A Good Teacher Inspires Students[Part 2] #bloganuary

As we continue the series, I want to stress at this point that good teachers are passionate about their students, but also patient and understanding. They have empowering beliefs and values. They set clear guidelines and help the students to achieve their goals.

Great teachers are the ones that inspire students to reach for the stars and live their dreams. They can see the potential in each student and show them how to reach it. Let’s continue on other ways teacher inspires their students.

Students may not always remember what they learned in class, but they’ll never forget how their teachers made them feel.

Helping struggling students find their strengths.

A good teacher focuses on the strength of the students and not their weaknesses. A good example is seen in the movie “3 idiots” every teacher needs to see the movie. The movie emphasizes the need for teachers to encourage students to focus on their strengths by overcoming their failures. To do this they need resilience.

In order to help students gain this resilience, educators need to help them find their strengths. The best way to do this is by pointing out their strengths in the present, not focusing on the past or future. Teachers need to be able to help students identify what they have accomplished and how they’ve grown. A teacher’s ability to recognize students’ strengths will be apparent in their level of engagement.

Teachers can use praise and encouragement to embrace students’ strengths and help them manage weaknesses. Praise for an accomplishment or growth helps build a student’s self-esteem, confidence, and motivation.

Encouragement helps motivate students by acknowledging that it is possible for them to achieve success and overcome challenges.

Giving positive feedback

A good teacher gives positive feedback to their students, which makes them feel good about themselves. A bad teacher gives negative feedback to their students, which makes them feel less confident about themselves.

When a student feels good about themselves, they are more likely to try harder and succeed in class. When a student feels less confident about themselves, they are more likely to give up and fail in class.

Good teachers also provide students with the tools they need to be successful. For example, if a student is struggling with a concept, the teacher might take time to explain it in different ways or provide extra examples so the student can fully understand the topic.

Teachers should never expect students to be perfect right out of the gate — everyone needs time to learn new concepts.

“Students are all looking for positive feedback,” says Douglas Smith, a professor of psychology at the University of Minnesota. “No one really wants negative feedback.”

Smith is co-author of a study in the February issue of “Teachers College Record” that suggests teachers who give positive feedback to their students can improve classroom behavior with more than twice the effectiveness as those who focus on correcting negative behavior.