learns nonstop. A simple question to ask is: How many books does he read in a month? I suggest at least five-two on his field of interest and three on other subjects. A true learner has knowledge that is both deep and wide.
It is interesting to note that many Filipinos students put more value on a teacher’s personality rather than his/her intellect. If a student really wants to learn and advance in a field, he would want to dig the gold mine of his mentor’s mind. I would not mind a “queer” teacher if he tops in his subject.
As a University of the Philippines undergraduate student, I inadvertently enrolled in a few classes just because there were still slots available and the schedules were fine, only to find out that they were handled by “terrors,” with only five to eight students. In an English 5 class taught by a long bearded old man, students dropped out every week. With fear and trembling, the determined remaining “soldiers,” faithfully submitted essays every meeting, which were read in class and “judged” immediately. Needless to say the teacher got us seriously interested in words and made us courageous “warriors.” No non-sense teachers are more demanding and have higher standards of excellence. Make no mistake, though. They give students high grades when they are deserved.
PEDAGOGICAL SKILLS
A good teacher is a great communicator. Knowing something does not make one a teacher. Educational Psychology consists of five important areas-learning, learners, teaching, class management and assessment. A committed teacher would want to advance his knowledge in all these. What is learning? How does it take place? Are there different tasks, different subjects? A teacher who understands fully what learning is not only prepares his syllabus and course requirements well; he also asks intelligent questions, makes classes mentally stimulating and what the students’ appetite for more knowledge. He organizes his lectures, provides for interaction and uses students experiences to get the most and best out of a course. A great teacher is excited about his course; he has the important task of initiating students into worthwhile matters.
People who may not be the most intelligent can make good teachers. With diligence and creativity, classes could be transformed from a bookish rote learning dry land into an enlightening, refreshing oasis. A teacher should enhance his creative understanding of a subject-flexibility, fluency, originality, courage, sense of humor, visualization authentically, as well as his collection of details. Funny how many of my students each semester mention my sense of humor, storytelling, even my outfits, as among the things they appreciate. I think my diverse academic backgrounds and cultural expanse had enabled me to get ideas from unlikely sources and to have unusual perspective.
STUDENT DEVELOPMENT
Students come out of a class better or worse. An important job for a teacher is to cultivate the students sense of responsibility and hard work. Many lazy students need a little pull from teachers to develop good study habits, a little pull from reflective mentors to deepen their capacity for thinking. Do students become better learners, better thinkers, better communicators, better persons because they have attended your class? Are the students better motivated, have greater confidence, work more patiently, have clearer goals, more encouraged to do their best? Teachers do not just teach a subject, they are teaching students.
I am glad I have met many worthy teachers in my students. There are those who work harder than me, pay more attention to details, exert more effort in their assignments, read more pages, spend more time in writing, are more creative in their projects, have more persistence in times of difficulties. I gather these examples and how my students what I hope to see in them. A teacher’s task is developing a person who will appreciate learning and not be afraid of becoming; thus, it is not finished after a course.
PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT
The Harvard Business Review defines a professional as someone who knows what, knows how, knows why and cares why. A teacher should be a model of good work ethic. He organizes his life well-his time, talents, resources, relationships. One of the most frustrating experiences for a student in fighting for a ride, struggling long hours in traffic, and rushing to class after all the hassles and pollution, only to find the teacher is absent. It should be a creed among teachers not to be absent without prior notice. A good teacher respects the student- his time, talent, ideas, background, individuality, beliefs. A teacher respects his colleagues and show it to his students – a commitment to cherish and honor. Professionals are held in high esteem, not because of their pay, but because of their knowledge and character. Parker Palmer, in his book “The Courage to Teach,” asked: How does the quality of my selfhood form or deform the why I relate to my students, my subject, my colleagues, my world.
I had excellent teachers, as well as the mediocre, famous, obscure, diligent, lazy, conscientious, absent minded, inspiring, disappointing. I learned something from all of them. And I must have done something right for UP-diliman to recognize my efforts and name me “Pinakamahusay na Guro” in 2000. To tell you the truth, though, it is still a long way to that place!#
University of the Philippines
“What makes a good teacher?” I frequently ask myself and my students who are training to be teachers. What do you appreciate in a teacher? On the first day of class, as I walk into a classroom, I could feel the quiet tension among students as they carefully study me. Students rate teacher constantly, with or without an evaluation instrument. The school administration measures, even if inadequately, how teachers perform. Teachers are encouraged or threatened by assessment results.
Who is your favorite teacher? As many teachers as you have in your life, so are there varieties of excellence. Still, there are common basic expectations of teachers. My own teachers, through 27 years of normal schooling and countless informal learning, provided me a study on how I would want to be as a teacher. When schools asked me to speak on teacher-training or help them to construct Teacher Evaluation Scale, I was ready to share. I always wish for teachers who show excellent in the following non-negotiable criteria.
