One might also consider the converse: What is it about teaching that parents could use as part of their parenting?

Most articles I read about parenting skills are directed towards the parents and not the instructors. However, from experiential point of view, such skills were essential to deal with many of my students.

I just reviewed the literature albeit quickly on the topic and confirmed what Hussin found....This would make for an interesting survey study:

1) Is there a relationship between teaching and parenting?

2) Does this relationship effect student performance outcomes?

3) How does age and grade level moderate the relationship (if one exists)?

4) What theoretical basis would be used to hypothesize the outcome?

5) The study would have to control for political implications which would be immense.

Legally, teachers do not need to be parents. However, in casual conversation with other parents most agree that they would prefer their children be taught by instructors who are parents. A mutual understanding of family dynamics from the perspective of a parent is not something that can be learned through training and it makes children-teacher, parent-teacher communication more effective-in my experience.

This view may seem traditional and conservative, but that is not the intent.

One might also consider the converse: What is it about teaching that parents could use as part of their parenting?

Certainly, yes. teachers do need parental skills. This is because they spent more time with the children more than the parents themselves. They have to take care of the kids and have to train and groom them in a socially accepted manner. Parents, yes the have top be taught parental skills, but they have less time to practice them. Especially in this world, where both the father and the mother are working, it is difficult for them to spent most of the time with their kids and hence, this have to be complemented by the teachers.

Yes, indeed teachers need parental skills. The reason behind this skill is they can understand their students very well. They can guide them to right direction and sometimes students share their top secret to their parental kind of teachers. 

I concur with the others. Although I've taught primarily adult learners, teachers require classroom control techniques, many of which have parallels to parenting. Since both interact with children, it seems logical that both would need to know how to respond to children and understand them accordingly. 

Thank you for your opinions :)

Indeed teacher do need parental skills. Not to mention teachers taking parents' role, but in order to understand the child wellbeing, behaviour etc. Furthermore there are some saying that teacher as a 'second parents' to the student. From the literature I reviewed, student would prefer teacher with a parental touch, i.e warm and engaging environment.

My other question is: In teachers/education training, is there any specific course(s) that study about parenting? (i.e educational psychology) 

Perhaps there are skills, attitudes, actions, whatever, that on a first sight can be thought as "parental", but what they really are, is universal. Like kindness, for example. Following a case of a ill student, for example, is not parent-ish. Is just kind. And I like that in a teacher. So I would step back and check if the skills you have in mind are really parental-exclusive, or universal.

Alicia, I agree, some teaching skills may be universal, granted. Using this logic, suggests the other skills are not universal. Teachers who have parenting skills can also express kindness, they may also be more adept at dealing will child illness, particularly if they have done so on a regular basis. Having said that, this is based on my experience in dealing with teachers. In my case, teachers and I, tend to understand each other on several levels by means of shared parental-experience. One of my daughter's teachers, for instance, made it a point to see whether kids were finishing their lunches-I like that. If they didn't eat, it was written in a daily communication journal (a book written that goes back and forth everyday). I have always gathered a sense of higher accountability from teacher who know how it is to raise a family. This is of course opinion, maybe teachers without children are better teachers. If the evidence suggests this to be true, so be it. 

To put the issue to rest, a well designed study would be necessary, specifically a study controlling for union involvement. 

During my career as a school-based teacher I had no children. Now I have four step-children (all adults) and five grandchildren. What I find is that my skills as a teacher are really useful in helping me be a grandparent (not quite the same as a parent, I know), but I would also turn the question on its head.

As a teacher I learned about how children grow and develop, how they learn. So from a purely practical point of view I understand a lot about children's behaviour, indeed my wife (also a teacher and now teacher trainer) and I often help our children understand aspects of their children's behaviour and development from a psychological perspective.

Attachment theory was also part of my training, this really helped me understand children, yet many parents I meet are unaware of the ideas though when you point out certain behaviours etc. they are surprised when you say it's something that is well recognised.

I have never seen being a parent as a pre-requisite for good or better teaching, or even being a teacher at all. Knowing about children yes. I would like to see aspects of teacher education taught as basic parenting skills so that parents understand their own children better.

