What Should An Exceptional Teacher Possess?

Inspiration, Passion, and Work Ethic are among the most important things to build a good educator in my eyes. Inspiration is at the foundation of my educational approach. A teacher can go in front of a group of students and read all the right words from a script but if the teacher fails to be inspiring, then students will not be engaged in the subject of the lesson. In our society, it is far to easy to find ourselves detached and shut out from our surroundings. It is because of this that as educators, we must be as inspiring and engaging as we can. To achieve an inspiring classroom, an educator must have passion and work ethic. Passion is so important to a good educator because the teacher is the number one advocate for his or her subject in the student’s life. A teacher must be genuine in their love for their subject, if you are to hope for students to reciprocate with interest in the subject. Work ethic might be a simple characteristic that is valuable in many careers, but it has such an importance in education. If you want your students to work hard, you must exemplify hard work. Furthermore, a teacher must be able to show up to work everyday ready to teach their best. Unlike most other professions, the person who loses if a teacher has a bad day is not the boss; it’s the children.

I strive to achieve inspiration, passion, and excellent work ethic every day. I have always been the type of person to put my all into my work. I am the son of two people who worked every day of their lives to support six children and one of the greatest lessons they gave me was a good sense of work ethic. I cannot understate my passion for music. I am an avid performer and an inspired student of the art. I spend my breaks learning better ways to play and teach music. I truly believe that everyone’s life is a little better when music is introduced in the right way. Finally, I try and be inspiring. Every year I go to the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic. There I go to conferences led by master teachers. Every year I hope I am coming closer and closer to the inspired instruction that these experts can obtain so effortlessly.

Even though these are my current essential characteristics of a good educator, I think the value a of a flexible, adaptable teacher is essential as well. We live in word that is traveling a million miles a minute. As we see the lives of students changing with technology, so changes the state of schooling and education. When I was in high school, we used paper and a pencil. Now, whole districts are on a one to one level with technology. This new frontier offers a world of possibility to the flexible teacher. I might think that these three characteristics are the most important today, but I will always maintain an ability to adapt.