A lecturer's responsibility

I went to a lecture held by Dr. Maraldo, a religion and philosophy professor at the University of Northern Florida.  Dr. Maraldo came to Luther College to speak about the confusion of the definition of religion, the importance of religions coexisting and understanding each other, and the issue of whether a person can be called truly "religious" by simply believing in a religion, or whether one must follow the rules and practices of their religion.  I had a very hard time being attentive while Dr. Maraldo was speaking.  He stood at the podium the entire 45 minutes, speaking calmly into the microphone, without moving.  He had good eye contact and was obviously very knowledgeable, yet he had no visual aids - no powerpoint or posters - to keep up interest.  He had a very mellow, calming voice, which can definitely be a good thing in some ways.  However, when giving a lecture to college students at night, a calming voice tends to put the students to sleep.  I learned a great deal listening to Dr. Maraldo talk, yet I had to put in double the effort I normally do to actually take meaning from a teacher's words.  I listened while Dr. Maraldo gave quotes from experts in the field of Asian religions, while he pointed out the issues in what is truly defined as "believing" today, and while he stated the importance of accepting other faiths.  I listened to every word Dr. Maraldo said, yet not once was my attention piqued above the level it acquires when I daydream.
The trouble with Dr. Maraldo, as a lecturer, is that he never did anything to receive my attention.  While he was quite obviously a very smart man, and while he had all the necessary qualifications to prove he was an expert in his field, at the first word out of his mouth my mind instantly switched into zone-out.  If not for the questions assigned for my religion class, that entire lecture would have gone in one ear and out the other.
However uninteresting this lecture may have been to me, I learned a valuable lesson - as a lecturer, one must stimulate both the minds and the attention of the audience.  And not only can this principle be applied to lecturers, but teachers as well.  If a teacher speaks entirely in a monotone and simply lectures with no class participation and no visual aids, no matter how interesting the subject matter may be, the class will never give their full attention to the teacher.  After witnessing this lecture, the extreme importance of something as simple as enthusiasm really hit home, and I will, as a future teacher, try my best to integrate as much enthusiasm as I can in my life and in the lives of my students.

Humility

I have definitely had my share of trying to prove a point to a friend, only to realize, after much shouting and annoyance, that I am actually wrong.  That feeling of being ashamed and embarrassed is awful and I immediately want to continue my point, even knowing it's wrong, simply because I don't like to admit I made a mistake.  However, I've come to realize that everyone is wrong at many points in his or her life, and that humility, while it may form from awkward feelings, is a trait that anyone hoping to teach must have.  The fact that I may be a teacher some day will never mean that I am never wrong.  Teachers are allowed to make mistakes as well, as they are all human.  The worst teachers, the ones students never respect, are the teachers that never admit to their mistakes, especially if it is transparently obvious to the students that the teacher is simply being prideful and stubborn.  However, this does not mean a teacher should always second guess themselves - a teacher must have reasonable proof before blatantly stating something she may not know is completely true, yet if  she does have proof and truly believes she is stating something correct, she cannot waver.  Students will also lose respect for teachers who are not confidant in themselves.  The trick is to be confidant in teaching something you believe to be true, while always keeping in mind that you must admit your fault if you are wrong in the end.

Inventiveness

Inventiveness is one of those areas that is extremely hard to judge and grade.  Children should always be encouraged to be more creative in the classroom, whether it's giving them free time to work on whatever project they wish, or giving them more set guidelines, yet still with a sense of freedom, such as assigning time for creative writing, or an art project of their choice.  In order to vary it from normal, everyday schoolwork, teachers should grade on effort, and not necessarily the looks of the end result of whatever project they complete.  However, saying this statement also warrants the question - but shouldn't students who are more creative be rewarded for their project?  Of course there are always students who have been gifted with a bigger imagination than the rest, and therefore are able to write, draw, or in general, think, more creatively.  These students should be rewarded for their inventiveness, yet the students who have more average, or even lesser, creativity than the top students should still be encouraged as well.  I believe creativity is something that can grow over time, especially with the right encouragement and opportunities. Although it may grow at different rates in different students, each and every student has the potential to create something truly unique because each student has a different way of seeing the world.  Allowing and encouraging creativity in students is extremely important because every new child will see the world with a new pair of eyes and will bring about even greater changes.  All of our technology today, everything we use on a daily basis, was created by a student who thought differently and was given, or fought for, the opportunity to pursue their ideas.