Top 6 Keys to Being a Successful Teacher

The most successful teachers share some common characteristics. Here are
the top six keys to being a successful teacher. Every teacher can
benefit from focusing on these important qualities. Success in teaching,
as in most areas of life, depends almost entirely on your attitude and
your approach.

1. Sense of Humor
A sense of humor can help you become a successful teacher. Your sense of
humor can relieve tense classroom situations before they become
disruptions. A sense of humor will also make class more enjoyable for
your students and possibly make students look forward to attending and
paying attention. Most importantly, a sense of humor will allow you to
see the joy in life and make you a happier person as you progress
through this sometimes stressful career..
2. A Positive Attitutude
A positive attitude is a great asset in life. You will be thrown many
curve balls in life and especially in the teaching profession. A
positive attitude will help you cope with these in the best way..
3. High Expectations
An effective teacher must have high expectations. You should strive to
raise the bar for your students. If you expect less effort you will
receive less effort. You should work on an attitude that says that you
know students can achieve to your level of expectations, thereby giving
them a sense of confidence too. This is not to say that you should
create unrealistic expectations. However, your expectations will be one
of the key factors in helping students learn and achieve..
4. Consistency
In order to create a positive learning environment your students should
know what to expect from you each day. You need to be consistent. This
will create a safe learning environment for the students and they will
be more likely to succeed. It is amazing that students can adapt to
teachers throughout the day that range from strict to easy. However,
they will dislike an environment in which the rules are constantly
changing..
5. Fairness
Many people confuse fairness and consistency. A consistent teacher is
the same person from day to day. A fair teacher treats students equally
in the same situation. For example, students complain of unfairness when
teachers treat one gender or group of students differently. It would be
terribly unfair to go easier on the football players in a class than on
the cheerleaders. Students pick up on this so quickly, so be careful of
being labelled unfair..
6. Flexibility
One of the tenets of teaching should be that everything is in a constant
state of change. Interruptions and disruptions are the norm and very
few days are 'typical'. Therefore, a flexible attitude is important not
only for your stress level but also for your students who expect you to
be in charge and take control of any situation.