What does really good teaching look like?

Having a teacher is one of the best things when it comes to high school. A good teacher can completely change everything in the classroom. I’ve had numerous teachers at Esquimalt that have really made class time very enjoyable. They have to be doing something right for students to enjoy their class, right? Everyone has different opinions on what really good teaching looks like. There’s different methods educators use that work with different students, because of the many ways students learn. What does really good teaching look like to me? I have a couple of things that I really like to see when it comes to my teachers.

One of my favourite things a teacher can be is passionate. When a teacher is passionate about what he/she is teaching it makes the class so much more enjoyable. Seeing a teacher with no passion is extremely boring and hard to listen too, especially when its a lecture. Passion creates an incredible vibe and positive teaching in the classroom.

When teachers are flexible it makes doing homework a lot more stress free and increases the quality of work that is being done. Grade 12 students have a lot going on in their last year with classes, jobs, and wanting to have a little bit of a social life. Its nice to have a teacher that understands you have a lot going on and can negotiate a reasonable due date with you.

Its really nice when a teacher switches up his/her style of teaching. Listening to a lecture everyday gets extremely boring and I don’t pay as much attention as I could. Alternating different styles of teaching definitely keeps the class interesting, which helps me learn better.

One of the things I really wish all teachers did was tell you what you did right/wrong. I would love to know what I did wrong and how I can improve on my work. If i never know then i’ll never get better! Its also nice to know what I did right too, so I can have a little encouragement to keep doing what i’m doing.

I love teachers that are prepared and have an organized plan for the day. When they’re prepared the class goes smoothly, well as smooth as a class can go, with no horrible wasted time and awkward silences. Class time is used efficiently and i feel like I can get my work done when everything is organized.

I think that teachers connecting with their students is a HUGE thing. I had a teacher and I had a really great relationship with him. Having somewhat of a good relationship with teachers is really nice because to me it makes the class a lot more enjoyable and I end up doing well in that class too.

Back to the question “What does really good teaching look like?”. I believe that really good teaching can look like a lot of things. I’ve had a lot of good teachers and some that were not so good, so i’ve seen various teaching styles. Its different for every person and everybody knows what teaching styles work for them. The 6 styles that I mentioned really benefit my learning, because they work for me and make class a lot more enjoyable.