Passion

When I think of passion, I tend to think about people that do something for the love of it, rather than for the money or because they have to.  I always say if you don't love it, get out of it.  Most of our careers are going to span over the course of 30-40 years, and I don't think anyone wants to spend the majority of their life doing something they hate.  Whether it is teaching, business, or a professional athlete, there must be passion in what they do.  For example, Baltimore Orioles' MVP Cal Ripken Jr. played in a record 2,632 consecutive baseball games.  Yes, he made a lot of money, but you will be hard-pressed to find any baseball player that goes two weeks without asking for a day off.  Ripken loved the game of baseball and his passion for the game is why he earned the nickname "Iron Man," and is why he is talked of as one of the greatest players and persons in Major League Baseball history. 

It can also go the other direction.  My junior year of high school, I took Chemistry as an elective.  I could have taken Human Anatomy, but Chemistry interested me more and I felt like maybe someday I would want to do something with Chemistry.  After a year of Chemistry, I never wanted anything to do with it again.  I didn't necessarily love the subject going into the class, but I was eager to learn about the subject and see if it was something I wanted to do career wise in the future. 

The whole year turned out to be hell, as my teacher had no enthusiasm whatsoever.  Chemistry is tough stuff to begin with, and when the teacher doesn't help you learn in any way, it makes it that much tougher.   My teacher expected us to understand the content immediately and was annoyed if people asked questions about it.  If I was to go up to his desk and ask him a question on a certain question, he would simply tell me, "you should know that."  I never saw any passion in my Chemistry teacher my junior year.  He would teach a lesson, then basically shut off.  He was socially awkward and was unable to interact well with students.  He may have had a passion for chemistry, but I never once saw his passion for teaching or with kids.  I disliked him and the class so much, I was counting down the days until the class and school year was over.  His lack of passion for teaching turned me away from Chemistry, and to this day I have done nothing more involving Chemistry.   

Authenticity

What is authenticity and what does it mean to be authentic in the classroom?  The online definiton for authenticity is "the quality or condition of being authentic, trustworthy, or genuine."  Authenticity is also characterized as a noun by the Webster's online dictionary.  As teachers, we need to turn authenticity into a verb and illustrate the qualities of authenticity to our students.  To me, an authentic teacher is honest and believes in him or herself as a teacher.  He/she will be genuine and honest to every student and will believe in the message and lessons he/she is conveying to the class.  An authentic teacher is a reliable person who the students know they can trust and believe in.

Although authenticity is important, teachers have to understand the limits.  The students need to see that the teacher is not all-knowing, all-powerful, always rational, always just, and always on top.  A teacher needs to be honest and genuine with their students, but going over the top can turn students away.  Authenticity does not mean forcing your knowledge or power on students, it means that students can trust a teacher and know they are not alone in a classroom setting.  The teacher can make it much more enjoyable if they are authentic in the correct ways.

Students can easily tell if a teacher is not authentic.  For example, if teachers dodge certain questions like, "Why are we here? or Why do we have to do this assignment? the students can see that the teacher really doesn't care either.  Instead of saying "Because I said so," they should be ready for these questions and have an honest answer ready to explain the importance of the class or assignment to the students.  If your not honest with your students, how are you ever going to get through to your students and teach them something?  As a result of being "fake" or not authentic with students, the students will pick up on it.  Non-authentic teachers can translate right over to the students.  If the students sense a "fake" teacher, then there really isn't any honesty or genuine in the classroom, and no one will enjoy coming to class.  Of course, there are going to be certain days when a teacher would rather be at home sleeping or relaxing, but is important to remember how authenticity can affect the students and their well-being.   

Compassion

Compassion is very important, and I believe that every teacher should be able to show compassion with students.  Compassion can be a very touchy issue with teachers and students.  For example, when is it proper to show compassion and who deserves compassion?  These are a couple of questions I think a teacher has to think about.  To show compassion, a teacher must get to know his/her students and get to understand different personalities and lifestyles.

