Blog #67 – TEACHERS SHOULD BELIEVE THAT STUDENTS CAN SUCCEED
Something that I learned when studying to be a teacher is that teachers should believe students could succeed. I feel at the core of any successful teacher is that belief. Students are very perceptive. They are very good at reading body language and facial expressions. They can also know a lot about what a teacher is thinking by the tone of his or her voice. If a teacher genuinely believes that students can succeed, their students will know. Teachers need to earn the trust of their students. If they trust a teacher and the teacher communicates a belief in their success, students will succeed.
Believing in the success of others is something that is not unique to teachers. It is something that parents, bosses, leaders, etc. also need to posses. Children, workers, followers, etc. depend on others to provide the assurances that they can succeed. Your willingness to help others succeed is an attribute that you should strive to possess. I know that my children have been successful in their careers, with their families and in everything they do, because I instilled in each of them the belief that that they could succeed.
As a mathematics coach, I made sure that every action that I took was based on helping my students succeed. Through my actions and my words, I made sure that my students believed that I was committed to helping them succeed. I modeled hard work and dedication. I tried to inspire teamwork. I always told my students that individual success and team success were directly linked. I also informed my students that they should also believe that their teammates could succeed. I told them that they should encourage their teammates. They helped each other to be the best that they could be.
Success is within reach of all of us. Although self-confidence is a contributing factor to success, having others believe that you can succeed is very beneficial. In fact, the foundation of success may be having someone in your life that believed you could succeed.