What should be a teacher? Features of the profession, responsibilities and competencies

Pedagogy is one of the oldest and most respected fields of activity. But those who want to associate themselves with it will definitely have to take into account the basic features of the profession. It is also important to find out what are the responsibilities of the teacher, and what competencies should be possessed.

As with any work, in the activities of the teacher there are a number of unique specific features. The most important feature can be considered that it is closely related to the activities of trainees, and even, moreover, is almost completely determined by this activity. Further, it is worth considering that the teacher always acts in accordance with the goals and objectives of a particular society, with the worldviews prevailing in it. Defining the profession of a teacher, we can say this - this is a person who gives other people knowledge and skills, helps to increase their intellectual and moral level.

Therefore, when describing the activities of a particular teacher, the main attention is paid to exactly how expedient, effective and in accordance with social standards the activities of the people trained by him. Figuratively speaking, a good teacher can hardly have professional criminals and similar antisocial elements as “products”. But to completely characterize the result of the teaching work is immediately impossible. It is revealed as deeply as possible only after 20-30 years.

Moreover, the peculiarity of pedagogy also lies in the fact that the people employed in it involuntarily display their traits in their students and pupils. Even in older teens, the imitation element is great. Another caveat - the teacher is busy more than many other professionals.

It is worth noting that quite a few successful teachers have been dreaming of such work almost from childhood. And those who showed such determination, retained their original motivation, are almost the best in the profession. Others are inspired by the example of teachers they encountered at school. There is another option - someone is fond of a certain direction in cognition (physics, literature, and so on) and seeks to convey their knowledge to other people, to familiarize them with their hobby. These are the answers most often given by practicing educators.

Other motives are also found:

• continuation of the family professional dynasty;
• craving for communication;
• the desire to make the world a little better;
• desire to be in contact with children;
• a sense of "primordial calling";
• random choice (and not always, by the way, such people work poorly and inefficiently, many are "drawn in").

The positive and negative aspects of the teaching profession are closely interconnected, are logical extensions of each other. For example, this work is liked by sociable people who easily find contact with children. But just interrupting the conversation, reducing the level of communication (even if you need to relax at some point) will not work. The stable authority of the teacher in society also means an increased level of expectations. Many parents, alas, generally try to shift their responsibilities to school.

And unlike many other professions, it is impossible to refer to any formal rules, protecting oneself from such claims. One still cannot ignore such a moment that today teachers work much more intensively than before. But with a few exceptions, they cannot count on special material well-being. In this case, the behavior of children does not always comply with the standards of decency. With many excesses have to put up involuntarily.

It should also be noted:

• lowering the authority of teaching (and not only in Russia);
• increased "paper" load;
• excessive bureaucratization in the education system.

At the same time, professionals themselves call such advantages of their work as:

• long vacation;
• good working schedule;
• official employment;
• an opportunity to prove oneself;
• placement in a special office (however, this does not apply to all teachers).

It is absolutely logical that the teacher is expected to be competent in his field of teaching. But no sphere, even the same mathematics, stands still. And therefore, for those who are not ready for self-development, there is nothing to do in the profession. A very important factor is communicative competence. It is understood that those who own this quality are not just "ready to communicate freely." They:

• can clearly predict the development of any situation in communication;
• They are able to push the conversation in the way necessary for themselves;
• fully understand the motives and content of actions, the words of the interlocutor (even if they absolutely disagree with him).

Anyone who “comes out and reads a piece of paper” is not a teacher. Only those who have the right to call themselves teachers who knows how to put an imprint of self in disseminated knowledge. Also important:

• maintaining self-control even in a difficult situation;
• humanistic attitude;
• self-discipline;
• the ability to develop discipline among students;
• respect in communication;
• the ability to admit their mistakes and correct behavior.

The types of school teachers are quite diverse, and you should not forget that many work outside the secondary school. So, a teacher preparing for school is becoming increasingly relevant these days. Already in the first grade, the requirements are growing steadily, and the previous skills taught in the family and kindergarten are far from always enough. Wherein working with preschoolers has to be even more accurate and careful than with younger schoolchildren. In kindergarten, a teacher of preschool education have to build on professional standards and FSES.

Do not confuse teachers preparing for school and teachers in the field of early development. These are albeit close, but different specializations. Early development involves working with children 0-3 years old. It is called:

• introduce the child to the features of the world;
• help him deal with the forms and properties of various objects;
• take into account the efforts made in the family;
• Help parents correct early development mistakes or avoid them altogether.

It is on this aspect that orders to highlight pedagogical categories are focusing attention. Also required:

• to personally contribute to the improvement of teaching professions;
• know perfectly the existing educational technologies and improve them based on their own experience;
• help other teachers in methodical work;
• provide the maximum educational result in your class (distinguished in a school and even in a district, city or region).

Particularly worth highlighting are primary school teachers. This is practically a “universal”, because the division into specific objects is absent or appears rather weakly. To the teacher will have to answer not only for education and upbringing in the narrow sense, but also for the leisure of students. (It is assumed that at an older age they themselves can plan their leisure time). An important role is played by whether it will be possible to rally the class, motivate students to obtain knowledge.

It is the impressions received in elementary school, precisely the motivations worked out (or not worked out) in it that largely determine the further course of study. But both “subject matter” and elementary school teachers could not work normally if there were no librarian teacher.

