On Being a REALLY Good Math Teacher

I started a grad school class this week. It's been a while, so on my way out the door, I grabbed an old notebook off my shelf and shoved it in my bag with my new textbooks. As it turns out, this was a fortuitous move, for the first half of this notebook was filled with journal entries from my days as a student teacher and a first year teacher. It's been a fascinating read.

One particular entry contained notes from a lecture I attended by John Benson, one of my highly admired mentors. His topic: "The difference between good teaching and really good teaching." He said that GOOD teachers:

1. Have a clear idea of what students know and can do,
2. Know what is necessary for success on a particular task,
3. Use a variety of instructional methods to reach many learning styles,
4. Are eager to spend extra time outside of class to answer questions,
5. Establish clear guidelines for student success and performance,
6. Hold students to high standards,
7. Account for individual differences,
8. Provide clear explanations of the concepts that students are expected to master, and
9. Continually preview and review.

Competent teachers may accomplish a satisfactory subset of these objectives, but do not provide the care and variety that is evident in the classroom of a good teacher. On the other hand, REALLY GOOD teachers:

1. Have a second set of objectives that go beyond the mastery of today's content,
2. Can seize teachable moments and move towards higher objectives,
3. Are able to recognize when students have lost interest and can seize the opportunity to teach something really interesting, and
4. Believe that these higher objectives are the really important part of their mission.

There's more in my notes, but I'll stop there because these lists still make an impact on me. The 'short' list for really good teachers is appealing to me. I believe in these four objectives and I like working to improve on them. They seem to be about passion and that makes me feel good. But as I read #1 a little more closely, I pause on the word 'second,' and realize that there is no hope for me as a really good teacher unless I can also move towards better mastery of the objectives of a good teacher... and that's a LONG and difficult list. I think John Benson is spot on when he suggests that really good teaching comes from a long list of grueling, difficult, AND passionate objectives. It's a package deal, and it's really hard. But the company is great.