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THE 21ST CENTURY TEACHER DOES NOT HAVE A JOB DESCRIPTION

 We used to think that as a teacher, all we needed to do was make sure we plan our lessons, do our research properly, manage our class, and use appropriate teaching methodology to achieve quality academic outcomes.

As educators we tried our best to make sure our learners came out with the best understanding of theories and their application, we found joy in the fact that our learners represent the school in debates and quizzes and medals follow them home as champions.

A while later, educators started to concentrate also on the social-emotional learning of their learners, they started to care about the other aspects of life that were not predominantly academic, we started to care about how the learners relate with each other and with themselves, we started to allow student leadership take form and create avenues where the voices of students were heard.

Now it's really hard to say what the emphasis is because a 21st-century teacher is supposed to wear different shoes and switch roles as seamlessly as possible.

Pupils of Emmanuel Anglican Primary School 1 trying out a group work

The 21st-century teacher is to care about the academic and non-academic outcomes of the student, he is to make sure he is on the look for opportunities that can take the children in his class to a higher level, he is to watch out for abusive traits and make sure they are nipped in the bud, he is to be a guide for the learners as they navigate the beginning of their career. He is to be a friend or at least friendly so that he would be the first person to know when something isn't going right.

The 21st-century teacher doesn't stop there, he sometimes has to tell the parents of the students what to do and how to go about certain things with special kids. It's almost like you're not only teaching the children you're also teaching their parents.

We are also to play customer care for the over twenty-plus children under our care, if they are not in school we are to notice, call and find out what's happening, if they are sick we are to make sure they get proper care as their parents are informed of all the on-goings. In fact most of the time we show up to see how the learners are doing in cases where they don't show up to school for a while.

It's more like the 21st-century teacher is to be everything to the pupil and he is blamed if he is not all that and more.

 

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