The Profile Of A University Professor

The profile of a university professor

The university professor, is that professional who has to cause learning processes in the classroom, to know the dynamics of the same, select and organize content, facilitate the emergence and formulation of questions, feed the discussion and debate, measured, of course, of course.

Sierra Bras Its different phases are understood, but from them derives their complex character, specified by the following features. (…) . e) At the same time, inductive and deductive. It is inductive as soon as it proceeds through the systematic classification of the data obtained during the observation, in order to determine the regularities that it presents.

The activity of the university teacher cannot be governed by routine or by the mimetic application or imitation of theories that others have developed for specific situations. If so, the teacher would become a simple executor.

It is teachers’ research on their own practice that becomes effective promoter of professional improvement. It must understand how scientific knowledge is used and rebuilt or rebuilt, how uncertain and unknown situations are resolved, how decisions are made, how work hypotheses are experienced, how techniques, instruments, procedures, resources, resources are used.

The university professor must favor and enhance in the student the creation of high -level cognitive skills: criticism, speculation and dialectic.

The proper professional profile of the university teacher is conditioned by a historical future, marked by the educational, institutional, legislative and social model of the teaching process. His role will be framed in a systematic and interdisciplinary model, where teaching, research, knowing, knowing how to do and want to form his educational action.

Integral preparation in the new university implies transmitting students not only knowledge, but also values, based on the fact that these are related to identical content, which imply emotions, affections and constitute the legitimate expression of the subject that assumes them, so that their Development will mark the guidelines to follow future professionals.

In addition, spaces are guaranteed in which they can grow professionally and as human beings. Supporting the need to educate while instructing, using the possibilities provided by society and the university community. In this sense it is essential to take advantage of the development of this educational work from the content of the disciplines and the subjects.

Conceptual framework

According to the theoretical framework described in a preceding point, we can affirm that vast majority of research developed on higher education have been carried out within the process-product paradigm, analyzing behavior, skills and attitudes; An adequate professional profile and professional fields in particular of the university teacher, are manifested according to the type of knowledge, skills, and attitudes; and that they have to possess certain qualities, that we consider them valid, to name:

1.  Cognitive; basic information, reasoning ability; knowledge capacity.
2.  Techniques; physical, manipulative skills, essential to develop the profession.
3.  Attitudinal; interests, values, ethics, arguments, rationalization, action and resolution of moral problems.
4.  Psychosocial; human and interpersonal interactions; Communication between colleagues.
5.  Socialization; gradual internalization of profession values.
6.  Learning skill; skills to decide what you need to learn, how to learn it and when you have learned.

 

The cognitive

It is basically given in the capacity of knowledge that the teacher must have, for the purposes that the level of thought must be promoted in students, in basic information, the reasoning ability, for the purposes that it promotes in its students a level of Thought, critical, analytical and dialectical.

The techniques

These are the characteristics that the teacher must possess, such as: physical, manipulative skills, essential to develop the teacher profession, be trained and dominate didactics, as an essential element to properly train the new professionals who have to graduate from the institutions of higher education.

The attitudinals

It consists of interests, values, ethics, arguments, rationalization, action and resolution of moral problems. Hence the teacher should not only be, but also seem.

Psychosocial

They are given by human and interpersonal interactions, with the others that surround it and are part of their universe, that is, their academic work center, to name, communication between their colleagues, the administrative staff of whom it depends.

Socialization

It is the gradual internalization of the values ​​of the profession, as a teacher.

Learning skill

It constitutes said in the ability to decide what you need to learn, how to learn it and when you have learned.

The proper professional profile of a teacher, whether university or not, is constituted by a confluence between ‘internal patterns’, personal, ways of being and conceiving her profession; and ‘external patterns’, social, academic that express the feeling of society, regarding what is expected of it. The ‘internal patterns’ of a teacher are given by personal qualities, ways of being and conceiving their profession as part of his vocation, but at the same time complementary to the vocation of the profession they exercise and has prepared.

The ‘external patterns’ of a teacher are given by social, academic factors, which express the feeling of society, regarding what is expected of it.

