Teach English in Hanbei - Zhuzhou Shi

“The capacity to learn is a gift. The ability to learn is a skill. The willingness to learn is a choice.”—Bryan Herbert. London, M. (2011) used the simple definition of lifelong learning from the Encarta, 2008 which is, “development after formal education: the continuing development of knowledge and skills that people experience after formal education and throughout their lives.” Teachers who are lifelong learners thrive more because they overcome hardships; have the initiative to enhance learning outcomes and become a role model to their students. To have a lifelong learning attitude means to regard mistakes and hardships as part of learning, in terms of personal and professional aspect. Within and during the class, teachers would never know what kind of questions students may ask or how they will react to the new pieces of information that will be given to them or how they will they behave and interact around people. Teachers as lifelong learners should mark learning a constant practice to adjust to changes and students’ actions. Teachers may attend seminars about teaching ability and confidence. Valazza (n.d) wrote that the more the teaching ability is develop, the more confident the teacher be in teaching inside the class or vice versa. In the simplest context, resolving one of the questions may help teachers to answer the other questions too. In the digital age, everything and everyone are adapting in order to keep up. New tools arise to accommodate the evolving society. For instance, Youtube, Wikipedia and Google are platforms which give pieces of information that are readily available. They are new tools, new ways to learn but only few people to look for guidance. Moreover, these materials used for education, become increasingly complex that even if you did learn them, you will have to relearn them in a few years because the modification is quick. In order to keep up with the change, teachers are required to continuously learn and grow and oblige to be lifelong learners. Teachers who join groups with lifelong learning mindset and come up with novel ideas to be used in teaching attain enhanced students learning results than dated teaching strategies. Teachers who get involved in lifelong learning activities serve as a role model to their students for they practice what they preach. The result of sharing skills, knowledge and experiences of working and getting involved by the teacher motivates students to become lifelong learners too. For instance, an English teacher can share to the class insights from the research conference he/she attended. Another example, a Social Science teacher can talk about a community project done outside school. Overcoming hardships, initiating the enhancement of learning outcomes and becoming a role model are some of the characteristics why great teachers are lifelong learners. As what Herbert Brian said, the willingness to learn is a choice and that the ability to learn is both a gift and a skill. It is why teachers choose to explore more options for how they can expand their professional life and share their knowledge to others. Hence, we should rather aim for the best ever and come in second best ever than aim for mediocrity and achieve our goal. Bibliography: London, M. (2011). Lifelong Learning: Introduction: In the Oxford Handbook of Lifelong Learning. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 16 Dec. 2019, from https://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780195390483.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780195390483-e-001. Valazza, G. (n.d.). Professional development: teacher development and confidence. One Stop English. Retrieved from http://www.onestopenglish.com/methodology/teaching-articles/professional-development/professional-development-teacher-development-and confidence/146473.article#comments