Teacher educators facilitate the training and development of teachers.
How do they do this?
Teacher educators offer learning opportunities to teachers through a variety of means and in a range of contexts. It is customary to distinguish between teacher training and development. Teacher training refers to the formal acquisition of basic classroom skills, knowledge and routines. Teacher development has more to do with whole-person development and is aimed at developing a teacher's capacity for long-term self-directed learning. The term teacher education encompasses both training and developmental processes.
Teacher educators can be involved in the preparation, management, delivery and evaluation of a range of training and developmental tasks. The kinds of activities that teacher educators engage in include:
- Providing input on pre-service training courses
- Carrying out observations and giving feedback
- Providing ongoing support as and when needed
- Facilitating peer observations and team teaching
- Managing staff development seminars
- Coaching and mentoring
- Delivering in-service training sessions
- Encouraging teachers to reflect on and assess their own teaching
- Acting as a resource provider and guide
- Delivering talks and workshops at training events and conferences
- Writing books and articles on teacher education activities and topics.
How do you learn how to be a teacher educator?
There is no standardised process of training or development.
Some go through the apprenticeship model of observing others on formal courses such as the CELTA, before providing some of the input themselves.
Others take short courses in teacher training or take diplomas or higher degrees in teacher education.
Many learn the skills of a teacher educator through doing particular training activities and through informal routes which include: modelling self on other trainers, reading, self-reflection, feedback from trainees and teachers., keeping learning journals and writing books and articles.
Where do teacher educators work?
Teacher educators work in all sectors of ELT. Many are employed in teacher training institutions, language schools and departments in both the public and private sectors. For many ELT professionals, teacher education forms only part of their responsibilities and is combined with teaching and/or carrying out administrative duties as an academic co-ordinator or director of studies. Other teacher educators work as freelancers and their work as teacher educators may be sporadic and combined with other professional activities.
Some of the challenges that teacher educators face include:
- Lack of initial and ongoing training
- Lack of time to carry out their developmental activities in addition to their other duties
- Sense of isolation, particularly if working as freelancers.
In the rest of this section you will find ways in which you can develop as a teacher educator through reading articles and books, attending workshops and courses, and joining Special Interest Groups and discussion forums.
