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Message board > The Teacher ´s First Impressions : Right or Wrong ( Part Two)
The Teacher ´s First Impressions : Right or Wrong ( Part Two)
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Nebal
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The Teacher ´s First Impressions : Right or Wrong ( Part Two)
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Hello dear teachers,
Yesterday I started this topic, and I was expecting more experiences. I would like to present it again today. Forgive me for this!!
Whether we like to admit it or not, we do judge books by their covers. When we meet people for the first time, we immediately take a mental snapshot and begin sizing them up and judging them, usually on a subconscious level.
At the very beginning of each school year, teachers meet new students and try to break the ice. Many a times we can tell about them by our first impressions. Sometimes we �re right , while other times we discover we �re wrong.
As teachers, do you usually try to judge your newly met students from the very first impressions?? If yes, how? If no, why not ?
Do you agree that teachers can tell a lot about their new students from the first impressions?? Why??
Best regards,
Nebal 
P.S. Thanks a lot Lana, Anita, Noor, Marian, Manonski, Giovanni, and cgato for sharing your nice experiences.
Thanks also for the nice humour introduced by Spagman and lovely Ivona and continued by Libertybelle, Zorita, and Caroline!! You all made my day though u diverted!!! |
12 Aug 2009
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anitarobi
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Hi, Nebal!
I said what I think about 1st impressions yesterday, but I �m glad you restarted the topic, because it is very interesting.
Let me just link it to another topic posted here the other day -I was just thinking about it when I saw one of the posts here when sb asked for help about what to do in the first classes of the new school year to break the ice and many people advised this person to use personal questions, to have each st say sth about themselves. (Some of the questions were rather personal, not rude, but too demanding for 1st lessons...) That �s when I thought about this subject. I have only used personal subjects in the beginnings of my teaching career, but soon realized they �re not good ice-breakers, especially when your sts don �t know each other or you. First of all, people nowadays are more alienated and closed off than they used to be, more impressionable than before and more susceptible to first impressions than before, which makes us all, sts and teachers, behave slightly differently than we normally would, because we would all like to be accepted, remembered and liked. Which is why I avoid this type of activity in 1st lessons. (I only do them sometimes, but I ask them to tell us 4 true and 1 untrue thing about themselves, and then we have to guess what was the truth, and what they lied about - being allowed to sort of lie and cheat slightly does break their defences and you find out more from their �lies �, than the truth...)
I usually play word games to assess sts � knowledge level, and I organize games in different types of teams, because my sts don �t feel the pressure then, and it allows me to observe their behaviour in competitive game situations, and it lets them see how much I am planning to demand from them and whether I am one of those people who stick to my own rules or not. This also gives me time and takes away the pressure from judging sts based on 1st impressions. I �m also a teacher trainer, and I �ve learned to create �1st impressions � in 3 steps - the interview, watching the new teacher in class, and watching them behave afterwards in our meeting where we both comment the trial lesson. With sts, you can never really tell, or better - you shouldn �t judge, before you meet the st �s family or at least find out sth about it, and it never helps to rush the process of finding out. What I meant to say, as I did yesterday, you can rely on your instinct, the feeling you have about a st or colleague, but you have to let time show everybody �s true colours. It �s not easy, especially when one is new to a job, full of adrenaline and eagerness... but time and experience help us do this and make our lives easier.
Anita
PS: Boy, when I get going, I really get going, don �t I? Sorry... |
12 Aug 2009
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aftab57
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I never try to judge the students because that is not my role as a teacher. the answer to the first question . yes , having seen hundreds of students over the years you can get a first impression of how particular students will be like in terms of attitude and behaviour. I try my best never to treat a �troublesome � student any different from others and provide the best help and support in their learning as I can. It is hard sometimes but who knows the future and how things will turn out - maybe these �troublesome � student will come out the best eventually.
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12 Aug 2009
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mena22
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Hi my dear nebal! Personally, I think first impressions are just that - "first" impressions (not judgements!).
In Portugal, pedagogic continuity is a reality in most schools (when possible), meaning that we teach the sames students during a cycle of studies. For example, 2 years ago I started with 2 classes of 7th graders, I was their teacher last year, and I �m going to be their teacher again this year - a full cycle, 3rd cycle - 7th, 8th and 9th years. This way we get to know our students pretty well and come to the conclusion that although most of our first impressions proved to be right, many were not, so we must not take anything for certain, not when we are talking about human beings. Besides, as adolescents, students keep growing and changing, so getting to know them is a never ending process. That �s why it �s such a challenge being a teacher. Some students � behaviour is predictable, but many, many students surprise us everyday, even academically speaking (hopefully, in a positive way!).
