7 basic teacher characteristics which positively influence students

Students need to be inspired by the idea that learning is important. Therefore, teachers are required to work on students` motivation, emotions, mindset and self-management skills. 

7 Cs approach defines 7 basic teacher characteristics which positively influence adolescents` behaviour and welfare in the learning environment.

7Cs approach is based on the recent study released by the Achievement Gap Initiative at Harvard University. Teachers were trained to implement 7Cs components in their everyday teaching within one study year. This experiment proved that  7Cs components positively influenced the development of learners` self-management skills and their capacity to take a purposeful initiative in the learning process. 

Here are these Cs teacher characteristics:

Care

To be emotional, supportive and genuinely interested in students.

Teachers are not only deep knowledge keepers, now they strive to become deep understanders of their students. Teachers do not make assumptions about what students can or cannot do. Teachers observe and come to rescue when students are stuck. This constant attention and quick teachers`response boost learners`aspiration.

Care and attention are especially important when teachers challenge their students. Because challenge often gives pressure which may not produce love and desire to continue learning. When teachers take care, captivate and provide instructive feedback, any challenge is more easily accepted by students. 

Confer

Welcome and value students’ viewpoints

Conferring itself may sometimes lack clear purposes as conferring may operate primarily as a way of caring, clarifying, and challenging. By conferring teachers are meant to insist on students` participation through the use of such techniques as strategic questioning and discussion-based lessons. Teachers avoid extended discussions that have no apparent purpose. Teachers value students’ unique perspectives. Teachers provide positive reinforcement for the effort it takes a student to formulate and express a perspective. Further, students are asked to respond not only to the teacher but to one another as well. Such remarks are teachers`objective: “My teacher gives us time to explain our ideas,” and “My teacher wants us to share our thoughts.” Confer seems to be the strongest predictor of care.

Challenge

To press students to think rigorously and stay on a task

Teachers make sure that students work hard and think hard. Teachers who challenge effectively are good at pushing students academically and they tend not to give up when students have troubles. Being serious is less fun! Teachers ask open-ended questions and require students to explain, justify, or expand their answers. Teachers require rigour and persistence. Teachers are ready for some pushback from students who might prefer a less stressful approach. Therefore teachers try increasing captivation and care in combination with rigour in order to help mitigate the tension and make the experience more enjoyable.

Captivate

Make learning  relevant and interesting, use materials based on prior students` knowledge

Captivate describes teachers behaviours that make instruction stimulating, instead of boring. Captivating teachers select and deliver material in interesting ways, often by connecting it to things about which students already care.

Captivation requires teachers` positive attitude and lack of fear. Teachers put aside their fear to fail and they simply humble before their students as they try to deliver information in brand new ways. Songs, stories, films, news, sharing feelings and experiences, trips, travels, craftworks, etc.

Some students – and especially those who struggle – may purposefully hide their interest and their effort. It requires teachers to be persistent and keep trying to captivate.

Clarify

Promote understanding, give clear explanations

To clarify successfully teachers should be ready to come with lucid explanations in different ways using numbers, pictures, mind maps, videos, sounds, artworks in order to reach and captivate multiple intelligence of the classroom. Teachers take regular steps to detect and respond to confusion in class but do so in ways that share responsibility with students. Clarification develops the capacity to identify problem moments and stay on task skills. Students are not shy about asking for help when needed as their teacher is always ready to clarify.

Consolidate

Give instructive feedback,  integrate learning in real-life situations

Teachers are meant to review and summarize the material in ways that highlight the main points. In order to integrate learning teachers provide talk about the relationships between ideas and help students to see patterns, especially as related to their everyday lives or things students already understand. Teachers realize how consolidation enhances students` retention.

Negative feedback should be forever replaced with instructive one. Teachers give detailed instructions on what can be done to become even better. Teachers perceive students as already successful ones. This way teachers provide the type of support that enables students to develop and express self-management skills by correcting their own work, solving their own problems, and building their own understandings.

Classroom management

Create a respectful and cooperative classroom climate

Teachers avoid controlling students through intimidation and coercion. They keep their classroom under control and on the task using 6Cs above. As maintaining students active participation will minimize distractions and interruptions in your classroom. Teachers also consistently enforce clear and efficient rules, guidelines, and routines. They monitor students behaviour and intervene before problems occur or as rapidly as possible once they appear. Teachers`objective is to see that “My class stays busy and doesn’t waste time”.

7Cs can be helpful while analyzing and preparing your lessons. Let us say you can make yourself a sort of  7Cs checklist and evaluate your problem lessons by asking yourself simple questions:  

• Do I challenge my students enough?
• How do I care and captivate them?
• What ideas can I use to consolidate and integrate their learning?
• How do I maintain classroom management?  
• What examples, instructions, stories or objects can I use for a lucid clarification?
• When should I confer talk with my students?

If you like 7Cs do not hesitate to add them on your checklist for analyzing and preparing your classes with teenagers.