Where do effective teachers come from?

There were some fantastic examples in this week's reading of effective teaching. Whether it was the example of Barb Johnson's 6th grade class asking questions they wanted to ask, the students in Elizabeth Jensen's history class acting out the causes of the American Revolution, or Minstrell showing how to play a coaching role, students were all actively engaged in their environment.

Rather than repeating what was said in the article, I want to pose a question and possible solutions. These techniques were phenomenal. If I was a parent I would lobby to get my child in Barb Johnson's class too. Where do teachers like this come from? Where do they get trained to employ such a wide range of learning techniques? Where did Elizabeth Jensen get the idea to act out two opposing views and how to structure that environment? Where did Barb Johnson receive the training that gave her the ability to design an environment where students can ask questions they want answers to and pitch standard curriculum toward those questions? I KNOW not all teachers are like that.

However, that is precisely the type of teacher we should have in all our institutions. How do we achieve this? Are there programs at universities that train teachers to think like this? Are there school districts that promote creating learning environments such as what was discussed? We have got to find a way to train teachers to think about education in creative ways like this. For some teachers, it comes natural - it is simply a God given gift. For others, I'm sure it takes a tremendous amount of practice. Unfortunately, there are some who do not put forth the effort in creating learning environments like discussed. How do we as educators, administrators, etc. help our teachers to grow and create these environments and encourage - and sometimes require - teachers to think about the educational process in such a way? Is it a realistic goal? It sure doesn't seem like it. Regardless, it should still be our goal.

Looking ahead, we need to evaluate our teacher education programs at colleges and universities and make sure these programs are including some sort of training or exposure to these invaluable techniques. We need to work with school districts and administrators to ensure they promote an environment within their learning communities that is open to these approaches. We need to offer as much help to teachers in the form of trainings, seminars, resources, and other support in order to equip them with everything they need to be successful. Realistically however - and perhaps this is even a bit disappointing, there will always be teachers who possess the natural gift of teaching, and those who do not. I just hope in my career, I can help connect the two together in a mutually beneficial way that enables both to be creative, and perhaps a little more like Johnson, Minstrell, and Jensen.