Who Am I to You?
Students hope that you will see them as a whole person, as someone who is unique and worth getting to know. They are sensitive to how you treat them, whether you are kind, whether you listen to and respect their opinions. They deeply appreciate it when faculty believe in them and are willing to put forth the effort to help them reach their potential, both academically and spiritually.
A Faculty Perspective
|
A Student Perspective
|
What others are saying about this question
Brad Wilcox
Education |
I do a little three minute interview with each kid before he or she goes out into their field practicum. [I say,] "Okay, are you prepared? Do you have any last minute questions?" ... But then I deviate from that script and I say, "How are you doing? Are you okay? Are you keeping balanced?" But I think it’s that moment that then my students start recognizing [that]—he cares—he cares about me, he doesn’t just care about whether I’m getting all these things on my checklist, but he cares about me. ... And then I can express a little bit more of that concern and caring, and that doesn’t come out in a lecture.
|
Jeffery Barrow
Phys. & Dev. Biology |
[When] your students know that you care about them, ... something magical happens. .... I’ve had several students that have written and have said, “You know, I usually just come to class and just kind of sit there ... but because I knew that you knew my name, I knew that I needed to be prepared." ... And then I think it just helps in so many other ways too. You never know what these students are encountering in their life. ... In every class there’s students that have struggles, and you never know exactly what background these students came from, what kind of support system that they have, and I think that showing that kind of love helps those kinds of students to succeed whereas they might not have otherwise.
|