A great teacher can have a huge impact on a student’s life. They can inspire them to pursue their passions, boost their confidence, push them to be their very best, and make learning exciting and fun. But unfortunately, not every educator is great at their job. And this father decided to call out his wife’s friend for appearing as though she’s terrible at hers.
After his son shared a fun fact that he was proud of, the child was immediately corrected by his mother’s friend. But this dad knew that his son was right, so made sure to defend him. Below, you’ll find all of the details that the father posted on Reddit, as well as some of the replies invested readers shared.
A teacher decided to call out this man's son for sharing a fun fact that she thought was incorrect
Image credits: Brock Wegner (not the actual photo)
So the dad didn't hesitate to put the patronizing teacher in her place
Image credits: Getty Images (not the actual photo)
Image source: TowerFew3482
Being stuck in a classroom with a bad teacher can take a huge toll on a student's academic performance and life
Image credits: Yustinus Tjiuwanda (not the actual photo)
How well do you remember the teachers that you had growing up? Do you struggle to even recall any of their names, or do you still send Christmas cards to some of your favorites year after year? Kids spend about 1,000 hours in school each year, so there’s plenty of time for a teacher to make an impact in their classroom, if they really want to.
We all know that children are the future, so it’s important to take care of them. But some teachers don’t take their job seriously enough, which can be detrimental to their students.
According to the Higher Education Policy Institute, students with few or no helpful teachers are 146% more likely to report a high level of dissatisfaction with their lives. At the same time, these students are 65% more likely to report experiencing high levels of anxiety than students who consider their teachers to be helpful.
Having unengaged teachers can also take a huge toll on students’ grades. A report from the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury found that students were less likely than their classmates to be proficient or advanced on state assessments when they were taught by ineffective teachers multiple years in a row.
Sadly, English language learners, students in special education, and students in high-poverty schools were over 50% more likely to have ineffective teachers than other students. And students who were stuck in classrooms with ineffective teachers represented over 10% of the students examined in two school districts.
Great teachers know how to admit when they're wrong
Image credits: Getty Images (not the actual photo)
There’s no question that being a teacher is a difficult and demanding job. But that doesn’t mean that we should allow educators to do their job poorly and fail to hold them accountable for their actions. So what should teachers be doing instead? Well, according to The Harvard Gazette, there are several characteristics that make a great teacher.
“Most scholars would say that a good teacher does three key things: They establish strong, caring teacher-student relationships; challenge students to think, reason, and communicate their ideas; and convey subject matter accurately and clearly,” says Heather Hill, the Hazen-Nicoli Professor in Teacher Learning and Practice at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education.
Hill also noted that “good teachers have strong knowledge of their students as individuals — how they think and think about themselves as learners — as well as of their students’ culture and community.”
National University notes on their blog that it’s crucial for great teachers to pair strong human qualities with high-impact instructional skills. They must strike the perfect balance of being empathetic, patient, and respectful, while also being engaged, adaptable and creative.
Meanwhile, it's best for teachers to be dedicated to lifelong learning. It’s foolish for a teacher to believe that they know everything or that their journey for knowledge has come to an end. It’s important that they understand, and communicate to their students, that we’re never finished with the school of life.
We would love to hear your thoughts on this situation in the comments below, pandas. Do you think this father made the right call by defending his son, even if it offended this teacher? Feel free to weigh in. Then, you can find another Bored Panda article discussing similar drama right here.
Later, the father joined in on the conversation in the comments
Readers unanimously sided with the dad, noting that he was right about the teacher
