Why I teach

[Sophie 24,413]

I was talking with @Kupar in the chatbox earlier and he gave me a fantastic idea for a topic. I'm sorry if this turns into a bit of a TED talk haha.

Why do I teach? I teach because I love that incredible feeling I get when I learn something, that rush of excitement when something finally clicks, the "I get it!" moment. In 2015 I learned how to solve a Rubik's cube and the wave of emotions as I completed each layer, seeing it slowly but surely nearing completion was amazing. And then, seeing the solved cube in front of me, I cannot describe how happy I felt. It was like I had won the lottery, I felt like I could conquer the world.

Being able to help others achieve that same feeling is one of my greatest pleasures. Watching as they figure it out and the joy grows on their face as it clicks and they realise they can do it, it's not impossible. Then watching them do it again, and again, without any help whatsoever. I have a little rule in my classroom. The phrase "I can't do it" or variations of it, are banned. There's no such thing. You can do it, you just haven't worked out how yet. It saddens me when people say it without even attempting to do it. How do you know if you don't try? Of course there are some things that you really can't do. I can flap my arms about as much as I want, I'm never going to fly, but that difficult equation? That awkward formula? You - can - do - it!

The really hard problems are the best because they give the biggest rush but small things work too. I love lists, I get a small rush every time I finish something and I can tick it off my list, even if the task isn't that exciting. Does anyone really enjoy cleaning the bathroom? But I still get the feeling of acomplishment and seeing the list completed is fantastic. I can look back and think to myself "Look at how much I did today."

I teach because I truly enjoy learning things and the rush of dopamine is addictive. If I can help just one person feel the same way, it's been a good day.

[Kupar 13,341]

9 hours ago, Sophie said:

I was talking with @Kupar in the chatbox earlier and he gave me a fantastic idea for a topic. I'm sorry if this turns into a bit of a TED talk haha.

Why do I teach? I teach because I love that incredible feeling I get when I learn something, that rush of excitement when something finally clicks, the "I get it!" moment. In 2015 I learned how to solve a Rubik's cube and the wave of emotions as I completed each layer, seeing it slowly but surely nearing completion was amazing. And then, seeing the solved cube in front of me, I cannot describe how happy I felt. It was like I had won the lottery, I felt like I could conquer the world.

Being able to help others achieve that same feeling is one of my greatest pleasures. Watching as they figure it out and the joy grows on their face as it clicks and they realise they can do it, it's not impossible. Then watching them do it again, and again, without any help whatsoever. I have a little rule in my classroom. The phrase "I can't do it" or variations of it, are banned. There's no such thing. You can do it, you just haven't worked out how yet. It saddens me when people say it without even attempting to do it. How do you know if you don't try? Of course there are some things that you really can't do. I can flap my arms about as much as I want, I'm never going to fly, but that difficult equation? That awkward formula? You - can - do - it!

The really hard problems are the best because they give the biggest rush but small things work too. I love lists, I get a small rush every time I finish something and I can tick it off my list, even if the task isn't that exciting. Does anyone really enjoy cleaning the bathroom? But I still get the feeling of acomplishment and seeing the list completed is fantastic. I can look back and think to myself "Look at how much I did today."

I teach because I truly enjoy learning things and the rush of dopamine is addictive. If I can help just one person feel the same way, it's been a good day.

Very eloquent. A teacher who gets that sort of satisfaction from explaining difficult ideas is a wonderful benefit to society as a whole. I clearly remember a physics teacher explaining the difference between heat and temperature, and between energy and momentum, in ways that I could tell even then were designed to really help those that found abstract concepts hard to grasp. He was a brilliant teacher, and was the reason I studied physics at university. I'm sure you're equally inspirational!

Edited September 24, 2020 by Kupar
typo

[LadySilver 46]

On 9/23/2020 at 6:04 PM, Sophie said:

The phrase "I can't do it" or variations of it, are banned. There's no such thing. You can do it, you just haven't worked out how yet.

I have a similar policy with myself and, while at some points it feels rather cheesy, it works! 

While sometimes I choose not to do things, I never say that I'm just not able to do them. Starting down the path of 'I can't do this and that' leads to stagnation and limiting my own potential - something not uncommon with other aspies I know, and something I learned about from a fellow aspie. 

As an educator, you might like this TED talk by Rita Pierson if you haven't seen it yet: https://www.ted.com/talks/rita_pierson_every_kid_needs_a_champion?language=en 

It always makes me smile, and reminds me of the many educators that have and continue to impact my development as a person. 

 

[Remi 1,034]

On 9/23/2020 at 11:04 PM, Sophie said:

The phrase "I can't do it" or variations of it, are banned. There's no such thing. You can do it, you just haven't worked out how yet. It saddens me when people say it without even attempting to do it. How do you know if you don't try?

I wish there where more teachers, tutors, lecturers or educators in general out there with this spirit or the ability to pass this message forward. Thats a vital message that people in general tend to forget, especially when they are caught up in everyday stress and set backs which are just part of basically every process.

 

 

[Sophie 24,413]

On 10/21/2020 at 2:44 PM, LadySilver said:

I have a similar policy with myself and, while at some points it feels rather cheesy, it works! 

While sometimes I choose not to do things, I never say that I'm just not able to do them. Starting down the path of 'I can't do this and that' leads to stagnation and limiting my own potential - something not uncommon with other aspies I know, and something I learned about from a fellow aspie. 

As an educator, you might like this TED talk by Rita Pierson if you haven't seen it yet: https://www.ted.com/talks/rita_pierson_every_kid_needs_a_champion?language=en 

It always makes me smile, and reminds me of the many educators that have and continue to impact my development as a person. 

