The Right Stuff

Today, I am considering who has “the right stuff” - or rather, more to the point, what is “the right stuff”? No, not astronauts with nerves of steel. I'm talking teaching here. What makes a great teacher? I am sure there are many ways to break down this argument, but the way it was offered in class today was professional knowledge versus content knowledge. Nobody's trying to suggest that these two things are mutually exclusive (thank goodness!) - just considering which is the more important of the two.

One could argue that content knowledge is most essential. After all, with a thorough knowledge of your own area of expertise, and also of related subjects, you can bring your teaching to life. Your passion for the subject will spark passion in others. The passage from the text that was presented in class, curiously, offered up Jaime Escalante, the real teacher behind Edward James Olmos's amazing “Stand and Deliver” performance, as an example illustrating how subject knowledge reigns supreme.

Is it just me? Or do others see some irony in that choice. I believe that this movie was quite true to the real-life story, and sure enough, the teacher did not come from a teaching background. He presumably lacked a formal education degree, and therefore, any formal training in education pedagogy. So far, yes, this is supporting the argument that it's knowledge of the material that counts. Although I suppose that the textbook author was conveniently forgetting that Mr. Escalante was not a math expert, either. His area of expertise was computer science. Indeed, he quit his job in this field because he was driven to teach, and he turned up expecting a job teaching computer science. It was only when he discovered that there was no such job, that he opted to accept the mathematics position.

If you've seen the film, you will know that beyond a doubt, what made him an exceptional teacher was generosity of spirit (well – generosity in every way – the extra time this man offered these students was amazing), his charismatic delivery of the material, persistence, and an unprecedented belief in his students' abilities. These are not indicative of content area knowledge. They are signs of a high level of professional knowledge – whether it was achieved via obtaining an education degree or not.

So I guess I've tipped my hand. Yes, I come out on the “professional learning” side of the spectrum. I appreciate that having a thorough knowledge of what you're teaching is ideal. The point that text made on this side of the argument was that teachers who have a thorough knowledge of their own area of expertise and of others as well are in a position to create an integrated learning environment, pulling literature into the study of history, and so on. And of course it is true. But an exceptional teacher – one who is very strong in professional knowledge – will not go into a classroom unprepared, anyways. She will seek out those connections between curricular areas. She will find ways to present the material that is engaging and exciting. She will really reach her kids.

Contemplating which side of this issue I landed on, I asked myself: would I rather have a teacher who was awesome at teaching but not very familiar with the content, or a teacher who knows the content inside and out, but isn't skilled at teaching? Put that way, there's no question ... I'd take the one who really reaches the kids – hands down – every time.