Learning Environment
The first element of teacher education is the classroom environment in which the teacher will be developed to teach in a way that every student is able to learn. An environment where the students feel safe, included, and engaged. First, the student will think of survival, then look for social interaction and finally he/she will go for learning. The teacher in teacher education is equipped with the techniques to be applied in the classroom so that the students could be provided opportunities to avoid fear, isolated which capture the brain’s attention. The way a teacher creates an environment in a classroom that opportunities for students to have a sense of belonging and safety is concerned with the teacher’s attitude. If a teacher is willing to work hard, resultantly, the kid is willing to work hard as well to create things that are supportive and those things change the mindset of the teacher to teacher-student interactions to a sense of community then there will be a place enabling learning.
In terms of the national professional standards of teachers, one of the standards is about the understanding of the learning environment which means the teachers need to analyze the situation in the schools and classroom. The available resources and needs of society play an important role in teaching and learning. The teachers need to be aware of the contextual realities to ensure addressing the needs of safety and belongingness in classrooms.
Content
The curriculum is considered balanced which is viewed and planned holistically and not in a wish list fashion. The subject matter of teacher education curriculum is concerned with proficiency in teaching a certain subject area. Regarding the content, it is described as the technical knowledge that one has of the subject and insights into the possibilities and limitations of scientific knowledge, and the ability to assess the relevance of scientific discipline. This element is aligned with the first and foremost national professional standard of teachers which is having a command over content knowledge in the subject area where the teachers need to have in-depth knowledge and understanding of subject matter in the subject areas which the teacher teach. It is important for the teachers to facilitate students in classrooms so that the students will get benefits from the strong content of the subject area that the teachers have. For that purpose, the teachers need to have updated knowledge and understanding through reading articles, reference books, research journals, encyclopedias, and so on.
Pedagogy
The next element of a teacher education program is a pedagogy which refers to professional abilities such as the ability to engage students in the teaching and learning process. It is about the relationship between teaching and learning and how together they lead to growth in knowledge and understanding through practice. It is concerned with the practical experience often called practicum, where the teachers go through the participation in the fieldwork. This is an opportunity for teachers to bring all other components together and practice the role of a teacher. The teachers need a body of knowledge about educational theory or pedagogy.
Teacher education has to put emphasis on educational studies such as pedagogical theories, research methods, and educational psychology. The intention is to enable the teachers to acquire an extensive understanding of children’s needs. The curriculum needs to involve basic knowledge of the school subjects including subject-specific methodology. This element of the teacher education program is reflected in national professional standards for teachers which discusses that the teacher needs to have strong knowledge about the teaching methods and strategies. Teachers need to be professionally developed by having the knowledge of designing learning activities for students.
Assessment
The next element in teacher education is an assessment which concerns what and how well the students learned, understood, and are able to do as a result of that learning. If the teachers understand what students should be able to know, understand, and do at any given point in an instructional unit, then they are ready for pre-assessment as well as formative assessments. Because the teachers lack clarity about the end goal, the formative assessments, and the pre-assessments are sometimes loosely linked. Teachers through teacher education need to be encouraged to be rigorous in establishing clear goals for themselves and for their students. For this purpose, they require their instructional planning to go beyond completing the course creating activities that motivate students to do well. This clear attention involves knowing exactly where the teacher wants the students to achieve by the end of the lesson. The assessment is really important in supporting the students to understand how it works so that they can say that they achieved. This element is sorted out in the national professional standards of teachers, the teachers need to be skillful in assessing students’ learning. The tools and techniques for assessment in classrooms make a difference in teaching and learning. The teachers are expected to be able to collect, analyze and interpret the data regarding students’ academic achievements.
Classroom management
Classroom Management is the fifth element of a teacher education program which is about the way teachers lead students and manage procedures and routines. In a classroom is considered as well managed if the teacher is very motivated, looks for the needs, gets the game plan, but at the same time, he/she is afraid that if ever quit trying to give everybody the same stuff with the same sort of instructions that would all fall apart on him. A teacher cannot make a classroom workable for all the students unless the classroom is flexibly managed to address a variety of needs, to make room for every individual student. That is the essence of classroom management. One size fits all approach is the sign of a poorly managed classroom.
Regarding classroom management, according to the national professional standards of teachers, the teachers in order to be able to address the needs of every individual student in classrooms need to have an understanding of human growth and development. The study of educational psychology will equip the teachers with the ways how to effectively teach the students according to their age levels applying the procedures and routines of the classroom teaching and learning. According to educational psychology, neat and clean, well-organized classroom, appropriately sequenced learning activities maximize academic learning time.
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