History and English teacher Mr Alec Santucci explored how knowledge, passion and approachability contribute to what makes an effective teacher in our ‘Teacher’s Voice’ feature in Education Matters September issue. He ultimately concluded that great teaching is often due to a range of non-explicit characteristics underpinned by a deep sense of purpose, identity and care.
When I was a student, I thought it was evident what made an excellent teacher. Time and experience has modified some of these preliminary thoughts, while other principles have remained the same. Through my journey as a student and a teacher I’ve experienced a development of thinking on what constitutes effective instruction; this has been influenced by both professional experiences and student perspectives.
Growing up, I came across both ‘good’ and ‘bad’ teachers. When we make this judgement, we form a set of criteria which individually classifies what quality teaching is to us personally. One characteristic I admired was the sense of calm control which some teachers exuded, the ability to maintain order without being ‘strict’.
These teachers didn’t need to undermine students; they were fair and often respected. Many of these individuals, with their kind dispositions, I considered ‘good’. In contrast, the more easily aggrieved instructors I often seemed to classify as ‘bad’, it wasn’t necessarily a judgement on their command of knowledge, which was satisfactory, but a reflection of their capacity to make students uneasy in their presence.
When people feel stressed or intimidated, this affects their capacity to learn best. Effective teachers understand that constructive learning environments have a positive effect on students learning. These preliminary experiences would later influence my own practice.
Many young teachers who come out of university try to play the upright, ‘firm but fair’ persona. The mistake is going against one’s natural personality. The thought is that to maintain order, one needs to maintain a firm authority. Indeed, to some extent this front may help with some elements of classroom management, however exchanging order at the cost of approachability only leads to neglecting one of the most important elements of education: the ability to positively connect with and impact students.
To have command and calmness takes years of dedicated classroom experience. Deceivingly, great teachers will make teaching look effortless. This form of high engagement, and in some cases admiration, is quite unique. Certainly, this influence is distinctive among the professions, where few vocations provide such a profound sense of identity and purpose.
Effective teachers need to be knowledgeable and possess understanding over their subject matter. While not all teachers will have a specific expertise, it isn’t knowledge alone that is important, but the willingness of teachers to continually expand their own understanding, and model this to their students. Effective teachers embrace the role of continual reflection and growth in their professional lives. These teachers’ sense of purpose is which differentiates them, an engagement not only in the promotion of learning but the personal absorption of it.
Quality teachers possess a form of passion in their vocation. Passionate teaching is as observable as it is descriptive. They will often have a philosophy of education; whether it be a deep care for helping others, a belief in the importance of future generations or a passion for sharing disciplinary knowledge in a certain area. These teachers’ deep understanding of why they teach is what underpins the auxiliary dispositions they utilise in their classroom instruction.
My History teacher possessed many of the qualities that makes an effective teacher. He had knowledge in his subject area, an approachable nature and a clear, if not subdued, passion for what he did. Teachers like this seem to stand out. In some lessons he would enter the classroom without saying a word, he would take out a whiteboard marker and commence writing on the board. Providing a subtextual clue, he would turn to his students as if to say, ‘begin copying down what is written’. He was able to write historically accurate notes purely from memory.
While he was not the type to show his passion in the traditional sense of how people imagine this quality; not being especially loud or particularly overbearing, the passion for his subject was clear in the manner of his delivery. Comfortable at his desk, you could always sense a gentle approachableness about him which never intimidated a student to ask for help. He was both a great and an ordinary teacher; he possessed no notable physical differences to the other teachers at the school and went about his days quietly, in this sense he was not indifferent to the scores of others. Like many teachers he didn’t go about seeking praise or adulation. He was keen to do his job well, his reward was the growth of his students.
Years had passed when I saw this teacher again, by this time I was teaching, and he had aged considerably. We exchanged warmly and I thanked him for his service. His teaching would prove a great professional reference point in my own career. Great teachers have the capacity to be remembered.
Schools don’t determine what makes a great teacher, teaching itself is what defines what makes a great teacher. It matters not who you are, or where you come from, or your wealth or status, your skill defines your capacity to teach; this perhaps is one of the great levellers in our profession.
Young people can find it difficult to quantify what makes an effective teacher. But when a student says, ‘My science teacher really knows her stuff!’ or, ‘I like my health teacher because he makes the lessons fun’ or ‘I feel that Mr Smith really wants me to do well’, you know they’re describing the attributes of a quality teacher. Good teachers are not only accustomed to integrating effective strategies into their practice but seem to do so with an underlying sense of care and purpose within their work.
Explicitly teaching, encouraging collaborative learning or instilling questioning models; these are all emphasised methodologies of quality instruction, but great teaching seems to go beyond this. What good is employing these models if there is no underlying care for students? What difference does it make if the teacher doesn’t connect authentically with the content? Effective teachers will utilise a range of high impact strategies and embed these into their practice, but these strategies are mute if an underlying element of care is not present.
Many of the strategies employed by experienced teachers come from practical trial and error and experimenting with forms of presentation. Great teachers personify much of what educational theory tells us. When a teacher encourages students to discuss or share their thinking, they’re encouraging collaborative learning. If they’re promoting students to peer assess, they’re engaging in peer feedback. An engaging and informative PowerPoint presentation which is able to clearly communicate information is a form of explicit teaching. Many great teachers use such high impact strategies regularly and authentically in their classes. In the same way that the person who first learns to drive a car needs to think consciously about changing gears, turning on an indicator or adjusting speed, eventually with experience and practice, these actions become automated.
The same process happens with teachers, what once may have been a conscious effort to include certain methodologies, eventually becomes natural. Adjusting to the present moment or circumstance becomes second nature. Teaching does not become easier over time; instead, it is the gradual improvement of a practitioner’s ability to respond to and adjust to the challenges of teaching which develops. It is the increase in skill, not the decrease of complexity that changes.
While the dedication required to teach effectively is high and this commitment can sometimes appear lost, it is felt through the individual stories, the memories of what made those influential teachers so impactful individually. Most people seem to have a certain teacher that left an impression on them, an impact which is likely remembered. Great teaching accumulates through clear attributes, but it is constructed on a foundation of care, purpose and identity. A teacher unable to look out for the individual interests of students, ultimately goes empty in finding true meaning in their vocation. While this can be intensive, it can also be liberating, because the investment in the satisfaction of others can only lead to greater satisfaction in one’s own life.
The role of an educator is not simply the transfer of information, but the ability to inspire a love of learning. The care to make a difference may be what underpins excellent teaching practice. Great teachers who respond to the needs of their students become fuller because of it, not because it yields any extra material gain, but because of the impact it can create for years to come.
About the author
Alec Santucci is a History and English teacher, working at Hills Christian Community School in the Adelaide Hills. Alec graduated from the University of Adelaide with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature and History, alongside a Bachelor of Teaching. Completing his studies as an Adelaide Graduate Award recipient, Alec has subsequently designed History and English curriculum for both the Australian Curriculum and SACE. He currently serves as faculty convenor for English as a member of the Curriculum Development Team. In 2023, Alec presented at the South Australian History Teachers State Conference focusing on v.9 curriculum implementation. He is currently working towards completing his Highly Accomplished Teacher Certification.
