What Makes a Great Teacher?
What Makes A Great Teacher?
There are many different types of teachers: from preschool teachers to college professors, Sunday School teachers, tutors, pastors/ministers, child care center teachers to name a few. Whatever type of teachers they may be, they all affect our lives. They teach and mold us and sometimes, they make a great impact on people which can either "make or break" a person's career.
We've all had teachers in our lives whom we have identified with and will never, ever forget. But what makes a good teacher? Is it their knowledge? Is it their teaching style? Are they caring enough? Or probably, it depends on our own personalities and who we mesh with?
As a preschool assistant teacher, I find that there are children who gravitate towards me more than others while some gravitate more towards the other teachers. They want to hold my hand, give me hugs, ask me to sit beside them, read them stories, tell me about their new toy, some like to get my attention or praise and sometimes, do something "naughty" just to get my attention. I love what I do and I feel honored when the children like being with me or show me some affection. But just what is it that they find so amusing about a particular teacher? I guess it's kind of like your friends or even family members, for that matter. There are some whom we get along better while we keep a distance from others. There are some, no matter what we do, we still cannot find ourselves being "best of friends" with. Sometimes, being in the same room with that person can be very challenging.
Moreover, there are different teacher personalities: some are friendly while others are strict disciplinarians, some are humorous while others are very serious, some are caring and nurturing while others are a little bit detached. Depending on the personality of the student, they will gravitate to the one whom they feel more comfortable with. We all know that being a teacher can be very rewarding and yet very challenging at the same time. No matter which level one teaches, there will always be challenges that a person faces. They might differ from one level to the next, but one is not better than the other. They all have varying degrees and different sets of challenges.
In my own opinion, being a great teacher is a very complicated one. It depends on one's personal experience, educational background and even the love of their profession. It is sad to say that, not all teachers love what they do. There are teachers out there who treat their profession just like any other job. They teach for the day and they are out of there-that's all…they've earned their "pennies." They don't care whether the students pass or not, just as long as they teach what they are supposed to and meet the criteria or deadlines, prepare the students for Standard Testing and that's it. However, there are still many teachers out there who do their best working with their students. In all fairness, teachers have many standards to meet and many times, they do not have enough time on their hands to do everything that they need to, go over a difficult lesson or have that one-on-one relationship with a student when there are 30 to 35 students in a classroom. Most teachers do care about their students' grades and how well they are doing. They all have their own teaching styles and experiences that make them unique. They work extremely hard to teach their students, mold them and hoping that someday, their work will have a positive impact on their students' lives and careers.
So, what makes a good teacher? There is no "single" answer to this, but one thing I know is that when a teacher does everything in his/her power to teach well, mold and motivate a young person and most important of all is when they love what they do. The students can feel when a teacher genuinely loves their profession or they are just there to "teach." I do respect teachers of all levels and the hard work that they put in everyday. From the bottom of my heart, I thank and admire all of the dedicated teachers who try to do their very best to contribute to the success and better future of their students.
