Many people think the primary qualification for being a teacher is knowledge and mastery of the subject matter. By studying secondary math teacher preparation, I’ve found that most teachers come into the field with a deep background in math. The problem is that the understanding of mathematics gained through advanced university mathematics courses is not well-connected to the mathematics in the work of teaching. For example, most teachers are able to solve any problem in a high school math textbook. But that’s not the same as explaining how to solve those problems in multiple ways so that it’s accessible to many students. It’s really about understanding math in the way that it’s needed for teaching. This understanding is its own complex skill separate from (though connected to) understanding advanced mathematics. A big part of my work is about helping teachers develop the math understanding they need for teaching. Teaching is not simply standing in front of a class to disseminate kn...
$1m prize for London educator named 'world's best teacher A woman from north London has been announced as the first British winner of a prize worth $1m (£720,000) for the world’s best teacher. Andria Zafirakou, an arts and textiles teacher from Alperton community school in Brent, north-west London, was presented with the fourth annual Varkey Foundation Global Teacher prize in Dubai on Sunday. She collected the honour at a ceremony attended by the former US vice president Al Gore, Tony Blair, and Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton. In a congratulatory message played during the ceremony, prime minister Theresa May said the award was a “fitting tribute” for everything Zafirakou had done. Zafirakou, who is the first UK teacher to win the award, told reporters: “I was shocked. I was completely overwhelmed. I didn’t realise it was me.” She called for more support for the “power of the arts”, saying schools can make a positive difference in children’s lives through crea...
A V O I D Screaming at the child. Embarrassing the child. Shaming the child. Labeling the child. Threatening the child. Hitting the child. Hurting the child in any way. Indulging the child. Reinforcing inappropriate behavior by giving in to his/her outbursts. DO Accept the child as a valuable human being. Accentuate his/her strengths. Acknowledge appropriate behavior. Provide a safe, respectful environment with clear limits. Follow through with meaningful consequences for aggressive acts. Provide a predictable day with opportunities for the child to make choices. Model kindness, fairness, firmness, and consistency. Watch the child carefully noting the antecedents to hostile behavior. Anticipate angry outbursts and arrange activities to reduce them. Understand that anger is often a reaction to feeling misunderstood, unloved, hurt or afraid. Assist the child in learning and using a vocabulary of feeling words. Listen and mirror the feelings he/she expre...
Comments
Post a Comment