Teacher Competency - Essay Example

Students, meanwhile, also expect to be able to learn from the teacher. Some even think that teachers can make them smart, an expectation which can not be discounted. Although intelligence is primarily a result of a student’s diligence and genes perhaps, a teacher’s input is a major contributing factor. This is where teacher competency comes into the picture. For a teacher to be able to facilitate learning, he must be competent. Now what is competency? Competency is “the ability to perform a particular skill or to demonstrate a specified level of knowledge” (D.

Sadker & M. Sadker, 2005, p. G-2). A competent teacher therefore is one who not only facilitates learning but does so in a specified, and shall we say exemplary, level. There are a lot of characteristics or qualities that make a competent teacher, all of which are related to the dimensions of one’s personality – intellectual, physical, social, ethical, and emotional (Zulueta, 2006). However, there is no standard which can be considered as the universal set of characteristics a teacher must have in order to be called competent; these qualities are dynamic in that what works for one teacher may not work for another, or what is effective for a student may not be as effective for another, or what applies now may not be applicable years from now.

Lack of knowledge on a subject and inability to answer a question is such a horror to think of. Teachers fear it too. It must be understood that learning is a continuous process and no one, not even a teacher knows the answer to everything. Some students are ruthless; they like to test the extent of a teacher’s knowledge. Teachers must be prepared for such events. Although there may be times that he will not be able to answer a question without further research, these instances must be kept to a minimum.

Looked up to as a fountain of knowledge, a teacher must therefore be a master at the subject