COURSE COMPETENCE
A foremost requirement of a teacher, for me, is mastery of his/her subject. A math teacher should be a math expert. No charm could cover up course inadequacy. No packaging can substitute for substance; no techniques can replace content. A competent teacher knows the most important concepts of a course and is highly capable to translate complex studies into simple language. A competent teacher is able to expound on an idea in depth and to use analogies or illustrations from other fields – in different perspectives. A great teacher relates new ideas to old, and always touches base with the fundamentals of the subject. Whether explaining a concept to an expert or a child, a master teacher does so skillfully – deductively or inductively – presenting big bottom-lines and small details, similarities and differences. A teacher learns nonstop. A simple question to ask is: How many books does he read in a month? I suggest at least five-two on his field of interest and three on other subjects. A true learner has knowledge that is both deep and wide.
It is interesting to note that many Filipinos students put more value on a teacher’s personality rather than his/her intellect. If a student really wants to learn and advance in a field, he would want to dig the gold mine of his mentor’s mind. I would not mind a “queer” teacher if he tops in his subject.
As a University of the Philippines undergraduate student, I inadvertently enrolled in a few classes just because there were still slots available and the schedules were fine, only to find out that they were handled by “terrors,” with only five to eight students. In an English 5 class taught by a long bearded old man, students dropped out every week. With fear and trembling, the determined remaining “soldiers,” faithfully submitted essays every meeting, which were read in class and “judged” immediately. Needless to say the teacher got us seriously interested in words and made us courageous “warriors.” No non-sense teachers are more demanding and have higher standards of excellence. Make no mistake, though. They give students high grades when they are deserved.
PEDAGOGICAL SKILLS
A good teacher is a great communicator. Knowing something does not make one a teacher. Educational Psychology consists of five important areas-learning, learners, teaching, class management and assessment. A committed teacher would want to advance his knowledge in all these. What is learning? How does it take place? Are there different tasks, different subjects? A teacher who understands fully what learning is not only prepares his syllabus and course requirements well; he also asks intelligent questions, makes classes mentally stimulating and what the students’ appetite for more knowledge. He organizes his lectures, provides for interaction and uses students experiences to get the most and best out of a course. A great teacher is excited about his course; he has the important task of initiating students into worthwhile matters.
People who may not be the most intelligent can make good teachers. With diligence and creativity, classes could be transformed from a bookish rote learning dry land into an enlightening, refreshing oasis. A teacher should enhance his creative understanding of a subject-flexibility, fluency, originality, courage, sense of humor, visualization authentically, as well as his collection of details. Funny how many of my students each semester mention my sense of humor, storytelling, even my outfits, as among the things they appreciate. I think my diverse academic backgrounds and cultural expanse had enabled me to get ideas from unlikely sources and to have unusual perspective.
STUDENT DEVELOPMENT
Students come out of a class better or worse. An important job for a teacher is to cultivate the students sense of responsibility and hard work. Many lazy students need a little pull from teachers to develop good study habits, a little pull from reflective mentors to deepen their capacity for thinking. Do students become better learners, better thinkers, better communicators, better persons because they have attended your class? Are the students better motivated, have greater confidence, work more patiently, have clearer goals, more encouraged to do their best? Teachers do not just teach a subject, they are teaching students.
I am glad I have met many worthy teachers in my students. There are those who work harder than me, pay more attention to details, exert more effort in their assignments, read more pages, spend more time in writing, are more creative in their projects, have more persistence in times of difficulties. I gather these examples and how my students what I hope to see in them. A teacher’s task is developing a person who will appreciate learning and not be afraid of becoming; thus, it is not finished after a course.
PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT
The Harvard Business Review defines a professional as someone who knows what, knows how, knows why and cares why. A teacher should be a model of good work ethic. He organizes his life well-his time, talents, resources, relationships. One of the most frustrating experiences for a student in fighting for a ride, struggling long hours in traffic, and rushing to class after all the hassles and pollution, only to find the teacher is absent. It should be a creed among teachers not to be absent without prior notice. A good teacher respects the student- his time, talent, ideas, background, individuality, beliefs. A teacher respects his colleagues and show it to his students – a commitment to cherish and honor. Professionals are held in high esteem, not because of their pay, but because of their knowledge and character. Parker Palmer, in his book “The Courage to Teach,” asked: How does the quality of my selfhood form or deform the why I relate to my students, my subject, my colleagues, my world.
I had excellent teachers, as well as the mediocre, famous, obscure, diligent, lazy, conscientious, absent minded, inspiring, disappointing. I learned something from all of them. And I must have done something right for UP-diliman to recognize my efforts and name me “Pinakamahusay na Guro” in 2000. To tell you the truth, though, it is still a long way to that place!#
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