How can a teacher, who sits at a desk throughout a lesson, call what they do, “teaching”? It strikes me as sitting down on the job. How can teachers remain seated if they are truly worked up – as indeed they should be – about their subjects?
Everything that comes into our lives, we’ve attracted magnetically…. You have to avoid giving your attention to bad stuff … because you’re just attracting more of that stuff. Seriously. Think about it.
What if your child was taught the same lesson over and over, eight times in fact, by a teacher called “Mars”? What if you found out the principal had reported Mars to the local education authorities, noting: "He just didn't teach. He did the same thing every day. He confronted kids and pushed them out of the classroom.
The award-winning Maru-a-Pula marimba band will come from Botswana to the Pacific Northwest in April 2010 to raise funds for AIDS orphan scholarships. We need your support to make this tour a success.
The ten-piece marimba band will perform a celebration of music and cultural exchange, raising awareness of a continent's struggles while looking to a future of hope and prosperity.
So there I was, rather new to the classroom and eager to enforce a simple rule: no gum chewing. And there he was, the slouching class clown, McDonald Kgomoyane, chomping away on a huge wad of gum, plain as Botswana’s sunniest day.
Even if you have exceptional self discipline, manage your time skilfully, exhibit the body language of a dedicated student and regularly consult a wise mentor, it will mean little if you don’t read. Reading feeds a passion to learn just as wax feeds a candle’s flame. To put it simply, reading illuminates and informs a life.
It’s that time of year again. Most students are busy writing exams, but very few students will do exceptionally well. What are the secrets of these few top-performing students? Let’s take a quick look at the differences between ordinary and extraordinary students. It never hurts to learn from the best and, who knows, you might just learn how to go from average to amazing. Here are four secrets of the world’s best students:
Back in 1977, I was about to graduate from Wesleyan University in my home state of Connecticut, but without a job. I’d been to parts of East and West Africa by then, so the prospect of teaching in South Africa had a kind of glib, complete-the-tour-of-Africa appeal. My South African-born history professor, Jeff Butler, who had begun his teaching career at Kingswood College in Grahamstown, was kind enough to write on my behalf to a few South African private school headmasters.
"We need a Messiah" says one headline. With fewer than 200 days to go before South Africa hosts the first Africa-based World Cup, what could be a greater national priority than to hire a new coach for South Africa’s football team?
Jaime Escalante is one of the most extraordinary and celebrated teachers of our times. Millions have been inspired by the film, Stand and Deliver, where his dedication and innovative teaching techniques are shown to help the most disadvantaged students achieve the most astonishing results.
I learned this evening that Jock Dickson had passed away. I know that many other Maru-a-Pula alumni were affected by his teaching and I wanted to share my thoughts with them. If there is a book of remembrance I would be very grateful if you could place the following there for me.
The award-winning Maru-a-Pula marimba band will come from Botswana to the Pacific Northwest in April 2010 to raise funds for AIDS orphan scholarships. We need your support to make this tour a success.