There is a distinction . That is why in English we have the two words.  What is that distinction. I think it has to do with conditionality: Unconditional as opposed to conditional love.

Mr. Williams good points, teaching helped you become a better parent and grandparent...understanding how education works is a great advantage. Further, teachers will not always start their careers with children, so there is that point to consider as well.

Personally, I had never thought of being a parent as a prerequisite to teaching until I became a parent. Mind you it never will be a formal qualification, I think parents will just be more comfortable with teachers who are parents. Considering that education is not simply a job, its an institution... I wish the unions would understand this as well.

Anyway, I still have not found any academic or practitioner studies that answer the original question.

Looking into the responses by all colleagues reflect that the question is valid and worth to be researched.

I think it depends on the age of students. I strongly agree if the students are under 16 according to my experience as teacher before and after being father.

I think being a parent helps you to be a teacher who can empathize with the students. Surely there is an element of conditional and unconditional affection but the degree of responsiveness changes.

On the other hand if you are too involved with your students you fail to see the mistakes and is easily forgiven. In any case I think for myself... I became a better teacher when I started to think as a parent

You do not need to be a parent before you can perform your In-Loco Parentis role as a teacher.

HI Fiza Rashid; Attached article may be helpful to you. Thanks

https://www.google.co.in/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCYQFjAC&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.med.unc.edu%2Fearandhearing%2Fpediatric-services%2Fcastle%2Fcsi%2Fcopy_of_kaiser_16_1.pdf&ei=mxD_VLGHNczguQTZzoDQCg&usg=AFQjCNF68LJKV2nILVSAUKiFX-yjK6TaYQ&sig2=6Jx-Gbn9H1FYLA_gu82gpw&bvm=bv.87920726,d.c2E

I am a teacher and also a parent. My parenting skill certainly helps me understand my students' behaviour better and they respond generally well when I can speak to them from a mother's point of view.

Parenting skills are life skills very important for teachers not only to teach those skills but to know how to use them  

Our teacher education program does offer coursework about family units and parenting skills as a part of the Early Childhood Education program.  However, I don't think that the emphasis of these courses is on teacher acquisition of "parenting skills."  We and many other schools/programs also offer a course in family, school and community relationships which I believe are helpful, but again the emphasis is more focused on relationship building.

With regard to your original question, I think it depends on what you mean by "parenting skills."  I don't believe that there is one right way to parent and of course interactions between guardians and children are always contextual.  However, I do think that there might be certain parental dispositions that would be helpful for teachers to have (others have mentioned things like empathy that might qualify). 

This was a really interesting question : ).

For my Educational Psychology classes, I am able to observe that it is the students who benefit the most. Given time to reflect, they can recall and perhaps better interpret why their parents and teachers alike did what they had to do. I use it to deal with the trust versus mistrust stage in class as part of my ice-breaking routine.

First I agree with Michael - it all depends on the definition of parent and teacher and their related skills. At first glance I was bothered by the question as it seemed to me to confuse the two roles with potential for diminishing the professional capacity of the teacher.   Certainly as a long time teacher educator I do not see caring for the students as the same as parenting them. Of course caring is important but so are boundaries and teachers can get drawn into taking too much responsibility for students under their care in ways that can compromise their capacity to teach.A guru of mine once described the student-teacher relationship as "a slightly spaced caring distance"which I think captures it. Learning to respect the teacher as a professional educator is enormously important, especially in the early years of teaching - and learning!

Having read all of the comments, I think opinions on the subject will cross gender and cultural lines. Ms. Gill introduces boundaries, and not to sound disrespectful, I don't think that anyone suggested teachers replace parents or that teachers should be expected to behave unprofessionally. I tend to agree with the remainder of her response. And to be clear, being a parent will never be a formal qualification for teaching positions, at least in the western world; so that point is moot. I just know there are a whole host of parents out their who would feel more comfortable with parents teaching their kids - for no other reason then the skills that parenthood engenders - perceptual or real.

It really seems as though people fear this question.

