Authenticity

I think the limits on expressing authenticity are hard for teachers especially to figure out. In class, we have discussed that teaching is maybe a little bit manipulative, and I think that is part of teaching. However, I think teachers must be authentic in their enthusiasm and commitment. Students can tell if a teacher is not being authentic by the differences between their actions and words (saying one thing and doing another). If students can tell a teacher is not being authentic, they will perhaps not take learning seriously if they think the teacher is not taking the subject seriously. The students could possibly lose trust in the teacher.

Compassion

An essential trait in teachers is compassion. When a teacher can identify how a student is feeling, he or she can adjust his or her methods to maximize the potential of the student. For example, my senior year was extremely stressful. I was in three sports, five musical ensembles, advanced classes, and I had a job to go along with all that. All of my friends were the same way, and we also had college applications and auditions and interviews going on. One teacher in particular understood our situation. She had gone through the same thing, and she gave us tips here and there to help us through an incredibly stressful time. Her understanding wasn't the same thing as pushing back deadlines and reducing assignments. She still expected us to complete our workload on time. However, she motivated us and encouraged us to do the best we could. I believe that even though compassion is an asset to teachers, they should not take it too far and move due dates or reduce workload, because that defeats the purpose of learning responsibility. I think compassion can affect the maximum potential of students.

Respect

To me, respect is necessary in every single relationship, whether it is between friends, parents and their students, or between students and teachers. In every situation, I believe both parties must have respect for each other. The students' respect towards the teachers involves listening without talking and other simple things, while the teachers should respect their students' thoughts. For example, a teacher once blew off an opinion of mine because it was not the "right" opinion, or the same as her opinion. I feel that once I know a teacher does not have respect for me, it is hard for me to have respect for them in return. However, I think that both teachers and students must earn their respect. Teachers cannot expect to automatically have the respect of their entire class without doing something to earn it. That is not to say that people need to do things to earn respect, but I believe there are different levels of respect. The first could be not knowing someone, but since they are a person, you listen to what they have to say. The latter could be based on knowing someone for a while and also trust. Regardless, respect must be present from both the student and the teacher for a functioning classroom.