My philosophy of teaching is undefined, evolving, turning in on itself, and I have limited teaching experiences to draw upon. From these, I believe caring about students is a strength I possess and something that matters for students, a conclusion drawn from course evaluations and talking to students. I believe when students feel that a teacher
cares about how they are doing in class, this tends to affect them for the better in terms of engagement.
Then again, maybe I care too much, since despite how much I might care, the outcomes seem to be all over the place; likewise, there is a point where caring crosses the personal lines between student and teacher and can be a detriment. I could apply this philosophy as I do a cliche I like to live by: everything in moderation, including how much you care about students. But
do care. I have heard it from many people, "well, they (teacher, parent, proprietor, coach) don't care, so why should I?". Modeling behavior bears out, and if you don't seem to care then it follows that followers will slacken their effort on all fronts.
How a student does, what they learn, has everything to do with their engagement with the course - i.e: how much they care. When they're engaged, they talk about it, think about it, read about it, and perhaps, they do well in it.
Now, how do you express "caring", and caring just enough, but not too much? You tell me.
Image used by permission of
Ric Stultz
