Teachers: Friends or Foes?
April 8, 2009
Most of the students that I work with complain about their teachers. And I have to admit that I usually commiserate with them. I still vividly remember my chemistry teacher who spent more time impressing us with his ability to spell backwards (he claimed it was from years of inhaling mercury fumes) than he did teaching us any chemistry. And then there was my English teacher who always completely marked up my papers without ever really explaining what was wrong with them.
But this is actually a huge lost opportunity!
Stop grumbling and start using your teachers to develop some valuable skills AND improve your grades at the same time. Really! I’m not kidding. Here’s how:
Stop and talk to them. Ask him how he became a biology teacher and if he likes it. Find out what she does for fun outside of school. Ask if he has kids and how old they are. But don’t be an outright schmoozer. Nobody likes that.
Now why would you do such a thing? Well, it never hurts for the person who will be grading your final to like you. Building a rapport with your teacher makes it that much easier to ask her for advice on what went wrong on the midterm.
Stay tuned for more on How to Love Your Teachers. There’s plenty more to this than just getting on their good side.