Here are a few comments:
- A good teacher motivates the student and has the student’s best interest at heart.(Felita, Vienna, GA)
- Kids already know what they can’t do, they need encouragement, patience and lots & lots of praise!(Lisa, Falmouth ME)
- She smiles at me.
She really likes me.
She misses me when I don’t come in.
I learn a lot in my class
It’s OK, Mrs. Becker will show me how.
(Margaret - on behalf of her 8 year old son, Wilmington, DE) - A good teacher’s …values are far broader than competitive tests…S/he also values the “other things” that many times are left out from the curriculum programs…compassion, gratitude, love togetherness, harmony, etc. (Emilio, Blackalls Park, New South Wales, Australia)
- There should be NO politics when it comes to education children who can’t be educated in the normal classroom. These children are also the future. (Mercedes, Ridgefield, NJ)
- A good teacher will not hold misbehavior against a student. A good teacher will see and feel the joy in an LD student’s efforts. (Kelli, Sleepy Eye, MN)
- The best teachers…understand that some days the most important thing may not be academics. (Stephanie, Springfield VT)
- Someone who knows the child is more important than the lesson plan, the district testing, than state mandated testing. The child matters more than how the teacher looks. Someone who knows negativity and criticism doesn’t work. (Pam, Mesa AZ)
- The most important thing these kids can get is acceptance from their teacher. Too many teachers see the LD child as extra work and a problem that has to be delt with on a daily basis. (Cathy, Ellisville, MO)
- A good teacher encourages, challenges, and uses my son’s strengths to help him learn. Modifications are used on an as needed basis rather than a blanket list for everything. (Michelle, Mars, PA)
- My son…knows he is different, he knows that staff people get frustrated with him and he knows that the teacher is busy and might not have time for him. But the compassionate teacher will tell him at the end of the day, you are a valuable student in the class and I am glad you are here. (Shelly, Apple Valley, MN)
- Who doesn’t “know it all” and can still learn things. (Andy)
- Good teachers ask themselves as they prepare each and every lesson, “How is this lesson going to affect my students achievement?”. (Jao)