Keeping the research question simple and controlling for political implications would maximize validity. If instructors being a parent has no positive correlation with teaching performance outcomes so be it. If it does, make for improved teaching outcomes, that would be worth knowing.

In my opinion, a "satisfying" answer depends at variable depths on some variables such as: where the question needs to be addressed (Europe, USA, Africa, Middle-east etc), the age-group and readiness of the teachers to deal with such issues in education...  

Teachers have skills that some parents don't have and vice versa. There's no measurement as to the limit in education. Students will grasp what they see from adults and peer groups around them.  It's just a matter of time and choice where they want to learn and engage. But of course a critical moment in their life is that learning values that teachers and parents have showed this will nurture and mold their personality until they grow old.

Dr. Carmon,

I would hypothesize the same. However, In the western world sometimes kids study well when they are in elementary school but the social dynamic changes at about age 12-15. The dynamic tends to change again around legal adulthood 18-21.

I think it would be interesting to see what a study actually tells us.

D.

I think that teachers need to know the basis of NLP (Neurolinguistic Programming) or Coaching skills and of course some parents can use it also. Schools should foresee more budget for personal development of their teachers, Directors..

Lots of side-stepping here, seems like there are groups who don't want to know the answer, probably best to forget the question.

I agree with Alicia, there are universal skills that both successful teachers and parents should have.  At the same, there are challenges to parental and family dynamics that a teacher who has never had children might not understand quite as easily.  Those issues would feed into a teacher's ability to empathize and understand where his/her students and their parents are coming from.  For example, does it make sense to assign a lot of homework knowing that children are usually very overscheduled these days with extracurricular activities?   

Here I am driving to work and the radio DJ quotes a celebrated psychologist that I have conveniently forgotten. "10 years of research to determine what mother's have always know about parenting, firm disciplinarian but simultaneously loving at the same time, 30 second bursts of interaction, and a dynamic living environment". When responding to behavior problems as they occur a pre-service teacher must be able to make an informed decision about what would be the next course of action. It would probably make more sense if you were a parent yourself.

I do not know a study on this issue. To answer it is necessary to define parenting skills. In my opinion, it is necessary that both parents and teachers had many of the same skills as both raising children. It also depends on the age of the children.

Thank you Sir Sarwan Kumar Dubey for the attached article! Really appreciate it.

I found one article titled: 'Teachers should be like second parents.' In this article it shows that children (students) need a comfortable, relaxed environment for learning and a positive example to follow, which they could find in school. It also proposed that schools could strengthen their effectiveness and their appeal to students by consciously fostering positive linkages among the school's effective spaces: one of them is teacher-student relations.

Is this statement supporting 'teachers do need parental approach' as Ms Li Chen proposed? 

When we back to the basic, parents and teachers objective are the same: nurturing the child/character building). As other colleagues mentioned, teaching skills may parallel to parenting skills and its an universal kind of act. In other way, I think passion is one aspect as well.

Parenting skills such (effective communication with child/teens/youth, the concept of responsibility, teachers' goal in child development issue).

Dear Daryn

I second your points in your responses to the issue under discussion. A research must be conducted to add evidence to the many arguments presented. I may add that I do not think respondents in this forum are insinuating political thoughts or other, or at least I try not to look at it this way, otherwise the whole forum will be poisoned!!

In another note, I think the question of this forum should be up-voted since it succeeded to create interest among the participants.

Dr. Hejase,

Thank you for the constructive response. I won't delete what I have written in this forum but will use your advice when answering future questions. I meant no insult.

Dear Fiza,

It seems to me there is an underlying assumption implied in your question. That assumption being teachers who have better parenting skills lead (necessarily) to better student academic performance. This I would suggest is may be true or false as Josef points out.

First, what are parenting skills? Second, once defined what if any are the parenting skills that equate to better academic performance? Third, if the answer is yes then what do we do?

Do we mandate that all teachers be parents? Do we include in teacher educations classes parenting classes, send them to birth classes, make them carry around dolls all day? 

What are saying about schools and educational systems? They are baby sitting warehouses? 

I thank you for the question but I would suggest that we first define the skills you think might be helpful to students and then we can have a more focused discussion on the matter at hand.

