He Said, She Said: What Teachers and Students Want Each Other to Know

Passive aggressive Facebook statuses posted in the early morning and whispered complaints in the teacher's lounge between periods highlight what seems to be a given—teachers and students don’t always understand each other. We asked six teachers and six students to respond to the question, “What do you wish students/teachers would realize?” through in-person and e-mail interviews. Here are the responses we received.

Students

Hanah Jun, sophomore

I wish that some teachers would listen to students as if they were almost peers. Sometimes, teachers tend to ignore messages from students or come up with arbitrary excuses for mistakes that they make, rather than owning up to their mistakes. Teachers sometimes tend to look down upon students and consider them all completely naïve children, though most of the students who care to approach a teacher about their work act like young, sophisticated adults.

Anton Solodkov, junior

My biggest problem is zealous, homework-giving teachers. I hate it when teachers seem to view it as their duty to transform all their students into prodigious lovers of whatever subject it is they teach. We’re all already overloaded just simply with classes and commutes. We are, as you so often remind us, some of the smartest teenagers in the city, who don’t need to be cajoled like animals to do tedious daily assignments. If we want to learn, if we are behind, we’ll catch up. The worst part is that homework is almost never the answer in any scenario. If it’s for a class I enjoy, then it’s simply grunt work that takes more effort to pen down than to actually think about. If it’s for a class I’m struggling in, it only forces me to realize that I can’t do it and fall into a spiral of missing homework and falling behind.

Also, if there is good [online] content out there, teachers shouldn’t be afraid to utilize it, and then supplement that content with explanations and topics it might not have touched on. We live in an age of technology, and we have to embrace that fully. Teachers are no longer the sole source for knowledge on a subject, and they shouldn’t be threatened by that, but rather use it to their advantage.

Sean Takada, sophomore

One thing that I wish some teachers could change is how they treat students based on their first impressions. A student might start off the marking period poorly, but if both the teacher and the student are committed then the student can most likely start to show more improvement. However, some teachers aren’t exactly passionate about helping students out and I feel that doesn’t help motivate the student.

Hillary Hao, junior

I wish teachers knew the weight college puts onto my shoulders. I wish they knew that every time I step into that classroom, every time I raise my hand, every scantron I fill in, can feel like a step backwards from my dream school, a step backwards from seeing my own value as greater than a number. I wish teachers knew what it was to go through a week of tests, to feel as if you’re going to fail every single one simply because there just isn’t enough time. Yet I know that they’re paving the way for something greater, for a student that can and will make a difference in the world. I wish they knew that.

Rodda John, senior

What I want teachers to know is how much we appreciate them, and value what they teach us, even if we almost never say it. We, as students, know that when a teacher assigns an assignment, it is to expand our knowledge base. And sure, we may complain in the short term, but we most certainly will not in the long term. Let’s make it known to teachers how much we value and appreciate the work, the intellectual discussions, and the not-so-intellectual discussions. We have a lot to learn from all of you, and I want you to know that I look forward to every minute of it.

Michelle Yang, sophomore

I get it. Homework is important, and I don't blame you. But I have seven other classes besides your own, totaling up to eight classes. If each class gives half an hour of homework, that's four hours. To all my teachers, imagine four hours of homework every day in addition to your typical schedule. Also, don't forget those four tests coming up later in the week. Moreover, the fact that 60 percent of my grade depends on my test is unfair. I can't believe that 40 minutes and a sheet of paper can affect my grade so much, while my effort and participation over the course of weeks are barely accounted for.

Teachers

Ms. Yulia Genkina, computer science teacher

1. Grades aren’t a measure of your intelligence. Not at all. Not even a little bit. All that grades measure is your work ethic, or how you adjusted so far to this sort of lifestyle, and it’s not for everyone. I hate grades […] But unfortunately, it’s my job to issue them.

2. Even though this is a math and science school, art and music are as important. Science and math come hand in hand with music and art; it’s all about creativity and a different way of looking at things and they should feed each other and help each other out. You require the same work ethic to be good at either one of them and they help you be a more interesting person and a better person all around.

3. Know how to be grateful. Being here is a huge privilege. Nothing is a given in life and just the fact that you’re here and using what the school has to offer is a privilege. It’s stressful, it sucks a lot of the time, but ultimately, if you don't care about the grades themselves, you should still be grateful that you're here you have all of these resources and you are surrounded by smart people […] that's awesome! Treat this place and the people who work here with respect.

