My junior high school history teacher was an example of a difficult teacher; he was precisely the type of teacher that Mr. Dalton at Walton Prep School would approve of. When I was 15 years old and still an ornery teenager, I walked into Mr. Robinson's eighth period History class on the third floor of Heritage Jr. High. Having been a monastery before it became a school, Heritage was the newest and nicest of the three Jr. Highs in town. Mr. Robinson sat at his huge grey metal desk always wearing a black coloured shirt and khaki trousers. His oversized bright yellow pencil never went unnoticed, sitting at the front of his desk it boasted his name engraved in big bold black letters "Mr. Robinson". His class was held toward the end of the day, there were nine periods in total for a full day of school and Mr. Robinson's lengthy history class was in period eight. As each student drug their feet slugging into the classroom, already weary and worn down from the long day of classes, our first sight was of Mr. Robinson sitting proudly at his desk straight in front of the door. After the students sat down in their chosen seats, each one next to their best friend or favourite classmate, Mr. Robinson made everyone stand up and line shoulder to shoulder against the far wall of the classroom. He then called out each student very official-like, by last name first and first name second. Pointing to a specific faded brown desk in the room directing that each student called must sit there in the exact assigned seat. Once all seats were assigned Mr. Robinson handed out a contract which stated that each individual in the classroom would be responsible for coming to class daily, paying attention, remaining in their assigned seats, taking notes, and keeping quiet; "quiet" having been printed in bold, larger font and underlined. This contract was to be signed, in black ink only, by every student sitting in the classroom. This all was only the first day of class; Mr. Robinson’s lectures were drawn out, lengthy monotone hours of excruciating torture. The moment which stands out to me the most from Mr. Robinson’s class was on a very dark and rainy day, the lights were shut down low and the overhead projector was showing an image of something very historical I’m sure; many students had dozed off for a nice afternoon nap and Mr. Robinson announced in a loud boisterous voice, “if you want to sleep in my class I don’t care, but you better learn to sleep with your eyes open and at least pretend like you’re paying attention.” Mr. Robinson was so disconnected and disengaged that I still to this day view him as a cold, empty robot.
Mr. Keating was quite the opposite of my lackluster history teacher; he was a positive example of a great teacher. Mr. Keating was a great teacher because he was personable, connected with the students and pulled in their attention. When Mr. Keating first entered the classroom he was whistling and walking with a strut, he was happy and proud to be there. He walked straight through the classroom, back out through the other door and poked his head back in and said “well come on”. The students didn’t know what to do; they had never in their academic careers experienced such a strange professor before. Mr. Keating lead the students to the hallway where pictures of past alumni hung behind glass cabinets, he made the students realize that these men could be their possible future. Mr. Keating opened the students eyes to what really lies ahead of them and the choices they have in front of them to decide on who and what they will become “these boys are now fertilizing daffodils…But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Carpe Diem. Seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary.” Seize the day was his advice to the students; in only the first class Mr. Keating took the students outside of the classroom and pulled in their attention leaving them mesmerized and excited to learn. In his vision of what a teacher should be Mr. Keating felt passionately that “the idea of educating was to learn to think for yourself.” I love this point of view because it resonates with me and makes me want to do better for myself. Mr. Keating takes the students outside to the soccer field and tells one of the boys “let it fill your soul”, this shows how he wanted his students to open up and become more than what society demands of them and what it wants to place them in.
Mr. Keating and Mr. Robinson have two very different styles of teaching. While they both managed to get their knowledge, information and desired messages across to their students, one was much more dynamic and effective on the lives of each student. Mr. Robinson’s monotone and lackluster lectures were able to help students pass tests and learn what the curriculum required of them, but it was not conducive to creative thinking or self-enrichment. Mr. Keating however, was very personable and connected with his students; he saw potential in each one that perhaps they had not yet seen in themselves. Mr. Keating’s methods of teaching captivated all the students’ attention and inspired to be more than they originally thought they could be. Mr. Keating was a great teacher because he cared; his passion for teaching allowed him to make learning fun and interesting for all of his students, despite their reservations and inhibitions.
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