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“Quand la mouche te pique...” That's a French expression that means that when you find yourself passionate for something, anything, this passion, this drive, is unstoppable!
I think one of the main reasons students get bored about a subject is because the teacher gets bored of teaching it... A lot of times the teacher is passionate about his subject but that is not enough... You have to be passionate about teaching it!
We learned that it was the teacher’s role to interest us.
I also had so many bad teachers that put me off my favourite subjects... For them we had to be interested about the class, we had to do all the work, and if we had bad grades it was our fault... They kept blaming the students for what they did not know from previous years or what they forgot from the last lesson! Nobody is perfect and repeating is part of the process. They just couldn’t conceive that they had to make an effort to interest us. Which led to bright students becoming completely discouraged?
Another very important aspect of learning is the relationship between the student and the teacher. If the teacher appreciates the student and treats him or her as an equal (it is not because you are older or because you know a lot that the student is not your equal as a human being). Also there has to be an affectionate bond, even if it is just asking questions about our lives, or sharing experiences... And finally, very, very important, the teacher should never judge you as an individual!
I had the experience of a very strict teacher, very old school... sound bad doesn’t it? All the students loved him because he wanted to teach us what he loved and because he treated everyone (including him) as equal: he called pupils Mr. X or Miss. X and we called him Mr. Y! He liked everyone equally, the bad students and the good ones. And people improved in his class, tremendously!
So students, do not despair, if you think you have chosen a subject that you don’t like anymore, it is never too late, all you need is to find a passionate teacher that wants to teach you his or her subject the way that works for you, who respects you and treats you as an equal, who always keeps his lesson interactive and fun, and who makes you feel at ease and encourages you!!! Yes it exists, I’ve seen it!
As a French tutor I will stand by my words and do the very best I can to follow the path of the great teachers I have met in school. As a student I completely understand the needs and frustration that spoil everything when it is not taken care of by a great teacher.
I wish you all the best for your studies and teaching!
