What to Look for in a Teacher
Does your kid love their teachers?
It takes a special person to be a good teacher, someone who can create an environment where kids not only learn but also discover the joy of learning.
What makes a good teacher? Research shows that while it's important to hold teachers to objective standards, the best classroom instructors possess more than state certification, advanced degrees, and classroom experience. The best have something extra, and research has identified these intangibles that make classroom magic happen.
You can't pick your child's teacher, but you can choose your child's instructor for extracurricular activities, such as swimming, music lessons and other pursuits, so look for these same qualities in those instructors.
Volumes of research shows that top teachers:
- Believe that all students can learn
- Have confidence in their teaching ability
- Connect with students
The best teachers believe in their own abilities. In a landmark study, teachers were asked how strongly they agreed or disagreed with the following: "When it comes right down to it, a teacher really can't do much because most of a student's motivation and performance depends on his or her home environment"; and "If I try really hard, I can get through to even the most difficult or unmotivated students." The results of the study found links between student achievement and teachers' belief in their own ability to succeed.
Successful teachers also have the ability to connect with students. In 2007, clinical psychologist Jeffrey Cornelius-White synthesized 119 studies from 1948 to 2004 covering on teacher-student relationships involving a total of 355,325 students. He found that teachers' warmth and empathy had strong correlations to higher levels of student participation, motivation, and achievement.
Big Blue Swim School knows what makes a good swim teacher, and we hire only the best. Your child's teacher gets ongoing training in ways to identify his or her learning style and adapt the lesson so swimmers learn fast. Our teachers receive full-time pay and health insurance, benefits they won't find at other places. So we attract the best and hire the best. We go the extra mile and beyond to make sure your child receives the best swim instruction and the best swim teachers.
Top teachers do more than teach - they believe in their students and in themselves, and they use academic knowledge, close observation and social skills to make magic happen every day. In the pool and out!
