Like many other schools, Oceanside High School has many teachers who teach and act in different ways, and there are hundreds of students, all here because they want to learn, they're being forced to come, or they have no where else to go.
One thing that can be agreed upon is that the goal for school is to teach children so they can grow up and live in society. But some of these students learn in different ways, and I have found that with some teachers, there is an overwhelming amount of children who feel like they don't learn or feel disrespected. But then there are the teachers who everyone loves, and it just so happens that these teachers have many things in common.
School isn't a big interest to many students. Some kids just don't want to sit in a stuffy room all day, pounding their heads against the wall trying to find the answer, and for many, a teacher who acts as though he or she doesn’t care is the last straw. So what is it that would help struggling children to learn? Frankly, this is a loaded question, but one thing that would help kids be interested in school would be teachers that are a little more excited to teach, ultimately appearing more intriguing to kids.
I don't mean that teachers need to be top secret spies, contortionists or any other crazy thing like that to be intriguing, but I find that some teachers tend not to show the kids that they care about teaching. They'll throw a worksheet in your face and tell you to look it up or find it in the book. Yes this method does work for some, but there are students who need to be guided in their learning in order to comprehend the material. One of the worst feelings for a student is when they don't understand a concept, but they feel hopeless because their own teacher is refusing to teach.
A very common theme among teenagers is that they feel as though they are alone. For some, the world is a confusing place and students are looking for people to help guide them through this part of their lives. It can be extremely disgruntling when they feel like their teachers don't understand them and look at them as though they're inferiors. I, and many others, feel very much connected to teachers who treat me like I'm a human being and not the fiftieth kid they've seen today. Kids are always drawn to teachers who want to know about them and learn about their home lives in order to understand them on a deeper level than just their name.
A final thing that would be an automatic red light for a student is when a teacher is disrespectful towards them, their peers, or just people in general. A teacher who disrespects the ideas and opinions of another person will immediately be rejected by a large portion of students and if there is not mutual respect between a student and their teacher, there will be very little learning.
Teaching the future generations is a fantastic opportunity that comes with a lot of responsibilities, including learning to work with students in a way that leads to the best results.
Emily Boynton is a student at Oceanside High School.
