The Attributes of a K to 12 Teachers

The K to 12 education reform will upgrade the country’s education system and align it to the
requirements of the 21st century. This will require a K to 12 teacher to develop the essential
knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values of the students to enable them to cope with these
changes.
It is imperative for K to 12 teachers to know the characteristics or attributes critical to 21st
century education so that they may be able to integrate them in their teaching.
The following are the attributes of the K to 12 Teacher:
        • Multi-literate- As the 21st century expands our learning, literacy or “the ability
          to identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate and compute printed and
          written materials” (UNESCO, 2005) must also expand to include media and digital
          literacy. A multiliterate teacher knows how to use various technologies in teaching.
          Multispecialist- K to 12 education gears for the holistic development of learners. In

         developing the whole child, various learnings and experiences must be integrated.
         For this, teachers must be multispecialist, that is, they must be knowledgeable not
         only in the subject area they are teaching but in other areas as well so that they can
         help the learner build up what they gain in classrooms and outside the school and
         make sense of what was learned.
      • Multiskilled- K to 12 ushers in various ways of learning. For teachers to cope with
         the demand for widening learning opportunities, they must be skillful not just in
         teaching but also in facilitating, organizing groups and activities.
      • Self-directed- Teachers who are responsible in various aspects of school life must
         know how to initiate action and bring to fruition the learning goals of the students
         and the educational goals of the country.
      • Lifelong learner-For K to 12 teachers, learning never ends. Teachers must be
        constantly updated on the latest information related to their subject and the trends
        in pedagogy. Moreover, they should also be sharing and applying what they are
        learning with their students and colleagues.
     • Flexible- K to 12 education is student-centered. Thus, teachers must be able to adapt
        to various learning styles and needs of the learners. Teachers must also be flexible
        enough to ensure that learning takes place all the time using alternative modes.
     • Creative problem solver-Providing quality education is not without hurdles.
       Problems will be there inside the classroom and within the school. Teachers must
       be there to offer innovative ideas and creative solutions to problems.
    • Critical thinker-The development of higher order thinking skills is an important
      goal of K to 12 Education. Teachers need to be critical thinkers so that they could
      stir students to think about what they have learned, ask questions, reason out, probe,
      and establish their own knowledge and belief.
   • Has passion for excellent teaching- Having the passion to teach effectively ensures
      that students learn under the care and guidance of a teacher. An ordinary teacher
      merely talks and gives instruction to students, but a K to 12 teacher has a passion
      that motivates students to learn and succeed in life.
   • High Emotional Quotient (EQ)- To be a successful K to 12 teacher, one must not
     only have the head but also the heart to teach. Teaching is an emotionally taxing
     and influential job as it involves interaction with human beings. This demands that