Authentic Teaching 1

Running Head: ENSURING AUTHENTIC TEACHING IN THE CLASSROOM

Authentic Teaching
Katie Cochran
Fall 2015
HIAD 7541
Dr. Kristin J. Mumiukha

Abstract

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Running Head: ENSURING AUTHENTIC TEACHING IN THE CLASSROOM

There has been decades of reasearch done by educators, as well as researchers, examining the
amount of influence a teacher can have on their students. The influences come from the teaching
style, attitude, and alertness of the teacher to their students. While there has been a lot of research
that has been completed, there is more to be done to examine the positive relationships between
an educator and their student. This paper offers an in depth look at my personal teaching style
with comparisons of academic journals and books. I explore my personal feelings about teaching
and how I expect my teaching manner and attitude to influence the students I come in contact
with. Specifically, this paper will analyze the three aspects of my teaching that allows me to
continue my preferred field of education.

Keywords: Classroom management, positive teaching, encouragement in the classroom,

motivating students, effectively leading a classroom.

Educators come from all walks of life, all different corners of the world, and they all find
their passion for education in different ways. For me, my path to the world of education was

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Running Head: ENSURING AUTHENTIC TEACHING IN THE CLASSROOM

rather unconventional. When I entered college at the young age of eighteen, the last thing that I
could have imagined myself becoming was an educator. I say this because I didnt know where I
would fit in in the world of education, and I truly didnt think it was the field for me. As I
became more and more involved as an undergraduate student, and began observing the inner
workings of the university system, I found myself yearning to become more and more involved
in the world of education. All of a sudden, it became apparent to me that the educational field,
after all, was not a secret society of overachievers that sought to change the world, but
likeminded people that simply want to impact the world and hope to produce world changers.
An educator as their authentic self would be an educator that wouldnt want to depart the
profession, an educator that can examine the benefits of lifelong learning and express the
benefits of it, and and educator that understands the benefits of getting to know their students,
allowing their students to get to know them, and making an effort on a daily basis to empower
their students and allow them to freely express their identity as a student. I strive to be this type
of educator, but it takes daily work and personal affirmations to continue to improve and to give
the profession all that we have as educators. This constant striving for the best, as well as
expecting the best from our students, will cause us to perform at our highest capacity, as well as
receiving performances from our students at their highest capacity.
One professor that comes to my mind immediately upon speaking about a teacher as their
authentic self is Dr. Cheryl Bowers, psychology professor at the University of Memphis. Dr.
Bowers is a professor that will give you all that she has, expect you to give her all that you have.
When I imagine myself as an educator, I often revert myself back to sitting in her class, feeling
the positive emotions that filled the classroom due to her teaching style. When I walk into a
classroom, or any environment where I may be the leader, knowing that people are relying on

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Running Head: ENSURING AUTHENTIC TEACHING IN THE CLASSROOM

me, I do my best to ensure that my vibes are positive, my face is smiling and looking alert and
attentive to the students needs, and that I am giving them all the energy I have to ensure a
positive experience in my classroom. Most of my positive attributes with teaching that I have
gathered over my personal educational experience come from her classroom.
My teaching experience, though young, has a list that is growing at a rather fast pace. I
teach at a preschool, as well as Sunday school classes at my church and I am also a small group
teacher for middle school females going through confirmation (a 3 year program for middle
schoolers in the church to be taught the reason for the churches stances and ideologies). What
this essentially means is that six out of seven days a week, I am teaching in some shape or form
to anyone with an age range of two years old, up to 14 years old. This gives me a lot of insight as
to how to reach people on their personal level. For instance, you wont see me discussing issues
with a 13 year old the way that I would discuss something with a 3 year old. I have had to take
myself out of my comfort zone in order to meet them halfway, and deliver upon what is needed
to ensure that they are successful currently in life, but also preparing them for success as they age
and grow up.
As I look at my personal teaching experience and compare it to my description of the
authentic teacher, while theres always room to improve, I feel that I give my best in order to be
the type of teacher I described. There are three portions of my teaching career that I hold fast to
in order to allow myself to be the authentic teacher that I feel I can be, forming positive
relationships with my students, being an active life long learner and allowing myself to stay up to
date on current generations in order to teach effectively, and finally, that I can reach each one of
my students in order to empower them and to boost their confidence and self esteem.

