There is no perfect teacher, because we are all human beings and in many moments of life we can make mistakes. However, these failures or errors can sometimes lead to being what is known as a toxic teacher , either due to personal causes, poor decisions or the social and educational process of the environment. It is important to analyze the attitudes or circumstances that can lead to said definition and not judge them, but try to correct or avoid them in order to always seek to improve the educational system in a positive way. And if this can be achieved by making small changes in behavior or teaching, it is sure to be worth the effort.
Find out if the following behaviors sound familiar to you!
Typical behaviors of toxic teachers
- His vocation is not to teach in the classroom
Many people may be attracted to education at any given time, but this does not necessarily mean that they have a true vocation to teach in the classroom. If being with the students, getting excited about their learning, looking for ideas to make the subjects and messages reach or worrying about the problems of the students beyond the classroom, are behaviors that are difficult to have, it could be thought that that person does not have a vocation as a teacher /to. This does not mean, however, that that person cannot make a great contribution to education, but that perhaps they are in the wrong place and their profession could end up overwhelming or damaging them in some way. If this is your case, meditate if your true vocation is to be in the classroom or not.
- Has a rigid thought in the way of educating
If you find it difficult to accept new educational forms and the proposals of your own students and colleagues you see more as insults than as an opportunity to improve, you could be suffering from what is known as rigid thinking . A teacher who is not open to new thoughts and innovation could be a toxic teacher.
- Defensive behavior constantly
Having a defensive behavior indicates that you always believe that students, representatives, colleagues and / or managers are attacking you. This behavior prevents the development of empathy, a skill necessary in school to motivate student learning . Run away from him!
- Little preparation or ability to transmit knowledge
If you are someone who spends a lot of time thinking about the knowledge you are going to convey, and little or no time in the way you are going to teach, you could be approaching toxic behavior. For knowledge to reach people it is necessary to prepare all the senses of the recipient of learning.
- Believe that all students learn in the same way
There are those who are easier to learn visually, those who enjoy listening to a good story to learn or those who prefer to see life through reading. Thinking that everyone learns the same way can make you a toxic teacher. Be concerned about facilitating various learning modes for your students.
In short, there are many attitudes that can reflect the existence of toxic behavior in a teacher regarding positive learning, and the best advice to get away from all that toxicity and negativity is to never stop updating . For this reason, every day many teachers and professors publish their ways of doing things in books, blogs, web pages …, those that are giving them good results and may be of use to others. Always keep up to date with all these advances and do not let the passage of time or fatigue end up turning you into a toxic teacher.
excellent applies to all types of education, basic primary professional etc.
-The one that castrates creative thinking.
-the egocentrist, the class circles around him.
– the one who burned his eyelashes for 6 years.
and many more