4. People's appearances or job titles aren't necessarily defining features of their personalities. Just because I teach [computer science] doesn’t mean I’m not an artist. Assuming things about people, and lots of students do that about each other, don't assume stuff simply based on appearances.

David Hanna, AP European History and AP US History teacher

There’s a direct link between reading a lot, especially reading higher level literature or nonfiction or journalism, and your writing […] it really has an impact and I don’t think students realize that.

As a student, I used to like humanities courses. I didn’t like science (except biology) and math that much. I think it’s important that teachers are really interested and knowledgeable in their subject instead of teachers who are more interested in ingratiating themselves with students and so I try to remind myself of that as a teacher, that that’s what’s important, the subject. That’s what I felt as a student, when I knew I had a teacher that knew what they were talking about and what they were doing more than whether they were my buddy or even what degree they had; there was more to it than that. It’s a combination of knowledge and enthusiasm. Enthusiasm isn’t enough.

Dr. Zachary Berman, AP World History and freshman Global History teacher

I was just talking to my colleague about what type of work students do at home versus in class […] I used to send students with long primary source readings and I didn’t realize that they’re too distracted with Facebook and things to get that done […] but they’re perfectly capable of doing them, it isn’t an issue that they’re not prepared, it’s an issue of finding something that they can focus on. It’s the quantity, I thought students weren’t going to be able to handle the challenge of the reading. But it turns out it’s not the challenge, it’s finding one that’s the right length, and presenting it at the right time. Students are capable of just about anything as long as it’s the right amount.

One thing I always tell my students is that it’s always better to do the work than to not do it because it’s not good enough. Even when I was in graduate school, the thing that would usually kill students is that they would just not complete their papers because they were afraid they weren’t good enough. That’s definitely the secret to success in college - to turn everything in on time even if it’s not good enough.

Debbie Goldberg, Algebra 2/Trigonometry and freshman Math Team teacher

At John Dewey High School, my BC [Calculus] class was made up of all immigrants […] there were students from Hong Kong, or Russia, some from the Philippines, and because I was only a little older than they were, I actually formed a very close relationship with them and I am still friends with some of them to this day. Now they have children of their own, so after they graduated, we just became very close friends.

So back then, because I was so young, I understood teenagers in a different way because I was just so close in age to them. But now that I’m a mother, I definitely realize that teenagers are still children, they have to be taken care of, they still have the basic needs that children have, and they’re not as grown up as I used to think they were.

I also wish the students knew that there’s no shame in struggling in math. Sometimes students feel ashamed that they have to struggle or work really hard and I just want them to know that eventually, everybody is going to struggle in mathematics. Some struggle earlier than others, and that’s all right. I get so few visits in my office from students asking for help because they don’t want to show me what they don’t know and I wish they would because I’m not judging them.

Eric Grossman, European Literature and AP Great Books teacher

Being successful in class, doing well, is largely a function of finding a way to care about it and to be interested about it. Like going to the gym, whether I’m in the mood to do it or not, if I run on the treadmill for 20 minutes, it’s good for my cardio. Reading and writing are different. You can scan your eyes across a page and take just as long as someone else scanning their eyes across the page. But unless you can find a way to be interested in it, you’re not going to get much from that book. And that’s what makes English different from some other disciplines. While there are certain skills involved, the things that make your writing authentic, the things that make your role in class meaningful and valuable, are asking good questions which emerge from genuine interest. Insight emerges from genuine interest, and being interested is a skill.

David Peng, Geometry teacher

One thing I always encourage in my students is to always put in conscientious effort. I want my students to always try and attempt to solve any problem because even if they are wrong, it’s always a learning experience. Many students are just too afraid to speak up and be incorrect, and I try to foster a culture of error in my classroom where it’s okay to make mistakes. I think this year I’ve made it a point that it’s okay to make these mistakes in class because other students will benefit, and they’re probably thinking the same thing. Even in life, you’re not going to be perfect or correct all the time. It’s better to make mistakes, acknowledge them and learn from them than to live in fear of being wrong.

Some of these habits (work ethics, learning from mistakes) students are developing now can carry over in real life, especially during college. I remember when I was in college, during freshman year, all these other students panicked when there was a midterm, a paper due, presentations, or all three. But all my [Stuyvesant] friends and I were fine because we learned how to handle academic stress from [Stuyvesant]. I implore the students here to be patient and struggle and persevere through these challenges because [Stuyvesant] really prepares you for the future, both for the next four years in college and in life.