People Are Sharing 30 Things Their Teachers Did That Made Everyone Respect Them Or Had Quite The Opposite Effect

Teachers are probably the most important people in our childhood, apart from parents or caregivers. Traditionally, teaching was a combination of information-dispensing, custodial child care and sorting out academically inclined students from others.

But now what we understand as the role of a teacher is rapidly changing, as teachers rethink every part of their jobs — from their relationship with students, colleagues, and the community to the tools and techniques they employ, as well as their rights and responsibilities. Teachers are reinventing themselves and their occupation to better serve schools and students, Judith Taack Lanier, the Distinguished Professor of Education at Michigan State University, argues.

Lanier argues that many teachers today are encouraged to adapt and adopt new practices that acknowledge both the art and science of learning. “They understand that the essence of education is a close relationship between a knowledgeable, caring adult and a secure, motivated child. They grasp that their most important role is to get to know each student as an individual in order to comprehend his or her unique needs, learning style, social and cultural background, interests, and abilities.”

“This attention to personal qualities is all the more important as America continues to become the most pluralistic nation on Earth. Teachers have to be committed to relating to youngsters of many cultures, including those young people who, with traditional teaching, might have dropped out — or have been forced out — of the education system,” the professor explains.

Rather than seeing themselves solely as masters of subject matter such as history, math, or science, teachers increasingly understand that they must also inspire a love of learning in children. According to Lanier, this new relationship between teachers and students takes the form of a different concept of instruction. “Tuning in to how students really learn prompts many teachers to reject teaching that is primarily lecture-based in favor of instruction that challenges students to take an active role in learning.”

The real challenge of passionate teachers is to make their students passionate participants in the instructional process. Learning activities are not solely based on learning per se, but rather it’s viewed as an engaging adventure, the curriculum that relates to them and encourages inner curiosity.

It’s important to note that a great number of America’s teachers have young children. Most teachers are women, who often bear disproportionate caregiving responsibilities for children and other family members. And although many of the country’s large districts say they’re attempting to be flexible with teachers, especially in times of adopting remote schooling as the new norm, few if any have policies that explicitly accommodate those juggling work and full-time caregiving.

According to Judith Kafka, a professor of education policy at Baruch College: “throughout the history of teaching, since we’ve feminized the profession, there’s been this emphasis on teachers [as] ultimately altruistic — they love children.” And although for the vast majority of teachers, that’s true about them, “they’re not usually asked to sacrifice attention to their own children in the process.”

Moreover, about half — 48% — of all public school teachers in the US have children living at home, showed the research by the Brookings Institution’s Michael Hansen and Diana Quintero. This includes young children, who need constant supervision, as well as teenagers, who might not. During the height of remote teaching during the pandemic, many teachers faced unprecedented challenges of navigating their children, their students and their households.