Recently I was sitting in a classroom with some early arrivals; I asked one student what her plans for the weekend were. She unhesitatingly told me that she couldn’t do anything because she was grounded. She proceeded to tell me why she was grounded and how she would spend her time at home, all in an amazingly cheerful and open manner. I asked her a few more questions, careful not to be too intrusive, and she was equally as forthcoming. One or two others chimed in with their thoughts; they related similar experiences, and they were all equally forthright. I was having such a good time talking to these kids that it was an effort to stop and start the class. I realized, not for the first time, how much I enjoy chatting with students.
I am not a gregarious person by nature, but I find it easy to talk to students. Sometimes we talk about school events, politics, or baseball; whatever the subject, the conversation is always lively and interesting. In fact, it is easy for me to talk away an entire period, as I have done more than once (much to my students’ delight.) I used to feel guilty about this “waste of time,” but I have gotten beyond that. I now realize that there is more going on than simply chatting; my students and I are forming personal relationships. In this way I learn more about my students than I would from a parent, a student questionnaire, or another teacher. Most of my students freely tell me what they like and what they hate, how they like to spend their time, what they think of their siblings, and much more. There have been times when I have had to stop students from talking because it verged on the inappropriate.
While I am getting to know my students, they are, of course, also getting to know me. They soon realize that I have a sense of humor and interests outside of school; I don’t just sit at home solving equations and reading math books! Occasionally, a passion of mine--an author or some music--coincides with a student’s interest and this shared fondness forms a bond that goes beyond the classroom. I hope that the image of the forbidding person standing at the blackboard recedes and a kinder, gentler one replaces it. The rapport that we establish has real implications for how students learn.
A personal connection between student and teacher creates a powerful incentive for students to learn more effectively. Some students are so motivated that the teacher hardly matters; on the other hand, there are a few whose personal problems are so acute that nothing will help them learn as they should. But the majority of students, in my experience, work harder in classes in which they feel personally connected to the teacher. Not only will they be more attentive in class, they will be less reluctant to ask questions and more likely to see me outside of class for extra help. Student-teacher connection is one of the things that motivates reluctant students; it buoys their spirit when the going gets tough, and it helps draw the student into difficult work.
These student-teacher connections are not always easy to establish but they are worth the effort. When I was a new teacher, I was sure that teaching was all about the material; the students were just so many faces in the room. The longer I teach, the more convinced I am that the curriculum is secondary to the personal growth of students. Students react positively to teachers who care more about them than the subject matter they are teaching. For this reason, I seriously doubt that computer or video learning can ever be anything other than a poor second choice to the traditional student-teacher classroom. Chatting with students--about trivial matters or serious issues--makes being in school is a lot more fun; I, for one, will continue to talk even if it means doing one or two fewer math problems.
We believe that one of the strengths of Independent Teacher is the variety of topics and levels addressed in the essays we publish and this issue is no exception; Mil Norman-Risch gives us a moving and insightful look at why Catcher in the Rye is so meaningful to adolescent students, Buck Johnson blends humor with sensitive pedagogy as he teaches grammar to six-graders (no easy task), and Marge Rockwell makes history come alive for her first-graders by exploring the history of one of the building on the campus of her school. Other topics in this issue include teaching poetry in high school, establishing positive parent-teacher relationships, the value of Harkness tables in facilitating discussion, and much more.
Our goal is for Independent Teacher to have an impact on your teaching and, perhaps, to inspire you to write about meaningful experiences you have had in the classroom. If that is the case, we hope that you will respond to one of our articles or submit an essay of your own to Independent Teacher at [email protected].
S.I.