To Teachers This May Concern,
Pardon my candor, but there’s a reason why the kids just don’t like you. At first, I couldn’t understand the dynamics of certain teachers and classes, especially if they stick together and bond for a few months. The general theory states that a good teacher is a good teacher irrespective of who’s in front of them. If they have high-level students, then they get them to achieve at very high levels, accentuating their prior knowledge and advancing them. If they’re considered low-level students, then they make the adjustments, modifying their lesson plans and assessments accordingly.
But that’s not how it goes. Attitudes matter. Perceptions matter. Thusly, if kids don’t like you, it doesn’t matter what you throw at them or how highly lauded you are by your administrators, you can still suck. You can have all the aesthetics in the world, and talk a great game, but if the kids don’t like you, you’re toast. You might come to me thinking you’re the greatest teacher ever because your bosses are satisfied with you and think you’re pretty / handsome, but if the kids don’t like you, then you’re done.
I’ve been on the receiving end of the dislike, too, and for an entire year, it felt terrible on both ends. Unlike some of you, though, I reflected hard on some of the things that caused that to happen, and asked others for help in my quest to improve my practice. You don’t. Even after some of you left, you still act your marble pedestal is reserved for you. And I’m just the man to knock it down.
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