Does Your Child Have a Quality Teacher?

Every good parent wants their child to have the best education possible. One of the biggest factors in a child's education is the quality of their teachers. Quality of a teacher is not always based on where they got their teaching degree or how high they scored on their most recent certification exams. Parents need to look a little closer and open their minds a little farther in order to truly see if their child has a quality teacher.

A parent should introduce themselves to their child's teacher very early in the year or soon after their child enters that classroom. An initial meeting can tell you a lot about the teacher. Do they seem excited to have your child in the classroom? Don't hesitate to ask the teacher a few reasonable questions about things such as classroom rules, curriculum, parent involvement, and discipline policies. A quality teacher will not hesitate to answer these types of questions and will have appropriate and confident responses. You should get a sense that this teacher has a plan, but understands there will need to be flexibility in some situations.

Once you have met the teacher, much of what you are looking for will be found from outside of the classroom. Talking to other parents can be beneficial as long as you exercise some caution. Parents may provide insight into what you can expect from a particular teacher, as long as they are not simply disgruntled for some perceived injustice to their child. Be sure if you decide to utilize this as one way of learning about a teacher, that you weigh it against other variables as well.

A high quality educator will communicate frequently with parents and not just when things go wrong. If you are receiving newsletters, e-mails, phone calls, or progress reports on a fairly regular basis, it is a sign that this teacher wants you to be a part of your child's education. They are organized enough to know what information a parent needs and are positive enough not to wait until there is trouble on the horizon to communicate with you. These are two strong characteristics of a teacher that cares and is effective in their profession.