Personality Type and Teaching

My personality type is listed as Introverted Sensing Thinking Judging, summarized by Kisa Testing as "ISTJs are often called inspectors. They have a keen sense of right and wrong, especially in their area of interest and/or responsibility. They are noted for devotion to duty. Punctuality is a watchword of the ISTJ. The secretary, clerk, or business(wo)man by whom others set their clocks is likely to be an ISTJ. As do other Introverted Thinkers, ISTJs often give the initial impression of being aloof and perhaps somewhat cold. Effusive expression of emotional warmth is not something that ISTJs do without considerable energy loss.

ISTJs are most at home with "just the facts, Ma'am." They seem to perform at highest efficiency when employing a step-by-step approach. Once a new procedure has proven itself (i.e., has been shown "to work,") the ISTJ can be depended upon to carry it through, even at the expense of their own health. ISTJs are easily frustrated by the inconsistencies of others, especially when the second parties don't keep their commitments. But they usually keep their feelings to themselves unless they are asked. And when asked, they don't mince words. Truth wins out over tact. The grim determination of the ISTJ vindicates itself in officiation of sports events, judiciary functions, or an other situation which requires making tough calls and sticking to them. His SJ orientation draws the ISTJ into the service of established institutions. Home, social clubs, government, schools, the military, churches -- these are the bastions of the SJ. "We've always done it this way" is often reason enough for many ISTJs. Threats to time-honored traditions or established organizations (e.g., a "run" on the bank) are the undoing of SJs, and are to be fought at all costs."

How did your personality affect your choice of content area?

Based on the report above, I think I was intrigued by English at a young age due it its complexities. There is no straightforward way to interpret Literature, although there is sometimes a right and wrong way. While some of the above summary does not really apply to me, I do enjoy a challenge and learning new skills. With a limitless amount of literature and multiple ways to enjoy it--this became a way for me to both master skills to teach them, while still enjoying some aspects as a challenge.

How does or will your personality affect your relationships with your students?

Unlike what my personality test says, I feel that I make a strong connection with my students which assist me in creating a good plan for learning. By sensing (one of my traits) what my student's reactions will be, I can create an environment where the students are excited to learn and feel accomplished at the end of a lesson.


How will your teaching and learning style affect your teaching and your students' abilities to be successful?

I think my teaching/learning style will benefit my students' throughout the course. However, I can sometimes become very passionate about subjects and forget to catch up those students that are lagging behind. I have made a considerable effort to not only recognize this issue, but plan for it in my lesson plans. One of the best ways I have found to mitigate this issue is collaborative group learning; I can easily gauge where all of the students are in their learning while they assist each other in groups. This will ensure all students are developing the skills they need to be successful.