 

That was one of the best TED talks I've seen and I could relate to it so much. One part that really stood out to me was Rita talking about students not learning if they don't like their teachers. It is so true! Some of the most successful classes where I work have all been taught by popular teachers. The ones who don't really enjoy teaching or aren't very good at it quickly get a reputation and are more likely to have pupils misbehave. 

[Sophie 24,413]

On 10/22/2020 at 3:49 AM, Remi said:

I wish there where more teachers, tutors, lecturers or educators in general out there with this spirit or the ability to pass this message forward. Thats a vital message that people in general tend to forget, especially when they are caught up in everyday stress and set backs which are just part of basically every process.

 

 

Dealing with stress and getting frustrated was my biggest issue growing up. I would get so annoyed if I couldn't grasp something  it got me nowhere, and eventually I'd give up, usually exclaiming I couldn't do it. It was only when I stepped back, had a breather and tried again that it clicked rather quickly and I wondered why I struggled so much. 

Edited October 23, 2020 by Sophie
Fixed some typos... wow was I drunk?

[LadySilver 46]

2 hours ago, Sophie said:

The ones who don't really enjoy teaching or aren't very good at it quickly get a reputation and are more likely to have pupils misbehave. 

Couldn't agree more. Most of the teachers I haven't liked created a negative environment by being rather negative towards students and even the subject they teach. 

There's quite a difference between a teacher that puts on a movie because they can't be bothered to put a lesson together and one who chooses one that they think actually will contribute to the student's learning. I've noticed that being a big indicator of whether a teacher is actually able to create a positive and productive learning environment. 

[likesToLick 10,216]

12 hours ago, Sophie said:

That was one of the best TED talks I've seen and I could relate to it so much. One part that really stood out to me was Rita talking about students not learning if they don't like their teachers. It is so true! Some of the most successful classes where I work have all been taught by popular teachers. The ones who don't really enjoy teaching or aren't very good at it quickly get a reputation and are more likely to have pupils misbehave. 

I can see that would be so most of the time,  but two of the teachers I learned a lot from were men I personally disliked.

One was my year 11 English teacher.   He was very hostile to the class and spoke contemptuously to the students during lessons.  His personality was quite repellent,  but he really loved his subject, and by the end of the year I had learnt a good deal from him about literature.

Another was my German teacher in year 9 and 10.   He had been a U-boat officer during the second world war (yes, really! This was in 1972.)  He was a rigid disciplinarian who believed in collective punishment,  and applied impositions to the whole class on the most trivial of offences by individual students.  As you can imagine,  every student hated him.  Somehow though,  I learned a LOT of the German language from him,  and still retain that knowledge more than 45 years later.

Apart from these two though,  I was also very fortunate to have some good teachers in other subjects who I liked and respected a lot.

[Kupar 13,341]

I have been re-reading this thread again because I was running this afternoon a memory popped into my head of the truly inspirational physics teacher who was the reason I studied the subject at university. He had the endless patience and creativity needed to explain complex things, but he was also innovative. This afternoon's memory was of a lesson on the concepts of energy and power. We all weighed ourselves, then measured the height of a couple of flights of stairs, then timed ourselves running up them. And use of the right formula and hey presto - we can compare each other's power output.

Mechanics can be somewhat boring when reduced to a set of (elegant, yes, but somewhat abstract) formulae, with multiple quantities that seem quite siilar and confusing until you study physics to, say A-level and see how they fit together so satisfyingly. But in that lesson I am sure we all came away understanding that potential energy was work, and how it all related to power when you (literally) put time into the equation. Wonderful.

Of course you could probably do it with Strava on your phone today, but where's the education in that? 😉

[Sophie 24,413]

On 11/25/2020 at 5:56 PM, Kupar said:

I have been re-reading this thread again because I was running this afternoon a memory popped into my head of the truly inspirational physics teacher who was the reason I studied the subject at university. He had the endless patience and creativity needed to explain complex things, but he was also innovative. This afternoon's memory was of a lesson on the concepts of energy and power. We all weighed ourselves, then measured the height of a couple of flights of stairs, then timed ourselves running up them. And use of the right formula and hey presto - we can compare each other's power output.

Mechanics can be somewhat boring when reduced to a set of (elegant, yes, but somewhat abstract) formulae, with multiple quantities that seem quite siilar and confusing until you study physics to, say A-level and see how they fit together so satisfyingly. But in that lesson I am sure we all came away understanding that potential energy was work, and how it all related to power when you (literally) put time into the equation. Wonderful.

Of course you could probably do it with Strava on your phone today, but where's the education in that? 😉

We did something similar when I was at school. We ran up and down the stairs as many times as we could in a minute and then measured our heart rate.  I'm a little biased but science teachers are the best! In my experience they are always the ones who are a little bit nuts but also the most fun and creative. They always seem to be the most popular because they can have a laugh and don't take the job super seriously, and that in turn keeps the students engaged because they're having fun. We also get to enjoy all the mad science experiments. A geography teacher is never going to make elephants toothpaste or torture a jelly baby! I have fond memories of standing in front of a Van de Graaff generator and my physics teacher lighting one of those tube lights by putting one end against my body. 

[Kupar 13,341]

10 minutes ago, Sophie said:

We did something similar when I was at school. We ran up and down the stairs as many times as we could in a minute and then measured our heart rate.  I'm a little biased but science teachers are the best! In my experience they are always the ones who are a little bit nuts but also the most fun and creative. They always seem to be the most popular because they can have a laugh and don't take the job super seriously, and that in turn keeps the students engaged because they're having fun. We also get to enjoy all the mad science experiments. A geography teacher is never going to make elephants toothpaste or torture a jelly baby! I have fond memories of standing in front of a Van de Graaff generator and my physics teacher lighting one of those tube lights by putting one end against my body. 

Absolutely 🙂