It is not easy to affirm that the training of the university teacher in our country is not the most appropriate, so it is necessary to take as a reference what happens in other more developed countries, so, for example:

1. Academic; assumes that the important thing in teaching is the transmission of information; It must also add that the teacher is aware that his role is more than facilitator, but assuming that this new role is of greater responsibility, than being a mere knowledge transmitter.
2.  Practice; Highlights the practical component of teaching, artistic, ex officio and the teacher as a practical.
3.  Technological; This conception focuses on the teacher has to know and master the skill of teaching.
4.  Staff; It derives from personalist psychology, assumes that turning on to teach is a process built to understand, develop and use effectively in itself.
5.  Social criticism; assumes a conception of as a critical subject regarding knowledge.

Cecilia Rincón Berdugo, who expresses us in her work developed for the OIE ‘the research teacher and professional dignity’, who tells us that, a research teacher has a vocation and commitment to knowledge; He is able to establish a dialogue between universal and local knowledge, between the knowledge of the students and those of himself.

The teacher as a pedagogical subject

At present, assuming the teacher as a pedagogical subject means recognizing in him his human condition, a condition loaded with symbolism, representations, imaginary that become evident thanks to language and different forms of communication, which as constructions of his spirit and Its action as a subject, becomes knowledge tools of the world and the possibility of constitution of the diversity of worlds that are presented at school.

In this sense, the teacher as a pedagogical subject constitutes in relation to a practice and with an educational discourse, where pedagogical action is producer of subjects in a mediation process with other subjects. This mediation is carried out through an amalgam of meanings and senses that guide and determine the actions and energize the relationships between the master subject, the student subject and the world.

The teacher as a pedagogical subject enters, then, in the cultural and communicational dimension as forms of constitution of the school world. That is, the teacher recognizes the strength of subjectivation as a fundamental element of the humanization process that education and training must carry out; Thus initiating a path that must be traveled by him as an educator and by the students – children, girls and young people – in which they recognize the possibility of recreating and creating different cultural spaces and being creators of themselves and new experiences.

In this context, the pedagogical subject has the duty to explain and argue the relationship between the educator, the student and the knowledge, links that allow to build the complex educational situations. These situations and circumstances require a pedagogy that makes explicit the elements and order of actions, and that constitutes a significant structure that articulates the senses of the subjects with the cultural contexts, which instills a particular way of being and being in The world in a certain historical time.

In this perspective, the teacher as a professional of education constitutes par excellence in the subject of experience that develops not only an action, but in a reflexive process build senses that allow him to understand pedagogical action as a social action for diversity and Multiplicity of forms of learning.

The teacher, then, is in a relationship in which the subject materializes his experience in everyday life from three dimensions: the cognitive, which includes the notions that allow the subject to organize his experience; the practice, which establishes relations with others, with nature and things; and the identity, which places the subject in a relationship of his subjectivity with the subjectivity of the other. Thus, the teacher positions himself as an actor, with the power to modify his material and social environment, to insert himself into social relations and transform them.

In this way, the teacher’s experience gives school the sense of linking and surrounding boys, girls and young people from the cultural environment that allows them to appropriate the fundamental tools to insert themselves in the different groups, enriching themselves in diversity and in the difference; to choose and travel their various paths and make sense of their relationship with the world and with the others.

"The teacher’s profile is the set of competencies organized by skills units, required to carry out a professional activity, according to valuation criteria and quality parameters".

“In the case of the profile of the university professor, to ensure quality teaching in accordance with the new challenges that are raised, it is necessary to define a transfers, flexible and versatile profile, capable of adapting to diversity and the continuous changes that are coming giving in the society in which we live ".

The concept of teaching profile proposed by the authors, is a competency -based profile, where the skills desired by teachers are analyzed and are detailed more specifically for their greater understanding and acquisition contributing to the improvement of teaching performance. The current teacher will be a professional who makes decisions, flexible, free of prejudices, committed to his practice because he reflects on it and gives him elements of improvement. Beyond a number of knowledge and a list of requirements requested to the teacher to enter the university payrol about its educational methodologies and assess its ethical sense and social responsibility.

