The Role of the Teacher in Foreign Language Teaching

Abstract ：The teacher plays a significant and irreplaceable part in education. This paper demonstrates the multiple roles that teachers play, especially language teachers in the process of teaching. The good teacher never works as mere deliverer of information, but take on the roles as mentor, assessor, facilitator, participant, guide in cultural teaching and morality, and learner as well.

Since every individual student is an integrated and dynamic body, the teacher should take into consideration all kinds of the cognitive, affective as well as social factors that involve learning. Teachers must be proficient in their career to enable the students to make some academic achievements. Then they should facilitate learning by encouraging and motivating students and providing a comfortable learning environment. Language teachers should also pay attention to foster the right attitude of students towards different cultures. Meanwhile, teachers are themselves learners and it is necessary to continue to pursue professional and personal growth in teaching.

Key words: Teachers’ role; mentor; promoter; guide; learner

Introduction

The importance of education in modern society can never be overstated. Since the goal of education is to lead people from the darkness of ignorance to the light of truth. Teachers, as the guides, play a major part in this career. Teaching is an art, and teachers are artists. The key to successful teaching depends on how well teachers play their roles and deal with the relationship with students.

In order to exert the proper kind of relationship on students, teachers should be qualified in many aspects. According to Allen, good ESL teachers have competent preparation leading to a degree in TESL; a love of the English language; the critical faculty; the persistent urge to upgrade oneself; self-subordination; readiness to go the extra mile; cultural adaptability; professional citizenship; and a feeling of excitement about one’s work (Brown 2001).

With the development of the notion of education and language teaching theory, however, the role of teachers transferred from “a static /institutional to an innovative /democratic and global teacher role” (Ayse 2006). The change of teacher-centered to learner-centered approach to language teaching has put higher requirement for teachers. Teachers should never be only deliverers of information to their students form textbook. Brown stated that a spectrum of possibilities of the roles of teachers included: “controllers, director, manger, facilitator, resource” (2001: 161).