@ Hussin, I am a firm believer as Freire points out  that all education is political. Therefore, I would respectfully disagree with your request to keep politics out this forum. From the philosophy to the curricula, from units plans to lesson plans, and length of time spent on topics and those glossed over or left out are all political. Finally the textbooks themselves are all political and slanted in one direction or the other.

Douglas 

Mr. Daugherty,

In response to your questions:

First, what are parenting skills?

Parenting skills that are relevant to school are both explicit and implicit, I could list them, it would take a while. I hope most people can empathize or identify with this point simply be reviewing their own upbringing.

Second, once defined what if any are the parenting skills that equate to better academic performance?

This would be part of the study. A few things of note:

What happens outside of class, is just as important as what happens in class, there are many social, psychological and cognitive examples. Academia is the purpose of education, but much of our social and cognitive development happens among school peers. Initially we build off modeled behaviour and our initial template comes from our parents. The more interest parents take in education, the better off the student will be. Teachers whom are parents will be keenly aware of this and more able to relate.

Third, if the answer is yes then what do we do? Do we mandate that all teachers be parents?

No. Most labour laws or human rights laws in countries that enforce them, would not allow this as grounds for bona-fide-type qualification exemptions.

Do we include in teacher educations classes parenting classes, send them to birth classes, make them carry around dolls all day?

This question needs to be worded better. But most participants on this site agree that teacher-training should include classes with parental components. Each jurisdiction would design appropriate training based on local-needs and particularities. 

What are saying about schools and educational systems? They are baby sitting warehouses?

?????

Is education political?

Yes. However, Dr. Hussin's concern had to do with objectivity and validity, and he is correct. An academic study that intends to answer the question "Do teachers need parenting skills?" must do so despite what the politics might be-politics has to do with beliefs & values; scientific study has to do with what is real. Each is important but separate. A study such as this should control for political implications for reasons of objectivity and validity. A separate study that includes politic implications might be useful in a more politicized environment. 

This is an interesting question.  Legally, teachers acted as 'in loco parentis' when children are placed under their care.  Parents expect that children will come to no less harm, and be guided in no less extent, and having a comparable level of standing as they would have at home.  Of course, the reality is very different, and in the 'west' (wherever that is!), teachers have lost much of their status as members of the community. I expand these three aspects as follows:

1. Prevention of Harm

The fact of the matter is, children experience bullying in school at alarming levels and in the last number of years bullying can take place at any time or place thanks to the internet, so it's not specific to school any longer.

2. Provision of Guidance

It is arguable whether teachers' guidance is been taken any less than in times past, but deterioration of 'externally applied discipline' and the rise of the 'pastoral care approach to discipline' has still to be examined and researched properly.

3. Comparable level of standing

Few would lament the change to society where certain people exerted undue unquestioned authority in the community, but what has replaced them?

Changes to these three have reduced the quasi-parental aspect of teaching and instead have transformed the teacher into a quasi social worker which is being resisted by teachers, especially of older children.

Teachers do have a social-care role but are not social workers and similarly, teachers have a parent-like role but are not the parents of the children they teach.  Certainly, more research is needed. However, parents also need to learn about what the role of teachers should be and the relationship of teaching to parenting.  And to the point of whether teachers need parenting skills, many parents could do with parenting skills also! As a parent of four kids, I know I could!

Blasco, M. (2004). Teachers should be like second parents: Affectivity, schooling and poverty in Mexico. Compare, 34(4), 371-393.

Also:

http://www.teachers.ab.ca/Publications/ATA%20Magazine/Volume%2087/Number%204/Articles/Pages/The%20Teacher%20as%20Surrogate%20Parent.aspx

http://www.theguardian.com/education/2008/mar/20/schools.uk1

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/3099325/Teachers-are-being-turned-into-social-workers.html

Dear Douglas, the set of questions put forward form a good basis to conduct several research exercises, and if done in different countries, an excellent comparative analysis may result. I also respect your point of view.

One more time Daryn puts forward strong points. I guess the call for research is repeated especially if conclusive outcomes are sought for.

