teacher

Celebrating the World Teacher’s s Day
Groept T University
Leuven, , Belgium, 3 October 2008
Developing Teacher Professional
Standards in Building Four Pillars
of Learning for Quality Education
Zhou Nanzhao
East-China Normal University
UNESCO Asia Pacific Network for International Education and Values Education

OUTLINE OF PRESENTATION
I. INTRODUCTION
II.
CHANGING LARNING
ENVIRONMENTS AFFECTING
TEACHERS
III.
PILLARS OF LEARNING
IV.
TEACHER PROFESSIONAL
STANDARDS FOR TEACHER
QUALITY
V. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ACTON

I. INTRODUCTION
‘Teachers are a key enabling factor in improving the
quality of education’ (EFA GMR 2004). ‘The
importance of the quality of teaching, and therefore
of teachers, cannot be over emphasized…. . Teachers
are instrumental in in the development of attitudes to
learning’ (Delors
et al)
Teacher education in crisis in large part of the world:
human, finnancial and professional
The best way to celebrate World Teachers’ Day: to
turn policy rhetoric into actions, prgrammmes and
investment for improved teachers’ quality and socio-
economic status: Message for the EFA High-Level
Group Meeting, Oslo

II. CHANGING LEARNING
Shift from f
ENVIRONMENTS
rom ‘schooling’ to life-long long learning:
impossibility to teach everything supposed to be useful
for the student’s s life
Shift of emphasis from ‘teaching’ to ‘learning’:
Teachers losing leading place and monopoly on
information/knowledge teacher to develop competency
for learner-centered education
Shift of increasing policy attention to quality
implying for upgraded teacher qualifications and
more rigorous certification Changing

Multiplying functions of teachers and wider range of skills
and human qualities required of teachers
Change of focus from teacher training to teacher
professional learning
Change of teacher development model changing from
university-based training to school-based teacher
development and university-school school partnership
The unfinished task of making teaching a profession:
UNESCO-ILO Recommendation (1966): “Teaching should
be regarded as a profession”.

the impending shortage of qualified teachers (1.6
million needed in Sub-Sahara Sahara Africa alone to
achieve UPE by 2015)
the lack of attraction of the teaching profession in
recruiting motivated and qualified teacher
candidates and high turnover rate of in-service
teachers
the irrelevant outdated curriculum of teacher
education
the needed improvement of teacher’s s education
attainment level and teacher professional
competencies through professional development

Changing Learning Environments Affecting Teaching
New Aims of Teaching
From an instrumental view of education (training for skills as
instrument for productivity) to an encompassing humanistic
view of learning for the development of a ‘complete person’ in
all the richness of the personality
From developing part of intellectual faculty to fully tap the
talents and potentials ‘hidden like buried treasure in every
person’ (occupational skills becoming secondary and human
qualities for inter-personal relationships becoming essential)
Teaching for creativity and adaptability to change in an
uncertain future
Teaching for continued learning throughout life in a learning
society
Teaching for living together in peace and harmony (‘wa’) in an
increasingly globalized world

New Content of Learning
from teacher-centered to learner-centered curriculum
from subject knowledge towards intellectual abilities
from disciplinary-based curriculum to integrated, interdisciplinary
teaching
from supply-driven to demand-driven learning content
from individual learning towards cooperative learning
from reclassification/mastery of old knowledge to acquisition
of instruments of knowing and understanding
a new balance of scientific-technological and social-humanisticcultural
content of education
a new balance of general vs. vocational components of
education and general vs. specialized training
a new balance of knowledge and skills/competencies and
values/attitudes

New Process of Learning
• from linear model of education to cyclical paradigm of
study-work alternation and lifelong pursuit of learning
• from
‘one-stop’ knowledge/degree acquisition at
schools/universities to more diversified gateways to
learning opportunities in ‘mega-malls malls of information
and short-term term in-service training
• from rote learning, ‘classroom discipline' and man-
machine interaction to more teacher-pupil, pupil-pupil
interaction/dialogue and collaborative team learning.

