How to be an Effective Educator Pt. 2
Why preparedness, resilience, and compassion of effective educators make a lasting impact on students' lives.
As an educator, you desire to do your best to reach the students in front of you by imparting knowledge, wisdom, and a passion for learning. You may recall last week’s post regarding three traits of an effective educator: prayerfulness, commitment, and patience. In part two of The Effective Educator, we will uncover three more essential qualities a potent teacher must possess.
Preparedness
The Cambridge Dictionary defines preparedness as, “the state of being prepared for a particular situation” (1). Being prepared is of critical importance in the life of an educator. To be clear, there is a difference between planning and preparation. Planning is, for example, thinking through and putting together a lesson for mathematics that you would like to teach next Monday. Whereas preparation is taking the time to gather the supplies needed, arranging the classroom in such a way that is most conducive to learning for that particular lesson, and amassing other necessary items in place to execute that lesson effectively. Preparedness is the state in which you will find an effective educator.
“Preparedness is the state in which you will find the effective educator.”
Resilience
Resilience is “the process and outcome of successfully adapting to difficult or challenging life experiences, especially through mental, emotional, and behavioral flexibility and adjustment to external and internal demands” (2). Most things that are important and consequential are rarely easy. Teaching is tough, and it is important to admit that upfront. It is tough because it is worthwhile, it matters. So, prioritize, plan, execute, reflect, and rest. Remember what you are doing is changing the lives of the students in your care, slowly but surely. With this at the forefront of your mind, even on the toughest days, it will help you thrive, not simply survive.
“Compassion is love in action, not simply a feeling, but feeling with follow-up.”
Compassion
My pastor defines compassion as “sorry with shoes on.” Compassion is love in action, not simply a feeling, but feeling with follow-up. Oftentimes, you become a teacher because you have genuine compassion for others. In the case of an educator, it is compassion for the students that are in your daily care. Whether it is a child facing trouble with reading or arithmetic, life without a dad, true hunger issues, lapses in learning due to frequent moving, or even homelessness, the compassionate teacher opens their heart and arms to embrace each of these learners with care. Spending time with students, with a genuine spirit of compassion, develops a connection that results in lasting impact and positive change in the lives of students.
I want to be an effective educator, and I believe you do as well. Let us commit to pray that the Lord would develop in us prayerfulness, commitment, patience, preparedness, resilience, and compassion. In turn, may we exhibit these characteristics to the students with whom we’ve been entrusted so that our impact may be lasting and right.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/preparedness
https://www.apa.org/topics/resilience
Pastor Paul Hines, Munfordville Baptist Church
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