I have been thinking a lot lately about what makes a good teacher. Is there one type of person or personality that makes a good teacher? Obviously the answer is no, or at least it should be obvious, yet this is something I have struggled with.
I am in a cohort of 30 very different people and personalities. There are people who are outspoken and self-proclaimed leaders. There are people who may be quite in the college classroom but blossom when working with children. There are people who are serious and others who are silly. We are a group of very different people, all with different skills and abilities that we can bring to the classroom.
We were all selected for this program for a reason. It is our differences that our valued. If there was one personality trait that was valued above all else, one type of person who makes an excellent teacher, then only a very homogenous group would have been selected. But we are not all the same. We are as different as the students we will be teaching.
This is something I find that I have to remind myself of. I have a terrible tendency of comparing myself to others and at times this leads to insecurity. There are people I look at and I think, “Wow, they are a natural” or “They seem to know so much more than I do”. I have to take a step back and realize that I have as much to bring to the classroom as anyone else. Over the past few months there have been times where I have been praised for my own unique abilities. Sometimes I have to question my insecurities and remind myself that I am the type of person who can make a good teacher.
Learning to become a teacher involves taking risks, being brave, and learning as you go. This is a process where you not only learn about the craft of teaching, you also learn a great deal about yourself. Stepping out of your comfort zone can do that to a person. So, if you have also had times where you felt insecure and wondered if you have what it takes, just remember every single one of us was selected for this program for a reason. We ALL have something unique and amazing to offer our students. We may all do thing differently, but thankfully there is no one right way to be an excellent teacher.
The Teacher-To-Be 
Right on, and I totally agree. I’ll add that I’ve met teachers who don’t agree at all – who see only one way to teach, and have little patience for teachers who don’t conform to that. These teachers tend to populate schools which have embraced whole-heartedly the notion that curriculum – not teachers – drives education: schools where every teacher is constrained to teach the same lessons in the same way at the same rate.
May we find a way to save our future students from such a nightmare.
I know just how you feel! I keep drawing analogies between acting and teaching in many different ways: Risk taking, bravery, feeling committed to your decisions and choices even if you are feeling a bit insecure, faking it ’til you make it, it’s always better when you can truly reveal or put your self whole-heartedly into it, know your audience, play to your audience, do your homework, rehearse, wear an appropriate costume, and the list goes on. It takes all types of people to play different roles and reach different types of people! I think that commitment is what we teachers and teacher-to-be all have in common and is the most important. You will be awesome! I have no doubts!
I agree! There are many personalities in our cohort, and I whole heartedly believe that we will all be great teachers. Each one of us have our own strengths and weaknesses. By having such a diverse group of people to learn with, we are all given the opportunity to learn about different teaching perspectives that will help us grow as teachers. When we are in our own classrooms, we will be engaging with a variety of different students. Not all of our students will benefit from the same teaching style or have the same personality, so all teachers need to be diverse and practice different styles. How can we learn if we are all the same? We can’t, that is why it is important to embrace our differences and find what makes us special.
I completely agree with you and love what “Uncommon Teacher” has to say as well. It benefits us to be in such a diverse cohort with so many different people to draw from, ultimately bettering ourselves and our practice. What matters most is that we all have the same mindset: that we are committed wholeheartedly to our practice and students! How would you respond to someone who has a viewpoint that is the polar opposite of yours (they believe that only one personality type can be a successful teacher)?
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