As teachers, we often forgot what it is like to be a high school student. We forget what it is like to sit in a stiff chair for multiple hours a day and endure up to six different lessons. And, maybe more importantly, we forget what it is like to try to learn as a teenager.
Wit this in mind, it is important for teachers to give students a platform to give honest, constructive feedback to their teachers. This can be a scary idea, as we may fear the responses that we might get—I certainly do. But I have found that the more I give the students a voice in their own education, the more ownership they exhibit. Plus, it has made me a better teacher; even if I don’t agree with what they are saying, I can’t deny the reality of their feelings.
Last week, I asked all my students to respond openly and honestly (students could elect whether or not to put their names on their responses) to the following prompt:
What is one personal detail that is relevant to you education that you wish all your teachers knew?
Below are some of those responses.
“I believe teachers should understand we have 4 or 5 other classes, outside of theirs, that we have to worry about. This piles on hours and hours of homework, causing stress. We also have multiple extracurricular activities going on and other things happening in our lives that may distract us and alter our performances.”
“I wish teachers knew the physical and emotional strain that comes with homework and assignments. Many times, I sacrifice my sleep, lunch, or emotional stability to be able to finish an assignment. I try my best to complete everything and complete it with good quality, but the pressure that I put on myself to finish has a cost on my health. Some days, my dad has noticed my dilemma and tells me that my health is more important than my work. But having the pressure to finish sometimes makes me reevaluate my priorities of school or health. Overall, I wish that deadlines were more lenient so that I could do quality work but not sacrifice my health doing so.”
“One important personal detail that would benefit my education is more explaining with examples. A lot of teachers assign work without truthfully explaining it. Now with technology I see a lot of that on Schoology or on the Internet, and I truthfully lack the ability to understand things via Internet; it is really difficult, especially reading it.”
“Sometimes things come up and students are simply unable to complete assignments. If teachers could either print out a schedule of when assignments will be due or give the students more than one day to complete an assignment it would be very helpful knowing when an assignment will be due. Having more than one night to do it should provide students with enough time to do it. If they are then still unable to complete it, then they are completely responsible and should have no excuse for not completing the assignment.”
“Have seating charts so we won’t be in a group with our friends which could essentially hinder our learning in that class.”
“One important detail that is relevant to my education is that I know I’m easily distracted and more so when the teacher talks and talks, and when I ask something they get mad. Also that since English is my second language, I often get mixed up trying to compensate but teachers don’t see that. I still try. I’m slow but I try to get things done.”
“Having a learning problem puts a lot of pressure on me after school when it comes to homework. I got stressed and it makes me have a breaking point of, ‘I can’t do it, I don’t know how, my head hurts,’ especially being on medication, for it causes it to be worse the later it gets at night.”
“I love teachers that provoke thought rather than simply give work and follow a plan in order to not get fired. It’s really helpful to find connections between lessons in class and the deeper meanings in life. I understand that there are some things that need to be taught in order to succeed in our current society, but in all honesty it really bores me. I like dealing with questions that don’t necessarily have answers. I like thinking rather than doing. Having the ability to think is one of the most valuable skills a person can possess.”
“I wish all our teachers would help us focus on our listening skills, like making us take notes from podcasts. Can we work on our creative skills? Have more situations where we have to come up with things regarding a subject.”
“I want my teachers to know that people come from different backgrounds and I feel like our teachers should be more sympathetic to students because we are really trying out best.”
“I believe that the respect of the individual is the most important aspect of learning. Many teachers seem to view their classes as single unit as opposed to collections of individuals, and thereby teach as such. This, to me, is a problem, for its mentality caps the potential of both the higher and lower level learners in each class. In addition, it discourages question asking and the seeking of deeper understanding.”
The Teachers Tribune 