Teachers are the backbone of any community because all professions begin with education. At the root of all successfully employed people are teachers who equipped them with the relevant skills and knowledge.
Even during early school years, you significantly influence your students; you shape their personalities and form the foundation of their future.
As a teacher, you can have a lasting impact on your students’ lives since you’re the second person your students spend the most time with, after their families.
In addition to just educating them, you’re also shaping their personality. Remember the teachers you looked up to, who had a lifelong influence, and whom you considered your mentors?
It’s time to impart the same lessons to your students.
Teachers have a huge responsibility resting on their shoulders; the approach matters. Here are some tips you can use to become an inspirational teacher and have a lasting impact on your students.
1. Get creative and grow in your profession
Progress doesn’t end with getting a well-paid job at an institute; it is a lifelong process. Keep generating new ideas to improve your teaching strategy and constantly work on your lecture delivery.
You can consult online forums, attend workshops, look through the internet or professional journals, and find ways to make education more interesting for your students. If you stick with the same strategy for years, it will become monotonous, even for you.
Secondly, don’t just work on yourself; lead your organization towards success as well. Learn how to take on the role of a leader and bring change by introducing innovative ideas, cooperating with colleagues, and dealing with political hurdles efficiently.
In teaching, the Importance of Leadership in Education can’t be ignored. Research shows your professional development and efforts to promote improvements in curriculum, assessment, and instruction are correlated with student achievement.
Change begins from within, and only after you’ve implemented a change in yourself can you positively influence your institute and, ultimately, your students’ lives.
2. Instil a positive mindset in your students
How would your students shape their approach to life during the early and middle school years without any guidance?
Work on encouraging a ‘growth mindset’ in your students. This means encouraging them to keep working on attaining their goals, thinking positively, and overcoming hardships confidently.
You can only achieve this if you have a positive mindset. Train your students to look at the positive during challenging situations; there is a lot to be learned even when you fail.
Research in 2014 by Claro & Paunesku showed that a positive mindset helped students perform better, acknowledge the need for effort in attaining academic success, and take on challenging tasks.
3. Respect your students’ opinions
To gain your student’s trust and make them listen to you, you must let them voice their opinions. To earn respect, you have to give it to others first; it is a two-way street.
If any student poses a question or comments, answer it as long as it does not breach another student’s rights and isn’t disrespectful.
Yes, teaching involves a lot of information delivery, but it is also about the students’ ideas.
Secondly, when designing lectures, keep in mind what your students enjoy and think of ways to engage them.
To encourage their participation, pose questions and ask them to express their ideas. This strategy allows for lifelong learning and brings diversity to the table.
4. Be the person you want your students to be
Simply enforcing strict rules and punishing students won’t work if you don’t practice what you preach. If you instruct your students to talk politely and respect others, it will not impact if you’re disrespectful.
To be a real positive influence, walk the walk; if you ask your students not to procrastinate and be punctual, it will not help if you frequently miss lectures and take long to check classwork.
5. Be consistent and maintain the standard
Consistency is the key to creating an effective learning environment in the classroom. Especially for young students, consistency is critical because they learn better when they know what is expected of them; academic and behavioral goals and expectations should be obvious.
This way, students assume responsibility for their learning and feel less stressed out in the classroom setting.
You can establish consistency in your classroom by clarifying expectations, introducing rewards and punishments, establishing rules and not deviating, and reviewing expectations frequently.
6. Show your students that you care about them
Teaching is not all about conveying knowledge. No, it doesn’t end with that. Students who respect and value your attention expect you to care for them.
Do check up on your students once in a while and let them vent out to you. You never know who might be experiencing a difficult family life and need someone to talk to.
Take an interest in their lives so that they enjoy your presence and trust you to be there when they are in need.
Everyone needs a mentor, and you might be that person for your students. However, remember never to let favoritism interfere and treat all students as equally valuable.
7. Teach them that it is okay to make mistakes
The fear of making errors discourages students from taking the initiative and experimenting. We know that making mistakes is normal and learn from them; if students get punished frequently for them, they come to fear them and get stressed out.
If students constantly face negative consequences after mistakes, they develop perfectionist tendencies and fear challenges where there is a risk of failure.
This significantly interferes with their growth and learning by limiting their new experiences. Keep reminding your students that it is okay to make mistakes as long as they learn from them.
Final words
Teachers are role models for students. Your character and strategy will influence your students; try to make it a positive one.
Introduce engaging activities, promote a mindset that motivates growth, preach happiness, show concern for their wellbeing, and align your actions with your words.
This way, you can inspire your students to strive for success and work for self-improvement.
