The Mystery of Becoming a Good Teacher

Teachers affect millions of people every day. Sometimes teachers give a person just the right push to become something great and important, and sometimes they are the people who scare others from any future education. But what makes a good teacher different from a bad one, and in what ways do they make sure the students learn and work in the classroom.

Why Do We Teach?

Luther College is full of future teaches, in primary and secondary education, from multiple states mostly in the Midwest, but according to two professors, they all have one thing in common. "They all had a teacher that they looked up to or vowed to want to be like," said one professor. The other one commented, "they also love working with children, and want to make the same impact that they experience or make the experience better." These students just want to become teachers. Not because of the "wonderful" pay or the high demand, but because they want to. "The only thing I worry about graduating students is when they leave Luther with all of these new and creative ideas, and they may forget that even though their first classroom may not be everything they wanted, they can still achieve the same goals that they went into education in the first place."

What Is The Difference Between School "Work" And Student "Learning"?

Good teachers know the difference between school "work" and student "learning". School "work" is the physical action in or out of a school, that a student does for school. This may include a worksheet, homework, an activity in class etc. The student does not have to understand the material or be able to retrieve the information at a later time. School "learning" is the action when the student comprehends and knows the material, and is able to recall the information at a later time. A teacher can be able to find out if a student learned the information by testing, applying the material to othere activites, or by asking question. Good teachers use school "work" to emphasises the information and refresh their memories. The student "learning" part comes down to the teacher who is to motivate the student to know the material, and teach it to their students.

What Makes For Good Teaching?

A good teacher depends on the persons perspective or individual definition. In the movie, "The Ron Clark Story", Ron Clark, the new teacher in an inner Harlem school, goes out to meet the parents of his future students.* Some of the teachers thought that he just wanted to see how bad they lived their lives, and others thought that he may actually care about his students. I person who believes that power is the only way to control a classroom would watch this movie and think Ron Clark is CRAZY. In general, most people will say that a good teacher helps students understand the material in many creative and fun ways, uses school "work" as a way to enhance their learning, and shows their passion for teaching in the classroom.



* Side note: Great movie starring Matthew Perry, from "Friends" and based on a true story, and book.