New Types of Learners
new learners in ‘generation gaps’, with different values,
‘languages’, and ‘pop-cultures’, and in different ways of thinking,
reacting, responding and getting motivated
new generation of learners ‘growing digital on the net’, with skills
and competencies oftentimes better than their teachers in using ICT as
powerful learning tools
new generation of learners of more diverse backgrounds and
‘cultural identities’ (age, ethnicity, linguistic, economic, religions,
working experience, etc.)
new learners with new traits of independence, creativity, openmindedness,
and enterprising minds

New Spaces/Dimensions of Learning
horizontally: from schools to work-places,
communities, mass media, and other social learning
environment
longitudinally: from early childhood through
adulthood to post-retirement years (lifelong)
vertically: from real to digital and virtual
learning environments

Changing Teacher Roles Demanding New Standards
the sole source of
information
an authority of knowledge
a transmitter of factual
knowledge
a craftsman in lecturing/a
‘chalk-talk’ instructor
teaching as an occupation
a solitary worker/a ‘soloist’
in teaching
an ever ‘teacher’
a receptive/conservative
force of inertia resistant to
change
one of multiple sources of
information
a friend and a guide in
exploring the unknown; A co-
learner
a facilitator of knowledge,
skills and moral values
an artist and scientist in
teaching/a specialist of
teaching with technologies
teaching as a profession
a team member/
‘accompanist- and
communicator
a life-long long learner; A
facilitator of learning
An active agent of change

III. THE PILLARS OF LEARING
“If it is to succeed in its tasks, education must be
organized around four fundamental types of
learning which, throughout a person’s s life, will
in a way be the pillars of knowledge …..
these four paths of knowledge all form a whole,
because there are many points of contact,
intersection and exchange among them”.
-- from Delors et al, Learning: The
Treasure Within, , UNESCO Publishing, 1996

Learning To Know
to master instruments of knowing
to learn to learn and to discover
to develop faculty of memory, imagination, reasoning, and
problem-solving
to understand about his/her environment
to think in a coherent and critical way
to communicate with others
to acquire a knowledge of the scientific method and
instruments
to develop a scientific spirit and an inquiring mind
to acquire independence of judgement

Learning To Do
To apply in practice what has been learned
To develop vocational/occupational and technical skills
To develop social skills in building meaningful inter-
personal relations
To transform knowledge into innovations and job-creation
To develop competence, a mix of higher skills, of social
behaviour, of an aptitude for team work, and
initiative/readiness to take risks
To develop personal commitment to work
To enhance ability to communicate, to work with others
To o manage and resolve conflicts

Learning To Be
cultivating qualities of imagination and
creativity,
developing diversified talents and dimensions
of personalities – aesthetic, artistic, literary,
sporting, scientific, cultural and social
developing critical thinking and exercising
independent judgment
developing personal commitment and
responsibility for public good
tapping fully the talents hidden in each
individual

Learning To Live Together
To discover others
To appreciate the diversity of the human race
To know oneself
To be receptive to others and to encounter others
through dialogue and debate
To care and share
To work toward common objectives in cooperative
undertakings
To manage and resolve conflicts in peaceful ways

The Use of the Four Pillars of Learniing in Curriculum Change (Mongolia)
Content domain
Technology
Social science
Natural science
Mathematics
Humanistic science
Competence
To know
To be
To do
To live socially together

III. TEACHER STANDARDS NEEDED
What Are Standards
Standards make judgment about the ‘desirable
level of performance’
Standards clarify what teachers should know
and be able to do in the light of research and
best practice
Standards clarify what teachers to get better at
over the longer term
Standards describe trajectories for professional
development

Standards are centered on core propositions that
broadly reflect a rich and complex knowledge
base
Standards are statements about what are valued-
statements of principle
Standards provide adequate guidance for making
judgments of the degree of teachers’ experience
and the desirable level of performance in
teaching

Why Standards Are Important
As the ‘core business’ for the profession and its
members
As foundation to reshape initial training
curriculum around for entry into the teaching
As criteria for assessment of teacher
competencies
As tools for professional learning and growth
on a continuum
As instrument to generate improvements in the
quality of learning-teaching process

Two different set of purposes:
• Standards for a
Standards for accreditation,
registration, advanced
certification and promotion; or
• Standards for a continuum of
teacher professional learning

What Types of Standards
Beginning vs Advanced standards
(focusing on high-order competencies
demonstrated by more accomplished teachers)
Generic vs Subject-specific standards
(applying to professional knowledge, skills and
values for teaching an individual subject)

How Standards Could Be Structured
What is expected of teachers? (requirement);
What evidence would a teacher have to
demonstrate to indicate that this was present?
(performance indicator);
How well did the teacher demonstrate
this? (quality criterion);
How do the quality criteria different
between teachers?

