Teacher’s Roles and Responsibilities
 Teachers play an essential role in
education, most especially in the lives
of the students they teach in the
classroom. What defines a teacher is
his/her ability to teach students and a
positive influence on them.
 Generally, the role of a teacher in
education goes beyond teaching. In
today’s world, teaching has different
faces, and a teacher has to carry out the
part of being an external parent,
counselor, mentor, role model, and so
on.
Teacher’s as Observers
 Observation is the first and most
powerful step towards changing
teaching practices. Daily observation
reveals a wealth of information about
students, their competencies and skills,
and the work of the teacher.
 Sharing observations through the use of
documentation provides an opportunity
to create a window for parents to peer
inside the daily life of school and their
children's activities here. Only by
practicing the activity of observation
can teachers begin to critique their own
ability to observe, document, and
engage in projects with their students.
  Positive relationships between children
and teachers are the foundation for
children's exploration and learning
within the classroom. As children
develop trust in their teachers, they
become more likely to take on new
challenges, continue trying, and ask
questions when confused. All of this
enhances learning.
Teacher’s as Extenders
 Teachers play an important role in
developing children's knowledge and
skills to enable them to make informed,
healthful choices about their diets and
lifestyle. Teachers as extenders are
critical to nutrition education programs
in Extension.
Teacher’s as Planners
 This is the essential role of successful
teaching. Before all else, the teacher
must develop a “flight plan.” Like any
good flight plan, it must lay out a
destination and the path to that
destination. Of course, the pilot has to
know when she has reached that
destination. A well-conceived plan is
fundamental to a successful learning
experience. Without a good flight plan,
the inexperienced teacher crashes.
 Then they must pick themselves up and
go on to the next flight. Each crash
helps the teacher get closer to better
plans. The beginning teacher first
becomes a manager and then a
planner. As any veteran teacher will
admit, crashes lead to successes;
successes, to experience; and
experience lead to the happy veteran
teacher.
Teacher’s as Facilitators
 The early childhood teacher is not
simply passing information and
knowledge to children they work with.
Instead, they are trying to support
children to become independent
learners. To be an effective facilitator
the teacher is interested in setting up
the environment, planning
programmed to suit individual
children’s needs and reflecting on
 practice. The job of the facilitator is to
create learning opportunities for
children, pointing out lessons that can
be learned in everyday actions and
activities. You are bridging educational
theory with practice.
Teacher’s as Responders
 Schools exist for children. It is difficult
enough to create environments in
which five year olds can enter and feel
welcomed and safe, where they can
become excited learners. We do it in all
of our schools. We create safe
environments in which students can do
the hard work of learning while
growing up. It begins when a five-year-
old first begins Kindergarten, they
enter a large unfamiliar building,
without parents, filled with students
older and bigger than they are.  friend and third parent. A teacher
   Teachers have become recognized as
the first responders in schools. They
embrace the responsibility to keep our
children safe. Simultaneously, they are
teaching them how to maneuver in a
large social networks, how to read and
write, think like mathematicians,
scientists, and historians, express
themselves music, art and dance, and
become athletes. They do it every day,
and always with some sense that their
first responsibility, to keep the children
safe, is a given, that there will be no
challenge to the safe environment in
which we all have become accustomed
to live.
Teacher’s as Models
 Teachers typically do not think of
themselves as role models, however,
inadvertently they are. Students spend
a great deal of time with their teacher
and therefore, the teacher becomes a
role model to them. This can be a
positive or negative effect depending
on the teacher. Teachers are there not
only to teach the children, but also to
love and care for them. Teachers are
typically highly respected by people in
the community and therefore become
a role model to students and parents.
  The amount of time students spends
with teachers each day or week makes
it possible for them to have a certain
level of influence on the students.
Being a teacher goes beyond just
teaching according to the curriculum, it
is about grooming in the child.
Teachers don’t only impart knowledge,
but they also help with character
building as well.
  The teacher plays the role of mentor,
role model, counselor, career guide,
contributes a major role in the
personality development of a child. 
Orchestrating Children’s Play
Play Orchestration Strategies
 Teachers should begin by
providing opportunities for children to
have spontaneous, unstructured child-
initiated play experiences. With this in
mind, the classroom design must also
be conducive to play. Children need a
large enough area for playing with two
or more peers in an area where they
will not be interrupted. When creating
interest areas in the classroom, careful
attention should be paid to the size of
the space for both the dramatic play
area and the block area, as these
interest areas are frequented by
children. The teacher must also provide
stimulating materials to enhance and
entice children into play.
    With organized materials on
shelves and in bins, children can clearly
see their choices for the day.
