ARE TEACHERS CRAFTSMEN OR SCIENTISTS?

-->

     People have different ways and techniques for teaching and learning, no matter what you want to learn in order to practice it or teach it. Professions and jobs have certain characteristics that need to be accomplished; they can be learnt by studying or by innate abilities.   In Teaching, teachers have to take into account the transmission of knowledge and the techniques to achieve the goals they want students achieve.

     Discussing these two words with colleagues the conclusion was that teachers have a little bit from both craftsmen and scientists, apart from many others professions’ features; craftsmen and scientists have goals, they want to find better procedures or answers to problems, they want to innovate, to be creative and imaginative and craftsmen and scientists’ main concern is knowledge. 

     According to the meaning of craftsman and teaching relationship we could say that teaching is the art of learning from others, the teachers’ experience and practices become better each time and the results are reflected on students, it has something to deal with heritage and culture, sometimes teachers are selfish with some ‘secrets’ that make the teaching-learning successful, students can get the information implicitly and become better through practice. Scientists and teaching relationship also share many characteristics in which knowledge is the mean objective, most of the time students learn through explicit explanations and the information of the practices are public and objective, there is a free exchange of perceptions, ideas, knowledge, exercises and concepts.

     I think extremes are not good, I consider myself a craftswoman when developing students’ abilities and creativity, when I mold attitudes and improve values. I am a scientist when analyzing behaviors and proposing better practices in the classroom, I can blend both concepts and obtain a well done performance from the students. We need to teach our students the WHATs, HOWs, WHYs and if it is possible and convenient any other information we can add.