5 Signs of a Good Teacher

A good teacher is hard to come by, but easy to spot. Sure, most teachers try hard, but only a select few really shine. Today, I caught a glimpse of a particularly brilliant teacher. Although I did not observe her in her element, I did notice how her classes acted in her absence. The following is a list of the top five things I noticed:

1. The class enters the room silently. There was no fuss, no messing around, and no wandering about. These student entered the room, stopped by a lab table to check for handouts, and took their (assigned) seats. They did not stop to ask my name or seek permission to be elsewhere. They waited for me to address them before uttering a word. It seems this teacher has trained her students to enter the classroom as if it were a cathedral. So much for the separation of church and state.

2. No one complains about the assignment. It was as if they actually came to class expecting to work. Go figure! Moreover, my presence as a substitute teacher did not change their attitude. I cannot claim they were excited about the work, but I am confident no one tried to get out of doing it through some lame excuse. It is nice to know that some teachers still insist on their students taking pride in themselves and their work.

3. No one asks to go to the bathroom. Escaping to the bathroom is a great way to kill time and get out of class. Rare is the case where a student has a genuine emergency. No teacher will ever verify the supposed emergency–the best they can do is to forestall the inevitable. Normally, I get three-to-five bathroom requests per period and I have a hard time saying “no.” Today, I got zero requests–for the whole day. This indicates the teacher spends more time teaching then writing bathroom passes. That must make some tree in Brazil quite happy.

4. The students are polite. “Please,” “thank you,” and “have a good day” were coming at me from every direction. For a moment, I thought I was not at a public high school anymore. The students treated their peers and their humble substitute with respect. Usually, students mumble obscenities as they walk around–probably without even noticing it. Today, however, I found myself saying “your welcome” with every paper I passed out. This teacher must put a premium on respect, while expecting her students to do the same.

5. There is absolute silence as the students work. It was hard to believe at first. I explained the work, told them it was an independent activity, and sat down. Then, to my surprise, they did the work, independently, from their own seats–no whispers, no giggles, and without my constant supervision. In fact, I spent the entire day seated at my desk, back toward the class, reading online articles. I did not have to turn around once. Well, that is not true. I had to turn around to remind myself that there were still 24 other people in the room. Simply put, this teacher’s ability to command the respect of the class, even in her absence, was nothing short of remarkable. Thank you, Ms. Y, for being such a great teacher!