Caring - Mitkadmim

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TEACHER BELIEF TEACHER BEHAVIOR STUDENT BELIEF STUDENT BEHAVIOR STUDENT ACHIEVENENT

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the expert teacher's edge
teacher behaviors. However, some researchers believe teachers' behaviors are driven by their beliefs. The results of a recent study of teacher belief systems indicate that researchers should extend their investi-gations into the realm of teacher belief systems, paying close attention to the influence of caring

Karen J. Agne from Educational Horizons, vol. 70, no. 3, Spring 1992, pages 120-124.

What is a star? In one of C.S. Lewis'

books for children, there is a conversation about a star. "In our world," a boy says, "a star is a huge ball of flaming gas." A wizened man answers: "Even in your world, my son, that is not what a star is, but only what it is made of." In an effort to understand and define expertise in teaching, researchers often fragment the process into various pedagogical strategies and isolated behaviors. Although such delineations may help to inform would-be teachers, they leave the true expert obscured because they omit the pivotal core from which all of the strategies and behaviors emanate and around which they revolve. They describe not what the star is, but only what the star is made of. Continuing teacher effectiveness research is helping many uninformed observers to recognize, at long last, the complexity of teaching, while appreciation of the qualitatively different, uniquely human essence of the expert teacher is just beginning to emerge. Research into the nature of teacher expertise continues to emphasize

In his study of the expert teacher, David Berliner found experts to be "irrational," in that they appear to follow no recognizable logic; rather, they are intuitive and just seem to "go with the flow." His most illuminating description of these stars, however, hints that they may have some inexplicable ability to "become one with" their students and the process of teaching, as a winning race car driver speaks of "becoming one with" his car. Unlike novices, explains Berliner, expert teachers are able to reach deep emotional levels regarding their work. Experts were genuinely distressed when they perceived themselves as failing to deliver a lesson commensurate with expectations they held for themselves, even when faced with a situation designed to "throw" them and students they did not know. Only the expert teachers showed this deep concern. Robert Welker, concerned about the consequences of the "teacher as expert" notion, reminds the reader that while other professionals acquire clients who become dependent upon them for their expertise, teachers succeed only when they are able to empower others. "The practice of the teacher, no matter what the skill or knowledge, requires, at the very least, a connection to the needs of the common person. Serving to empower others presupposes commitment and deep caring, particularly in a

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profession whose monetary rewards are obviously not a part of the equation. Other researchers agree that instructional expertise may be less a matter of what teachers do than what they believe. Teachers' behaviors are driven by their thoughts and beliefs. "Teachers typically make decisions based on their personal belief systems." WHAT DO EXPERT TEACHERS BELIEVE? Expert-versus-novice-teacher research has typically been conducted using small samples, identifying experts through administrator nomination, student achievement growth scores, or classroom observation. Novices are generally selected from groups of student, or firstyear, teachers. Differences are determined largely through observation of teacher behavior or through the teachers' reactions to student work or video-taped classroom scenarios. A recent study of expert teachers departs from the usual approach in three ways. First, it examines belief systems rather than behaviors. Second, it enlists a large sample of members of the 19871990 Teachers of the Year (n=88) to speak for expert teachers. And finally, expert teachers were compared, not with novices, but rather with in-service teachers (n=92) of all levels of experience and training. FOUR TEACHER BELIEF SYSTEMS The teachers responded to a teacher belief questionnaire designed to assess four teacher beliefs known to be highly correlated with teacher behavior and student achievement. These include teacher efficacy, teacher locus of control, pupil control ideology, and teacher stress. Teacher efficacy is generally defined as the teacher's belief that she or he has the ability to affect student learning. "Teachers who possess a high sense of efficacy are inclined to exert more effort with low-achievement students." Indeed, the teacher's sense of efficacy has been named the "single most powerful explanatory variable" related to student performance and teacher change. Teacher locus of control is defined as "the teacher's tendency to attribute the outcomes of student behavior (such as high or low achievement) to internal or external factors." "Internal" teachers are likely to assume personal responsibility for student success or failure, while "external" teachers are more disposed to perceive student outcomes as associated with circumstances beyond their control. The relationship between teacher locus of control and student achievement is well documented. Pupil control is so pervasive in the instructional setting that it often becomes defined as the goal of teacher effectiveness. Novice teachers learn quickly that skills in classroom control may precede expertise in subject matter or pedagogical skills, for "the teacher who cannot control never gets to the point of being able to teach." The teacher's ideology of pupil control may range from custodial to humanistic. Teachers assuming an extremely custodial orientation can be expected to be highly controlling, employ punitive sanctions, hold moralistic perceptions, develop highly impersonal relationships with students, express general mistrust, and exercise one-way communications directed from themselves to their students. Humanistically-oriented teachers, on the other hand, assume active interaction and communication, as well as develop close personal relationships between themselves and their students, and exhibit positive attitudes, mutual respect, and democratic classroom climates with flexibility in status and rules. They also promote student self-discipline, selfdetermination, and independence. Teacher beliefs regarding jobrelated stress are an important consideration for instruction effectiveness because tardiness and absenteeism, irritability, lack of control, and loss of caring for people are typical symptoms of teacher stress. The national price tag for

