What are the Qualities of a Good Science Teacher?

Qualities of a Good Science Teacher

Besides possessing the personal qualities, every science teacher should fulfill the following broad requirements.

1. Practical knowledge of child psychology and of the learning process.

2. Trained in the modern methods and techniques.

3. Basic academic requirements.

1. A science teacher must have practical knowledge of child psychology and of the process of learning. The science teacher should be able to eater to individual differences in the class. Knowledge of child psychology helps a teacher to guide the students according to their interests, capabilities and help in educational, vocational and personal problems. Besides these, a science teacher should be of a scientific temper, rational in approach to problems, free of bias and superstitions, innovative, inquisitive about the world around him. A Science teacher should regularly evaluate his teaching so that he can keep improving and also help him identify his weakness.

2. A science teacher must be trained in modern methods and techniques of science. New methods and techniques are being employed in the teaching of science. Science Clubs, improvisation of apparatus, programmed instruction, teaching machines and many other new concepts are coming in. It is, therefore, desirable that a science teacher is trained and well versed in:

(i) Development of aquaria, vivaria, terraria.

(ii) Knowledge of preserving specimens of plants and animals.

(iii) Techniques of evaluation.

(iv) Maintenance and use of science libraries.

(v) Lesson and unit planning.

(vi) The various teaching methods in use today.

3. The basic academic qualifications are laid down by the education department or the employer. In all the cases, the science teachers in high schools be at least B.Sc. and higher secondary schools M.Sc.

In order to describe more other qualities of a science teacher we are explaining herewith more details as under:

There are qualities which are general qualities which a teacher must be endowed with to be an effective teacher. However, a science teacher must possess some specific qualities to become a successful science teacher.

1. Sincerity of purpose:

A teacher should have love for his profession. He should be seriously and sincerely committed to his duties and work. As such be must be on the path of excellence both for his own personal achievements and that of his pupils.

2. Studious and learned:

A very desirable quality of a teacher is his taste for reading. He should have the habit of keeping himself in touch with the latest development especially belonging to his own subjects. He should be a voracious reader of the knowledge available to him from multi-dimensional sources.

3. A good communicator of ideas:

A teacher should be clear in speech and should be able to convey his ideas to his pupils with ease and effectiveness. His black­board and sketching should be quite neat, bold and effective.

4. Plain speaking:

A teacher by nature should be truth loving and plan speaking. He must have enough courage to say the right thing as right and wrong ones as wrong. There should not be any ambiguity in his thoughts and saying.

5. Impartial behaviour and attitude:

A teacher should not have any biases and prejudices of any kind towards any of his students. He should not distinguish and discriminate one people from the other and should try to drop all notions of favouritism or antagonism by giving a solid proof of his impartial behaviour and attitude towards all of his students.

6. Hard worker and responsible:

The teacher should be his own example of hard work and sincerity. He should inspire his students to acquire a taste for learning, doing safe work as well as sharing responsibilities with all his keenness and sincerity.

7. Affectionate behaviour:

The teacher should create an atmosphere of good will, love and cooperation in the matter of dealing with his students. He should not get irritated on minor faults and mistakes of his pupils but should try to create an environment of mutual trust and affection congenial for proper work and learning.

8. Patience:

A teacher should not lose his patience and unnecessarily get disturbed over minor mistakes and shortcomings of his pupils but must demonstrate a lot of patience in dealing with them. On the other hand, the pupils should not always live in constant fear of the teacher but must try to receive proper guidance from their teacher.

9. Leadership and love for discipline:

The teacher must possess the traits of a good leader in whom the students may have a genuine faith. He should be able to inspire the students to seek knowledge with sincerity. A disciplined and sincere teacher will be able to inculcate the values of sincerity, discipline and obedience among students. This will channellise the energy of students towards constructive activities.

10. Self confidence:

A teacher must have confidence in his abilities. This confidence must be demonstrated through his behaviour in general and his classroom teaching in particular.

11. Mastery of his subject:

A science teacher should have profound knowledge of his subject of study so that he may not cut a sorry figure before his students. He should be able to keep his head high and be able answer all the questions and problems put to him by his students up to their satisfaction in all branches of his subject.

12. Knowledge of other subjects:

A science should not only be an expert in his subject but should also have a good working knowledge of the other related subjects. For example, the physics teacher should have good knowledge of Mathematics and Biology teacher should know much about chemistry in order to do more justice with his teaching. Moreover, a teacher equipped with the essential knowledge of the all related subjects will able to handle his students efficiently as the subjects of the curriculum are supplementary to each other in fulfilling the objectives of teaching at a particular stage and the application of one subject is easily found in the other.

13. Scientific thinking and attitude:

A good science teacher tries to imbibe scientific thinking and attitude in his own actions thoughts. For imbibition of such traits, a science teacher must attempt to provide science education in such a way as to inculcate in the pupils a habit of testing the validity of certain beliefs and facts by their own independent observations and experimentation.

14. Efficiency in the preparation and use of teaching aids:

The science teacher should have sufficient skill and dexterity in improvising and constructing his own aids in teaching of science according to the local needs and situations. Needless to say that he should have full self- confidence in handling all types of demonstration equipments and materials as well as in using all types of audio visual aids for making the science teaching as effective as possible.

15. Taste of scientific activities:

A good science teacher should have taste and love for organizing and participating in scientific activities like establishment of science museum and science club, organising scientific excursions and science fairs and engaging in the purposeful scientific hobbies. Such activities constitute real education and help in the proper development of scientific attitude among the students.

16. Knowledge of psychology related to science:

The teacher should have knowlege of the science of behaviour of his students in order to handle them effectively in the teaching- learning process. He should try to impart knowledge and skills to then according of their mental abilities, capacities, interests and attitudes, as well as emotional and social make up.

If the teacher is well equipped he may help the students to undergo a battery of intelligence tests a science stream of the curriculum. In this way, if scientific knowledge is imparted to the deserving students it will make the tasks of the teacher and the taught easier.

Apart from this the knowledge of other tests and psychological measurement will help the teacher to understand the ability, and behaviour potential of the child at the different stages of his learning or development and consequently he may bring changes in his own mode of behaviour and methods of teaching.

17. Knowledge of methods of teaching science:

It is also essential for a science teacher for being trained in the latest techniques, strategies and methodology of teaching science including the use of the all type of aid material and developed technology.

Science Teacher’s Dairy:

Just like other teachers the science teacher should also keep a dairy. In this dairy the record of syllabus drawn up the science teacher be maintained. It should clearly indicate the particulars of quarterly and weekly distribution of work. A copy of the time-table be also kept in diary. The time for 1. outdoor activities. 2. projects and other allied activities and 3. class room and laboratory work.

The dairy should also show the details of written work, questions set. Entries of any comments on assignments and practical work must also find a place in teacher’s diary.

A record of diary work be entered in the diary regularly and it should be dated. In keeping this record teacher should clearly mention the details of lecture- cum- demonstration work, individual experimental work, slides etc. to be shown and any such other details. He should also enter in his diary those parts of the proposed work that have been accomplished. Those parts of the proposed work that could not be accomplished and any other extra work that has been attempted.

The results of class tests and house examinations must also be recorded in teacher’s diary. Science teacher can also keep a record of apparatus or chemicals to be ordered for his reference in his diary. Such a record will be quite useful for him when he is placing the orders at the beginning of the year.