And since we �re talking of first impressions, I must say I believe it �s important for us, teachers, to cause a good initial impression on our students. When there �s empathy, there �s a good learning environment.
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12 Aug 2009
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tjmorton11
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For some reason we have a negative connotation with the word �judge�, but we all do it either consciously or subconsciously. Simply change �judge� to �assess� and it now sounds a lot nicer. Now it�s a positive thing, a tool to be used. Look, I assess or judge everyone according to my own experiences. I try to use my judgments/assessments to see how I can get a student to best perform. Every student has different needs and we only have testing and our personal experience to �judge� how best to advance a student� |
12 Aug 2009
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Zora
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I am a person who tends to give the benefit of the doubt when meeting others. Although, as most of us have had happen in their lives, I have met people that I instantly dislike for no apparent reason and been proven wrong.
I have also had the case where I meet somebody, feel a weird mistrust - that something isn �t right about them - and have totally ignored that initial feeling and been burnt in the end. The person was "bad" and I ignored my gut feeling because of my innate sense of wanting to believe that everyone is good.
But as a teacher, I try to keep my dislike for some students to myself. I never treat them any differently (or so I hope) and I give them the marks they deserve, praise them when necessary and a lot of times I even sort of like them in the end... 
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12 Aug 2009
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anitarobi
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Timorton, I totally agree with you about the difference between to judge and to assess. You �re so right on that point. And Zora, you �re right - the most challenging sts turn out to be the ones you feel special about in the end. Mena, yes, the 1st impressions we leave on our sts are very important. (My sts often tell me their first impression of me was demanding, strict but OK, and then I turn out to be funny/fun at the end. And when I aks them if I �m still stirct after they realize I �m also funny/fun, they say: �Yeah, sure, but from you- that �s OK. � One st once called me funny as a compliment, and then we taught her the difference between a fun person and a funny person, and she still said: �Yes, OK, you �re fun, but you �re funny, too. � It �s because if I need to scold anyone, I always try to do it in a funny way, thourhg a joke, or give them funny example sentences for grammar points. It �s interesting, though, how �territorial � they get once you �ve had them for at least 2 years, and I �m lucky enough to, because if a new st joins or wants to join our group, they always tell them I �m very strict.) And yes, it soooooooooo helps when you teach the same sts for several years, and it �s the most gratifying experience of all. I �ve had some sts from the age of 4 and they �re at university now - imagine that!!! They say they couldn �t imagine life not taking my English classes...
Nebal, can we hear about some of your experiences with first impressions, please? I �d love for you to share...
Anita |
12 Aug 2009
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mariamit
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I am not judgemental by nature. Like Zora, I tend to give everyone I meet the benefit of the doubt. When I enter a new class and meet the students for the first time, I do try to assess them. I believe this helps me to get closer to them. I work in a public school, so, like Mena, I teach the same students for three years:7th, 8th and 9th. Therefore, for me the first few lessons are very important. I tend to think of them as the foundation lessons that are laid out for future relationships. So, I assess each student but I never judge. In my 28 years of teaching I have learnt that most teenagers can be unpredictable and never cease to surprise me. Like Anita, I stay away from personal questions during the first few lessons. I use ice breakers that also have some form of physical contact as I have learnt that this encourages students to open up more � both to me and to their classmates. Usually in the course of these "games" I can assess most of the students � needs and decide how to better teach each one. If at any time I feel a �dislike� for any students I try to be professional about it- I never allow the students to see how I feel and I try to be fair, never treating them any differently than the rest.
Maria
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12 Aug 2009
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serene
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Hi Nebal!
I personally think first impressions can be misleading so I don �t usually trust them. I like to take my time getting to know my students and allowing them to get to know me. This way we build our relationship slowly but steadily.
As for your second question, well, yes there are a lot of things you can tell about your students from first impressions, such as who is sociable or cooperative, who is shy or funny, who is well-mannered or a "spoiled brat" or who is desperately seeking your attention. But kids can change - we can influence them - so we �d better not stick to our first impressions.
Have a good night or day!
serene |
12 Aug 2009
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