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> I think a truly effective teacher, at all levels, will encourage curiosity and creativity in subject-matter Yes. The question is how do you encourage curiosi

> I think a truly effective teacher, at all levels, will encourage curiosity and creativity in subject-matter Yes. The question is how do you encourage curiosity and creativity in kids? No, we are not talking about adults. I see this humble request as something similar to what JFK asked when he said America should send a man to the moon. If you have the opportunity, read about the changes all levels of education in the United States had to go through to meet the demands of that "simple" challenge. When you're done come back let's compare to now > The teacher's idolised in this article seem to operate through fear, which eventually fades into a semblance of respect over time. I'm Ghanaian. Educated in Ghana and lived all my life in Ghana. I've had several teachers like Mr. K along the way at almost all levels. I hated my primary and junior high school English Language teacher for "good" reasons. (Especially when he commanded, yes commanded, that English is the only language permitted to be spoken on campus.) I'd say worse things about him to my parents. But my dad liked him because his homework assignments kept me busy all the time. I knew I was a smart kid but the score I had for his tests said something else about me and I wasn't ready to accept that. No! So you know what, I worked harder and harder for what I knew was mine. Progress follows hardwork. Now, every time I have the prized opportunity of shaking that man's hand I do so with a beaming face and a sort of pride that says to him: "I can't thank you enough for coming into my life." He's proud of his students and we're proud of him too. I speak and (perhaps) write good English because he piqued my interest and taught me to strive because I can always get better. > None of that really goes beyond common sense Beats my imagination that we always have to be reminded about commonsense. I was told economics is plain commonsense. But there's a Nobel prize for it, right? Maybe commonsense put itself too much in our face we linger for what's rare. And that "the solution is not the obvious solution" mantra (a.k.a bullshit) might not be true after all. If you agree, can we just return to commonsense?

colomon 13y ago
"I speak and (perhaps) write good English because he piqued my interest and taught me to strive because I can always get better." You used "piqued" correctly, that already puts you beyond probably 80% of native-born English speakers in writing. ;)
- thrush 13y ago
  woah. is this an actual statistic? any chance you have a reference for where you got that number? (genuine curiosity)
  - colomon 13y ago
    Sorry, no, that number was completely pulled out of my ass as a slightly more interesting way of saying that failed attempts to use that phrase are distressingly common. "Peaked my interest" and "peeked my interest" both get millions of hits on Google search. My impression is it's one of the most common English errors you see that doesn't involve pronoun trouble.
vicbrooker 13y ago
> Yes. The question is how do you encourage curiosity and creativity in kids? I'm working on this now, and should be ready to talk more openly soon. More useful data than test scores can be measured in classroom, and I'm currently experimenting with ways of visualising mood and personalities in classrooms. It makes it much easier for teachers to know how much energy/encouragement they need to provide (or calm the class down, if necessary). It's exciting stuff and it's starting to come together nicely. > "I can't thank you enough for coming into my life." He's proud of his students and we're proud of him too. I've had two teachers like this personally, one was a bit gruff and was more on the 'strict' side of the continuum. He brought history to life for thousands of students at my school. The other was so passionate about teaching that he would bounce around the class like a big kid when he taught. The things they had in common was passion and a willingness to demonstrate how hard they would work for their students. I would say that your teacher would also have displayed these qualities. > If you agree, can we just return to common sense? My point was that the article tried to twist observations that are more or less common sense to further an argument that harsh teachers are effective. There's not always a lot of value in simply stating common sense. Finding ways to apply it is a different thing. On a side note, I've only brushed the surface of economics (particularly from a psychology point of view) and I've found it anything but common sense, or even logical for that matter.

colomon 13y ago

"I speak and (perhaps) write good English because he piqued my interest and taught me to strive because I can always get better." You used "piqued" correctly, that already puts you beyond probably 80% of native-born English speakers in writing. ;)

thrush 13y ago
woah. is this an actual statistic? any chance you have a reference for where you got that number? (genuine curiosity)
- colomon 13y ago
  Sorry, no, that number was completely pulled out of my ass as a slightly more interesting way of saying that failed attempts to use that phrase are distressingly common. "Peaked my interest" and "peeked my interest" both get millions of hits on Google search. My impression is it's one of the most common English errors you see that doesn't involve pronoun trouble.

vicbrooker 13y ago

> Yes. The question is how do you encourage curiosity and creativity in kids? I'm working on this now, and should be ready to talk more openly soon. More useful data than test scores can be measured in classroom, and I'm currently experimenting with ways of visualising mood and personalities in classrooms. It makes it much easier for teachers to know how much energy/encouragement they need to provide (or calm the class down, if necessary). It's exciting stuff and it's starting to come together nicely. > "I can't thank you enough for coming into my life." He's proud of his students and we're proud of him too. I've had two teachers like this personally, one was a bit gruff and was more on the 'strict' side of the continuum. He brought history to life for thousands of students at my school. The other was so passionate about teaching that he would bounce around the class like a big kid when he taught. The things they had in common was passion and a willingness to demonstrate how hard they would work for their students. I would say that your teacher would also have displayed these qualities. > If you agree, can we just return to common sense? My point was that the article tried to twist observations that are more or less common sense to further an argument that harsh teachers are effective. There's not always a lot of value in simply stating common sense. Finding ways to apply it is a different thing. On a side note, I've only brushed the surface of economics (particularly from a psychology point of view) and I've found it anything but common sense, or even logical for that matter.