Deck 6: What Makes a Teacher Effective

Question 1

A teacher's attitude toward students plays an obvious role in influencing teacher behavior. Which other attitude also plays an important role?

A) A teacher's attitude toward his or her teacher education program
B) A teacher's attitude toward his or her colleagues
C) A teacher's attitude toward professional associations
D) A teacher's attitude toward his or her own parents

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which of the following is not included in Weinstein and Weber's specific suggestions for designing classroom space ?

A) Almost always arrange desks/tables into rows and columns for orderly pathways through the room
B) Personalize the classroom by including displays that reflect students' cultural backgrounds, interests, and accomplishments, as well as your own interests, goals, and values.
C) Organize shelves and storage areas so students know where materials and equipment belong
D) Arrange seating so students have a clear view of instructional presentations.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Brian, frustrated by his math worksheet, tears the paper in half. Which of the teacher's following responses would best characterize what psychologist Carl Rogers calls "empathic understanding"?

A) "Joanna, why don't you sit with Brian and help him with his math worksheet? He needs your help."
B) "Brian, tearing your math worksheet is not a constructive way to solve your problems."
C) "You were working on those problems for some time without getting many done. Why don't you show me where you got stuck?"
D) "Math was always my worst subject, too. Finally, I just realized I was better at other things."

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Which of the following is an example of "self-fulfilling prophecy?"

A) If a teacher believes in herself, she will be effective.
B) Students will achieve to match the teacher's expectation of them.
C) If the students believe in the teacher, he will be effective.
D) Students can only be successful when they believe in themselves.

Question 5

Teaching is significantly affected by the teacher's attitude toward

A) work, learning, and the practice of habits.
B) being a professional and being a good staff member.
C) other teachers, parents, and the subject.
D) training, students, and oneself.

Question 6

Teachers used to be noted for having good "disciplinary skills." Now researchers talk about teachers' "classroom management styles." Describe those skills encompassed in the meaning of classroom management which may go beyond concepts of "discipline."

Question 7

When teachers choose questions to ask, reflect on the level of understanding that student answers demonstrate, and then decide how to adjust instruction to improve results, they are making what kinds of decisions?

A) Planning
B) Managing
C) Implementing
D) Evaluating

Question 8

How does recognizing one's own feelings of anxiety help a teacher?

A) She cannot rid herself of unhealthy emotions if she doesn't accept them.
B) It can help her understand how a student's anxiety can affect his or her learning.
C) It enables her to control the feelings of her students.
D) She can draw on them for energy and inspiration in her work with students.

Question 9

An essential part of understanding and dealing with the feelings of students is

A) watching students' behavior out of class.
B) taking courses in adolescent psychology.
C) studying students' records and talking to their previous teachers.
D) knowing and understanding one's own feelings.

Question 10

Identify and explain the attitudes that can foster and those that can impede the effectiveness of teachers.

Question 11

List and describe the four areas of competence that one should develop in order to become an effective teacher, and give an example of each.

Question 12

David, a college senior majoring in history, was concerned that his knowledge of history would be insufficient to teach high school. He was considering enrolling in more American history courses to prepare himself for the classroom. According to research about teacher effectiveness, what is most likely a better use of David's time as he prepares to teach?

A) Developing tests in American history for use with his students
B) Studying history from an interdisciplinary perspective so he could draw upon those other areas in his teaching
C) Learning alternative strategies for facilitating a group process in the classroom
D) Developing an understanding of the content of the school curriculum that students will be expected to know

Question 13

During an Open House night, Tyrone Green met with parents of his Algebra I students. He briefly mentioned some of the fundamental concepts in Algebra I and spent most of his time explaining his techniques for teaching Algebra I to ninth-graders. What kind of knowledge did Tyrone use to explain how he teaches algebra?

A) Discipline content knowledge
B) Pedagogical content knowledge
C) Curriculum content knowledge
D) Theory-in-use knowledge

Question 14

Which of the following teachers best exemplifies the behavior of a reflective teacher?

A) Keshia reviews her lessons each day after teaching and keeps a teaching journal.
B) Anselm talks frequently to veteran teachers to see how they teach particular topics.
C) Darnell uses commercially prepared instructional materials when he begins a unit.
D) Tina prepares detailed thematic units demonstrating the most recent research on different learning styles.

Question 15

According to Gary Borich, which of the following is a characteristic behavior of effective teachers?

A) They present challenging tasks so that students have to work exceptionally hard to experience success.
B) They spend a great deal of time going over procedural matters.
C) They present lessons in the same instructional format for consistency.
D) They present lessons clearly and logically.

Question 16

Which of the following is the best description of reflective teaching?

A) Teaching that mirrors the culture in which the teacher is working
B) Teaching that incorporates a teacher's self-examination and self-evaluation
C) Teaching that puts current theoretical research into classroom practice
D) Teaching that responds to the interests and needs of the students

Question 17

Drawing from your experiences as a student or from observations in the classroom, give an example of a theory-in-use.

Question 18

Which of the following are traits that effective teachers demonstrate in their dealings with peers, administrators, and parents?

A) Intellectual rigor, fair-mindedness, and competitiveness
B) Vision, cooperation, and innovativeness in problem solving
C) Creativity, competence, and control of students
D) Cooperation, collaboration, and acceptance of others

Question 19

After giving her class several algebra problems to work on individually, Melina observed that half the students were stuck. She gathered the students' attention and asked them to work on their algebra problems in pairs in order to help each other. What kind of decision did Melina make?

A) Adopting
B) Evaluating
C) Planning
D) Implementing

Question 20

According to Jacob Kounin, teachers who are effective classroom managers emphasize the prevention of disruptions. Describe and give an example of each of the three skills he identified from studying effective teachers.

Question 21

List five of Kevin and Jim's rules of management. Explain each.