The school term is nearly upon us, as is the new year! How about making a resolution to improve your performance in the classroom? Anyone who’s currently teaching in the UK will know how important it is to form a strong bond with their pupils. With that in mind, here are five ways to make yourself more approachable in 2017.
Give constructive feedback
You must make sure that you’re capable of giving constructive feedback. If you don’t, you could quickly find that you gain a reputation for being unapproachable. Of course, there’s no reason to be overly positive all the time, just make sure that you don’t say anything that’s unnecessarily negative.
Open up your schedule
It’s vital that you don’t appear rushed off your feet all the time. This could give your pupils the impression that you don’t have any extra time for them. It should suffice to simply clear an hour or two throughout the week where your students can come and have a word with you.
Remind your students when you’re free
It would send the wrong message if someone approaches you and you are left with no option but to say, ‘sorry, not now’. You can avoid this quite easily by reminding your class when you’re free throughout the week. You could always tell your students to email you if they have any problems, or you could simply say, ‘I’ll be here for five minutes after the lesson if anyone would like to speak’.
Praise those who ask for help
If a pupil does approach you then make sure that you show your appreciation. Some people can find it difficult to ask for support, so you should make sure you take this into account. As well, you could remind your class how pleased you are with the people who have asked for help.
Make something come from one-to-ones
If you hold one-to-ones with your students, always make sure that they’re beneficial. If they’re not, your pupils may question if it’s even worth approaching you for help in future.
Good luck in 2017
It would be great to start off on a high note in 2017, so follow these five nifty tricks to make yourself more approachable. After all, they could make you go from being a good teacher to an amazing teacher.