What makes a great teacher?

Have you ever read an article that really resonates with you? I recently read the article Is The Great American Teacher Dead? You ought to read it! It's quite thought-provoking.

I can remember when I was young maybe third or 4th grade I had a teacher that brought her guitar into the classroom and at the end of the day, we would all sit around and sing songs. I can remember lining up in the classroom racing to recite my multiplication facts You might wonder why this is relevant...I bring it up because I can only remember a handful of teachers and these two teachers are always the ones that come to mind first. 

What makes a teacher memorable? For me, they were either really good, like the teacher I mentioned above, or really bad like a Religious Studies teacher I had when I attended boarding school. Or the foreign language teachers that basically kicked me out of class because I had moved to a new school where the other kids were years ahead of me and they wrote me off as too much work.

From what I can tell teaching is more about relationships and motivation than anything else. If you capture a kid's heart and inspire them with wonderful ideas, and make them interested in the topic then you are almost there. 

My kids have had some great teachers. I am still in contact with a lot of them from their time in elementary school. They will have a place in our hearts forever. My daughter had an amazing online English teacher the last two years of high school. I had homeschooled her since 3rd grade. However, we moved states just before she went into 9th grade and we decided to try out a virtual option that we had been told about. It has been a great experience. However, if you asked my daughter what she loved the most it would be 11th and 12th English! The teacher had a group of teenagers online - in my mind that means she deserves an award by itself. However, it was the way she captured, enlightened, and held the imagination of the class that won my daughter's heart. She never ridiculed, expected participation, and was always upbeat and kind. 

Have you watched the movie Here Comes The Boom?

It's a movie about a once crowned 'teacher of the year' who loses all motivation for teaching. After some twists and turns (I'm not giving any spoilers) he finds his motivation and changes the lives of teachers and students alike. It's obviously a movie but if you want to see excellent teaching in action there are some great examples. You can also see how the attitude of the teacher rubs off on the kids.

One thing though...something I have always thought. Teachers definitely don't get enough respect or enough pay (as the movie also shows). We need to reevaluate how we treat teachers in society. After all, it's a teacher that motivates and inspires the next generation of doctors, lawyers, politicians, and yes even the next generation of educators.

CITATION - 

Ivers, J. J. (2012). Is the great american teacher dead? principles to resurrect meaningful, effective, and consciousness raising instruction. The Free Library. Retrieved January 12, 2022, from https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Is+the+great+American+teacher+dead%3F+Principles+to+resurrect...-a0322563626

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