Diagram: Performance-based teaching standards: main components
Core professional principles/values guiding educational vision
Content standards
What is good teaching?
What should teachers
know and be able to do?
Defining the domain of
good teaching.
What is the scope of
teachers’ work?
What are we going to
measure?
Evidential standards
What evidence will we
gather?
What rules will we use to
gather evidence of
practices?
Capturing good teaching.
What tasks should
teachers be expected to
perform?
How are we going to
measure it?
Performance standards
How will we judge
performance?
What level of
performance meets the
purpose?
How good is good
enough?
Where do we get the
standards?
How will we
discriminate between good
and poor?
How are we going to
score it?
[Source: ACER, Policy Briefs, Issue 1, May 2002]

What Teachers Should Learn To Know:
Professional Knowledge-Base
General pedagogical knowledge
Subject matter knowledge
Pedagogical content-knowledge
Knowledge of student context and the interest
Clinical training
External evaluation of learning
Knowledge strategies, techniques and tool to create and
sustain a learning environment
Knowledge and attitude supporting political and social
justice
Knowledge on how to implement technology in
curriculum

the content they teach;
how students learn that content
how to represent and convey that content in
meaningful ways;
how well their students are doing in
relation to how well they should be doing

What Teachers Should Learn To Do:
Professional Skills
Skills in planning lessons in light of learning goals
Skills in class management
Skills in involving learners in interaction
Skills in seek feedback and improve teaching
Skills in evaluating, monitoring and assessment
Skills in enable pupils to learn to learn, with acquisition
of learning tools and learning content
Skills in organizing learning experiences in
socialization of the pupils
Skills in reflection on practices
Skills in work with peers, parents and local community

What Teachers Should Learn To Be:
Professional Ethical/Moral Values
Commitment and dedication to learners
and their learning: teaching as a public
good
Respect the rights of the child to
education: equal access, equal treatment
Love and care of the children
Reflect on and improve one’s s own
practices
Learning to learn throughout life and
making teaching a learning profession

What Teachers Should Learn To Live Together:
Professional Attributes
Breaking isolation from each other for peer
learning
Communicating and working with students as
coaches of learning and co-learners
Making the site of teaching the place for
professional learning
Transforming the culture of school as a learning
community
Working with the parents and local community
Acting as agents of educational and social changes
and as community members

V. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ACTION
• Developing broadened visions of teaching
and teacher education in view of the changed
learning environments
• Joint studies and development of ‘a a global
framework of teacher standards’ adaptable to
country/locally-specific contexts, and their
implementation in teacher certification and
professional learning [e.g. the World Bank-
China Ministry Study Project on ‘Teacher
Education Quality Standards’]

Joint modules development on the four pillars
of learning, based on UNESCO-APNIEVE
Teachers Sourcebooks and Leuven Education
College’s s Postgraduate International Educating
Class (PIEC) initiative
Participation in China-Africa teacher training
programme supported by a Chinese donation:
teacher education policy studies; math-science
teaching standards development; use of
distance/ICT teacher education; scholarships, etc.

Teacher professional development in the four
pillars of learning, in partnership with UNESCO-
ASPnet and APNIEVE
Utilizing the International Education and
Resource Network (iEARN(
iEARN),
non-profit org
made of 22,000 schools in over 115 countries for
online professional development and 1,000,000
students daily engaged in collaborative project
work

To update UNESCO-ILO Recommendations
Concerning the Status of Teachers: : a possible
international document binding national governments for
increased investment in teachers
The need to revitalize UNESCO-ILO EFA Flagship
programme on “Teachers and Quality of Education
for All”, rallying support from member states and the
international community
An enhanced institutionalized Groept T presence in
China/Asia for greater impacts of ‘Educating,
Enterprising and Engineering’ in international education
in general, and in teacher education in particular, in the
better interest of learners in the knowledge economies of
the 21 st century

http://www.icte.ecnu.edu.cn
NZHOU@ADMIN.ECNU.EDU.CN
ZHOUNZ@HOTMAIL.COM