What makes a great teacher?

A great teacher makes learning fun.

They make students want to learn.

They reframe boring lessons.

They know what they're teaching.

They know how this content can/will benefit their students lives.

They have the answers to students queries.

The main problem being - How can this knowledge benefit my students lives? When people see the benefits their much more likely to engage in the lesson.

They can teach the lesson in multiple ways that will ensure all students learn the knowledge/skills needed.

Their able to answer students questions

You want students to look up to and emulate you.

Some may not have another role model in their lives.

You want to install a love of learning.

Be the change that you want to see in the world.

It's not enough to give students knowledge. You need to teach them how to think. The knowledge of the world is at our fingertips. The difference between the wise and stupid is how they use that knowledge, that comes from how they think.

Philosophers ask 'why' and so should a great teacher. Why do we teach X, because X benefits your life in these ways.

When looking at data we should teach correlation/Causation.

When teaching reading we should teach how to look for biases. eg. Young thugs attack venerable old woman. Theirs a negative bias towards the young and a positive bias towards the old/woman. Repeated often enough we come to believe these biases.

When teaching science we need to reenforce the scientific method. During the pandemic we where told to 'Trust the science;. That's not scientific. Science is not trusting, it's questioning.

A good teacher links one bit of knowledge to other bits of knowledge. The more links the harder it is to forget.

For example - linking helps you remember. How often do you forget names? How often do you forget after you link them to a story, characters, attributes ect.? Steven will probably be forgotten, but he's goofy, like Michael Scott, from the office, who's played by Steve Carrel. Steve is short for Steven .The process of linking makes everything easier to remember the more links the better.

Teachers (Well everyone, but especially teachers) should never stop learning.

The world in now is vastly different from the world that our student will work in. We need to prepare them for that, not for this.

Are we embracing new technologies?

A good teacher cares about their students wellbeing as well as their education.