The Most Important Things by Madelynn

The Most Important Things by Madelynn - January 2015 Scholarship Essay

Wow! First, let me start off by saying, how many people in this world have wanted to give advice to their teachers, many I imagine. I have had numerous teachers in my life and if I had to be completely honest, there were some that I absolutely loved, some that taught me more about life than I could have ever imagined, and some that, well, I would never go back to them. Now, what are the most important things to know for being a teacher? If I had to give a teacher one piece of advice, I would tell them to always be enthusiastic, organized and communicate.

Being enthusiastic is an absolute must. If you are not enthusiastic and happy to be at school, then why should your students be? When a teacher is enthusiastic it makes such a tremendous difference in the output of the students. Don’t be too over the top happy, but put in the extra effort. The students will notice and they will care. Having a teacher is not enthusiastic is like trying to play with a dog who doesn’t like you. Eventually you just stop trying and you just don’t care. That is why enthusiasm is key.

Organization is incredibly important. I have had teachers that have completely misplaced my work before, even projects. Having a teacher that is organized makes everything better. If the teacher is organized, a more concentrated effort from the students at being organized occurs. Organization in a classroom creates a less stressful environment for students and eases the ability to concentrate on classwork. I personally had a teacher in fourth grade that made me the student I am today. She made being organized a top priority and this helped me not only in school, but so many other aspects of my life.

The most important of all, however, is communication. A teacher must work hard on developing mentoring relationships with their students. Students don’t always want to be at school and they aren’t always having the best of days. They have lives outside of school and personal relationships inside of school that greatly affect their personalities and how they behave. When teachers ask about a student’s day, what they did over vacation, or how their other classes are going, it really does make a difference. It shows that you truly do care about them and their well-being instead of showing them that this is your job and that you are only there for the money. Teacher-student communication is probably the most defining factor of how students will act in the classroom. Students need to know that you will be there for them when they don’t understand and need help; they need to know that you care about them and don’t look at them as a job; they need to know that they can be independent as a student, but can depend on you, as a teacher, to support them.

Not every student is the same, they are all separate individuals who learn and act differently. Respect their individuality and learn from them. There are three key things that every teacher must learn throughout their career, to be enthusiastic in order to have an up-beat classroom, to be organized in order to teach better, and thirdly, to communicate in order to establish well balanced caring relationships with their students.