The man, the legend, Mr. Feeny. We all grew up with him, and let's face it: we all love him. He was the teacher that we all wanted. And why was that? Because he cared. We've been talking a lot about how teaching styles are important, and what we should learn in the classroom but what I honestly believe matters most is the teachers themselves.
We all have those teachers we remember from elementary, junior high and high school who were our favourites. But think back. Do you remember what they taught you? You may remember the methods they used to teach you, but why did you enjoy them so much? It's because they cared.
I think that what Mr. Feeny says at the beginning of this video hits the nail on the head. It connects back to Friere's comments on the banking method. Children don't remember everything the teacher tells them in the classroom. A big life experience, however, or a hands on and engaging method is memorable. Children remember experiences.
He also continues to be right on when he looks at the problem with education today. We have so much access to information today that we often take it and our education for granted. Although it is a bit dated and I do think we are incorporating technology more and more into our education, I see his point that we take the knowledge we are surrounded with for granted.
I came across an article that explores the benefits of a good teacher further. It discusses how to measure what makes a teacher good in order to be able to lay out standards for teaching. The article touched on my exact feeling when they said that they would measure what makes a teacher good, "It's a hard nut to crack. The things that are easy to measure don't matter that much, and the things that matter aren't easy to measure." With Mr. Feeny, for example, you cannot measure his greatness, but we all know he is great.
"The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires." ~William Arthur Ward
What do you guys think? Any thoughts about our beloved teacher Mr. Feeny and his views on education?
This video definitely brought back many memories :)I believe that it is the teacher themselves that have the greatest impact on students, children do remember experiences. Having an excellent teacher makes a huge difference regarding the outcome of a students overall understanding of the concepts and materials taught in class. Math is not my strong point but I had teachers in the past who I had such a great relationship with even if my mark was not great. Because I had such a good experience with the teacher it did not matter that I was struggling with math I still looked forward to attending the class! When a teacher is negative it can really bring the whole class down and students may not feel the need to try as hard. When a student has a teacher they like it gives them that extra boost to excel in class.
ReplyDeleteOh, Mr. Feeny. SO wise. I love that you found this video. I completely agree with everything you have said that its the teachers who care the most that we find memorable. Feeny was a great teacher and he was clearly loved by his students. It was his love for them though that made the lessons stand out.
ReplyDeleteTeachers make the difference in education. Someone believing in you is a greater experience than any grade. In the last couple of minutes in the cideo you can see that even though all of the students in Feeny's class did not recieve the same grades Feeny loved them all the same.
Boy Meets World. Such a good show.