In Search of Excellence

My sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Engle, was one of those remarkable individuals who had an innate talent for teaching. She provided the class with opportunities to go beyond the information in our textbooks by encouraging us to:

• Discuss our ideas and feelings with the class
  
  
• Create interesting special projects as opposed to dull reports
  
  
• Make presentations to the class (my first attempts at public speaking)
  
  
• Integrate art and theatre into our classroom experience
  
  
• Approach solutions to problems in a logical, orderly fashion

Our classroom activities immersed the students in the learning environment and allowed us to use our imaginations. We put on several plays and pageants during the course of the year, including a lengthy production that In my eight years of primary education, her class was where I learned to think creatively and approach problems with novel solutions…traits that have allowed me to be successful in the "real world." Mrs. Engle had a tremendously positive impact on me and shaped my outlook towards education. It’s been a long time since I was in the sixth grade, but an exceptional teacher should always stand out in your mind.

If you are going to teach, I’m sure you would like to be as memorable to your students as Mrs. Engle is to me. First, let’s examine the motivations that propel people towards teaching. Then we’ll explore the traits that tend to make people solid instructors.