Yes Dear All and my Dear Fiza Rashid, I do feel that teachers certainly needs to learn parenting skills to understand better to their students but it is also essential to parents to learn basic teaching skills too for better development of their children and good parenting. Thanks n Regards

Teachers need parenting skills if they are parents...As teachers, they have to know and learn how to collaborate with parents in order to bring their  (the parents) children to maximize their  potential. Teachers must not, in any way try to take the place of the parent or to indoctrinate their values and ideas, since the family always comes first. They have to find what the parents "red lines" are, and work together with them not to cross these lines (same as parents have to learn the teachers and schools boundaries). A parent is a parent and the teacher is a teacher. 

I have written on this subjects a few papers that might interest you and you can find the on my ResearchGate page:

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Yael_Fisher/publications

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Yael_Fisher/publications

Chapter Fisher, Y. (2011). Parental involvement. In: Y. Fisher & I.A...

Dear Mr. Daugherty, thank you for your opinion and I appreciate it :)

In response to your ques (I may be wrong but we still in discussion anyway)

1. What are parenting skills?

Parenting skills such (effective communication with child/teens/youth, teachers' goal in child development issue). Anything that related to student. I believed communication is crucial in education. And I agree with Mr. Daryn Dyer.

2. Once defined what if any are the parenting skills that equate to better academic performance?

According to Kathryn R. Wentzel (2002) in Are Effective Teachers Like Good Parents?, when elementary school teachers are trained to provide students with warmth and support, clear expectations for behavior, and developmentally appropriate autonomy, their students develop a stronger sense of community, increase displays of socially competent behavior, and show academic gains. 

3. If the answer is yes then what do we do? Do we mandate that all teachers be parents?

No. It is not necessary for teachers to be a parent. Again, I emphasize teacher is not a parent and they do not overtake parents' role, but to be a good role model to students. Alger Libby (2007) in The Teacher as Surrogate Parent, stated that society recognizes that teachers are in a powerful position to reach beyond anything that can be measured on a provincial achievement test. In other hand, being a parent is a plus point and it enables teacher to be a better teacher. It kind of enhances the skills and knowledge that they acquired during the courses they attended. 

4. Do we include in teacher educations classes parenting classes, send them to birth classes, make them carry around dolls all day?

Parenting classes are needed to child-care and preschool teachers. I asked several child-care teachers/preschool teachers in Singapore, they do have such subject in their training/courses. However, such courses are to understand the child's well being/development. 

5. What are saying about schools and educational systems? They are baby sitting warehouses?

Aside from literacy/knowledge in education, isn't teaching is about nurturing children (character building) as well? Alger Libby (2007) stated the nature of the school community dictates that teachers have to pick up the slack for those students whose homes are not functioning properly. As Mr. Thomas Mccloughlin said, "Teachers acted as 'in loco parentis' when children are placed under their care." 

Regards

When considering this question one has to reflect on what skills constitute that which is referred to as "parenting skills". Are we talking about understanding that children need their adults to be predictable and consistent in order to assist children to understand where boundaries are and therefore empower them to be able to make appropriate choices? Are we talking about adults understanding their emotional level and managing themselves to ensure they develop effective "calming down" strategies in order to have the prefrontal lobe and cortex operant enabling effective evaluation and judgement making i.e. problem solving AND being able to teach their children to do the same? Are we talking about the adult being able to position themselves deliberately in their meaning making of child behaviour so that their meaning making empowers them to teach new skills rather than adopt a deficit theory of action on the part of the child i.e. disempower themselves to make a difference? Do we mean that we want teachers to be able to create trusting relationships based on mutual respect and a mutual love of learning to maximise presence in the classroom and engagement in learning? (Russell Bishop talks about a pedagogy of relations) Are we talking about teachers being able to support children to understand that education is about building effective citizens (not just about reading writing and mathematics) and that we are exposing children to ideas where they can explore right and wrong and be supported to build their identity as young people who understand the building of character, understand right and wrong and have effective interpersonal skills in order to effectively work in teams and work for the greater good?

