THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PROFESSIONAL AND PERSONNAL
As we all know being professional is an important part of being a sucessful instructor/teacher. You will be seen as an example of how the student should behave once he/she enters the work place. In some case we find professional can also come off as cold. It is important for any eductator to open them self's up to the student without crossing the line to unproffessional behavior. Alway give a kind ear and "hear" what the student is telling you don't just listen. look for sign of stress and evalutate the situation. Try to remember some personal detail about the student (EX:parent, favorate car, video games etc...)this you can give you a usful as tool to make small talk, it will give the apperence of caring and give you a good chance to get to know your students. Remember that people who are naturaly drawn to teaching are also people person too.
Hi Mary,
You are right about the instructor student relationship. We cannot nor should be try to be pals to our students. If we become pals then we have taken our professional relationship out of the picture and problems will follow.
Gary
I agree that you need to make yourself a "real" person to the students. There is a line however that I never cross. I stick to the more superficial and professional. Trying to stay away from being pals. I really view my relationship with the students as more of a parent /child type. I support, encourage, engage, ..., but will make corrections as needed.
Engaging in small talk before class and asking them how their day is going so far lets me know what to except from them that day. Its also expresses to them that I am interested in how they are doing, which is always helpful.
For myself, I, too, like to have fun with my teaching. I engage in small talk, tell stories and such. I find it helps loosen up the students and gets their attention.
I remember where I was telling a student who was complaining about pain that I had a plastic leg. I hit the side of my leg with a steel so she could hear the noise. When I saw the disbelief in her expression, I revealed that it was merely a brace. But, when I looked up, the whole class was standing around my demo table thinking they were missing something! So, I looked down at my table and there was some whole garlic. I immediately blurted out "garlic paste" and turned it into a little knife skill demo.
Ryan, when I cross-trained with you this was the most important aspect of teaching that I learned. You taught me to have FUN and to be approachable. I allways try to ensure that my classroom/lab area is a place where the learning process is fun and that I am a mentor not a dictator
Hi Ryan,
Well said. You have to put yourself out there as a human being that cares about the success of those around them. By doing so and being good at listening instructors will develop rapport with their students and this will greatly assist in the learning process.
You are right on target with your approach.
Gary