Accessories (e.g., play people, animals,
transportation vehicles, play food) are
important in interest areas such as the
dramatic play center and block center
because they aid engagement and
creativity (Bodrova & Leong, 2007).
Pretend-play and scaffolding
Children also need freedom to explore
the play environment and the materials
in a way that interests them, providing
a sense of wonder and encouraging
creativity.
 a. acting as a play tutor
b. setting up the physical space
c. handing children accessories for their
play
d. planning curricular extensions
INTERACTIONS WITH CHILDREN
 “Children benefit most when teachers
engage in stimulating interactions that
support learning and are emotionally
supportive. Interactions that help
children acquire new knowledge and
skills provide input to children, elicit
verbal responses and reactions from
them, and foster engagement in and
enjoyment of learning.” (Yoshikawa et
al. 2013)
 Interactions include how an educator
approaches, responds to,
communicates with, and supports
children in all domains.
 All interactions an educator has with
children can influence how children
learn, grow and feel about themselves.
Positive, intentional and reciprocal
(back and forth) interactions contribute
to best outcomes for children. Children
are happier, healthier, more confident,
and excited to learn when adults
nurture relationships and interactions.
 They give children multiple
opportunities to learn and explore in a
predictable, engaging and stimulating
environment.
 These interactions include physical
movements (i.e. body language),
conversation, playing together, sharing,
cooperating and more.
 Pretend play begins anytime
from 11 months to 18 months (in
typically developing children) and starts
to change into other types of play any
time from 10 to 12 years. It becomes
very noticeable when children turn 4
years old because at 4 years old
children can play out a play scene over
several days and adults start to notice
it.
 When children are playing
pretend they are playing ‘as if’
something or someone is real. They are
creating a situation where there is more
going on that what is literally
happening.
 Pretend play is a thinking skills:
 Pretend Play involves;
 Playing out a story that is logical and
sequential.
 Playing out a character in role play.
 Playing with an object as if that object is
alive (this is also called decentering).
 Children learn about themselves and
the world.
 PRETEND PLAY - Children work out
confusing, scary, or new life issues
 Children develop important complex
social and higher order thinking skills.  it
requires advanced thinking strategies,
communication, and social skills.
 Children cultivate social and emotional
intelligence.
 Children synthesize knowledge and
skills. children need opportunities to
blend their skills and knowledge
together.  from external rules, and nonliteral
 SCAFFOLDING - is a bridge to new skill
levels using three key ingredients;
modeling the skill, giving clues and
asking questions while the child is trying
out a new skill, and then as the child
approaches mastery, withdrawing the
support.
 is a technique (or tool) that provides
support for thinking and learning,
typically accomplished through social
interactions and language.
 Scaffolding practices are broad and
consist of many approaches.
Spontaneous, Guided and Directed Play
 In early childhood settings, play
is frequently described as
“spontaneous,” “guided,” or
teacher directed. Rather than
considering them as different
categories, we use these terms to
highlight the most characteristic
feature of the play.
 Spontaneous play - refers to
behaviors that arise from intrinsic
motivation, that are self-directed,
and that represent expressions of
children’s own interests and
desires.
 The characteristics of play are most
visible in spontaneous play. This
vignette reflects all of these
characteristics: intrinsic motivation,
active engagement, attention to
means rather than ends, freedom
behavior.
 Guided play - refers to children’s
play that is influenced in an
intentional manner by adults. As an
educational term, to guide means
to influence someone’s thinking or
activity. In this example, the
children are actively engaged.
Though they choose to participate,
Roseann both initiates and guides
their activity.
 Teacher-directed play - refers
to children’s play that is organized
and, literally, directed or controlled
by an adult, such as singing a song.
Teachers’ intentions are clear and
specific, even when expressed in a
soft tone or even when several
choices are provided. Despite the
teacher’s instructions or directions,
the characteristic of the activity
may still be defined as play.
Inasmuch as the activity is goal
directed by adults, it is guided or
directed play rather than
spontaneous play.
Responding to Children’s Behavior
 Guiding children’s
behavior is an important aspect
of caring for or educating young
children. Positive strategies
need to be developed to assist
children learn appropriate ways
of behaving. Corporal
punishment and unreasonable
discipline are not permitted in
children’s services, not only
because the child may be
physically harmed, but also
 because it nearly always has
detrimental effects on the
child’s self-esteem and feelings
of security.
 All of a child’s behaviors
have meaning and
communicate messages. Adults
recognize some of these
communications right away—
like a toothless grin. Other
behaviors may be confusing,
and you can only take a guess
at what they might be.
