Learning Together: Engaging Students with Humility and Respect

I’m thankful we are only a first-time teacher once.  If every year were like the first, I’m not sure I’d still be at it now.

I think what made me the most nervous in that first classroom was that I doubted my skill and experience. Despite a B.A. in English and half a Master’s in it, somehow I still believed that the students might actually know more about writing than I did.

If you’ve been experiencing similar doubts about your abilities, then here’s a tip: don’t. Everyone has different strengths when it comes to writing, and you may not feel strong in all areas, but your education and experience says that you are strong in at least some of them.

When I started teaching, I didn’t have the rules of grammar and punctuation memorized, which was the source of my angst. But that came with time. Meanwhile, I found that my best course of action was not to pretend that I knew it all, but rather, to admit that I didn’t and suggest that we learn it together.

The cooperative experience I invited students into my first year has continued on throughout my years of teaching, despite all that I have learned in the years since—or perhaps because of it. Students respond to a teacher who demonstrates credibility (they need to know what you have to offer them—besides grades—so they know why they should listen) but who approaches them with humility and respect.

Through this, we learn together.