Thursday, April 19, 2012

Teachers Gonna Teach

We all have or have had that class that is the bane of our existence. For me, it's ARTS 222.
It's not the material that gets me- the material is actually pretty fun to learn.
However, when you have a teacher who
talks down to you,
belittles you,
doesn't believe in you,
doesn't respect you and
doesn't trust you,
the content of the class tends to get lost in the rest of it.

I hate writing negative posts, but I suppose I would call this a "realist" post. Maybe they're the same thing- I'm not really sure.

To any prospective teachers, this may be useful to you. As a teacher, your students just want to be able to trust you. They respect you (at least at first) and admire your knowledge of whatever it is you are teaching. So, when a student fears coming to talk to you about material due to your negativity, criticism and lack of encouragement, there is a problem. Teachers are to be respectable mentors in their field, not feared dictators, using their knowledge as a belittling factor for those who lack the same skill sets. Isn't that the point of taking a class? To learn? To grow? To feel at least a little bit comfortable in the subject of study by the end of the course?
On the student's part, it is crucial for a student to try. If the student does not try and does not want to learn, the teacher has only so much influence. However, if a students give their best effort and truly wants to learn the material, teachers must EMBRACE it, not manipulate it into fear.
I guess if there's one thing that I've learned from this entire course is the impact a teacher can have on one's learning abilities- whether a negative impact or a positive impact. Both leave a lasting impression of the content of the course and the department of the course.

I have learned that as a human being, I will be teacher, whether on a professional level or just on a social level.
If someday I am a wife/mother, I will teach my kids, and if in the process of attempting to teach them I instill a fear in them in which they are hindered in confronting me to ask questions, I have failed as a teacher.
If I am a manager or am involved in training other employees or workers, I am a teacher. If I treat them as morons, they will feel like morons and never wish to or excel in learning.
No matter who you are or what you do- you influence others. You teach. Do it with finesse and not sandpaper strategies. Don't make it a pulling teeth process, but a simple dental check-up with some helpful cleaning here and there.

That is all.

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