American writer William Arthur Ward said, “The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.”
For teachers, it can be quite difficult to inspire an entire classroom; accomplishing this task alone can create a great teacher. However, many teachers find themselves stuck not knowing what to do with their students, which prompts the question: “What makes a great teacher?”
Principal Todd Bennett stresses the importance of trust for teachers to improve the classroom experience.
“Trust: Students struggle with trusting their teacher’s intelligence and knowledge,” Bennett said. “They struggle with trusting the teacher’s motivation and purpose for assignments and projects. They struggle with trusting the teacher’s ability to teach and manage the classroom.”
In addition, Palo Alto High School teacher Paul Kandell, who was named the 2009 National High School Journalism Teacher of the Year by the Dow Jones Newspaper Fund, believes that it is important for teachers to capture their students’ attention.
?You can layer in all sorts of training based off of historical elements and skills teaching them how to avoid fragment sentences and run-ons, or teach them how to write a more compelling paragraph,? Kandell said. ?But unless you have a great inspirational task for them, they will have difficulty following. Envisioning the task that is worthy of your students’ attention is one of the most important attributes of a great teacher.?
According to some students, teachers’ methods in the classroom have a powerful impact on the effectiveness of instruction.
“There are teachers who often use methods of teaching that only help certain people,” Austen Houts, ’12, said. “Many teachers will give formulas without explaining to everyone how it all ties together. It is most important that the teachers care about their students and their learning experience.”
Teachers may struggle with inspiring students not only at the high school level but also at the college level. Senior Ricky Lopez, who has taken courses at Willow International Center, has a world religions professor, Dr. John Beversluis, who stresses the importance of a teacher’s motives.
“The teacher must care enough about the subject to make sure that students understand it as well,” Dr. Beversluis said. “For example, there are doctors who care more about getting money than treating the patient. An inspiring teacher must care more about teaching the students than just getting the money.”
In high school, Dr. Beversluis considered himself a terrible student. It was not until his sophomore year in college, when he sat down in a philosophy class, that he completely changed his learning experience.
“I do not know where I would be now without having been in [W. Harry Jelemma’s] class,? Beversluis said. ?Even from the first day he walked in, he spoke with inspiration and got me interested in the subject. This was the turning point in my life, because it drove me to make something of myself.”
Often, teaching is presented in the form of simply imparting knowledge. However, while many students may be satisfied with this kind of teaching, inspiration to the entire class seems necessary to fully attract students to a subject.
?Because I am a new international student, the language is the main thing I struggle with in the classroom,” Gustin Hartanto, ’11, said. “This makes learning the material very hard at times, because often I need certain things explained multiple times.?
However, in this struggle, Hartanto finds inspiration in the classroom from his teachers, such as English teacher Molly Sargent.
?Mrs. Sargent is a very great teacher because she wants me to understand, even though I’m a new international student and struggle with the language,? Hartanto said.
FC alumna Sarah Spengeman, ’97, attended Westmont College with a major in political science, then earned her master’s degree at the University of Notre Dame in 2005. She is currently an adjunct professor of political science at Ohlone College and Chabot College, both located in the East Bay. Through her experiences as a student and as a teacher, Spengeman understands what it takes to make a teacher great.
“I try to continue to always think of new ways to teach,” Spengeman said. “But what it really comes down to is caring about your subject, and then caring about your students. If you’re excited when they learn, they get excited too.”
Though students and teaching methods vary from school to school, great teachers often have the ability to inspire their mentors. As journalist Dan Rather said, “The dream begins with a teacher who believes in you, who tugs and pushes and leads you to the next plateau, sometimes poking you with a sharp stick called ‘truth.'”
For more information on teaching, read the May 5 article, Gillespie innovates math instruction, or the May 24 article, Campus captures two Slick Rock victories.
