"The important thing is not to stop questioning; curiosity has its own reason for existing."- Albert Einstein. I believe that the foundation of education is curiosity. It is important when teaching any subject to value questioning in your students. In the Age of Information, it is often so easy to confuse the ideas of others with our own opinions. We adopt the ideas of others and often lose the ability to create ideas for ourselves. So much has been discovered, but when a person opens up their mind and starts to question, they are gifted with so much more. Curiosity is built on perspective. It is unbiased factual knowledge that starts as a clean canvas for students to create their own ideas. The canvas soon fills with perspective built on discussion with other students, questions asked like how and why, and the essential objective of diversity. As a teacher, I will try to harbor the extensive perspective that comes with diverse students. Racial diversity, socioeconomic diversity, diversity in the ability of students to learn, and geographical diversity (the diversity of where the students' homes are) are all essential to creating an atmosphere where students can apply what they learn. Through conversation and group discussion in the classroom, students will be able to better understand how the literature being read applies to people of all backgrounds. This creates students who are quick to question what they have been told and to open up their minds outside of their studies and take in the perspective that the world has to offer them. It is essential that the teacher acts as a mentor. There should be mutual respect between the teacher and students. A teacher must be open minded and instigate questioning. They should direct the conversation and spark creativity in the thoughts of their students. Teachers are not there to dictate the opinions of a student. They are there to offer the information, so that the student may question and determine how they feel about it. Students should not feel unsafe in the classroom. They should not feel discriminated against based on their opinions and backgrounds. Most importantly, a student should leave a classroom feeling confident that the information they take in can be applied inside and outside of the classroom.

Converse! I want to know what you feel confident in, what makes you happy, and what you look forward to. I also want to know how I can make you feel more comfortable in your weaker subject areas. Tell me what you like, and I'll incorporate it into your learning!

duplicate

Once again, conversation allows the student to know where their mentor had weakness. Everyone is human, and a little push goes a long way.

Parallel the concept to an area where the student is more comfortable. In the literary world, metaphors create this parallel. They give you access to higher learning and open your eyes to what may not have been relevant before!

Make sure the student reads it out loud. Discuss the passage line by line. When you can put a whole piece together, you can better comprehend the significance of each part. This works best in a back and forth between student and teacher.

I like to make sure that my student knows what they like and don't. I also like to know how the student has fun. If you can make it fun from the start, you're able to tap into that student's strengths and weaknesses.