The pedagogical component in it is connected with what you need:

• to orient children in the space of information;
• encourage and develop reading interest on their part;
• to turn the school library into an additional channel of socialization and assimilation of socially significant skills and values.

The profession of a teacher of labor is underestimated, alas, by many people. But a condescending attitude towards her is completely inappropriate. Today, such work involves the possession of a wide range of modern technologies and information tools. A good teacher tries to formulate an appropriate technological initiative in his students. Which is no less significant their future attitude to workplace safety depends on his efforts.

We should also dwell on such specialization as a social studies teacher. Contrary to the traditional view, this is a very complex discipline. To teach it, you need to know history and psychology, political science and the foundations of law, cultural studies and philosophy. Knowledge of sociology and anthropology, political geography, and economics will also be completely useful. And in all these areas it is very important to maintain the current level of knowledge.

And still more noteworthy is the work of an acting teacher. The purpose of his work is so that students can effectively (and effectively, expressively) create stage images, play roles. Have to understand thoroughly in stage speech and stage movement. Without this knowledge, teachers themselves will not understand where their pupils make mistakes, and how these problems can be fixed.

It is this document that shows the basic composition of the duties and functions of the teacher in a particular position. The instruction is developed and approved by the leadership of each educational organization individually. But a typical level of requirements implies knowledge of:

• Constitution of the Russian Federation and other basic legislative acts;
• international human rights and child rights standards;
• education laws;
• relevant GEF;
• current orders of authorized state bodies;
• basic teaching methods;
• key pedagogical methods and approaches, nuances and conditions for their application;
• an affordable set of training tools and tools;
• labor protection standards, safety measures.

The job descriptions always state to whom a particular teacher is specifically subordinate. Its direct supervisor is usually the director or head of the educational unit. But private educational institutions can establish their own rules. Most often, the job description establishes what exactly the teacher does. In general, the set of his duties looks like this:

• training and education in accordance with the specifics of the subject;
• educational program implementation;
• systematic continuing education;
• flexible use of teaching aids and methods.

Such a specific activity, like teaching, makes very high demands on the personality of a professional. So, he should be fluent in the culture of speech and strictly observe it in communication with students. This is important even in case of conflict - and, perhaps, in case of conflict it is especially relevant. In this case, you need to be prepared for the fact that communication styles among students will not always meet the same requirements. Therefore, possession of all levels and layers of speech is an unobvious, but quite logical nuance.

A modern teacher is different from the one that was 100 or 300 years ago, and is somewhat similar to him. Indeed, qualities such as:

• purposefulness;
• curiosity;
• the ability to make contact with a wide variety of people;
• artistry;
• flexibility of behavior;
• adherence to principles;
• ability to take responsibility;
• sensitivity;
• correctness;
• motivation for teaching.

The key competencies of a teacher are:

• the formation of the personality of students;
• instilling in them high civil and human qualities;
• didactic processing of available information;
• the use of technical training tools;
• competence in the current state of their field of knowledge or skill.

Maintaining the image of a profession without an ethical component is unthinkable. And the ethics of the teacher are dictated by humanism, the idea of ​​other people as a goal, not a means. Not a single step or even a word should be interpreted, misunderstood. Rudeness is categorically unacceptable, let alone violence against anyone; one must also not indulge and make a deal with conscience.

To have good prospects, you must get a higher pedagogical education. The times when a teacher could limit himself to an average level of training have long passed. It is recommended to choose the largest state universities with the corresponding direction of training or specialized pedagogical universities. Useful also focus on the ratings of educational institutions. The result of a teacher’s career can be the post of director (head), employee of the education department, or the foundation of his own educational institution.

In Russia, the professionalism of teachers has a clear regulatory framework. They are assigned one or another qualification depending on personal achievements. Qualification requirements are constantly changing, and all that remains is to monitor their current version. In general, at the end of the 2010s, this system looks like this:

• after graduation - a young specialist;
• compliance with the position held (for all who do not have a special category);
• first category;
• highest category.

On average, in Russia, school teachers receive from 20 to 60 thousand rubles. If we talk about Moscow and to some extent about St. Petersburg, then the lower bar there does not differ, but the upper one is raised to 200 thousand rubles. But it’s important to understand that specific teachers earn very diverse amounts. In addition, the average level in the country is also derived taking into account the regions where the northern coefficient is established.

Giving recommendations to experienced teachers does not make much sense. But just starting to work or going to learn this profession, you need to take into account a number of subtleties and nuances. So, despite all the talk about new technologies and educational approaches, the decisive key to success is the ability to find contact with students, to interest them. This is exactly what a novice teacher should think of first and foremost, and not about knowledge of software, foreign languages, or "original theory from the front line of science." And you can find the necessary starting point in the writings of the great teachers of the past, even past centuries.

Their thoughts remain relevant, can and should be applied to modern reality. It is very important that each lesson is not like the others, so that students wait for the next lesson. This is the highest level of motivation. It is not easy to achieve it - but if the goal is achieved, the lesson itself will go much easier. But there are other subtleties.

Good teacher:

• gives the class its own thinking strategy, not ready-made templates;
• always sets clear goals;
• every day is improved and goes forward;
• analyzes the strengths of students and relies on them;
• masterfully uses provocative statements in order to interest;
• joins forces with other teachers;
• studies the experience of other teachers and the latest theoretical developments;
• each time, heading for the door, he asks himself "is everything that was possible done."