Two questions

By Vidas Pinkevicius

Here are two questions that any teacher dreads the most:

1. "Will this be on the test?"

You pour your heart and soul into material you teach but all you can see is blank faces in the class. Faces of kids who are so bored by the routine that all they dream of is to survive until the bell rings. Many times we freeze and don't know how to answer it. How about this way: "Yes, this will be on the test of your life." (thanks to )

And the opposite of this:

2. "Will you stop being jerk to me?"

You think students owe you something. You treat them like less-humans. You think that all they want is a good grade. But once in a while a student appears who sees you through and they want you to treat them with respect and dignity.

In the case of the first question it is the students who are beaten down and in the second - the teacher.

In both instances we need to wake up, look each other in the eye, and say: "Thank you."