Teachers Should do Research
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Why teachers should do research
Teacher’s role should be more than covering a lesson in a prescribed process in a classroom. According to Ermeling (2010), “For already qualified teachers to remain professional they should reflect on their own teaching, be updated on the recent developments and participate actively to the continuous evidence-based nature of their daily practices” (p.379). Therefore, teachers need to do collaborative research that is related to their daily practices to improve their personal development, research competencies in teaching practice and promote school development. This is important because communities comprise of teachers, teacher educators and researchers who collaborate in their work. When teachers do research, they are able to organize their knowledge to distinguish the already proven facts from assumptions and hypothesis that require further research (Ermeling, 2010, p. 377-388).
Ermeling (2010) argues “When teachers do research, they access knowledge that reinforces their daily practice as teachers, gain insight in organizing teaching activities in school, and have opportunities to discuss difficult topics with other teachers who they rarely meet”(p. 84). When teachers research on certain selected topics of their own interest related to their subject of specialization, they dedicate time to the research regularly next to their routine hectic work as teachers, deepen their knowledge in the selected topics, and enrich themselves as individuals (Ermeling, 2010, p. 377-388).
Research on a particular topic enables teachers to work in a structured manner to solve most problems based on personal experiences and observations and increases their own consciousness and that of their colleagues who embrace change. Ermeling (2010) suggest “Teachers know specific problems from their teaching experiences and therefore have better insight of the problem they are researching, which gives them richer understanding” (p.80). This increases the competence in their collaborative work together with their colleagues. When teachers do further research in their teaching practice they are able to cope with stress of their daily activities, improve their planning of own work, feel more secure and convinced about their profession as teachers (Ermeling, 2010, p. 377-388).
According to Ermeling (2010), further research by teachers on problems related to their daily activities helps teachers to demonstrate their abilities and experience further development in their career. Such competencies include better writing skills, skills to look for more information and knowledge management skills.
References
Ermeling, B. (2010). Tracing the effects of teacher inquiry on classroom practice. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(3), 377-388.