The Lesson of Four Boxes

MY VIEW

Most of my strong feelings about what constitutes good teaching have come from my personal experiences. I have been colored heavily by the good, the bad and the ugly in classrooms where I was present as a student. As a sensitive sponge, I have absorbed it all and processed it into an educational philosophy.

There were teachers who delivered encouragement and self-confidence. There were those who showed me fairness and patience. Some were great motivators. But, alas, there were some teachers in my experience who were terrible communicators of their subject matter. Some had no concept whatsoever about teaching students who were struggling or unmotivated. Finally, I had some teachers who specialized in fear and degradation of students.

What this adds up to is this: Inadequate educators are nothing more than validators of the socioeconomic inequalities that pupils bring with them to the classroom. Said another way: Mediocre teachers all too often end up validating a youngster for what he or she is at that time … and never significantly pursue what that pupil might become.