In some ways, compassion can be linked to respect.  I know that I respected teachers that were able and willing to show compassion over the ones who did not.  Although I think compassion is important, it is also important not to pity a student.  Every student deserves the right from their teacher to earn his/her compassion, but pity is a characteristic that should be left out of teaching in most cases.  Thus, to wrap up my whole spiel and ramblings pertaining to compassion, I think caring and showing compassion go a long way in making a good teacher.  I know that I am very thankful to all my teachers that I have had in the past that have showed me compassion.

I cannot talk about just one teacher that showed compassion and made a difference in my life.  Instead, one experience stands out the most in my education career, and it was all the teachers coming together as one to show compassion toward their students.  During my junior year in high school, one of my good friends, and a friend to almost everyone in the school, committed suicide.  It came as a shock to me, as well to my classmates and the school as a whole.  My friend was a happy, go lucky kid and always had a smile on his face.  He was involved in sports and was a good student.  I still remember the day very well.  It was a Wednesday morning when everyone found out in school.  Once everyone heard the announcement, no one wanted to study or go to class.  Instead of making everyone go through the normal routine and attend every class, the teachers and administration gave students the option.  We could go to class or we could hang out in the student center and be with our friends.  This meant a lot to my classmates and myself.  The teachers and administration showed us that they cared about us.  They showed that they didn't just care about our grades or performance, instead they showed they cared about us as people and individuals.  I will never forget the compassion the whole staff as a whole showed to us on that particular day.

To become a teacher, a person must be able to show compassion.  If they can't, they should not be working with kids.  Compassion does not need to be showed all the time, but it is necessary and a teacher must know when it is necessary.  Maybe a student is having problems at home or maybe they just lost an important sporting event for their team in school.  This goes back to getting to know your students.  Every student is different, thus a teacher must get to know each of their students individually so they know when and when not to show compassion.  Also, if you show compassion as a teacher, your students will show compassion right back.  Showing compassion can go a long way in a student's life, and sometimes it is all a kid needs from their teacher to turn their whole day or week around. 

Respect

There are several definitions for the term respect, but I believe there are many notions that should be present when giving or receiving respect.  To me, respect is showing consideration or appreciation for another person.  When distributing respect, the recipient's self-esteem will rise.  In addition, when showing respect, regard for another person should be present and there should be a sense of care for the recipient.  Finally, to get respect, you have to give respect.

Respect should be displayed by both the teacher and the students in a classroom.  A teacher needs to show his/her students that he/she is there for them and regards them in a high manner.  A teacher needs to be able to relate to the students to gain their respect and show their appreciation for having them as students.  If a teacher shows the students respect and that he/she is not just their to teach them or judge them based on performance, a student will return the respect.  In a sense, a teacher and his/her students must show consideration and appreciation for one another.  If this happens, it will make for a successful classroom and uttermost respect will be demonstrated.

If there is a lack of respect in a classroom, there could be problems.  If a teacher doesn't establish the aspect of respect in the classroom, the learning environment might not be conducive.  A teacher will struggle for control in the classroom if there is a lack of respect between students or between the students and teacher.  The behavior of students will not be good.  It is crucial to establish respect early on in the school year so issues do not arise because if respect is lost or not prevalent, problems will arise.  For example, kids might not listen or turn in homework, or they might stop showing up.  If the students respect the teacher, they will feel comfortable attending and attempting to learn day in and day out.

Respect is best established in a classroom environment by relating to the students.  A teacher should illustrate to his/her students that he/she is always there to help and care about the students.  A teacher should also show the students that they care about them as a person and not just about their grades or their learning abilities.  Basically, respect is best established by showing respect.  If a teacher demonstrates respect to the students very early in the year, the students are most likely to follow suit.  Early in the year, the teacher should explain to the students what he/she expects and what needs to get done.  Don't scare the kids, but be firm and show the students you can be tough.  Students will respond if there are guidelines and their teacher is firm and consistent in their teachings and techniques.  A teacher should also be wise and have an open mind with his/her students.  In addition, to establish respect, a teacher's purpose should be to serve others and not manipulate.  Kids don't want to be manipulated, they want to be respected.  Thus, if respect is given, respect will be received in return.