 A child’s behavior might
do any of the following:
 Show how they feel about
themselves
 Communicate their needs and
feelings
 Establish important connections
with the people around them
 Be part of exploring the world
and how the world responds to
them.
Key Elements in a Play Oriented Curriculum
 Play-based curriculum - allows
children to learn the skills they
need in a structured
environment with the help and
supervision of an experienced
teacher who knows how to take
interests and experiences and
turn them
into learning moments.
Culturally Diverse Group
 refers to a group that contains
people with different races,
religions, ages, ethnicities,
genders, status in life and more.
 A diverse classroom is one in
which both the students and
the teacher are accepting of all
people, regardless of their race,
culture, or religion. This
acceptance is evidenced by the
books that are read, the
activities that are completed,
and the lessons that are taught.
 Diversity is important because
the world is changing every day.
We must learn to accept and
get along with people of all
cultures, races, and religions in
order to become productive
citizens of the world. It is our
job as teachers to prepare our
students for the real world, and
the real world is a very diverse
one.
 We have the opportunity to
teach our students love and
acceptance NOW, even if it is
not being taught at home.
Chances are, by the time the
students in your classroom
reach the real world it will be a
much more diverse place than
it is now and we need to
prepare them for that.
 Is it necessary to have diverse
students to teach diversity in
the classroom? No. This is a
common misconception, in fact,
if you have a homogenous
classroom is it especially
important to emphasize
diversity because the only
exposure your students may get
to other cultures is through the
activities, books, and lessons
that you provide them with.
Children with Disabilities
 The Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities (UN,
2006) describes people with
 disabilities as “…those who
have long-term physical,
mental, intellectual or sensory
impairments which, in
interaction with various
barriers, may hinder their full
and effective participation in
society on an equal basis with
others”.
 To understand how disability is
currently viewed, it is helpful to
look at the way the concept of
disability has evolved over time.
Historically, disability was
largely understood in
mythological or religious terms,
e.g. people with disabilities
were considered to be
possessed by devils or spirits;
disability was also often seen as
a punishment for past
wrongdoing. These views are
still present today in many
traditional societies.
 In the 19th and 20th centuries,
developments in science and
medicine helped to create an
understanding that: disability
has a biological or medical
basis, with impairments in body
function and structure being
associated with different health
conditions. This medical model
views disability as a problem of
the individual, and is primarily
focused on cure and the
provision of medical care by
professionals.
 Biological/medical perspective
Disability has been classified by
the WHO as part of a
continuum of stages of disease
impact that include: Disease
consequences.
 EXAMPLES: Impairment
(Abnormal organ function),
Disability (Activity Limitations),
Handicap (Participation
Restrictions)
 People’s experiences of
disability are extremely varied.
There are different kinds of
impairments, and people are
affected in different ways:
 Some people have one
impairment, others multiple
 Some are born with an
impairment
 While others may acquire an
impairment during the course
of their life.
 For example, a child born with a
congenital condition, such as
cerebral palsy – a young soldier
who loses his leg to a landmine
– a middle-aged woman who
develops diabetes and loses her
vision – an older person with
dementia.
 Approximately 10% of the
world’s population lives with a
disability.
 An estimated 80% of people
with disabilities live in
developing countries.
 An estimated 15-20% of the
world’s poorest people are
disabled.
 Children with disabilities are
much less likely to attend
school than others.
 People with disabilities tend to
experience higher
unemployment and have lower
earnings than people without
disabilities.
 Global Trend - Globally, the disabilities,
most common causes of Emotional/behavioral disorders,
disability include: Sensory disabilities: Speech-
 chronic diseases (e.g. diabetes, language disorders. Autism:
cardiovascular disease and Specific learning disabilities:
cancer); Chronic health conditions:
 injuries (e.g. due to road traffic Causes of childhood disabilities,
accidents, conflicts, falls and Prenatal causes, Perinatal
landmines); causes, Childhood causes
 mental health problems;
 birth defects;
 malnutrition; and 
 HIV/AIDS and other
communicable diseases.
 It is very difficult to estimate
the exact number of people
living with disabilities
throughout the world, however
the number is increasing due to
factors such as: population
growth, increase in chronic
health conditions, the ageing of
populations, and medical
advances that preserve and
prolong life.
 Many low and middle-income
countries face a double burden,
i.e. they need to address both
traditional problems, such as
malnutrition and infectious
diseases, and new problems,
such as chronic conditions.
 Some children will be born with
a disabling health condition or
impairment, while others may
experience/acquire disability
(after birth) as a result of
chronic illness, injuries, mental
health problems; birth defects;
malnutrition; and
communicable diseases, etc.
 Categories of childhood
disabilities: Physical disabilities,
Cognitive/Intellectual