Great Teachers Are Skilled Communicators
Sure, teachers need to know what they’re talking about when it comes to handing down lessons, but they must also relay that information in ways their students can understand. Additionally, strong educators deliver clear feedback, motivate their students, and listen to their questions and concerns (after all, listening is half of effective communication).
They Have Piles of Patience
Kindergarteners may need help staying quiet during class, high school students may need that tenth daily reminder to get off their phone … the list of reasons teachers need patience (in droves) goes on. And according to teacher and author Richard James Rogers, skilled educators recognize that it may take some students longer than others to achieve their academic goals.
“Sometimes our students just seem to ‘grow’ into achievement. Some grow slowly and steadily like a plant that is regularly fed and watered,” he wrote on his website. “Some shoot up in a surprising spurt: defying everyone’s initial predictions. I believe strongly in the power of patience when working with students. This takes emotional control on the part of the teacher, but the reward is well-worth the wait.”
Good Educators Treat Others With Respect …
Great teachers understand the value of respect to cultivate an environment in which students feel safe to ask questions, challenge assumptions, and be themselves. “Respect is a very important foundational factor in the development and maintenance of a healthy learning environment. It is respect that opens space for the development of trust and learning,” educational leaders Jill Berkowicz and Ann Myers wrote for Education Week, noting, “Dignity is a human right, essential for all in schools.”
… And Pivot When Needed
It’s important, of course, for great teachers to thoroughly understand their subject matter — but it’s also essential that they’re able to think on their feet. Educators may need to pivot their lessons depending on their students’ learning styles and situations that arise in their classrooms. And to do so, they need to be adaptable.
“Perhaps one of the most important, but hardest to define, skills is teachers’ decision-making capability. Knowing what to do or say next during the flow of instruction is never easy, partly because there’s no ‘one best way’ to engage students, present content, or address a student mistake,” Harvard teacher learning and practice professor Heather Hill wrote for The Harvard Gazette, adding that the best teachers “can respond smoothly in the moment when students don’t understand material or get distracted.”
