The Right Stuff

As one advances in their educational process it becomes apparent that some of their instructors were a significant cut above the rest. These few individuals are inevitably viewed as master craftsmen. But why is it that some instructor?s posses the ?right stuff? for being effective with their students while others do not? When one analyzes their educational experience, those instructors that were extremely effective appear to them as makers of fine wine, turning grapes into a drink which is pleasurable to the pallet. All instructors? careers starts out in much the same manner as a trade?s apprentice. First, they must go to school themselves. Then, they must observe experts in action. And finally, they have to exercise their newly acquired skills. The instructors that eventually become effective quickly realize there is much more to the fermentation process than this. They realize that to be effective with a student there are additional requirements that must be adhered to. To make a fine wine they must learn to delicately blend the right ingredients of personality, motivation, and above all patients.

The initial ingredient required to becoming an

effective instructor is of personality. The personality of

the instructor affects each and every student they are in contact with. An effective instructor will develop a personality that conveys humor into the learning process. It is only natural that what one finds humorous, one tends to remember longer. Additionally, if an instructor to be a cut above the rest, their personality must be of fairness and equality for each student. Students feel that, if their instructor really doesn?t like them much anyway, there isn?t much use in trying as hard as they would otherwise. As the apprentices of the instructor trade begin to integrate a warm, humorous, and friendly personality into their instructional style, the first process in fine wine making is achieved.

Secondly, the instructor then adds motivation to their students? behavior. When an instructor motivates a student to do well, the student usually tries to succeed beyond that point. This can most easily be done by the positive reinforcement of the students? abilities and through constructive criticism. When an instructor portrays to their

students that they believe in their abilities, the student unknowingly starts believing that they do posses the same abilities. Through applying the second ingredient to becoming an effective instructor, motivation, the grapes start to ferment and the apprentice now becomes a journeymen of the wine making

trade.

Finally, the most important ingredient required of an effective instructor is that of patients. Patients is of a virtue when instructing students, much in the same way it is when making a fine wine. The majority of the success a student will achieve throughout this process is a direct result of the amount of patients displayed by the instructor. All students do not learn at the same rate and level. The patient of the instructor for each of their students is of vast significant. When a student may be struggling to obtain a firm grasp of the material, the

patients or impatience of the instructor will ultimately determine the particular students? success. When an instructor applies this third ingredient to ones learning process, they progress to the realms of master tradesmen.

All in all, being an effective instructor is more than merely knowing and exercising the science of instruction. Just as the process of fermenting grapes can yield either wine or cooking vinegar, the process of instructing students can yield similar results. Instructors with the ?right stuff? to become master tradesmen understand that making five-star Chardonnay is a delicate process. Furthermore, they also understand that they must add the additional ingredients of: personality, motivation, and patients to the bottomless vats of their students to become renowned master instructors.

Bibliography

none to report