"The Effective Teacher"
The effective teacher. They are something to marvel at. They grasp your attention, the time flies by in their class, you want to impress them with your work, they are kind yet strict, they are someone to look up to, they are so unappreciated, they work for pennies, and they love every minute of it. For them it isn't about the money. For them (at least in my opinion) its about that light bulb that goes off in the students mind, about seeing that smile on the students face when they receive a grade they never thought they could obtain, its about turning a troubled student into one that excels, that is their paycheck. The gratification that they receive from the student is what they long for. For me these qualities are what make a teacher effective. I have had both sides of the coin in my life when it comes to teachers. I have had the teacher that makes me enjoy class so much that I can't wait for that period/ day that I get to see them. I have also had the teacher that I have been "scared" to go see. The teachers I was scared of not only didn't grab my attention, but didn't understand me and didn't want to. The wanted to do things a cookie cutter way for every student. Not all students learn the same way. You can not present the same material the same way day after day, and expect the student to grasp it the same way others have. It always boggled my mind why there weren't more of the Brother Clint's that could recognize when someone wasn't in the right class, or the Jack MacFarland's whose goal was to get the student into a higher education at all costs. The teacher that went the extra mile to ensure that a student would obtain the highest that they should. I question, why get into the profession ? It is simply because you like summers off? I have spoke with one of my most beloved professors here at Plattsburgh State at large about this, and about why she does it. Simple put it is the gratification she gets from the few students that end up loving her subject, and loving learning overall, it is those students that make the paycheck. She undoubtedly could be doing many other things (she is one of the smartest women I have met). I personally don't think my life would be the same outlook on studies that I do if I had not met her. I've been able to get by very easily when it comes to academia, but cause of this professor getting by was not enough. It is teachers/professors like that, that are needed. Teachers/ professors that inspire, they light the fire inside of the student. The ineffective teacher sees bright burning fire in few. The effective teacher sees the fire in all. Some of those fires need to be nurtured, to have some gas (encouragement) put on them. The effective teacher relates to the flames on the tinders and turns it into a bright burning fire. I have been lucky here at PSU to get many professors like that. Not to say I haven't had a few I would put in the "I'm scared of you" category. Overall though, I have lucked out. I am not sure if this is really what I was suppose to write about but its just what I think..... I could probably go on for hours but for Taz's sake I won't
I enjoyed reading this mostly because I do agree that teachers are most effective when a student show ambition toward the material. I also find that it helps when the teacher also shows their own interest in the material they teach. I feel as though the ambition of the teacher will help the student become more motivated to learn the subject material. I have also had a few encounters on campus with effective teachers and one in particular that I would place in a whole separate category. I must say I do appreciate you not writing a novel about effective teachers for I do not have that kind of time. All in all I enjoyed reading this piece.
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