Please allow me to point out something that I consider to be a strength in your paper. I
think you did a nice job of addressing the importance of the relationship between
teachers and students as it relates to the goal of learning/gaining knowledge. As you say
in your first paragraph, when there is a good rapport between the teacher and the
students this creates a conduit for the optimum learning environment. As a military
veteran myself, I especially like how you referenced the concept of a “student soldier,”
and how no one on the “team” should be left behind, as we strive together to gain
knowledge.
In an article entitled, The Teacher Behavior Checklist: The Mediation Role of Teacher
Behaviors in the Relationship Between the Students’ Importance of Teachers and
Students’ Effort, Geier (2020) describes the results of a cross-sectional analysis that she
performed. It seems that there is evidence that four of the twenty-eight teacher behaviors
were significantly associated with a student’s effort. That is to say, teachers who are:
creative, have the enthusiasm to teach, have a sense of humor and who promote critical
thinking have the best chance of motivating their students to learn (Geier, 2020). I
appreciated reading your post. It was nice to read of the positive experiences you had at
CCU. It occurs to me that, as Christians, we should be held to a higher standard than
unbelievers in all that we do, including teaching. I think the opportunity to attend
Christian post-secondary education is an amazing and enlightening experience. I do not
say this to imply that Christians are perfect, as we know that we are all sinners (King
James Bible, 1769/2017, Romans 3:23), but to emphasize the understanding of treating
one another with respect, love, and grace, which are lacking in many educational
institutions. My undergraduate and graduate degrees were from a Jesuit university, and
my prior education was through public school, so entering Liberty has been refreshing
for me, as we have the opportunity to focus on Biblical principles and to work with
Christian professors who pray for us and lead us according to their calling by God.
It is unfortunate that the other professor you spoke of was so uncaring and dismissive of
student concerns. I do feel a little bit bad for him that he lost his job, but perhaps that
job was not the best fit for him. Hopefully, he was able to find a better match, after
having had that experience.
A strength of your post was your reference to the Teacher Behavior Checklist
(Bernstein, 2020). I took note of that as well in my reading this week. As we begin this
class, it will be helpful to use that as a reference to see what areas we do well in and
what areas we require growth in, My hope for us all would be that we evaluate our
own strengths and weaknesses and endeavor to grow daily in the vocation we are called
to. I especially liked how you emphasized that being humble was a big factor in what
made your teachers at Colorado Christian University (CCU) so awesome. In the Book of
Exodus, verse 3, Moses relays a question from God the Father to Pharoah: “How much
longer will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go so that they
may serve me.” From this passage, we may infer that God the Father places a lot of
importance on humility. He expects his people to be humble and to do his will.
In an essay entitled, Teaching Humility in an Age of Arrogance published in The
Chronicle of Higher Education, Lynch (2020) argues that in this, the Golden Age of
Information, it’s often the case that people think that they know more than they do. e
After all, information on any topic is only a mouse click away on Google, and there is
a how-to video on every topic on YouTube. Relatedly, it seems people do not often
show humility on social media apps like Twitter, because the “Cancel-Culture” we
currently live in takes a dim view of anyone who does not pretend to know everything-
about-everything. Nonetheless, it is important for us to practice something called
intellectual humility. That is because people who are intellectually humble, recognize
that they do not know everything, so they are open to feedback, and therefore, they
become open to improving themselves. By the way, it sounds like the teacher with
whom you and the class had a bad experience with at CCU was arrogant and not
humble. You and I had a similar experience with our examples of a good teacher and it
should come as no surprise. "The key to effective teaching is finding your own way to
communicate to students your caring and content knowledge, your motivation and good
intentions" (Bernstein, Frantz, & Chew, 2020, pg. 7). Interestingly enough, your example
of a teacher whom you had a more negative experience with seemed to communicate
his content knowledge, but did not quite express much care. Furthermore, of the seven
principles in our reading for this week, it is arguable he did poorly in five of them. One
principle he seemed to do well with was emphasizing time on task. His strength seemed
to be his intelligence and his focus on disseminating the material. If I had a professor
like this, I would literally record his lectures and break them down later into my own
notes. I would then take the initiative to identify other students who were likely
struggling with the material/method and compare notes. When a professor is lacking
certain aspects it becomes incumbent on the student to overcome it the best they can. e I
remember when I was in her class she was always so calm, kind, and attentive. She was
always interested in what I/we had to say. When we got out of hand, she was able to
reel us right back in. My mom helped with the class a lot at the time, and my mom and
her became good friends. During the summer we would help her take stuff down from
the previous year and get things prepared for the following year. After my mom passed,
I made sure to stay in touch with her. Now, I work as a school counselor. Like you
said, there are so many more things that I see now that make her even more special. I
understand even more of the challenges she faced, and she always did so with grace. I
still keep in touch with her until this day, and I know that is an extra special gift.
Thank you for sharing your special experience with your kindergarten teacher!
References
Geier, M. T. (2020). The teacher behavior checklist: The mediation role of teacher
behaviors in the relationship between the students’ importance of teacher behaviors and
students’ effort. Teaching of Psychology, 49(1), 14–20.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628320979896
Bernstein, D. A., Frantz, S., & Chew, S. (2020). Teaching Psychology: A Step-by-Step
Guide. Routledge.
King James Bible. (2017). Cambridge University Press. (Original work published 1769)
