Teach English in Hantun Zhen - Liaocheng Shi

Teaching and learning is a process that can never be completely achieved without evaluation or assessment or analysis. The most important form of analysis that ensures improvement on the part of both teacher and learner is self-analysis, which is a close examination of one’s own work, that is, teaching or learning, one’s one character, behaviors, attitudes and actions towards and against their work. This essay shall explore the value of teacher self-analysis in relation to teaching of English as a foreign Language. Self-analysis is often called self-evaluation or self-assessment. These terms may be taken by others as different but they can be used interchangeably. The integral part is that they express the same concept which is self-introspection in relation to one’s work. According to the journal Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education volume 19, 1994 issue 2, self-evaluation is “a process whereby (teachers) collect data on their own (teaching) effectiveness and analyses the information to consider improvement to that (teaching). I have taken self-analysis to not only mean collecting data on the teaching but also the process of reviewing one’s own life, interests and dislikes, behaviors among other aspects of personal life as these all affect results in the teaching and learning process. It is essential for one to understand what moves him/her into any action, what motivates or demotivates the self, understand one’s temperament as all these aspects have a large bearing on the process of teaching and learning. Teacher self-analysis is of great significance in the process of teaching and learning as it informs meaningful teaching and learning. Most often than not, teachers are caught up in a race to complete the syllabus, drill learners for the external examination and miss the most important purpose of teaching and never bother to really examine their personality in relation to their work, and how they are impacting on the learners. For instance, one teacher had had in his life a very nasty experience with a racist individual, and each time he taught topics on racism, he got hyper emotional and this affected the attitude of the learners towards either the teacher or the race of the individual who had been racist to the teacher. The teacher either never bothered to self-evaluate, or lacked the understanding of the value of self-analysis in order to admit to himself what he was comfortable teaching that topic and he could or should have requested a colleague to cover for him. Sometimes most people are just too scared to admit that they do not know about a topic or concept, they are not familiar with particular media usage. The advantage of self-analysis is that one admits to the self about his/her shortcomings, and where possible, find ways to acquire knowledge. Presenting a topic or delivering a lesson or using media that you have limited knowledge on before students who may, in this world of technological advancement, have that knowledge is a far worse disgrace. Some countries have policies whereby workers are required to each fill in forms on competence gaps and one can only know his/her competency gaps after meaningful self-analysis. Self-analysis is a skill that allows for constant review of one’s progress. Progress is not merely moving on but it is development from one stage to the other in the positive direction. Proceeding with work without projection may not yield intended results, therefore it is paramount for any teaching practitioner to be involved in some form of self-analysis and this should be done quite regularly. Teacher self-analysis enables one to establish their strength and weaknesses. The teacher should capitalize on his/her strength to produce results and also make effort to adjust on weaknesses, transforming them into strengths where possible. For instance, a naturally talkative teacher would realise that this is a weakness in the classroom as most learning should be learner centered. One should avoid being a ‘preacher-teacher’ by reducing teacher talk time through the use of a variety of methods which allows learners to interact more with each other. Teacher self-analysis enables meaningful lesson-planning and diverse teaching approaches. Self-analysis helps the teacher manage their personal thoughts, feelings, and actions to achieve goals. It is not very easy for most teachers or most people in general to separate their social and work lives. Pressures from home most often than not, dominate activities in the classroom. Thus self-analysis helps the teacher admit when he/she is not psychologically fit for the classroom due to social pressure, or making a conscious decision to suppress other matters in the mind in order to concentrate on the work at hand. Without making self-analysis, the teacher will move blindly and only become aware when everything has already been messed and time would have been lost. The main purpose of self-analysis is to answer the question: How do I become better? Every teacher is a professional, a guru in his/her line of expertise, but there is always room for improvement and Self-analysis enables one to fill that gap. Self-introspection does not only make the teacher a better teacher but also a better person. At the workplace, the teacher needs to relate well and professionally with colleagues. Every teacher has a responsibility to shape a product that is able to coexist with others in the community and so, it is important that the teacher lead by example through team work. However, in order for one to be a team player, there is great need for self-introspection in order to establish how you fit in the puzzle of life at work. Attitudes and behaviors, character traits play a crucial role in team work. In teaching TEFL sometimes the classes have students of diverse races, the teacher’s attitude plays a pivotal role in establishing rapport with these students. Teacher self-analysis is therefore a must-have weapon in the hands of the teacher, especially in teaching English as a foreign language because the teacher will encounter people of various nationalities and personalities, with diverse knowledge levels. Therefore, constant adjustments to the teacher’s personality and attitudes would be inevitable. Self-analysis would thus inform the teacher on what changes to make in order to achieve intended goals of teaching and learning.