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teacher stress and burnout has been listed at $3.5 billion per year. Schools are said to be among the most stressful ecologies in our society. The findings of this study indicate that superior teachers prefer a democratic, flexible climate, hold non-punitive, nonmoralistic attitudes, and value close personal relationships with their students which include trust, acceptance, friendship, and respect. This defines a teacher belief system whose fundamental orientation is caring. The question is why? What is the relationship between caring and teaching expertise? A MODEL FOR TEACHING EXPERTISE A model proposed by earlier teacher effectiveness research describes a causal chain of four interconnecting links: (A) teacher belief, (B) teacher behavior, (C) student behavior, and (D) student achievement. Early reference to the "A" link emphasized the effects of teacher expectancy on student achievement. The "B-D" link is assumed by process-product research. I propose that the process occurring in the classroom of an expert teacher is actually guided by a five-link model: (A) teacher belief, (B), teacher behavior, (C) student belief, (D) student behavior, and (E) student achievement. I further propose that the essential part of the "A" link, the expert teacher's "edge" is caring, and when teacher caring has had time to work its "magic," the essential part of the "C" link, student belief, becomes caring, too. THE EFFECT OF CARING IN A FIVE LINK TEACHING PROCESS In the context of the classroom, the caring element of teacher belief means commitment to the student. It does matter if one student fails to comprehend. It matters if one student is unhappy. If one student has a problem, no matter what size or origin, it matters, because ultimately everything in life affects learning and growthand the caring teacher is committed to each student's learning and growth.

The element of caring also assumes the teacher's desire to constantly grow in all the areas of knowledge and "becoming," which students must understand. It is important that students learn to compete, not with others, but with themselves. Caring must be demonstrated, not discussed. Teachers must live it, not just teach it. Caring teachers, for this reason, constantly strive to better themselves, not only because they choose to be lifelong learners, but also because they know that they are constantly modeling to those to whom the future world will be entrusted. The types of teacher behaviors which result from the teacher belief of caring begin with sharing. When teachers share who they are with students, as trustworthy friends, students are likely to choose to do the same. The more teachers know about their students, the more clues they can derive about the best ways in which to teach them. When there is a friendship bond, teaching and learning flow. This bond of friendship and trust that forms between the caring teacher and her or his students may explain the "becoming one with" phenomenon that Berliner observed in expert teachers. When teachers know their students in this committed way, many concerns become "automatic." For instance, the expert teacher knows which student will ask for assistance and which will wait to be approached; which student is afraid his or her scholarship may not be up to par or needs support to keep on trying, and which one needs or wants no help at all. Student beliefs inevitably include caring if students are fortunate enough to befriend and observe caring teachers. Caring is catching. It takes time for students to begin to understand, trust, and believe in the work that a caring attitude can achieve. And, the amount of time necessary for each student is directly related to the agenda already in place in the student's belief system. Students who experience a loving environment simply continue as usual: those who are abused

