Thank you for the well-written feedback. I agree with you completely. The whole “don’t smile until December” thing completely depends upon context. It depends upon the teacher, his/her personality, and the student dynamic. And thank you for the topic suggestion (What is professionalism?) I may tackle that sometime soon.

I believe the expression is, “Don’t smile until Christmas.”

I think it’s a matter of interpretation. LOL I doubt many took the expression too seriously and went about frowning and/or being mean for four months. But the sentiment is perhaps a good one.

As a new teacher (and, actually, throughout my career) I needed to be liked by my students. I don’t suggest that this is your situation, or anyone else’s, but for me it was probably a function of my own insecurity as a teacher – and as a person. There are surely other reasons.

What the statement ‘don’t smile…’ means to me is that it is important to establish the kind of relationship you are going to have with your student(s) from the beginning (hard to change this in the middle of the year). This is something that I personally struggled with throughout my career. That fine line between being a ‘friend’ and being a ‘mentor’ can be a difficult one to walk but it is one that we, as participants in the education of children, must navigate.

The word ‘relationship’ in the context of student/teacher interaction is fraught with interpretation depending on perspective … ie. the view of the parent, the student, colleagues, administration and the public. So, again, at the risk of being misinterpreted (perhaps less risky in retirement 😉 I continue…

In my view, good teaching is all about relationships (well, it’s about a lot of things but this is the topic at hand). That that relationship is nourishing to all is important.

There will come a time however (and these are just examples of what might come up), when the teacher will have to correct a student for behaviour or attitude or hygiene or … There will come a time when the class is ‘off the wall’ (it’s Halloween!) and the teacher is charged with the task of pulling it together. The student/teacher relationship that has been established will determine to a great extent how the dynamic of these play out.

For example, the way you would encourage a friend to drive sensibly will be different than the way a police officer might do the same thing. The way you tell your father to eat properly is different than the way his doctor would. The way you tell your daughter… and so on… Relationships have different dynamics.

Teaching is an art … and I believe that ‘teaching style’ and the kind of relationship a teacher has with her students can and should be as varied as the individual – (within the context of the classroom and community). But in the end, (and I don’t doubt that you agree) there must be what is understood (by all stakeholders) to be (here’s another historical phrase) ‘a professional student/teacher relationship’.

So yeah, go ahead, smile … laugh it up. Doesn’t matter, so long as from the start everyone knows the game plan. Whatever works within the context of ‘good teaching’. For many of us however, it is necessary to ‘act’ like ‘teachers-in-charge’ for a while until we get total buy-in from everyone. Then, when the time is right, allowing a little more of our own personalities to come to the fore … again (I feel like a politician) within the context of professionalism. ie. Nothing wrong with ‘faking it until you make it’.

My view anyway.

Steve

Next topic. What is professionalism? 😉