Passion

My sophomore year in high school I took A.P. U.S. History, otherwise known as APUSH. It was my first A.P. class and I was mostly taking it because I had heard it was a good thing to do to get future college credit. My interest in U.S. History greatly increased from the beginning of sophomore year to the end of sophomore year. This was due to my teacher, Mrs. Clark. From the beginning we could all tell that Mrs. Clark was passionate about history. When she talked about any of the subjects her eyes would light up and you could tell she was generally interested in what she was talking about. She really knew how to get our attention and make us involved and interested in what we were learning. I don't think this would've been possible without her passion for the subject. One requirement for the class was that we visited several places of historical significance, take a picture there and write about a paragraph about what we had learned. At the beginning of the year, I thought this would be a boring task and was not looking forward to going to historical places. Mrs. Clark changed that. She shared with us stories from the places she had been, and because we could see how passionate she was about visiting these places it made us want to have similar experiences. One thing I got involved in during my sophomore year was a film festival at the historical society. I probably wouldn't have been as enthusiastic about that project without Mrs. Clark's passion. This project was not a required project for school. I just did it for fun. My dad and I made a documentary about my grandma's life and we ended up winning an award for "Best Collaborative Effort". I will always be glad I got to do that project with my dad. By the end of sophomore year, I was sad to be done with APUSH. I had started out the year taking the class because of a requirement and an interest in getting college credit, but I ended up loving what I had learned in that class. This was all due to Mrs. Clark's passion for U.S. History.

Autheticity

I think it is very important for teachers to be authentic. Students will be able to respect their teacher more if they can tell the teacher is being genuine with them. Teachers should be able to be their true selves in front of the kids and not put on an act. I think if a teacher is in an overly cheery mood all the time and stands in front of the class with a smile plastered on their face the entire day, the kids can tell that the teacher isn't being real with them. If teachers try and act happy all the time it is most likely because they truly aren't happy and kids can see that. By getting involved with what their teaching and truly getting excited ab0ut it, teachers can prove to their students that they are authentic and that they truly enjoy their job. It's okay for students to see teachers in a mood other than happy. If something sad happened in their family, a teacher can explain to students that something bad happened and they aren't in the happiest of moods. By letting a little of their true emotions out, teachers can see more like real people to their students. While it is important for teachers to show students who they truly are and to be authentic with them, there are some limits. For example, it would be acceptable for a teacher to tell their students that they are looking forward to the next week because they are going on vacation with their family. This shows the student that the teacher is a real person who has a life outside of the classroom just like they do. However, it would be inappropriate to share too much of their personal life or to give too much detail. For example, if a teacher is feeling depressed because their sister just went back to rehab for being an alcoholic, it would not be appropriate to share the details with their students. If students ask, it is okay for teachers to share with students things like their religious and political views only when they make sure their students understand that this is an opinion . It is never okay for teachers to try and convince students to believe what they believe. Overall, I think the most important thing is that students can tell that their teacher generally cares about their job and about them. If students get the vibe that the teacher doesn't want to be there, then they won't want to be there either. A teacher who shows authenticity and shows that they like their job will make their students enjoy school more.

Compassion

Mr. Wigley was not only passionate about music, he was passionate about teaching. Through these passions, we as his students felt real compassion. I first met Mr. Wigley when auditioning for the fall musical, Grease, as a sophomore. He was very genuine when he complimented me on my singing, so genuine in fact, that it made me want to join choir. That's how I really got to know him. My junior year, I got into a select 17 person jazz choir which Mr. Wigley directed. We had a lot of gigs and performances outside of school, so we got to know each other very well. Mr. Wigley always showed love and compassion to us and made us feel like family. He and his wife would have all 17 of us over for dinner, and one of these nights happened to fall on my birthday. I felt so loved and felt so much compassion from Mr. Wigley, his wife and the rest of my group that it turned out to be one of my favorite birthdays ever. Throughout my time as his student, Mr. Wigley always showed compassion towards me and my fellow students, but the one time I remember it most clearly was at the end of my senior year. My fellow jazz choir members and I had arranged a piece to sing for Mr. Wigley at the end of Cabaret. Cabaret was a dinner show we put on as a group at the end of every year, and the last show was always bittersweet. Once we had surprised Mr. Wigley and finished our song for him, he took the microphone to start speaking. It took him a few minutes to even be able to talk through his tears. "I don't even need to tell you how wonderful your kids are," he said to the audience, "because they've just shown it right here." Hearing the pure emotion in his voice and how much we truly had moved him, showed me just how much compassion he felt towards us as students. Now & Then, which was the name of our jazz choir, turned out to be my favorite part of high school. All of my fondest memories come from being in that group. And I know that without Mr. Wigley's compassion it wouldn't have been the same. His compassion took us from being a choir to being a family. His compassion made me look forward to going to class everyday, and now whenever I think back to him and that group I can't help but smile. I hope someday I can be a teacher who gives that much love and compassion to their students.

Respect

Respect is one of the most important dispositions to have in a classroom, and it should be installed within the first few days of class. Without respect, it would be no easy task to manage a classroom full of children. Respect is also essential for the teacher's and the students' happiness. Students must have respect for their teachers, and almost just as importantly, teachers must have respect for their students. Through mutual respect teachers and students can enjoy each others company which makes for a better learning environment. Before installing respect in one's classroom, one must fully understand what respect in a classroom is. For some teachers, respect has always been about installing fear in their students. They believe that if a student fears disciplinary consequences given by the teacher then they will respect and obey the teacher. While this may work in some cases, it is most definitely NOT a healthy kind of respect. Students should look up to their teachers and strive to be a better student because they care about their teachers' opinions. Teachers should be role models for the student. They should be someone their students like and want to be like. Teachers should be kind and encouraging always, they should never single out a student or criticize them and they should work hard to find the special gifts that each child has. At the same time, they should be firm and discipline their students when it is necessary, but never be too harsh in their discipline. If a child is doing something wrong, and by wrong I do not mean solving a math problem wrong or spelling a word wrong, but if they are being unkind to other students or being rude in class it should not be overlooked. The teacher should give the child a warning or talk to them one on one to try and solve the problem calmly and kindly. If a teacher does all of these things, they should gain respect from their students. Teachers also need to give their students respect, and by speaking kindly with them, complimenting their good work and helping them improve on poor work without criticizing they would be giving the students the respect they deserve. A classroom with mutual respect between teachers and students is a better learning and working environment for everyone.