Students spend more than 10,000 hours in a year of their life in schools and colleges in pursuit of learning. They spend their most times moulding themselves under teachers and professors. During this time students develop a good relation with their teachers. Teachers can transform their students for good through their relationship. During the education years students can form various forms of relation with the teacher.
Students may consider teachers as their mentors, inspiration, friend or even a parent. They may be mentally comfortable with their teachers to share views, opinions or what they aspire. In order to understand a child’s mind it is very important that the teacher is highly skilled and has an impartial mind to understand. As easy as it seems, a child’s mind is complex, they think different and may have ideas that can be difficult to understand. It is teacher’s duty to make sense of it and help the child to implement it. This gesture can leave a lasting impression on the student and will provide the students best learning experience.
Students come from various backgrounds, they may be happy with everything in life or some may have certain issues that they need to deal. School is the place where children are treated equally and where they can think without bounds.
Teachers can perform various activities to connect with their students and model them to be good citizen.
One way the teacher can form bond with students is to develop social and emotional learning strategies. Social and emotional learning helps students to connect to teacher. This enhances their learning capabilities and they feel comfortable in their schooling years. Teachers should be mindful of how they behave to students, especially in front of their peers, as student may feel easily offended or upset if they are degraded among their friends and may affect their peer relationships.
Teachers must keep a small portfolio about their student’s information which will help them understand student progress on basis of which they can assess a student’s development both in their studies and character.
Asking students about life outside school will help students to share, discuss and find solutions to their problems along with their teacher, this forms a basis for mutual trust where children believe that their teachers would help them at the time of crisis. Teachers can also share their certain aspects of life that are not personal to students to make them believe that their teacher believes in them, this connection can teach them to be trustworthy, loyal and develop self-respect. A teacher must try to resolve student complaints and issues between the teacher and student and not complain higher authorities about it. If so, there is a need to discuss with principal, it can be handled in discreet manner. This will create a sense of comfort in students to discuss matters to teacher.
Conducting meetings and open discussions about various real life situations along with students will help them to develop problem solving skills and also they feel valued for their opinions.
Greeting pleasantly to students while they come to school and while leaving, will help them develop positive attitude towards teachers and other people in their surroundings. This will help in open communication and friendly behaviour to people around them.
Practicing constructive discipline will help students to develop positive attitude towards routine in life, they won’t feel that being in discipline does not allow them to have fun. When it comes to discipline, the first thing to do is give respect. Losing temper, showing anger and being sarcastic to their behaviour will only destroy the relationship between teacher and student. If a student fails to be responsible for any action the teacher should maturely administer the problem by trying to understand the reason for the failure and helping them resolve it. This attitude shows that a teacher respects the dignity of the students.
Offering words of encouragement by teacher always help students to achieve more. They would feel proud of themselves and strive to excel. A teacher should applaud the student’s co-curricular capabilities other than studies. This will allow every student to put their effort in both activities and make them multi-talented.
Teachers can also build relationship with student’s parents to keep in touch with all updates of students. Teachers can have discussion with parents in how they can manage to contribute effectively in their child’s physical and mental growth. Teachers can help parents to control their temper and develop tolerance to student’s opinions.
A teacher is vital part of a student’s life, teachers mould a good society. It is important that teachers take initiative to develop children’s heart along with their minds.