| A teacher says: "I can accept my good students, those who behave and do
good work, but I can't accept those who do not work, who have the wrong
attitude and who cause me trouble." They forget that it's the acceptance
of all that gives power to the teacher. In fact, it is in relation to
students who are difficult that the teacher's true qualities are
demonstrated. We all find it easy to accept those who lend themselves
to our designs. It is in their relationship to those who cause them
trouble, who are dirty and poorly dressed, and who fail to achieve
that teachers prove their beliefs.
It is the essence of the point of view here presented that only a
complete gift of oneself makes the teacher an artist. Teaching is a
jealous profession; it is not a sideline. This is not only because of
the problem of time, nor because of the impact of lesser efforts on
pupils: it is because of the effect on the teacher himself. It is only
as we give fully of ourselves that we can become our best selves. Thus
halfway measures and attitudes of whatever kind reduce our effectiveness.
When we ask the teacher to give himself fully to his students, to
his colleagues, to his community, and to humanity, we are thus only
asking him to be maximally effective. Moreover, it is only as he gives
himself that he can experience completely the joys and satisfactions of
being a teacher. In this situation he is in the same position as any
artist. Frustrated artists are often those who for one reason or
another are unable or unwilling to make a complete gift of themselves
to their art. Similarly, the unhappiest teachers are those who bemoan
the weaknesses of their pupils and the conditions under which they
work and who fail to sense that it is their own half-hearted efforts
that defraud them.
One measure of the teacher's willingness to give of himself is his
accessibility to his students, his willingness to spend time with
them. One difficulty here is the narrow conception that often prevails
about what it means to teach. To teach means more than to lecture or
explain before a group of students. The best teachers influence their
students more in their personal, individual contacts with them than in
strict classroom situations. If teaching and learning are complementary
processes, if the teacher is to teach by learning and if his teaching
is to be directed toward an individual, he must know that individual.
And how is he to know that individual if he spends little or no time
with him alone?
Another illusion defeats us. It is that there is some magic in
lecturing and in the hearing of recitations. We want as much time for
this as possible. We begrudge taking time to work with individual
pupils. Yet we know very little about the actual effectiveness of
what we do. Is it not at least possible that our classroom work would
be greatly increased in effectiveness if only we spent more time with
our pupils as individuals? We seem to be obsessed with teaching. We
know that no one can educate another person, that all of us must
educate ourselves. The teacher's role is that of a helper in this
process. The question is: How can we best help?
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