There is a vast variety of teachers and almost all of them
make a great teacher. Humor is important to me and I can understand that it
cannot always be worked into the classroom environment, but it makes all the
difference. If you can show the students that you are not just some robot
spewing out information, that you can take the time to show yourself in your
work, then I believe it forms that connection that students need. At least,
that is my case. My senior year I took pre-calculus and my teacher was a total
goofball, but it worked for him. You can see him having fun or at least having
a go at it and it just engages you that much more in the class. Also,
compassion is a great value for teachers to have. My junior year history
teacher was genuinely interested in my life and that meant a lot to me. I would
always hang around and take to him as much as I could. He was always listening
to what I had to say, so I returned the favor. I most certainly learned the
most about history in that class due to his kind nature. Plus, he was
brilliant. I don’t know. Something there was something about him, shame he
retired that year.
I agree that humor is an important ingredient to making a great teacher. Humor is like a universal connector for all people so it’s a great way for a teacher to connect to their students. Provided they share similar sense of humor that is.
ReplyDeleteDerek,
ReplyDeleteI have to agree that humor and compassion are great assets a teacher needs to have, especially with subjects like Pre-Calculus. Compassion is another one of those characteristics that instills trust. My math teacher throughout my four high school years from Algebra two through AP Calculus was also my swim/ water polo coach and to this day remains a great friend.