TEACHER AS RESEARCHER: ENHANCING THE PROFESSIONAL TEACHING PRACTICES

Teacher research can prove to be very beneficial as it can change traditional teaching practices and develop professional stature. Teachers as researchers can better comprehend the classroom requirements and hence deliver better performance in favor of the students. Teacher research involves the enhancement of the teaching techniques that leads towards a better learning classroom experience.

It is not a very complicated process and is mostly influenced by practical approaches and general observations. The teachers, trainers and educators discover their interests and capabilities and align them with the student’s need. A research approach towards the teaching department can yield better fruits in the life of a teacher as well as the student. This research is more action-based and helps the teachers in developing their skills and establish a better rapport with the students.

Action – Based Research

So what is involved in this action-based research? Action research constitutes of systematic questioning done by the teacher-researchers. It can also be done by the principals, counselors or other administrators in the field of education. Such an inquiry is made to collect the data regarding the teaching methods, student-teacher relationship, classroom environment and the student’s feedback. All this information is gathered to contemplate the situation and convert the findings to improve the overall scenario. New and better teaching practices can be developed, a better connection between the students and the teacher can be established, and an overall positive growth environment can be entrenched. More exceptional results and performances can be achieved through such action-based research.

Responsibilities of a Teacher as Researcher

Everybody we meet in our life teaches us something that we are unaware of. Every epoch is a tutor in itself. A teacher cannot be expected to be perfect as perfection is an unattainable concept, in any sector. A quality of a successful teacher is that they act as a researcher and continuously look for new ways and sources to improvise their skills. Understanding the psychology of a student and identifying their capabilities and interests is what a teacher-researcher regularly does. Here are a few roles and responsibilities relating to a teacher as a researcher:-

• Discover their interest and develop research questions based on their desires and inquisitiveness on teaching and learning certain things in the classroom environment.
• Conduct surveys and systematically collect data through various research methods.
• Analyze the data collected and come up with a proper research technique.
• Write about their research and findings.
• Share the results of the research with other groups of tutors, students and administrators and devise a proper plan based on this research.
• Analyze the theoretical aspects of the research and find ways to implement the solutions practically.
• Also, the teacher, as a researcher, should take into stride their personal, professional growth. Working on the weaker areas and improving the overall teaching experience should be a part of the research.

How a Teacher Research can help?

Teacher-research is not only beneficial for the individual growth of a teacher. Students can acquire the maximum benefits from such a venture. A teacher directly influences a student, especially in the classroom environment and the relationship between a student and teacher can impact the knowledge gaining atmosphere. When a teacher is more open-minded towards the students and their concerns, positive results are ensured. Here are a few ways by which a teach-research can help in improvising the educational practices:-

• A better relationship and corporative environment get established. Various departments, as well as the students, are involved in the research practices, the understanding among each other increases. Better interaction automatically leads to better teamwork.
• The communication within a classroom also increases significantly. A teacher can uplift the interactive environment of the Indian schools, which enhances the student’s involvement. They feel more engaged and subsequently, learn more efficiently.
• The performance of the students also goes up.
• As a teacher can curate and influence the curriculum, they can work in their comfort zone. This conspicuously helps them to deliver better performance and attend to each student individually.
• As mentioned earlier, a more interactive setting can help the student feel more comfortable in the schools. They feel free to pose their questions, and a teacher can also open-minded accept and answer all the queries. In case a teacher lacks a piece of particular information, they can assure the student to clear the doubt by performing some research. This way, a teacher also learns new things. Hence, research work should also include taking up and answering student queries.

There is always scope for growth and age should never be considered a barrier in this approach. A person learns through his/ her lifetime and teaching is that department, where every day comes with numerous learning opportunities. Teacher, as researchers can revolutionize the teaching scenario. Hence such practices should be highly endorsed among every institution.