Teach English in Shang Zhen - Shangluo Shi

Is teacher self-analyses really only supposed to be focussed on the pending lesson and improvement of his own teaching style for that lesson? Has it ever come to mind why people today decide to choose a specific career? Are children today still influenced by parents to follow in their footsteps concerning a career choice, or to hand over the reins of a family business when they retire? Are they influenced to choose a specific career path due to the perception of: “that career path will enable me to make more money”? I am of the opinion that our perceptions of the above is outdated and not in touch with reality today. My personal opinion and believe is that the teacher, teaching a specific subject in the school curriculum has a big part to play in a student’s life and career choice. Let me explain: Referring to my own life story, I have a passion for history, geography and languages and at the same time have a disinterest for subjects such as maths, science and accountancy. After close analysis of my own career choice, I discovered that my likes and dislikes stem directly from the teachers that taught the various subjects. They either inspired me or demotivated me due to the specific teaching style offered in those subjects. That brought me to the following conclusions: Doing self-analysis as described in the course material provided, and indeed many other materials available on the internet, it is clear that the teacher’s teaching skills is of utter importance as well as the honing thereof. But there is no denying that it is all good and well to give the teacher the theoretic and tested ways of being successful in the classroom. Teaching a person to prepare a proper lesson plan, to mime and demonstrate, and all that goes with excellent teaching skills are very helpful as well as necessary for all the reasons given in the study material. What makes an excellent teacher or any employee in any industry for that matter, is that he or she are passionate about their subject and enjoy their commerce! Now, I realise that loving and being passionate about your job and students, cannot theoretically be taught, and therefor that is the biggest responsibility of the teacher when doing self-analysis. A teacher needs to firstly ask him or herself the following questions: Why am I doing what I am doing? What value do I add to the environment, the students life and future and the job? At the end of the day could I honestly say that I am going to make a difference with what I am about to offer in my lesson? Do I enjoy what I’m doing, or is it just another paying job where I cannot wait to go home for peace and quiet. The teacher needs to consider and be mindful on how his or her actions will impact the students and their future. Be honest and truthful with yourself. When doing teacher self-analysis in improving your teaching style as per the lesson plan, the teacher has to have self-awareness and be able to stay focused on being objective and unbiased. Even the best course material and lesson plan, however helpful, can be a waste of time if it is not presented by an inspired teacher. There is no hope for a teacher to inspire or cultivate the will to succeed in the student if the teacher himself is uninspired. The teacher needs to aspire to motivate and inspire the student to perform to the best of his or her ability. In my opinion it is a teacher’s duty to be self-aware of his or her own strengths and weaknesses, and his own unique personality traits, passions, core motivations as well as his core values. If the teacher is not present with his or her own personality and what he can offer the students, then he or she will also not be able to recognise and appreciate his student’s unique personality and needs. Therefore the teacher will not be able to motivate the student in the best possible way and also be the role model the student needs him or her to be. I realise that we cannot include these points I’ve made on any lesson plan or self-analyses worksheet, but that does not make it less important for teacher self-analyses. Realising this creates a huge responsibility for the teacher. Are you interested and serious about the well-being and future of your students. The teacher needs to be aware that self-analyses also includes looking at his own state of mind and presence during interaction with his students. Be mindful that the student feels heard and seen during the interaction. It is also important that the student feels connected and that the teacher creates rapport between him or herself and the student in order to bring out the best in the student.There are lots of information and helpful tips on the internet to help and combat teacher burnout. I do realise that the self-analyses referred to is really all about how to improve yourself as teacher in the classroom situation, however if my submissions are not taken into account in the classroom situation, real connection and positive teaching is just words with no action on the teachers part.