If this is what we mean, then my view is yes we need teachers to have high levels of parenting expertise in order to enable students to enter a learning environment and take full advantage of their learning opportunities. Effective management of children's anxiety, emotional escalation, character and values development and building children's capability in their thinking are all critical roles for both parents and teachers. the relationship between parents and teachers should be that of partnership therefore teachers absolutely need identical skills as effective parents AND they need exceptional teaching skills and practice, too (as well as not instead of).

Have a look at the New Zealand Curriculum document this articulates what teachers need to do to support the development of effective citizens. see this link http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/The-New-Zealand-Curriculum

Parenting skills are guided by the principles of growth and development. Teachers should understand the principles of growth and development. These are principles on psychosexual, psychosocial, moral, spiritual, and cognitive development. Yes teachers need parenting skills. Parenting skills refer to application of the principles of growth and development. Parenting skills vary according to age and developmental level.

Maybe many teachers are parents; maybe there are parents who were/are teachers. They must have experienced being any of them, but most of all they must have also experienced being a pupil/student. What made them like or continue staying in school? From the home, the child goes to the school, the 'extension' of her/his 'personal' environment. Changes around the child are inevitable but these should not be too dramatic to give a negative effect. The teacher is the key person to make the transition of home to school smooth and friendly.  A teacher need not be a mother or a father to demonstrate and express parental knowledge, skills and attitude to their students. Yes, definitely, teachers should have these. 

I started my teaching career with the thought that each person who comes to my class could be my own child!  And I add the professionalism of teaching...

Well, an adequate answer to this question, could  be very similar to what " rapport" you like to build with your students regardless their age? If you like your teacher, you will unavoidable like his/ her subject. SO it is not just a matter of playing roles; it is feeling and attitudes. In this regard, a teacher is like one of the parents.

Fizad,

After thinking about this question, I conclude that there are benefits from knowing something of parenting skills. Information on parenting skills refer to discipline, training, nurturing and guiding. As teachers, we embrace much of these aspects of parenting in our practice.  For novice teachers, I am positive that having a knowledge base expanded via parenting skills will give them an assurance in their everyday implementation practice. 

I believe earlier, someone mentioned the historical role of teachers, where teachers were the parents away from home. Aren't we still those same persons; even though many may not see themselves in that role. In the early childhood field, I remind teachers that they are with the children five days per week, ten hours per day. What are they?

What a fascinating discussion! When you refer to "teachers" are you referencing those who teach in K-12 classrooms, or also those in higher education? It appears that there is a dearth of research directly connecting these two concepts. In particular it could relate to how parenting is valued in comparison to teaching, which at least recently is regularly assessed.

There would be useful insights to explore related to the type of schooling as well. For instance, the connection between Montessori schooling and peaceful parenting, or unconditional parenting (Alfie Kohn) would be much more aligned than schooling that is more focused on testing and outcomes.

Very insightful Cohen Miller. Worth reading more about.

Thanks

What comes up to my mind is Bion ´s idea of "reverie" or Winnicot´s idea of "holding" which is the capacity to elaborate whatever emotional  material is deposited into the pedagogical relationship (in that triangle among teacher - student - knowledge) in order to  give it back to the students in sucha  way that it may help them transform the relationship they have built. (See Bion - Souto - Winnicot). It has to do with the emotional dimention of teaching and it is quite relevant to attend to it these days.     

Wouldn't it depend on where a person teaches?  A school in which teachers are heavily micro-managed and administration is focused mainly on testing and test scores does not care about human factors.  Teachers are given little time for empathy or compassion or getting to know their students.  Experience is not valued.

Gail, you really touched on a sensitive issue within educational institutions' governance.

We can not distinguish learning from education. My thesis work will explore the eastern views of parenting skills. I learn creativity and pedagogical views Rumi. I storayus open problem posed by me. if you do not mind can read my article. Thank you beforehand. and waiting for your opinion on my articles.

Dear Researcher,

In teaching-learning process, particularly for the teacher, as modelling for his students, it is needed four competencies to construct his performance, namely professional, social, personal and pedagogical abilities. About the parenting, it is classified as 'personal ability' certainly in managing classroom where he should care in interacting with his students and thus such character values he performed through teaching-learning process will have the significant impact to his students. 

