Qualities of a Good Primary School Teacher

The teacher is one who has completed a professional curriculum in a

teaching educational institution and whose training has been officially
recognized by the award of an appropriate teaching certificate. The
teacher is a person who, because of his rich experience or educational
background in a given field is able to contribute to the growth and
development of people who come in contact with him. (Good 1945). His
duty is to assist pupils to acquire desirable knowledge, skills,
experiences, attitude, competences and values that will help them to live
and function effectively in the society.
The image of the teacher is an important factor in the teaching and
learning process especially at the primary level of education. At this
stage, which according to Piaget is the pre-operational stage, children
learn by imitating the teacher or other adults. He follows someone he
likes and admires and imitates that person. By implication, the teacher
must be responsible, knowledgeable and exhibits good behaviours
because the children imitate the teacher’s manners and behaviour. The
teacher is the audio-visual aid that appears in every lesson; his image as
perceived by the pupils, becomes highly important as he is memorable
because he is associated with some emotional experiences. The pupils
will like to remember that they have a warm hearted, kind, friendly,1honest, loving, fair, strict and proud
teacher. These attributes affect their learning habits positively.

Grant (1977) summarized the qualities of a good teacher as follows:

1. The teacher should be a person worth copying.
2. The teacher should be very interested in children, and should have endless patience with them.
3. The children should know they can rely on him and can trust his words. He should never make idle
promises or threats.
4. The teacher should guide the children in a friendly manner and they should never be afraid to come to
him for help.
5. The teacher must be interested in things which interest children and should listen with understanding
to their views.
6. The teacher should be enthusiastic and active in his work so that he can pass on his enthusiasm and
interest to the children.
7. The teacher should have knowledge of the needs of children and of the best ways of teaching children
at different stages.
8. The teacher should have the ability to explain things in a simple and imaginative manner.
9. The teacher should be a person who is interested in increasing his own general knowledge and he
should remember that a teacher will never know everything about teaching; he should therefore
continue to try to improve his methods by reading, attending various vocation courses, seminars,
workshops, etc.
10. The teacher should be a happy and lively person whom the children and their parents can respect.
All these characteristics determine the image of a good teacher.2