Teachers must know their content-- and know it well. Particularly in middle and high schools, teachers should be experts if they are to impart their knowledge effectively to a broad range of students with different ability levels and learning styles. Professors Deborah Loewenberg Ball and G. Williamson McDiarmid note that regardless of how and what they teach, teachers must have a full “understanding of what it is that students are to learn.” Teachers do that most effectively when they fully understand their subject matter.
Teachers must be strong and interactive communicators. First, they need to communicate the message of their academic lessons. However, they also need to pinpoint areas where students may struggle with retention. When their students don’t get it, it is the teacher’s job to make certain they do, using whatever means suited to the varied learners in the classroom. Teachers also need to have an open dialogue with parents and administration. Successful educators know it does "take a village."
A teacher’s first priority should be to his students, and not just those students’ academic achievements. A holistic approach to education helps students reach their full potential in and out of the classroom. In addition, teachers should be passionate advocates for their profession and the educational system. When a teacher loves his job and the subjects he is teaching, it is infectious, according to Cathy Buyrn, M.Ed.
To produce quality instructional materials, teachers must follow clear guidelines and expectations. A United States history teacher, for example, would need to know if the curriculum called for a look at a single slice of time or an overview from the Revolutionary War to the election of President Barack Obama. Delivery of content also should work for the broadest possible audience. That may mean offering instruction in auditory, visual, kinesthetic and tactile formats.
While the concept of teaching to a test may be repugnant to creative educators, there has to be a way to measure the effectiveness of lessons, curricula and schools. Without measurable and periodic assessment, students can fall to the peril of presumptive success or have no idea how they are doing. Teachers must attach whatever grading system they use to clearly defined standards. Teachers must also communicate these standards clearly to the student, parents, administration and the community at-large.