As part of the Teacher Project, I chose to interview my former Spanish teacher, affectionately known as Profe. I chose her for this project because she was a very impactful teacher during my high school career. Why? Well junior-year-of-high-school-Natalie would tell you that Profe was a great teacher and her class was so fun.
But that doesn’t answer the question.
So, two years and an interview with her later, I have a better answer. Profe Kolathu made such an impact on me because she cares for the entire student.
At face value, that may seem like a cheesy, repeated, inspirational answer. But as a student, I felt it. My best friend and I would stop by her class several times a day to chat, even after she wasn’t our teacher anymore. Profe knew all about my weekends from her famous “weekend update” Google Forms, and she even visited me at work after hearing repeatedly about my nine hour shifts. When I was exploring options for colleges, she let me pick her brain about education majors. I could keep giving examples of how I felt this connection as a student, but it all boils down to one common theme: I felt loved.
That’s how I felt her love, but as a former-student-turned-education-major, I also now understand it better. She said herself that connecting with her students is a two way street that creates the trust necessary for learning.
In my opinion, learning has a “switch.” Students, especially in high school, choose when to focus and care about school. While tricky for teachers, having a connection with students based on love and trust opens them up to receive content as well.
If students know that they are “more important than the material,” their emotional states have been positively impacted. This in turn positively impacts their educational lives. Profe not only understood this, but she actively implemented it as well.
Through her weekend updates, chats outside of class, greeting students at the door, giving out candy, and more, I felt loved— and deeply impacted.
A powerful insight Natalie.