10 Teacher Archetypes

10 TEACHER PERSONALITY ARCHETYPES

This list of 10 Teacher Personality Archetypes comes from many years of experience, both as a student and as a teacher.  It has been designed as a tool for aiding teachers, students and their parents, as well as older, independent students--to facilitate better communication and an optimal working relationship with the best, possible outcome (grade).  These personality archetypes are not intended as a way to stereotype teachers, who are unique individuals.  And it is not uncommon to find traits from more than one archetype in an individual teacher, as some types are more closely related than others.

 As a math person, I naturally look for the patterns, and this list of archetypes has taken many years to compile.  When working with people, I often think of driving at night with my headlights on.   If I can see the road, it’s much less treacherous.


Natural Teacher

·      Feels at ease with his/her role as a teacher, and relates easily to students

·      Seems like he/she has been teaching for years, even if it’s his/her 1st year

·      Healing presence

·      Fair in grading, but will err on the side of leniency

·      Non-judgmental—feels that all students are equally valuable and have unlimited potential

·      Some natural teachers who are new to the teaching profession may have difficulty maintaining boundaries between the role of teacher vs. the role of friend

·      Global or sequential learner or both

·      Dearly loved by students and parents

Has Lost the Forest for the Trees Teacher

·      May have difficulty with classroom management
·   May have difficulty maintaining paperwork, such as grade book

·   Implements detailed guidelines for students re: manuscript conventions, such as how to head a paper


·   This teacher might possibly grade work arbitrarily—with no formal guidelines or rubric, and may even rationalize his/her right to do so; may feel that students do not have the "right" to understand what criteria are used in grading, or may use the above idea as a way to avoid his/her own accountability

·    Micromanager who feels a strong loss of control

·    May feel overwhelmed and/or frustrated

·    Tendency to be passive-aggressive (see point #4 re: grading)

·    Sequential learner


“Old School” Teacher

·      May have difficulty with technology

·      May have difficulty keeping accurate student files/paperwork

·      May be open-hearted toward students, and might easily be taken advantage of by them

·      May have difficulty with classroom management

·      Students may feel that this teacher is out of touch with current technology, but maintain a deep respect for him/her

·      Global learner

·      Maintains strong, core values and a belief in teaching as a loving profession

Master Teacher

·      Veteran teacher

·      Maintains on-going education

·      Maintains renewed sense of discovery about teaching, even when feeling frustrated with the school system itself

·      Organized through years of experience and willingness to change from within and learn new techniques and technology

·      Ability to read people, and appreciates students who love to learn

·      Expert at time-management; knows how to set reasonable boundaries and limits

·      Expert at classroom management

·      Dearly loved by students who know how lucky they are; feared by students who tend to slack off

Needs to Just Get By Teacher

·      May be experienced or even a veteran teacher

·      Sets clear boundaries re: time spent outside the classroom

·      May recycle same lesson plans/procedures over-and-over, even when they’re not optimal, in order to avoid more planning or prep time

·      Multiple commitments such as family, outside interests, and other business ventures are a priority, and will not sacrifice those for teaching

·      Very adept at his/her routine; on-time and dependable

·      May not be so adept at giving advanced warning for tests and quizzes because he or she may not plan for those too far in advance

·      May or may not be burned out on teaching as a profession, but needs the paycheck and is unwilling to risk losing a steady job at this time

·      May be a sequential learner

Devoted Teacher

·      Generally speaking, the devoted teacher is within the 1st 3 yrs. of teaching

·      Willing to go beyond any reasonable boundaries or limits in order to help students

·      Idealistic

·      Willing to work early, late, through the weekends, and even meet with students during the weekend

·      Identifies strongly with his/her role as a teacher; outside of that teaching role, may not have a strong sense of self

·      Denies self-care, and may look somewhat haggard or even unkempt

·      May work at a charter school or boarding school

·      May have garnered accolades or certificates such as “teacher of the year”

·      Deeply loved and admired by students and parents

Saintly Teacher

·      May be a veteran teacher

·      Feels that the teaching profession is one of sacrifice and selflessness

·      May deny own self-care, and may look a little worse for wear

·      May have difficulty with classroom management

·      May not be introspective or in touch with his/her own feelings

·      Tendency to be passive-aggressive

·      Strives to maintain a façade of inner peace, but may feel deep frustration/anger/resentment beneath that façade

·      Strong core values, and belief in teaching as a “calling”

·      May be extremely accomplished in areas such as writing, art, or science

 

“All That” Teacher

·      May have chosen teaching as a 2nd or 3rd career, after working for many years in a different profession

·      Believes that he/she was born to teach, and may even exude a strong sense of bravado

·      Beneath a confident veneer, lies deep-seated insecurities

·      Through years of experience in other professions, is adept at playing the politics of working within a school system

·      May have a “larger than life” personality, and may be very popular with younger students

·      Has a deep love for students, and fully believes in their unlimited potential

·      Brings a new sense of excitement and commitment to teaching

·      Tendency to brag about and exaggerate his/her own accomplishments, as well as accomplishment of students that he/she has mentored

·      Can be overbearing with colleagues; colleagues may feel that this teacher is out of touch with reality or full of him/herself

·      Needs to always be “right”

Organized Teacher

·      May be a high school teacher

·      Keeps meticulous student records

·      Maintains a current syllabus, so that students and teachers know what to expect

·      May even publish a teaching schedule, so that students and parents are aware of upcoming curriculum and tests

·      Sticks to his/her teaching schedule, but is easily able to make changes when needed

·      May not be the most exciting lecturer or presenter

·      May be able to process information at a fast rate, and may not be able to understand those who cannot do the same

·      May not be so adept at working with students who have learning differences

·      Might not be too much of an extrovert

·      Usually unwilling to make allowances for make-up tests, assignments, or grade changes

Fair and Solid Teacher

·      Veteran teacher

·      May teach at a top high school or a community college

·      From years of experience, knows how to pick his/her battles, and doesn’t waste energy or time otherwise

·      Conscientious in maintaining student records, syllabus, and teaching schedule

·      Doesn’t have an axe to grind, and is so much more effective for it

·      Fair and non-judgmental in his/her treatment of students

·      Willing to meet students during office hours or make an appointment outside of office hours, if necessary

·      Not a perfectionist, but a realist

·      Realizes the importance of maintaining balance in life