this post was submitted on 12 Apr 2025
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I know it was quite a while ago for many of us here, but what, if anything, do you wish your teachers at school knew about you / did to make your educational experience a better one? Or just the school staff in general?
I wish my teachers had given me more advanced work instead of having to sit and listen to people read pages from the novel I'd read ages ago.
That was always so painful. Enduring extreme boredom was however the most useful skill I learned in school. I suspect I would have been better served by learning to actively work to achieve things instead, but that was generally discouraged.
Same thing at my school.
So it goes.
I think those that relate on a personal level.
I was most fond of the teachers who asked about where you're at outside the curriculum as well. Those teachers I listened to.
Yup! Favourite teacher ever had previously been a community nurse. Knew full well teenagers will drink, drug, and fuck. Talked about such in a blunt, truthful, non judgemental, and FUN way.
Honestly Iโm not sure. If had my share of teachers I liked and didnโt like. Maybe more emphasis on inclusiveness and acceptance of everyone around me though I grew up going through primary school where there was rampant racism and ironically thinking back it were quite a culturally diverse class.
There was a lot of growing up and maturing and self reflection and realisations that I needed to get where I am now or even 10 years ago and more so than anything I wish I could turn back time with the mindset I had after I matured to do school again.
I also went through VCE without having a proper English teacher for half a year or more maybe, all we had were CRTs and wish we didnโt have to go through that in my final year.
I would have been happy if they just stopped trying to make the experience worse.
Could you elaborate on any specifics?
Well, the worst was one who enjoyed failiing people, so would set tests that were really hard to pass. And then he would do things like mark you wrong on things you got right just to make sure you got a fail.
One had a habit of telling you your draft work was great and then failing you on the final copy. She did that to a couple of students I know on a compulsory project for a compulsory VCE subject that meant they had to repeat Year 12. I had her for Year 11 psychology, a subject which was not offered until enough students lobbied for it that they changed the curriculum. Over half that enthusiastic class dropped it after the first semester with her teaching.
Some of it was just general contempt for us as people - like making us stay out in the rain during class breaks because they didn't want the hassle of declaring it a "wet day" which allowed us to use classrooms on breaks.
Some were just incompetent, like the accounting teacher that could only set work from the book and mark it against a scoring guide but didn't actually understand the material in the slightest.
The best teachers I had were what I would consider should be the minimum standard - they taught coherently and didn't seem to actually hate the students.
Work from the book only is just awful. I had an American teacher for 3UnitRelated English who just used Coles Notes. Full stop. We taught ourselves.
I don't know if anything my teachers or school could have done to make my experience better.
My problems were at home. I excelled at work in school, my natural intelligence, voracious reading habit and willingness to work hard in school hours were the only thing that helped me pass or even excel.
My home life was chaotic and even obstructive, with my parents defying advice given by my teachers regarding what I could be doing academically and career wise.
So maybe a social worker?
Having the same teacher from K-6 is a really bad idea.
Attending a school your parent teaches at is social suicide.
I really wonder what would have happened if the concept of autistic girls had existed then.
My problems were at home, so probably not a lot haha!
My least favourite teacher was a math/PE teacher because he would very obviously favour the jocks/sporty boys and ignore the nerdy boys, and then was super creepy to the pretty girls, and ignored the normal looking girls. He was fired after I graduated for inappropriateness with the girls, go figure.
My favourite teacher was an English/Lit teacher. She was no nonsense, wasn't afraid to give the class a piece of her mind if we were acting up. She had such a commanding voice, for such a short woman ๐. BUT, if we asked how her adult daughters were, she could go on and on about them. She taught the curriculum wonderfully, provided context for what it meant, and explained what we needed to do for each task/test.
Another favourite teacher was the science/physics teacher. He made every class fun, he was funny and never discriminated against any student for their gender. It was interactive, and he loved showing us concepts with physical objects/chemicals. He was easy to talk to and ask questions, because he never gave off the vibe that he thought we were dumb.
My best ever teacher was incredible. She was single by choice, and dedicated her life to teaching and her church. She kept the areas separate, but her peace from her religion followed her into the school. She taught English, lit and history subjects but her real passion was music. She worked out of hours teaching music, accompanying students to external exams and performances and ran the school musical and music festival. She was tough and took no nonsense, but she was just as quick to give praise. When she looked at you, she saw you. At her funeral last year there were students that she'd taught over her entire working life, and she made all of us feel like we were seen and heard. I was so lucky to have her because she said things to me that I'd never heard in my life. That I was good at something, and she hoped I'd take a particular class next year because she was looking forward seeing my work. I didn't get that stuff from home.