First impressions are extremely important in all walks of life, but they are particularly important in teaching because one flippant comment to an unsuspecting student could take many years to redress. Make first impressions count.
Once again in classrooms up and down the land students in oversized uniforms have been returning to their classes this September. Schools will become places of peril as lost Year 7 students wander the corridors staring at unintelligible maps on the latest I- gadget. When I asked a Year 6 student recently about what they were looking forward to about going to their new school they replied ‘better dinners’. Although a commendable reflection on their dinner service, such responses do lay bare the challenge that some teachers can face in inspiring the younger generation.
Primary School Environment
What first strikes me when I visit Primary schools is how beautiful they tend to look. Colourful displays, well-tended, although often small libraries, and photographs of the children displaying their responsibilities such as House Representative or Student Councillor. Having never made it beyond Assistant Milk Monitor, a position I did so poorly that the state intervened to stop its provision, I am always impressed by the sheer enthusiasm of the students and how seriously they take their responsibilities. So what happens to many of our young people in the transition between the Primary and Secondary sector? How can the passion for learning be maintained and extended in that crucial period of time rather than lost in the routines and bells of a larger Secondary School?
In the words of Sir Ken Robinson, international author and education advisor, “For most of us the problem isn’t that we aim too high and fail – it’s just the opposite – we aim too low and succeed.” Too often, the buzz and the passion for learning in that initial phase can be lost in classroom routines and in just ‘doing stuff’ rather than really challenging the students. I recall handing in my first History homework in a large Comprehensive in South London. I had a passion for History from my Grandfather with whom I lived. I can still recall the sweat and effort to write seven sides of A4 on life in a Saxon village complete with map! For a reason that escapes me now, I was a day late with the work and found my teacher on the stairs outside of the staff room whereupon I handed him the late essay. As I descended the stairs I was then hit on the cheek as my book flew past me having been thrown by the teacher with the comment ‘I’m not marking it because it was late’. Thus the scene was set for me to subsequently deliberately do nothing in history classes and miss every homework for the next three years in a self-defeating attempt to settle the score.
Deadlines
Now, deadlines are important, in all spheres in life and I know many colleagues who may well say ‘a deadline is a deadline’, but so is getting the outcome that you require. If the required outcome was to ensure that the student did no work for three years and felt a grudge about it 31 years later then ‘ Mission accomplished’. The point is that if you look back on school I am absolutely certain you will identify subjects that were so drearily taught that slowly plucking your own eyeballs out with a toothpick would have seemed like a preferred alternative. I very much doubt my old History teacher has ever given it a thought but it was a first impression that I remembered.
So, for those who are starting off with new classes in September or new careers in teaching here’s a five point checklist, born of experience, on how to inspire rather alienate your students.
First impressions count:
Be smart, punctual and have the resources readily available. If you look the part and can deal with the myriad of pen, pencil, ruler questions in the first five minutes you will begin to build the confidence of your students from their first steps in to the room.
Seal the deal:
Build the confidence of the students in you by explaining what you will do to ensure that they meet with success. Likewise, be clear about your expectations of them in terms of behaviour and academic commitment and be prepared to maintain your standards going forward no matter what the challenge.
Lay out the journey ahead:
Take the time to explain the learning journey that the students are going to go on with you in the weeks ahead. Be full of drive and passion for your subject and belief in your students. If you don’t give the impression that what you are doing is interesting and important to them they will not engage with the learning.
Avoid giving students the life story before lesson two:
Take time to build a relationships with students that are set on a solid foundation of trust and respect. You role is not to be a friend to the students but to be a source of academic challenge and inspiration. Building those positive relationships with young people is an amazing experience but it takes time and consistency of approach.
Leave them wanting more:
Ensure that by the end of the first lesson all of the students can leave the class having been challenged and engaged in their prior learning. If you have merely covered a list of the classroom rules you will find students whom struggle to remember what subject they have been learning about. This bodes ill for the lessons that lay ahead especially because you never get a second chance to make a first impression.
We have all been there in our lives, a miscalculation of the timings, the need to finish something properly rather than rush it just to meet the deadline. Rules are important, but so is taking the time to listen and accept that we all appreciate someone who can be flexible and supportive, thoughtful and empathetic. That is what will develop the very best relationship with your students. In allowing a margin for error you could be preventing years of disillusionment from your students; and for your subject. However tempting it may be to throw the exercise book as hard as you can down the corridor- first impressions count, it isn’t all about you!
by Peter Thomas