The Teacher and Society
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A sociological analysis of the teaching profession encompasses more than a specific or singular aspect of teaching: rather it is concerned with teachers and their role in society. The study of sociology, and by extension sociological analysis, encompasses virtually all human activities. Sociology takes the broadest possible view of human activities by comparison with other social scientific disciplines. Analyzing and theorizing about the teaching profession involves some perusal of the social interactions formed by teachers as individuals, as part of a group, and as a part of the larger society and culture. How the various members of the specific population of teachers comport themselves is another area of interest. For purposes of this analysis, the teaching profession will be viewed as a social group with a plurality of individuals in recurring interaction. Their interactions as a group appear to be controlled by common societal norms or by their profession and their differentiated roles most of the time. Differentiated roles could include but are not limited to the following: specific teaching areas such as mathematics, English, or science; geographic location; urban or suburban area; level of teaching within the educational system; and level of training of the teacher, including attainment of advanced degrees, teacher training, and years of experience. Teachers are aware of their identity within their profession and the perception of their profession as a uni
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profession. Teachers are certified and thereby regulated by society. Society exerts great pressure on teachers to conform to their approved and accepted social role.
Most societies place a high value on quality education in its schools at all levels. As a result of these expectations, teachers face two challenges. They must stay current with the curriculum as well as the demand for changes in what is taught. In a modern society, teachers are expected to broaden their knowledge base so that they develop some level of expertise in all subject areas: reading, language arts, social science, science, mathematics.
Higher expectations come from the changing attitudes of the community toward the role of education and educators. Today's society expects more of all students, including those at lower grade levels. The burden of preparing students to meet these expectations falls to the teacher.
Besides the added pressure to master more subject matter, teachers are expected to know and be able to use a wide variety of teaching strategies. Not only is the curriculum content critical, how the subjects are taught is important. The faces of the students in the classroom have changed. Teachers must adapt instruction to meet
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Approximate Word count = 1789
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)
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