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require more support and time in learning to trust. Caring student behavior can be practiced more easily if there is sufficient time for cooperative learning: however, one needn't envision a classroom environment in which students are constantly in groups. Caring also means finding joy in someone else's individual success. Students learn that serving the group, or a classmate, is serving the self. A circle of reciprocal teacher and/or peer teaching-learning is formed. Everyone grows. Everyone benefits. And, everyone contributes to an environment for learning which is stress-free and happy, or at least has the potential to become a better environment for learning than one in which the caring factor is absent. Caring student behavior means that students will attempt to and feel free to be responsible. For example, students may approach a caring teacher abut classroom occurrences they deem unfair, when they're really bored with a particular teaching strategy or project, or when they have an idea that would benefit the group. They know their teacher is a willing listener committed to their needs. They will support, not slander, the caring teacher, because she or he is their friend and they know their teacher would not breach their bond or ever knowingly cause them harm. Imagine a machine with a fail-safe system whose operation is contingent upon each part automatically moving to rescue or assist any other part which signals the need for attention. Imagine the A-B-C-D-E model as such a machine, a self-perpetuating, human, learninggrowing machine. Because (A), teacher belief, drives (B) teacher behavior (especially caring), which is taught and modeled to become (C), student belief, which finally drives (D), the student behaviors responsible for the (E), achievement for self and others, which perpetuates (A), the teacher beliefs and caring demeanor which initiated the machinevoila, a self-correcting, selfmotivated, intrinsically-rewarded, perpetual-learning-and-growing machine for which caring is the key. IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHER EDUCATION If caring is the expert teacher's edge, then teacher training takes on a new dimension because caring is not a pedagogical strategy. Unlike pacing, overlapping, and routines, caring is not a single technique, but rather a deep emotional belief which pervades every teacher's thoughts and behaviors. Can we teach would-be teachers to care? Today's colleges of education are not making enough effort to address the belief systems of teacher education majors. Teacher education programs do not emphasize the need to assess, clarify, or change the beliefs of would-be teachers. Although current teacher education programs do present some knowledge of the effects of teacher beliefs in courses, they are not doing enough to model or directly impact the belief systems of preservice and inservice teachers. Teacher education majors should know the importance of, and have an opportunity to be exposed to, those teacher beliefs which make a difference in teacher effectiveness, especially the caring ethic. This knowledge should be presented in the education core curriculum and emphasized throughout the teacher training period. In addition, teacher educators should become models of teacher beliefs that lead to student learning in their own classes. Additional research is needed on the development of a teacher education curriculum designed to enhance the awareness and development of more humanistic pupil ideologies among future teachers. For example, procedures should be developed for allowing teacher education majors to examine their own belief systems, have opportunities to compare their beliefs or psychological theories with those in the literature, and examine actual teaching experiences (e.g., teacher case studies) in light of their own teacher beliefs.

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As research continues to reveal the complexity of the teaching-learning process, recognition of the need for a more well-defined teacher evaluation system has become a primary concern. The caring factor offers a new dimension to the present structure of teacher evaluation systems. Teacher observation instruments could be developed to assess the caring, trusting behaviors reflected by otheroriented teachers. Teacher certification exams could assess knowledge of the types of teacher beliefs measured by instruments such as the Pupil Control Ideology Form (PCI). Adding criteria for teacher evaluation and selection which includes a measure of teacher beliefs, such as caring, should be developed and evaluated. A NEW VIEW OF SCHOOL REFORM School reform cannot succeed without the concerted efforts of everyone in our society. Education is everyone's job. The children are everyone's future. The action, however, still occurs in individual classrooms. The immediate task, therefore, belongs to the teacher. It is imperative that teachers come to perceive themselves as caring servers and their students as models demonstrating to others what might be accomplished within the context of existing society. The children must come to understand the responsibility of caring that knowledge brings. Leadership can never rise above the level of the majority of the people in a society. It must be the responsibility of society as a whole to foster the mental, physical, emotional, philosophical and spiritual well-being of its young citizens. But, if those who would guide society are motivated by greed, ego, and selfishness, they will foster a society which will also emphasize these characteristics. Future society could be inclined to be other-oriented and to try sharing. This can occur if our teachers believe that empowering others with knowledge requires that they also instill responsibility for its caring use. the

Imagine the many ways in which the caring factor could affect future education reform, and the dream of future classroom scenarios where teacherstudent interaction is based in acceptance, respect, and care; and where, as a result, students are more self-disciplined, motivated, responsible and productive.

How the Research Was Conducted

The control group of inservice teachers was matched to the 19871990 Teachers of the Year by state, school enrollment, school type, and subject or grade level taught. All 52 states and territories were represented in the total population of teachers. A comparison of descriptive data shows the two samples to be nearly matched by gender, and to be generalized to the national teacher population in terms of teaching experience and grade levels taught.

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