What Makes Good Teachers Great:

Characteristics of High-Performing Islamic School Teachers

Omaira Alam

Saturday, January 18th, 2014

3:30 to 4:45pm

OBJECTIVES

Recognize characteristics of great teachers.

Determine a way forward to improve our own

approach to teaching

WHAT IS OUR EXPERIENCE?

Good to Great

TEN CHARACTERISTICS OF

HIGH-PERFORMING TEACHERS

Good to Great

TEN CHARACTERISTICS OF HIGH-

PERFORMING EDUCATORS

1. Sincere/ Authentic

2. Lightheartedness

3. High Aspirations

4. Belief/ Conviction

5. Seriousness

6. Reflective

7. Inspiring

8. Appreciative

9. Spiritual

10.Empowering

GREAT TEACHERS KNOW THE

DIFFERENCE…

“Are you so interested in improving your students’

reading abilities that you are willing to change what

you do in your classroom – or do you want to raise

their test scores so that you don’t have to change

what you do in your classroom?”

That is really the essence of education. What

determines what happens in my classroom – the

syllabus, or the students? Do I hold up the standards

at the finish line and watch the students make their

way done the track as best they can – or am I at their

sides, helping them develop the skills they need.

Todd Whitaker, What Great Teachers Do Differently

GREAT TEACHERS ARE SINCERE AND

AUTHENTIC

To your students, to the school, to students’ parents, and to

your profession.

Work hard to keep your relationships in good repair – to avoid

personal hurt and to repair any possible damage.

Have the ability to respond to inappropriate behaviour without

escalating the situation.

Consistently work to improve your understanding of student

needs.

Have skills to build positive relationships with students of all

types.

Assume nothing and move forward positively; treat every

person with respect.

Understand the power of praise.

GREAT TEACHERS ARE LIGHTHEARTED

Create a positive atmosphere in your

classrooms and schools.

Consistently filter out the negatives that don’t

matter and share a positive attitude.

Have the ability to ignore trivial disturbances.

Are not sarcastic to students. Humorous, yes;

sarcastic, no.

Smile, use humor, but are real.

You understand the power of praise.

GREAT TEACHERS HAVE HIGH

ASPIRATIONS Model and nurture high aspirations

Strive for everyone learning – everyone grows from where

ever they are, so we have to know where they are.

Have a mission and a knowledge of exactly what they want to

accomplish every day in the classroom; the why and what of

teaching.

High efficacy.

Have learned how to plan your time and effort to make the

best use of your skills and resources.

Establish clear expectations at the start of the year and

follow them consistently as the year progresses.

Have high expectations for students, but even higher

expectations for themselves.

GREAT TEACHERS HAVE STRONG

BELIEFS AND CONVICTION

Believe in your students, in their potential, and

in the time it takes for openings to manifest.

Have conviction in what you teach, why you

teach and where you teach.

Have positive beliefs in your ability to work

successfully with students and to make a

difference in their lives.

Know that it is the people, not program, that

determine the quality of a school.

GREAT TEACHERS KNOW WHEN TO BE

SERIOUS

Address learning with lightness and yet

seriousness, be upfront about what is not

appropriate .

When a student misbehaves, your goal is to

keep that behaviour from happening again.

GREAT TEACHERS ARE REFLECTIVE

Be reflective of yourself and what you can do to improve.

Have well-developed problem-solving skills that empower you

to create and implement plans for overcoming challenges.

You are adaptable and resilient, and aren’t afraid to be

challenged.

Engage in reflective practice and are constantly working to

improve yourself spiritually and mentally through life-long

learning. – knowledge from the cradle to the grave.

You know who the variable in the classroom is: You, the

teacher.

You consistently strive to improve, focusing on what you can

control – your own performance.

You have a plan and purpose for everything you do. If it

doesn’t work out the way you envisioned, you reflect and

adjust your plans accordingly.

GREAT TEACHERS ARE INSPIRING

Passionate about what you teach.

Communicate well.

Engage, engage, and engage.

Encourage creativity in the classroom.

Maintain a positive attitude; teaching is hard, but attempt to

remain encouraging and inspirational.

Encourage instructional rigor and student engagement as well

as instructional relevance through content knowledge.

Keep standardized testing in perspective, you center on the

real issue of student learning.

Care about your students.

GREAT TEACHERS ARE APPRECIATIVE

Appreciate the fact that you've been chosen as

a teacher.

Have skills to build positive relationships with

parents.

A collaborative spirit.

Encouraged by team teaching or co-teaching.

Understand the necessity of a support network

and seek out friends and colleagues who are

positive and proactive; teaching does not occur

in a vacuum – finding the support you need.

GREAT TEACHERS STRIVE FOR

SPIRITUALITY

Live Islam in your classroom.

View all curriculum and approaches through an

Islamic worldview.

Understand the place of adab in acquiring

knowledge.

Consistently strive for spiritual improvement.

GREAT TEACHERS ARE EMPOWERING

Show students that their opinions matter – really value

them.

Build trust and a community that can grow together.

Model and Teach 21st Century Skills.

Use differentiation, project based learning, thematic

teaching, integrating teaching and real world

connections to build a strong learning environment.

Learning climate: create a positive atmosphere in your

classrooms and schools.

TEN CHARACTERISTICS OF HIGH-

PERFORMING EDUCATORS

1. Sincere/ Authentic

2. Lightheartedness

3. High Aspirations

4. Belief/ Conviction

5. Seriousness

6. Reflective

7. Inspiring

8. Appreciative

9. Spiritual

10.Empowering

REFLECTIONS, QUESTIONS & RESOURCES

Final Thoughts...

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