Teachers as Researchers

I also along with many others in the class have not thought of teachers as researchers. But after reading Gabriella Minnes Brandes and Lynn Fels’ article, I recognize that teachers as researchers have been the ones that tend to put in the extra time and effort to get to know their students better and are the ones that are often reflecting from their practices; for example, taking into consideration Mamchur’s personality types, learning styles, Gardner’s multiple intelligences, etc. to understand and help design/alter curriculum and make changes/adaptations to maximize student’s potential to learn and succeed in the classroom. In turn, these teachers have better relationships with the students and the environment created within the classroom becomes a place where students’ learning is benefitted.

Being a teacher requires a lot of dedication and time and it is clear to be now that teachers who reflect on their own practices are considered to be researchers. Reflecting on one’s practices can be very beneficial, seeing how to better what works and improving on what doesn’t work for the next time can make the lesson more beneficial and effective as it can prevent time from being wasted in class.