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Catherine J.

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What is great teaching to you?

Great teaching is difficult to define as it is at least partly subjective, varies based on the discipline, and often varies in the results produced. It also might vary due to other factors, such as parental resources and support of students, school resources, attitudinal differences, etc. Answers can try to provide definitions or explanations of great teaching, and examples of great teachers they have known or who have taught them.

Topics: children education schools students teachers teaching
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  • Aaron Koch

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    Feb 22 2013: I see themes of passion and connection in this thread. While connection and passion are amazing qualities of teachers, i believe the absolute pinnacle of teaching is the ability to spark a student's interest. Passion and connection are means to this end, but even the most passionate and connecting teacher can go wrong if they don't provide practical or real world problems.
    As a logical extension of this idea, a great teacher is never afraid to admit they don't know something, or that they haven't fully explored a topic. The best teachers are those that give enough information to develop a knowledge base, and then ask hard, thought provoking questions.
    And obviously, even the best teacher can't teach a student that just doesn't want to learn. But the most impacting teachers are those that foster curiosity.

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