Peabody Public Schools

Characteristics of New Teachers

The Leadership Team of the Peabody Public Schools has agreed that the following are essential characteristics of teachers in our system. These characteristics are what we will look for in our new hires.

Academic competence; rigor and passion for one’s area
Understanding of and desire to work with the age of students they will teach
Of good character
Outstanding in some area
Enthusiastic; willing to go above and beyond expectations
Highly motivated
Self starter; idea person
Team player
Passionate about educating youth
Empathetic
High expectations for self and others
Collegial
Willingness and ability to communicate with parents
Sensitivity and willingness to educate students to issues of diversity
Willingness to listen and learn
Ability to teach and accept working with a range of learners
Excited about self improvement through professional development
Ability to work with a diverse group of students
Flexibility in working with students, colleagues, and building needs
High expectations
Tenacity, in that they won’t let a student fail
Sense of humor
Good communication skills
Willingness to admit fallibility
Tolerance
Ability to distance themselves from an issue
Open to new ideas
Risk taker
Ability to teach good decision-making skills
Ability to look beyond their own classroom
Demonstrated understanding of Differentiated Instruction
Able to use technology as a teaching and learning tool
Advocates a standards-based approach to education
Strong knowledge of curriculum and pedagogy
Creative
Believes that every day is a new day for students
Understands how to build self-esteem
Kind, compassionate, but with high expectations
Understanding of how students learn