Tuesday, July 15, 2008

I just finished reading an excellent book for my TM class entitled "Teaching to Change Lives" by Dr. Howard Hendricks. He laid out 7 laws or principles of the teacher:

Teacher- Stop growing today, stop teaching tomorrow
Education- How people learn determines how you teach
Activity- Maximum learning is always the result of maximum involvement
Communication- To truly impart information requires the building of bridges
Heart- Teaching that impacts is not head to hear, but heart to heart
Encouragement- Teaching tends to be most effective when the learner is properly motivated
Readiness- The teaching-learning process will be most effective when both the student and teacher are adequately prepared ( Hendricks, Howard. Teaching to Change Lives. Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah Publishers, 1987, p. 129.)

I've seen some areas in which I need to work on, that's for sure. Some of the most influential teachers in my life have been those who went the extra mile. I remember 4th grade because the teacher made it a point to make learning fun and hands-on. I remember a particular college instructor that came over to the dorm after school hours to look for me and give me suggestions on how to improve in a certain area. I've also had teachers who bored me to death. They did not have any variation in teaching technique and were so engrossed in what they were saying that they weren't listening. Some tend to "dump" information rather than teach it.

As a teacher, I want to reach my students not only academically, but spiritually. I know my parents have a hard time figuring out why I wanted to be a Christian school (since it's known that that specific field does not make a lot of money). I want to be able to be used of God to touch these children. I've have already been in the lives of at least 60 children. To me, the best result of teaching is seeing how the children that I have taught have grown up, what kind of adult they are going to be.

I stress to my students that they have two choices in EVERY thing they do: Do right or do wrong. It doesn't stop in the classroom, but extends into every area of life. I want to see them succeed as Christian, living a full life for the Lord.

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