Thanks,

kind Regards. 

From our backgrounds its nature and natural instinstic for a teacher as an adult have parenting skills. Thou it depends from ones background, culture etc. in case of teachers from our training in psychology about the human development and the learning as teachers encounter a lot of challenges hence the way of handling issues I feel it's way of parenting skills because not every one is a parent when they enter the teaching career

I believe empathy is an essential quality for a teacher.  But is it intrinsic or must it be learned?

I tend to agree with Stephanie. I would take her point further to indicate that parenting skills are in effect teaching skills delivered by the parent. However, I have seen many parents who have poor parenting skills, many teachers who are parents who have poor teaching skills and many non parents who are teachers that have great teaching skills. Therefore, I don't think parenting has much to do with whether or not someone has teaching skills (in formal educational settings). It might be the case in non-formal settings - e.g. the home - that parenthood develops skills that might be equated to teaching skills. Cheers, Kevin.

Hi Gail. Empathy is both. Some people are natural in the way they deal with others reflecting empathy. Many others (specially managers) today are trained on Emotional Intelligence skills which include empathy.

This is an interesting topic to think about. I think every teacher is to some extent also a pedagogue and thus parenting skills are relevant. But as a professional pedagogue there are also differences. 

I think it is important also that teachers are able to consider the interests of parents and the way they are engaged with their childeren. According to research often attitudes of teachers about parents and of parents about teachers are often in the way of good communication. 

Another issue to raise in this regard might be clearly seen in two teaching strategies known as " Trickster transformer" and "experience  edge" where the teacher plays the role of faithful and caring parents towards their sons. 

For more details read more about coyote teaching approach. 

In my opinion , I think its important for teachers to have a parenting skills because it will establish trust between the teacher and student and when there is trust ,it will facilitate learning process .

For example ,I coach children ages of 4 years old in soccer , for the first timer , they wont want to join the lesson ,some will even start crying but for me as a coach ,i can understand .  I will quickly  change my role from a coach to a father and it has really been helpful to get kids involved in soccer skill acquisition .  

I believe the same situation is happening in our classrooms, most students will just come into the classroom and be looking at the teacher but learning will not take place .

Dear Fiza,

I still believe we have not addressed the instilled vision of what we mean by parenting skills. I feel a strong wind of romanticism and idealism is embedded in the question posed. 

A single man or women can instill trust just as well as a parent, the same is true for a learning environment and fostering curiosity. Are we call these parenting skills? Then how do we explain the many single teachers who preform there jobs well? 

I agree with the skills necessary I am contending there being labeled as "parenting skills" when I see those same skills in single adults down to school age children helping out there fellow classmate. 

Perhaps we can call them human skills and hope they are not "taught" out of our children as they go through any "educational system". Here in the U.S I contend they all to often are and the effect is seen in the crime rates we have. 

Douglas

I agree with Michael Evans in the fact that “parenting skills” depends on what you mean by that. The experience with preventive family programmes training parents  show that “positive parenting skills” could be defined mainly as empathy, active communication, assertivity, acceptance of critique, affection, capacity to resolve problems... which are common social skills. Teachers should also have them (or at least should be trained for it) and not just for their relationship with the children but also to build collaborative relations with the parents. Our main concern is whether teachers are trained to have these skills or just left alone to "develop" them with experience. Some may have or acquire with time but some may not. 

An ideal teacher at school can mould the character of students.  A teacher must be like a parent as well as a friend to the students. So the parenting skills are desirable for ideal teachers at least at primary school level.

I do not know the scientific studies on this topic. The question is too broad, there is no definition of the term "parenting skills". From my experience as a parent, teacher and teacher educator, I assume that there will be such skills that will be among the parenting and teacher professional skills. Own experience of the teacher-parent of their own children education is very likely to bring profit to teacher.

When we teach students ,other than teaching we have to find out any other problem students are having, may be he is ill, he has money problem, may be seniors giving them trouble and so on ,all this things with ethics other than teaching we have to look after as a good teacher like parents do,keeping in mind teacher has more effect on students,