A teacher is a person whose occupation is teaching others especially children.

A teacher is also
someone who instructs others or provides activities, materials and guidance that facilitate
learning in either formal or informal situation. Good teaching is at the heart of good schooling.
Therefore, the quality of teacher preparation is crucial to helping students reach high academic
standards. Yet many enter the profession unprepared, having received poor quality training.
Some teachers, who are working without a regular teaching license, may never have received any
training. To provide quality education for all students, teacher quality practices in schools should
be of high standard as teachers are the key to quality education. It is necessary therefore to
examine the factors affecting the quality practices of teachers in public primary schools as the
finding of the study can help to improve quality education in primary schools.

Every learner is unique and has own learning style that is affected by his/her personality factors.
Learning style or individual preferences in child’s learning result from his/her dominant
intelligence: visual learners prefer using pictures and reading; auditory learners like listening to
explanations and reading aloud; kinesthetic learners need physical activity to help them learn;
interpersonal learners are sociable and eager to use language for communication; intrapersonal
learners are quiet and reflective and learn by listening and observing (Lassa, 2000). Teacher’s
task is to provide a variety in the activities as carefully structured input and practice
opportunities, catering for different learning styles. However, when teaching a child with SEN,
knowing his/her learning style is not enough to secure his/her successful learning in classroom.

The Teacher should also consider child’s abilities and his learning difficulties, like short
concentration span and slower learning pace that may easily demotivate the child in learning a
foreign language. Teacher can help the child by letting him/her practice a particular language
structure by repeating it as many times as needed (in well-structured exercise), being very patient
and not interrupting the child, but encouraging him/her, praising his/her effort and building the
child’s confidence. Instead of correcting the child, teacher should ‘model’ the correct form, or
allow the child to ‘shadow’ the recorded text. For example in our Zambian tradition it really a
challenge for children in the rural area to adapt to the English language and that becomes a
barrier for education for that learner. a person’s language influences how a person learns,
especially with a second language. “Language reflects the worldviews, the thought processes,
and the lifestyles of its people” (DeCapua, 2004).
When preparing a lesson a teacher should consider what type of leaner he will be teaching in that
particular classroom. Teaching learning disabled youngsters will present you with some unique
and distinctive challenges. Not only will these students demand more of your time and patience;
so, too, will they require specialized instructional strategies in a structured environment that
supports and enhances their learning potential (Hollins, 2008). It is important to remember that
learning disabled students are not students who are incapacitated or unable to learn; rather, they
need differentiated instruction tailored to their distinctive learning abilities. For example student
with disabilities are slow learners and tend to take up much time in a lesson and really need a lot
of attention to ensure they take part in the lesson. Apart from disabled leaner’s a teacher may
also teach Students of high ability, often referred to as gifted leaners, present a unique challenge
to teachers. They are often the first ones done with an assignment or those who continually ask
for more creative and interesting work. They need exciting activities and energizing projects that
offer a creative curriculum within the framework of the regular classroom program . These types
of learners need a lot of activities and projects to enhance their education and are always ready
for an exciting lesson.

A teacher should also be able to see what type of environment suits the leaner to learn. For
example in a biology if the students are learning about pollination the teacher should make sure
he should plan a trip were the leaner can really experience what they are being taught. Likewise,
many teachers admit that their students lack practice. They recognize that, because of time
constraints, they give them a lot of theory and not enough practice, and that they do not have
enough time to prepare them to write different types of essays, and correct all the work they
assign to them. However, they complain about the fact that many students rarely do the required
work in time and complain about both poor attendance, and poor class participation. Most of all,
the majority of the interviewed students believe that following graduation, they will face great
difficulties finding jobs. Taken together, all these shortcomings badly affect their motivation and
what the teacher prepared will all have been for nothing.

Classroom climate not only has been shown to affect student outcomes and attainment but is a
prominent policy issue in a number of countries and regions. The actions of students within
classrooms and the creation of a safe and productive learning environment are important for
many schools and can be a challenging dimension of teachers’ work. For example, TALIS finds
that one teacher in four in most countries loses at least 30% of lesson time to disruptive student
behavior or administrative tasks, and some teachers lose more than half. Furthermore, across
countries, 60% of teachers are in schools whose school principal reports that classroom
disturbances hinder learning (Ferguso, 1991). In all countries this is a problem in a relatively
high proportion of schools and poses a significant challenge for effective teaching

A teacher should also be able to motivate the leaner in the classroom with what he has prepared
in the lesson. Crookes and Schmidt identified motivation as the learner’s orientation with regard
to the goal of learning a foreign language. Motivation appears to be the backbone of any
classroom learning/teaching. When the students are motivated, the teacher can perform his work
in the most convenient and easiest way. On this part, too, a motivated teacher can do a lot to
improve the students’ motivation .In the case the teacher should be able to come up with
different ways of motivating the pupils which may include the teacher to give a prize to the
student who will be the highest in the test he will give to them. The effort involved is an essential
part of the teaching profession. Conversely, lack of motivation may cause teachers to be less
successful in teaching a foreign language (Hawley 1958). For example, Chinese children spend a
lot of time memorizing and copying new words and short stories. This kind of memorizing
requires individual practice and shows intrinsic motivation Cook (1971) also endorses this
concept by deducing that “high motivation is one factor that causes successful learning; in
reverse successful learning causes high motivation”.

