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The Passionate Teacher
Passion
Passion is something every teacher must have. As Fried says, “… on a Monday morning, not many of us are likely to ask: “So, are you feeling passionate enough for your classes today?”(Fried, 16). So what does being passionate mean? I believe it means every teacher must have a drive to get up and go to work every morning. It means that every teacher must believe that each student is capable of success. It means that as teachers we must do what we can to nurture our students and we must try and understand how each student learns best and be able to provide him/her with material presented in a way that he/she will best understand it.
It is important to also be passionate about the content being taught and to find a way to make it relevant. Teachers have the power to make learning meaningful to each child’s daily lives. We should do that everyday! If the content isn’t made relevant and the children forget it once they walk out the door can we consider that learning? Absolutely NOT! We must find a way to make an impression on students so they will take the daily life lessons along with them throughout their lives.
Respect
I believe respect is the foundation for learning. Without respect learning cannot and will not occur. Fried says, “A high degree of mutual respect, a rare commodity in our society and in our schools, is critical to the success of learning” (Fried, 42). He is also spot on when he says, “We can no longer simply assume, as many of our own teachers did, that students will come to school ready to respect us and the knowledge we offer them. We must earn the respect of young people” (Fried 43). Many schools, including the school I currently teach in, are adopting systems which encourage students to respect the school community. I believe it is crucial to spend time teaching and practicing respect in the school and classroom. If students cannot respect students and teachers a great deal of time ends up being wasted with consequences and redirections.
Respect is important to make each student feel comfortable in the learning environment. Students must be comfortable and willing to participate to make a rich learning environment. Students learn from each other and without active participation that task is impossible.
Personal Experience
My first year teaching, I had a 6th and 7th grade Self Contained Special Education Class in Bridgeport that was deemed impossible. Most of my students had paper trails you would not believe and each had a reputation of disrespect toward teachers. The first few weeks I went home crying but I was determined to gain control of the class and make learning happen. It took months of hard work and practice but by mid year the students were respectful and I created a learning environment. I had students working in cooperative groups and some students even came an hour early for school for tutoring. At times some of my students would have an impulsive moment and say something disrespectful, but he/she would always cool down and apologize after. In that first year I learned a valuable lesson as well. Respect is the foundation of learning.
Passion is something every teacher must have. As Fried says, “… on a Monday morning, not many of us are likely to ask: “So, are you feeling passionate enough for your classes today?”(Fried, 16). So what does being passionate mean? I believe it means every teacher must have a drive to get up and go to work every morning. It means that every teacher must believe that each student is capable of success. It means that as teachers we must do what we can to nurture our students and we must try and understand how each student learns best and be able to provide him/her with material presented in a way that he/she will best understand it.
It is important to also be passionate about the content being taught and to find a way to make it relevant. Teachers have the power to make learning meaningful to each child’s daily lives. We should do that everyday! If the content isn’t made relevant and the children forget it once they walk out the door can we consider that learning? Absolutely NOT! We must find a way to make an impression on students so they will take the daily life lessons along with them throughout their lives.
Respect
I believe respect is the foundation for learning. Without respect learning cannot and will not occur. Fried says, “A high degree of mutual respect, a rare commodity in our society and in our schools, is critical to the success of learning” (Fried, 42). He is also spot on when he says, “We can no longer simply assume, as many of our own teachers did, that students will come to school ready to respect us and the knowledge we offer them. We must earn the respect of young people” (Fried 43). Many schools, including the school I currently teach in, are adopting systems which encourage students to respect the school community. I believe it is crucial to spend time teaching and practicing respect in the school and classroom. If students cannot respect students and teachers a great deal of time ends up being wasted with consequences and redirections.
Respect is important to make each student feel comfortable in the learning environment. Students must be comfortable and willing to participate to make a rich learning environment. Students learn from each other and without active participation that task is impossible.
Personal Experience
My first year teaching, I had a 6th and 7th grade Self Contained Special Education Class in Bridgeport that was deemed impossible. Most of my students had paper trails you would not believe and each had a reputation of disrespect toward teachers. The first few weeks I went home crying but I was determined to gain control of the class and make learning happen. It took months of hard work and practice but by mid year the students were respectful and I created a learning environment. I had students working in cooperative groups and some students even came an hour early for school for tutoring. At times some of my students would have an impulsive moment and say something disrespectful, but he/she would always cool down and apologize after. In that first year I learned a valuable lesson as well. Respect is the foundation of learning.
