Good teachers have the power to do much more than impart content information: They can change lives. They have the exciting opportunity to transform their students’ thinking by integrating new knowledge with their existing knowledge, beliefs, and experiences A “transformative teacher” needs to possess both hard and soft skills. “Hard skills are the technical expertise and knowledge needed for a job. Soft skills are interpersonal qualities, also known as people skills, and personal attributes that one possesses.”
The current emphasis on artificial intelligence causes consternation among many segments of the educational community. They feel that computers can replace teachers. Computers can offer exceptional content without human interaction and can customize lessons to suit each learner.. The use of technology has permeated classrooms from pre-kindergarten through graduate school. Consequently, educators, especially those of pre-college age students, must provide them with the experiences that AI currently lacks: intuition and emotion. Practitioners seeking to foster a learning environment conducive to transformative learning must consider the following factors: role of the teacher, role of the learner, and role of the rational and affective.
In order to be truly transformative, educators must pay attention to their students’ soft-skill development. They need to demonstrate that they care about their students, so they can help them to develop intrinsic motivation: engaging in an activity for the pleasure and satisfaction. They must engage in non-contingent interactions, with each students because these uniquely human skills are what will differentiate them from bots.
