I have always been interested in helping pass along knowledge and in finding new and creative ways of learning and getting others to digest material. I love being a trainer and an educator because I love passing along knowledge and seeing the looks on student’s faces when the material clicks and they get those ‘A-ha’ moments. I want to teach because it allows my creativity to spark others creativity and comprehension. I think there are always better ways of training material to make it more easily digestible and retained for longer periods. Figuring out how to make my students see the value in the material and helping trainees understand their strengths and their gifts is why I teach.
Education serves many purposes, but I believe that if we can teach people to learn how to learn, we can improve their lives drastically. If we can teach communication skills, Emotional Intelligence, and job skills, then we can not only help them in the classroom/workspace, but also outside. I think education allows people access to higher opportunities and it allows them to climb higher and see opportunities that they previously did not know were available to them. I believe that education can awaken an interest in students and help them find an area/topic which they will want to pursue as a passion or for work.
When student’s are exited and have a passion for the material they are working on that is when they are at their best. However, not all material can spark passion, but as long as they are in a safe and comfortable environment, student’s can learn. Student’s need to be fed, need to feel accepted, and need to understand the guidelines of the classroom in order to learn at their peak levels. They learn best when they are engaged and having fun and staying active.
In order to grow and learn students must stay engaged and active. They need to feel welcome, identify any special needs that should be availed to them, recognized, and they must feel heard. In order to grow student’s must not just be taught subject material, but behavioral management, ways to positively interact and communicate with classmates and other social skills, including self awareness and management.
As for the teacher, I believe the most important qualities are having a high Emotional Intelligence, being a good listener (going beyond what is said, whenever possible), and modeling the positive communication skills they’ll teach. I believe teachers should be empathetic, kind, and fair (but also firm). Teachers are classroom leaders and knowledge imparters, not friends or buddies.
I believe I have many of these qualities, but still have to work to improve my strengths and weaknesses. I think I have various different teaching styles – at work I am definitely a facilitator, presenting the material and actively encouraging self-learning, but at home I’m more of a demonstrator/coach with my daughters, diving in and teaching by doing and encouraging them to go for it. I think a teacher must have different styles and try to employ them based on who they are training, because different people will learn from different styles.
