What Does Make a Great Teacher?
After my youngest son’s back-to-school visit last fall, I had a kick to my step. He had a great teacher. I knew it. I had no hard, research-based evidence to stake such a claim. I had not seen a teacher’s award, instruction certification, or Ivy League diploma. Gains in test scores from last year’s class were not on view, nor were their success stories. I’d simply listened to the way his teacher spoke about her class and that had me convinced; my son had an outstanding teacher.