Teachers need to know a lot of things. We need to know how to do math, how to read, and how to
write. We need to know some basic things about world history and geography; and here in the United
States, we need to know about American history and geography. We need to understand the scientific
method, and we need to know important facts about life science, physical science, and earth science. At
Island Park Charter School, teachers need to know some things about computer programming and
robotics. We need to know about music and playing the piano. This is not a complete list, but it includes
some of the important things that teachers need to know.
I know there are some teachers who, having taught for many years, have their files and know their basic
content. Each year they teach the same skills and concepts, and they have a good knowledge base. They
know what they need to know to teach the subjects they teach.
I think it’s important for teachers to keep learning, no matter how much they already know. This is
important for at least three reasons. First, if we want our students to keep learning new things, we
ought to be learning new things too. We are role models and we want our students to become life-long
learners. We need to keep learning so that we can show our students that there is always more to learn.
Secondly, as we grow in our knowledge, we are able to share more information with our students. It’s
not enough to just know third-grade science, for example. As we expand our knowledge, we are able to
tell our students more: to help them make sense of things they didn’t quite understand in previous
grades, and to prepare them for knowledge they will gain in future grades. As we become experts in our
content, we are able to truly help our students grow in their knowledge. Finally, when teachers are
constantly learning new things, we gain (or at least maintain) some excitement and intrigue about the
subjects we are teaching. If we are very familiar with the content, we risk becoming bored by it, and we
inadvertently pass our boredom on to our students.
In addition to knowing our content, we teachers need to know our students. This is essential for
providing a good education for the children with whom we are entrusted. The knowledge we need as
teachers moves us beyond simply knowing the content that we teach. We need spend time with our
students. We need to know what they enjoy, what interests they have, what things are hard for them,
how they communicate, and their best ways of learning. These are not things that we can figure out in
the first few days or weeks of school, although we need to begin this work right away. We need to
understand that the methods and ideas that “work” for one student may not work for the next. We
draw upon past experience, but we can’t assume that the things we have done with other students are
going to bring our current students to a place of understanding. Each day, we are investigating. We are
watching, observing, listening, trying new things, and analyzing results. We watch how our students
play. We watch how they interact with one another. We pay attention to their responses to our
questions. We notice how quickly or how slowly they complete their work. These observations are not
about “grading” our students. They serve one purpose: they help us to be better teachers for the
students we have.
“Know your content. Know your students.” This is one of the mantras we repeat often at Island Park
Charter School. With growing knowledge of our content areas and a deeper understanding of our
students, we cannot be as successful in our role as teachers.