The term teacher, unfortunately, often conveys a sense of power over students. In many a school setting, the child's natural ability to learn on their own is taken away from them; instead, they are taught that they can only learn through their teacher. This is an idea that I find pretty pompous, arrogant, and wrong. After all, nobody knows everything, and there is something to learn from everyone.
For instance, when a child is learning to walk, we trust them to figure it out themselves. All we need to do is provide a safe area for them to practice in, and to give them space and time. We are all born learners, and this natural ability to test and explore will continue, indefinitely, if we are simply given space and time.
If we took a current educational approach, we'd arrange for special walking teachers for our children. We'd make them sit on the floor and lecture them on the finer points of walking, show them documentary films about walking, or force them to observe our particular style of walking and then make them practice it until they have it right. Finally, we'd test them on it and give them a grade. We wouldn't trust them to figure it out on their own - we'd take away that power.
I prefer to think of myself as my children's learning partner, or educational facilitator. I would be lying if I said I had all the answers for them - and so would anyone else. Everyone has to find their own answers - that's the way it's always been.
My favorite blogger, Teacher Tom, refers to this type of teacher as a "Natural Teacher." He had this to say about it in a recent post:
"...a natural teacher, I think, is someone who knows that she is teaching fully formed human beings. I will not be your master, nor will I be your servant. Perhaps at times I will be your guide, just as there will be times when you are mine. It's a stance that says, you are competent and respected; that you have the same rights and, indeed, responsibilities as the rest of us. It's an approach toward children that acknowledges that the most important things children are learning (as opposed to mere academics) are things that we adults continue to learn throughout our lives, and that we have no lock on profundity or expertise."Imagine if Mozart's father hadn't given him space and time to explore music. Where would we be if Thomas Edison hadn't been allowed to mess around with his experiments all day when he was a kid? In fact, if you take a close look at just about every famous anybody, they almost always have one thing in common: they were given time and space to pursue their interests and their passions. They didn't have people treating them as if they were incapable of figuring it out on their own.
That's not to say that your kid will be the next Mozart if you leave them alone with a piano every day, of course, but it is a reminder to respect your child's own ability to learn, which - most of the time - looks like messing around.
