As an educator, I have always believed that teaching is about instilling a sense of belief in my students that they are capable of learning and achieving great things. It is about encouraging them to do their best and express their full potential. Every day, I consciously communicate this expectation through my words, actions, and interactions with my students. After all, they are the reason why I teach and the driving force behind my constant self-reflection and improvement. Reflecting on my own experiences as a student, I realized that my favorite teachers were not necessarily the ones with the most impressive teaching styles, but rather those who had a strong and positive personality.
This led me to explore the qualities and environments that allowed me to learn best by looking back at my best and worst teachers. To me, teaching means carefully choosing my words to effectively instruct, communicate, conference, evaluate, and encourage my students. I am fortunate to have the opportunity to learn from amazing educators like Jonathan, a second-grade teacher at Peel Board, both online and in person. With this in mind, I began to question if there was a specific teaching method that worked better for me and possibly for others. After making a list of my top 6 favorite teachers, I noticed that many of them shared similar qualities. Surprisingly, I also learned just as much from my worst teachers because of their personalities, despite their shortcomings in terms of actual teaching methods. I also considered the teaching styles of the 2 teachers in both categories and that of 1 teacher in the teaching section.
Through this exercise, I discovered that it was not just about the teaching style or method, but rather the relationship and connection between the teacher and student that made the biggest impact on my learning.
