What makes a good teacher? That's what SEED is asking this week. Here's my top 10.... 10) Patience 9) Lack of ego (putting the focus on the student) 8) Enthusiasm 7) Social sensitivity (know the audience you are aiming at, whether it be the children of religious fundamentalists, 8 year olds or over-30 GED candidates) 6) Experience teaching 5) Broadness of personal experience 4) Top notch verbal skills 3) Training in the field which they are teaching (this is a serious issue in many high schools) 2) Creative, flexible lesson plans ...and the number #1 variable in making a "good" teacher Smart and passionate students The last factor is something we all implicitly understand, there are far fewer inspirational movies made about brilliant teachers from elite prep academies and magnet schools than those about teachers in socially dysfunctional areas. This is, fundamentally, one of my main beefs with high stakes testing, teachers are dealt different hands and told to perform as if the raw material was all the same.
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