Some years ago, I embarked on the arduous but professional and personally rewarding journey of undertaking the Cambridge ESOL (formerly RSA) Diploma for English Language Teachers of Adults (DELTA). When I finally received my diploma in the mail, I went back and reflected on the portfolio of work I had produced for this endeavor. Early on, I was asked to reflect on why I felt teacher development was important to me both at the general and personal level. Here is what I wrote:

I have been a teacher in a variety of contexts for a number of years now. Although I initially received some ESL specific teacher training early in my career, I have over the years, developed a sense of confidence in my teaching methodology based on my past teaching experiences, my personality and creativity, the influence of my other professional experiences as well as my desire to improve myself professionally. For sometime, I even believed that being a good teacher was something inherently within me. However, while in many ways teaching is indeed an art, I now believe that the required combination of organizational skills and talents to produce educational ‘masterpieces’ are not garnered via genetic predisposition, but rather via the result of teacher training and experience honed over time and practice.

To many individuals, being a teacher is tantamount to either being a maverick entertainer or a personality-less imparter of boring facts and concepts. I believe that many students, in fact, could quite easily categorize the majority of their past teachers as either “good” or “bad” teachers according to these descriptions. However, there are those rare teachers, it seems, who have not only fostered a positive learning experience in their charges, but who have also, in some way, touched or helped change their students’ lives in an indelible manner. To me, an education professional who accomplishes this bears not only the label of “a good teacher” but rather more importantly a “competent and effective” teacher.

In order for a teacher to be effective, he or she must be able to synthesize the skills of establishing and maintaining a productive relationship with the student, with the organizational teaching skills required to meet the educational demands or goals of that student. Being an “effective” teacher also means not only being creative, but also possessing the ability to adapt that creativity to a variety of learning situations and materials. Lastly, it’s my opinion that the “effectiveness” of a teacher can be measured and found in his or her preparation before the actual teaching begins as well as after it has ended.

It would be prohibitive to believe that the aforementioned range of communication, organizational and critical thinking skills are necessary to be an effective and competent teacher, or that these skills can “picked up” along the route of one’s professional path. While a lot can be said in the long-term in regards to experience and its effect on a teacher’s personal and professional development, the same can not be said in terms of the student’s short-term needs. Teacher development is therefore mutually essential to benefit both the teacher as well as the student.

The acquisition and development of the above mentioned skills, as well as others, represent to me more than just hallmarks of an effective teacher, or the subsequent results of a well-rounded teacher development program. They also reflect a teacher’s level of professional dedication as well as the desire to ensure that the leaning process is successful, not only for their own sake but for their students’ sake as well.

Ok, so to what extent do you agree or disagree with the statements written above? Let me know what you think.

Suggested Reading:

– Author’s note: Adapted from my original article of the same title that first appeared in ELT-Vista periodical (2006