University Teacher Functions

The idea of ​​renewing the teaching function for the 21st Century University, is based on the need to change to a mostly humanistic vision.Main functions that the university teacher must perform:

• Diagnosis of needs in order to meet the student and establish their needs.
•  Prepare classes organizing situations of great didactic potential and considering the characteristics of the students.
•  Prepare a teaching website.
•  Search and prepare resources and teaching materials related to the learning unit.
•  Motivate the student in the development of activities.  Student -centered teaching considering diversity.
•  Offer tutoring and example.
•  Investigate in the classroom with students, continued professional development.
•  Management work.

 

Tejada and ship identify three action scenarios for university teachers and each of them with the functions that the teacher must perform around three axes. Teacher functions around three axes:

• Teaching functions: planning teaching and learning processes centered on the classroom context, seminars, workshops.
•  Management functions: referring to management and coordination in relation to classroom and institutional and extra -institutional management activities, nationally or internationally.
•  Research functions: planning research projects both within the classroom with students and outside it with other teachers and even in collaboration with other institutions.

 

Teacher functions at 21st Century University

In response to the analysis of various authors, the following functions of the teacher at the University of the 21st Century are highlighted to be included in every profile.

•  The acquisition and development of teaching skills such as design of new strategies, techniques, methodologies, project development.
•  Be a planner, organizer, evaluator, observer, solve problems and make decisions.
•  Be a guide, leader, counselor, who promotes conditions for learning, values, positive attitudes, cooperation and teamwork.
•  In addition to a teacher, be a researcher, looking for, propose, discover, innove.
•  In this information society, an updated teacher is required in new technologies, which can guide students in the use and application of them.
• It must be in a constant pedagogical renewal, that is, once certain competences are acquired, it is necessary to develop, be updated, so the teacher must be in permanent training. Be critical, reflective, flexible, autonomous, responsible and sociable attitude.

 

Areas for the construction of the university teaching profile

In the following section, various fields are proposed that should be considered in the construction of the university teaching profile, associating different functions and competences to each of them.

• Regarding learning: organize, promote, manage, involve, work as a team, solve problems, innovate, plan, control, evaluate, interact, tutor, look for methodological and pedagogical strategies, among others.
• As for context: the teacher must imply and interact with the other educational actors, manage before the institution and society.
• As for ICTs: since it is immersed in the knowledge and information society it is necessary.
• As for continuous training: the fact that the teacher acquires competencies does not mean something finished. The teacher must mobilize those skills that he has already acquired, and, in addition, seek to acquire new skills because they are not immovable. Update, training, continuous training and throughout life is required.
• Regarding research: teachers must make scientific contributions, innovate, communicate, investigate in different educational fields, contributing to society.
•  As for the evaluation: every process requires being evaluated, in order to locate both weaknesses and strengths; Thus, the teacher must carry out evaluations of the learning process, diagnosis, continuous, final, as well as also evaluate their strategies, methodologies, class dynamics, etc.
•  As for yourself: it is important in addition to all the areas mentioned already, keep in mind that the teacher’s personal situation influences the learning process, it is necessary to assess their experiences, their perception as educators, interpersonal relationships With your students, your colleagues, school authorities, the relationship with your environment, the context in which it develops, reflect on your teaching practice that will be influenced by the quality of your performance.

Of the exposed accusations, we channel that the work dignifies the human being and compromises teachers to continue striving to the participation and intervention of governments and society in general; We will lift the educational industry, which is the guarantee of the growth and development processes of a country. A greater investment in education, less illiteracy rate, less hunger and malnutrition, less violence and more probability of progress.

conclusion

At present, within the universities there is a great diversity of teachers; from those who see teaching as their only option after trying to fail a profession; even those who fill their professional and personal life with satisfaction. To change this situation and turn teaching into a function that really gives the teacher, Muñoz suggests following the following steps:

•  Encourage teachers who really involve teaching.
•  Create research groups in didactic innovation and university teaching.
•  Adapt to the new methodologies imposed by today (ICTs).
•  Favor the teacher with pedagogical and didactic training.

It is important to include, in addition:

• Linking of your teaching career (specialty) with the workplace.
•  Professional and institutional identity.
•  See the value of your profession in your salary.

In order for teachers to achieve the skills of the teaching profile, it is necessary to implement training, updating and training strategies in order to strengthen their performance. The creation of a university teaching profile appropriate to the needs of the educational institution and the students in line according to the current university.