A teacher should also consider how long the lesson will take. Having a long lesson is not a good
thing for a teacher to prepare because this may bore the learners in that particular subject. For
example an English teacher should not take up much time in giving long stories to the learners as
they can stop paying attention to the lesson. Teachers have no choice but to inquire into each
student’s unique culture and learning history, to determine what instructional materials might
best be used, and to determine when a student’s cultural and life experiences are compatible, or
potentially incompatible, with instruction. To do less is to build emotional blocks to
communication in an already complicated instructional situation” (Hollins, 2008).

In the classroom, teachers in all countries reported using practices aimed at ensuring learning is
well structured. Structuring practices more often than they used student oriented practices, such
as adapting teaching to individual needs. Both of these teaching practices are used more often
than activities such as project work enhanced activities, which require more active participation
by the student. This pattern is true in every country. Since each of these practices can raise
student achievement, there may be scope for countries that make less use of student oriented and
enhanced activities to improve their results by using them more.

Teachers of mathematics place greater emphasis on structuring. Teachers in the humanities

report that they are relatively more likely to assign project work and other forms of enhanced
activities, and subjects that teach practical skills, to use more student-oriented practices. This
shows the importance of maintaining a balanced curriculum to enable students to learn how to
take responsibility for their learning, and suggests that there may be scope for mathematics
teachers to broaden their planning for teaching. Ryan and Cooper (1998) states that a teacher
must demonstrate a repertoire of teaching skills that are believed to facilitate students learning
and must display attitudes that foster learning and genuine human relationship. Good teaching is
at the heart of good schooling. Therefore, the quality of teacher preparation is crucial to helping
students reach high academic standards. This emphasize that teachers are required to make many
decisions as they plan for instruction, implement teaching strategies, and evaluate outcome of
their planning and strategies. Teachers are the main determinants of quality in education and are
expected to be effective and committed. Hanushek and Rivkin, (2004) also states that effective
preparation helps teachers in consistently obtaining good results from students.

To provide quality education for all students, teacher quality practices in schools should be of
high standard as teachers are the key to quality education. It is necessary therefore to examine
the factors affecting the quality practices of teacher preparation in public schools as the finding
of the study can help to improve quality education in schools.

I
n conclusion a teacher should get to know the student as an individual to understand his or her
background that can affect learning. Teachers should also individually assess students to find
out what ways he or she learns best. By knowing the ways students learn best, a teacher can
effectively plan lessons to promote optimal learning for all students in the classroom.
References

Ferguson, R.F. (1991). Paying for public education: New evidence on how and why money
matters. Howard Journal on Legislation, 28, 465-498.

Federal Ministry of Education. (2006). National Policy on Education. Abuja: NEROC.

Gurney, P. (2007). Five factors for effective teaching. New Zealand Journal of Teachers Work.

Hanushek, E. A, & Rivkin, S.G. (2004). How to improve the supply of high quality teachers. In
Ravitch, D. (ed.), Quality Teacher. Brookings: Institution Press.

Hanilton, D. & Parelett, M.R. (1972). A new approach to the study of monitoring programmes.
In Hamilton, D. (ed.) Evaluation as illumination. London: Bey and Macmillan, pp 6-22.
Ighohno, D.O (2012). Education Documents and Bestial Documents Nigeria. Lagos: Ministry of
Education Press.

Igwe, S.O. (2000). Professional Handbook for Teachers. Imo State, Nigeria: Milestone for
Nigeria Union of Teachers Imo State.

Lassa, P. (2000). Teacher Production: A Focus on Nigeria, the State of Education in Nigeria.
Abuja: UNESCO.

Lorillard, D.M. (1993). Rethinking University Teaching. A Framework for Effective Use of
Educational Technology. London & New York: Routledge.
 THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA

SCHOOL OF EDUCATION

NON PLAGIARISM DECLARATION

The University of Zambia places specific emphasis on integrity and ethical behavior with regard to the
preparation of all written work to be submitted for academic assessment and evaluation. Although
academic personnel will provide you with information regarding reference techniques as well as ways to
avoid plagiarism, you also have a responsibility to fulfil in this regard. Should you at any time feel unsure
about the requirements, you must consult the lecturer concerned before you submit any written work.
You are guilty of plagiarism when you extract information from a book, article or web page without
acknowledging the source and pretending that it is your own work. In truth, you are stealing someone
else’s property. This does not only apply to cases where you quote verbatim, but also when you present
someone else’s work in a somewhat amended format (paraphrase), or even when you use someone
else’s deliberation without the necessary acknowledgement. You are not allowed to use another
student’s previous or present work. You are furthermore not allowed to let anyone copy or use your
work with the intention of presenting it as his/her own. Students who are guilty of plagiarism will face
grave consequences that are likely to make them loose their place of study. In addition, the matter can
also be referred to the Committee for Discipline (Students) for a ruling to be made. Plagiarism is
considered a serious violation of the University’s regulations and may lead to suspension or even
expulsion from the University.

I (full names) ________________________________________________________________

Student Computer Number ______________________________________________________________

Course Code and Title __________________________________________________________________

Declaration

1. I understand what plagiarism entails and am aware of the University’s policy in this regard.
2. I declare that this _______________________ (e.g. essay, report, project, assignment,
dissertation, thesis etc.) is my own, original work. Where someone else’s work was used
(whether from a printed source, the internet or any other source) due acknowledgement was
given and reference was made according to University and School Education requirements.
3. I did not make use of another student’s work and submitted it as my own.
4. I did not allow and will not allow anyone to copy my work with the intention of presenting it as
his or her own work.

Signature: yambazi ndalakwa Date: 03/07/2020