Music 23241
September 15, 2011
Some Characteristics of Excellent Teachers
Vincent Kantorski begins this article by explaining that understanding a list of what makes a great teacher wont inherently make you a good teacher. He makes the analogy that these lists are not like a recipe that will just instantly make you a great teacher. Teaching is actually to complex for there to be just one blanket statement about how any one teacher should be. According to Kantorski, you should have a thorough knowledge of the material, be enthusiastic about teaching, maintain good eye contact, listen carefully to students, challenge your students to excel, use a sense of humor appropriately, be very well organized and ask questions that require a higher level of thinking. He closes his article with reminding the reader to remember that the student is the ultimate beneficiary of your teaching.
I look at the list that Kantorski gives us and there is one attribute that really sticks out. Being enthusiastic about teaching. Its really sad to see teachers who through time lose their enthusiasm for teaching. I have noticed that once the passion has faded the students that go through their classes seem less interested in being there in general. The other points that he is making such as good eye contact and being well organized are all just about being a good professional in general. I feel that one point that really cant be overlooked is humor. How can we expect our students to be interested if we are not interesting. I have sat in so many classes where the teacher is just very bland and as students we become very uninterested.
I would say that through this article I would agree with Kantorski. I agree with what he is saying because of the fact from my experience they are all true. All of the characteristics he mentioned were actually eye opening. I never have thought about them all consciously. With all of the points he was making I now think back to a few teachers I really did not get along with and i realize at least half of them were because of one of these charactaristics. I believe, having read this article, that i will be a better teacher because i will be constantly thinking of what i need to do to connect with my students.
Again - more great comments here! It sounds like these are things you have already been consciously thinking about, but Kantorski helped you to see them through your teacher's lens, rather than as a student. Good thinking here, I think this will be an article you will continue to refer to in the future.
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