From the knowledge acquired from QED 523, three core competencies were analysed from the Graduand Teacher Competencies Framework, from the perspective of a Beginning Teacher with regards to considerations during the development of these competencies. In this analysis, a core competency from each dimension of Professional Practice, Leadership & Management and Personal Effectiveness was selected. The diagrams below are parts of a presentation slideshow containing relevant artifacts in the support of these core competencies.
Reflecting on the Graduand
Teacher Competencies Framework, I have chosen to discuss the following core
competencies that are closer to my heart as a student-teacher.
Firstly, I am in agreement with
the direction that teachers should provide quality learning for a child in
Co-curricular Activities (CCA). To me, teachers’ support of CCAs in schools is
a clear illustration that learning can take place outside of the classroom and that
academic performance is not everything that education is about. Personally, I
believe that classroom learning is only one of the many ways children can
learn. In fact, there are certain content, like life skills and character building
that cannot be taught strictly via direct teaching in a classroom setting. CCAs
can help students to develop their talents in sports, music and the arts and
are a possible channel for students with outstanding performance to earn
recognition for their abilities and effort. In many CCAs, students take on
leadership roles and learn about organization skills, which are important
skills for them in the workplace and in their lives.
In today’s classroom, a teacher
often finds himself juggling many priorities in order to provide a holistic
learning experience for the students during the academic term. The teacher must
resist the temptation of making students miss their CCAs to increase their
curriculum time for teaching or administrative purposes. In other words, CCAs
must not be treated as extra curriculum that can be sacrificed for other
matters. In my opinion, it is critical that every teacher believes in the
importance of CCAs to the development of the students and actively make their
CCA educational, enjoyable and safe for the students.
Secondly, I think it is
inevitable for teachers today to interact with the parents of students. Being
key stakeholders in the education system, both parents and teachers must
recognize the fact that they must work together to deliver the best for the
children. An effective and professional teacher must not only provide a
holistic education for the students in the safe environment, but also earn the
confidence and the trust of the parents to leave the child in the hands of the
teacher. Just as the student population is diverse, the parents can also come
from different background, have different expectations and face different kinds
of challenges outside of school. Teachers must be aware of issues like
social-economic status that may affect the parents’ involvement in the child’s
development and address these issues tactfully.
In my opinion, I think that effective
communication between teachers and parents is critical to ensure that we are moving
in the right direction and providing adequate and suitable measures to help the
child grow up with the desired outcomes. I believe that keeping parents in the
loop with regards to the progress of the student, whether is it negative issues
or positive achievements, will catalyze the effectiveness of communications.
Not only will this improve the understanding of the child’s development in
school for the parents, it will also allow the parents to intervene before an
adverse behaviour escalates into a larger problem. As mentioned above, the kinds of parents can
range from the over-protective kinds to the can’t-be-bothered kinds. Teachers
must have a high level of awareness and versatility in this aspect when
communicating with the different parents to ensure the exchange of perspectives
and consensus that must eventually be in the best interest of the students.
Finally, with all the recent
negative reports on teachers and Public Servants, I feel that the core competencies
of personal integrity and responsibilities cannot be emphasized enough. Placed
in a position where about a couple of hundreds of young children are impacted
by your speech and actions, the teacher is undoubtedly an influential figure,
especially to the young minds. Students look up to teachers as a guide to how
to behave. Therefore, it is essential that teachers lead by examples and behave
appropriately in school and in public. Being a Public Servant, teachers must keep
in mind that they represent the Public Service and should expect a high
standard of their conduct of themselves, including that of online social media
platforms. Furthermore, teachers have access to sensitive and secret
information like students’ particulars and examination questions, which by
nature of job ethics, are not supposed to be revealed without proper permission.
In the event that job ethics do not exist, which really should not be the case
for teachers, it will then fall under the jurisdiction of legal
responsibilities as these information are covered under the Official Secret
Act.
In my opinion, I believe that the
personal beliefs and values of a teacher are of utmost importance. A teacher’s
beliefs and values lay the foundation for his teaching philosophy, which in
turn guides his behaviour in the class. While I believe that a truly passionate
teacher will naturally possess a high moral standing and upright values, these
criteria are hard to determine during the recruitment process. In addition, the
teacher must seek a balance when dealing with relationship between students and
themselves. Often, maintaining a strictly work-only interaction with students
creates the teacher-student barrier that prevents the building of rapport and mutual
understanding, hindering effective classroom management and a deeper
understanding of the students beyond their learning needs. On the contrary,
being too friendly with the students can risk sending the wrong signals to the
students and create unwanted stress in carrying out the duties of a teacher.
