18 June 2011

Student Essays–Karen Calzado Bermuthz

In my sixth semester course in the Bilingual Teachers program that we just finished, we concentrated on composition…looking first at structure and then at the need for specifics, examples and details (My favorite reminder for my students—“Is there enough SED?” (SED=specifics, examples, details!)  Here is one of the three best compositions of the final exam. 

(I have edited very little with regard to grammar and punctuation, and I have not changed the content in any way.)

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Karen Calzado Bermuthz

El Instituto Laurens – LEB – Oral and Written Communication

Mr. Jon Herrin

June 6, 2011

What are the three most important competencies for a teacher as he or she enters the 21 st century world of teaching?

For me the most important competencies for teachers are three types of knowledge: how to discipline, how to motivate students and teaching team work.

It is very important that the teacher knows how to discipline her students, to let them know that in her classroom there are rules and they have to follow because if they do not follow the rules, they will have a consequence. For example, when a child has been running in the class room several times, he knows that there is a rule that it says they should not run in the class room, that this action has a consequence (punishment). He must understand that the teacher is like King of the class room.

Another competency is to know how to motivate students because with so much technology it is difficult to find something that motivates them. The teachers should use new technology and find new educational materials to arouse the interest of the students’ desire to learn. For example, when we take a history class, we can use the computer to watch a video, so it will make the history class more interesting and bring more attention for the students. Then they themselves may want to watch more videos of history.

Finally, teachers need to know how to teach teamwork because many people do not want to work as a team and prefer to do everything alone. This means that when our students are adults they will have some problems at work because to work in a company requires teamwork. So, teachers have to teach students to work together when they are in school. We need to develop their teamwork skills. For example, every day we can make them work together on an activity where each student has a commitment and a responsibility. They will learn and become accustomed to working together. Teachers also need to change the teams every day, so the students will not always be with the same team members.

In conclusion, as teachers we have to prepare in these competencies every day, as students are changing and need to develop new skills.

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