Developing an invaluable aspect of teaching

Rohana ANDARAWEERA

Teachers are key instrumental in carrying out the new changes and studying the impact of them on classroom teaching. Teachers are the practitioners of the educational principles and theories. They have a major role in determining what is needed or what would make best with their students. Learning to teach is a life long process and teachers need to develop their knowledge, skills continuously in order to carry out their work effectively.

Stimulating professional competence and development of teachers improve classroom teaching practices.

They need professional guidance which nurtures their freedom and ensures their responsibility in their children’s learning. It should not be assigned to them but they should accept it on their own to enjoy their teaching. In exercising this responsibility they need to explore their own teaching and evaluating it.

Education system

Most teachers grumble that they are bored with their job. ‘Collateral damage of burned out teacher is burned up children’. When the conditions of teaching are not favourable, the conditions of learning tend to be worse, and children suffer in lasting ways. That’s why the collateral damage of burned up teaching is burned up children. Teachers should be encouraged to explore their own teaching through an experimental approach in classroom teaching. When teachers become more aware of how they teach and how their children learn, then can enjoy their teaching which may greatly impact on reforms. By conducting researches is an important aspect in teachers’ professional development. The best place to start research is the classroom. Researches help teachers explore opportunities and find solutions to issues in classroom teaching and teachers tend to see their work in a new way. They can develop the skills of observing, analyzing and constructively criticizing their own classrooms. Researches empower teachers to play the decisive role in the whole education system.

Course materials

Teaching is a process of reflection and planning. Research helps teachers reflect on their own classroom practices on a particular problem to find out remedial works to ‘improve teaching’. By conducting researches teachers can see not only themselves and their teaching but also learners’ attitudes and their learning styles.

Teacher as a researcher is a very rare practice in our education system. Most teachers unfortunately hold a misconception about research thinking that undertaking a research project is reserved for experts or professional researchers. Teachers are used to receive passively what is imbibed to them in training programmes. Research is organized learning, looking for specific things to add to your knowledge. It is a voyage of discovery.

Researches therefore help teachers update their knowledge. It is their pursuit of truth with the help of study, observation, comparison and experiment. Researches keep teachers motivated and interested. When teachers take interest, enjoy their teaching and become more and more aware of how they teach and how their children learn, the whole education process becomes successful.

Teacher researches can also bring a big impact on designing course materials too. Course materials can be developed through research findings and everyone benefits when teachers share their best practices and ideas with one another. Teacher research is an invaluable aspect of professional self development. If teachers have imagination, motivation and drive, they can conduct researches. If you come across new ideas, classroom researches help you to try them out.

It immensely help you understand what you think and what you do and you can personalize your teaching. Studies have revealed that teacher research has a profound effect on those who have done it. It has boosted teachers’ self esteem. It keeps teachers up to-date.

English language teacher can conduct and publish their researches. They can take a new step in their career. Submitting research report and publishing it is an important landmark of one’s teaching career. It is a big step in your continuous professional development. Most teachers tend to rely on the education authority to disseminate knowledge and making judgements about their own teaching.

Teacher research

Teacher researches can be a major strategy for Continuous Professional Development (CPD) with the potential for significant effects on teaching and learning. Teacher researches can develop closer relationships with their students and colleagues. Researches have the potential to bring educational change, transform teachers’ perceptions of themselves on profession and to contribute the career to preserve its nobility.

Research question emerges from teachers’ experience in classroom teaching. Teacher researcher addresses the challenges the teacher actually faces. Findings from such studies impact directly on classroom practices. Research question is the key step in teacher research. Maclean and Mohar suggest four guiding questions to guide the research project.

1) What are you curious about in your classroom?
2) What puzzles you in classroom?
3) What problems do you want to solve in your classroom?
4) What seem most or least successful about your teaching?

Research and teaching are closely interdependent. Good teachers and good researches enhance the quality of learning and teaching. Teachers can make a real difference by undertaking a research in their own classroom.

Promoting research and enhancing its quality should be a main concern in our education system.