so what does it all mean?

so what do these dispositions even mean? Can they be taught? I think that dispositions can be taught, through experience. I feel that the more you utilize the desired characteristics the more natural they will become. If you are open to change and trying new things you are capable of learning these dispositions.

But I do feel that there are some dispositions that can't be taught. For example, if you are extremely intelligent but don't particularly like children - you shouldn't be a teacher, no ifs ands or buts. Teaching is not the profession for you.

I also think you can learn a lot from watching other great teachers. Witnessing the skill in someone else makes it easier to understand and also apply to your own life. Personally, I am willing to try new ideas, and also utilize ideas from other teachers in order to become a better teacher myself.

resilience

resilience is a very important characteristic to have not only as a teacher, but also for life in general. I know that teaching is a difficult profession because of the amount of chaos a teacher deals with every day, but learning how to cope with stress and disfunction is so very important, especially as a person in a leadership position.

I feel that the only way we can better prepare teachers is to give them more experience working with other experienced teachers. There is a lot of valuable knowledge that can be gained working with an experienced teacher. If we had teachers student teach for longer periods of time, or with multiple teachers - not only would they see many different styles of teaching but they would also have more experience in the classroom and in turn more experience dealing with difficult situations.

humility

"to be truly great, one has to stand among people - not above them" - Montesquieu

I think that as a teacher it is important to be self assured and as the head of a classroom you need to have confidence in yourself as an authoritative figure. but there is a fine line between being confident and being cocky.

The difference, in my opinion, is whether you brag or not about yourself. You can be really good at something or be very confident in a subject and would not be considered arrogant. But the minute you decide to open your mouth and let everyone else know how good you are at this particular subject you become cocky.

I think another aspect that depicts the difference between being humble but also self assured is how you view other people. If you are critical of other people and not yourself you are often considered arrogant.

As a teacher it is so important to be self assured and confident in your teaching, but you must also be aware of what you say and how you treat other people so you don't come across as arrogant or cocky.

collaboration

collaboration is different from group work because it incorporates everyone. each person brings their ideas to the table and everyone recognizes each others strengths and weaknesses and respects them. often in group work one person is stuck with the majority of the work - ideally collaboration evenly divides the work among group members - so that everyone is heading toward a common goal, project etc.

a highly effective team or group would be one that revolves around respect. it is okay to be critical of other people's ideas but it must be in a respectful we. a highly effect team would recognize each others strengths, what that person can bring to the table, and their weaknesses. and be open to new ideas and the fact that their own idea might not be the best. and that the ultimate goal desired is the best final "project."

efficacy

when I first saw that we had to write a blog entry of efficacy, I was a little intimidated because I have no idea what efficacy means.

according to dictionary.com efficacy means effectiveness - and I do know what effectiveness means=]

I think that being confidence in yourself as a teacher and your abilities is a very important skill to have. I am a firm believer that people won't believe in you (especially children) unless you believe in yourself. Although you may feel unsure, or at times questions your abilities - you must always feel that you are capable of doing a wonderful job, it might just take a little more work.

I also think that persistence and work ethic are both important traits to have in order to be an effective teacher. I personally think that work ethic is an important characteristic to have in life, not only in teaching. If you are willing to work, and work hard - you can accomplish anything. And again with persistence, having this trait allows you to succeed. Specifically with children I feel that is important to be persistent in your expectations of each child.

As a teacher it is important to be self-aware. What are my strengths? what needs a little help? etc. recognizing that you may have to make some changes (for the better) is the first step to becoming a better and more effective teacher.

CrEaTiViTy

I really enjoyed the video we watched on you tube. I also agree with the fact that we are educating our children to become university professors who live in their heads. And don't get me wrong I know the world needs university professors - but we can't ALL be that way. we need to encourage children to be creative and innovative.

The interesting thing about kids is that they will take a chance, they aren't afraid to be wrong. and the older kids get the more they fear failure. and if we as learners and not prepare to be wrong, we'll never come up with anything original. we need to teach children that not only is failure acceptable but that you can learn from it.

we must not forget that children are the future, and we should educate the whole being for the future because we may or may not be there to witness it. we need to give kids the skills they need to help make make something of it.

playing roles aka acting

I really enjoyed the role playing method of teaching. Using a more direct lecture would have been much more boring because only the teacher would be talking and the students wouldn't be as engaged. With role playing, the students are more involved and even if a student decides not to comment - they are more engaged because the students that are speaking or participating are more emotionally invested.

I also feel that role playing allows student to be more confident in themselves because they aren't being themselves, they are playing a character (per say). I also feel that when a student is more emotionally engaged they learn more or retain the knowledge for a longer period of time because they are truly invested in the subject.

On the subject of No Child Left Behind. I feel that it is important that students have basic skills such as reading, writing, math competence etc. but I personally feel that there are other basic skills such as being able to read music or throw a baseball that students should know. And yes I do agree (to some extent) that teachers tend to pay more attention to parents of high achieving students most likely because they are involved in their child's life. I do feel though that most teachers encourage all parents to be involved in their children's schooling - but ultimately, right or wrong, that is the parents' choice.