The Role of the Teacher

Teaching is one of the hardest jobs found today. It demands broad knowledge of subject matter, curriculum, and standards; Enthusiasm, a caring attitude, and a love of learning; Knowledge of discipline and classroom management techniques; and a desire to make a difference in the lives of young people. With all these qualities required, it’s no wonder that it’s hard to find great teachers in today’s society. Teachers, just like the rest of us, live their own lives in which they face day-to-day challenges of their own. This being said, it is also very important for a teacher to put aside those challenges when they enter a classroom. A good teacher should always be focused on the needs of each learner, provide them with the best education, as well as be a good role model for each and every student. Besides the obvious “rules” of being a good teacher, a good and friendly relationship with the teacher is always key in order to help students feel more enthusiastic about learning. As students, a positive environment with an enthusiastic teacher is a good way to start to get student involvement as well as provide great learning in the time spent together. Therefore good personality traits such as open mindedness, confidence, approachability and professionalism are needed to succeed in such a difficult job. All these traits help students feel closer to their teacher. If a teacher is an active listener with an open mind, students will more likely talk to the teacher more openly and therefore feel closer to the teacher or instructor. This type of close relationship benefits in the long run by increasing the amount of new lessons that a student has learned.