Response to Nugents Newblog, 11/17/11

Nugents Newblog: Just Part of the Job 

Reading John's post about this "problem" child that he has been able to bond with and his views that building a connection with students is part of the job, is honestly a much needed fresh breath for me in an often discouraging and depressing journey into the realities of teaching. I have found during my experiences in high schools, both as a student and as a teaching-in-training, many of the teachers seem to feel that their job entails teaching the material to the class and that is it. As if connecting with the children, learning their personal interests, and being considerate of different perspectives and situations is "going above and beyond" rather than simply part of the job you take on as an educator.  As English teachers we hope to motivate students to be better readers, writers, and thinkers,  but ultimately what we are striving for is motivating students to be better human beings -  to be intelligent, sensitive, creative, considerate, and curious humans and to be successful and most importantly happy in the world. So why don't teachers  model this to their students through their interactions and relationships with them?