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Running Head: ENSURING AUTHENTIC TEACHING IN THE CLASSROOM

One of the biggest pieces of me in my educational role is the ability to form positive
relationships with my students. According to Julia Wilkins, good relationships between teachers
and students have been associated with the students increased motivation, academic
achievement, high rates of attendance, and attitudes towards school (Wilkins, 2014). A positive
relationship between an educator and their student is the most important relationship that some
students will have. This type of relationship should be one that not just I, but all educators,
should continuously work toward. In the book Effective Teaching, Gilbert Hunt et al, states
that educational research HAS linked enthusiasm (in the classroom) to teaching effectiveness
(Hunt et al, 2009). Ming-tak Hue, in the book Classroom Management: Creating a
Positive Learning Environment, states that through good communication, the teacher
motivates, guides and encourages student learning; and without such interaction, good
relationships cannot be established and maintained nor can the teacher meets pupils needs
(Hue, 2008). The combination of positive, growth-inducing relationships with students and
teachers is a winning combination for the classroom that sets up the students for great success in
their educational career.
A teacher as their authentic self can also recognize and explain the utmost importance of
life long learning. Life long learning should apply to educators just as much as anyone else, if
not more. One form of life long learning is the ability for a professor to continuously keep their
classroom and students up to date on the latest knowledge and information. This takes constant
amounts of research, as well as working toward creating the up to date, inclusive attitude in their
classroom. As an educator, I do all that I can personally to create a room where the students feel
like the most important portion of the room. I do this by letting them know that Im on their side
because I create a room that allows them to be comfortable and fit in. This is succeeded by

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Running Head: ENSURING AUTHENTIC TEACHING IN THE CLASSROOM

looking at their personal generation, then altering the way that I communicate and decorate their
learning space in a way that they can understand and follow the reasoning. Mike Ollerton, author
of the book Creating Positive Classrooms states that knowing what we are successful at,
however, is a positive place to begin and can lead us more cautiously into taking on-board new
initiatives, alternative practices, different ways of thinking, and considering other peoples ideas
and aims. (Ollerton, 2004). If we are grounded in our principle to educate and to lead the next
generation of education, we must consistently think of new ways to captivate our students and
maintain their attention, as well as allowing them to consistently seek out more information and
more education. If our students see the effort on our side, Ollerton states that they will also make
an effort for us to see as well.
As we create safe, inclusive environments, keep our learning zones up to date and
modern for the students, and create positive classroom experiences, we must implore ourselves
to also allow these changes to boost the students self esteem when in our presence. As a teacher, I
do all that I can with all of my students to give positive, repetitive feedback in order to let them
know that I notice and recognize their effort being out forward. One of my biggest goals as an
educator is to allow the students that surround me to always feel empowered and to constantly
feel as if they are being lifted up and enlightened. Studies performed by Seyithan Demirdag
show a positive correlation between a teachers management in the classroom and a students level
of self esteem (Demirdag, 2015). Demirdag also cites other researchers that have studied and
proven the notion that a teacher can directly influence a students level of self esteem. For some
students, the first time someone believes in them will be in the classroom. For others, their
confidence levels can be raised and reinforced by a teacher that truly believes in them and boosts
them up in their classroom.

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Running Head: ENSURING AUTHENTIC TEACHING IN THE CLASSROOM

As a teacher, I feel that I do truly hold onto these portions of my career that allow me to
be an authentic teacher that makes a difference in my students lives. When I read the book The
Motivated Student: Unlocking the Enthusiasm for Learning by Robert Sullo, one
specific stories symbolism stood out to me. In the book, Sullo interviews a teacher that discusses
his many hats of teaching. When I was wearing my teacher hat, I dont mean that i wasnt
being genuine, I was. When im in the teacher role, my job is to make sure the kids learn as much
as possible. (Sullo, 2009). That sentence, in a lot of ways, sums up my thoughts about education
in one short sentence. It is my job to educate these children on the subject set in front of me, and
as an educator, I will do all that I can to ensure success for their lives. We have students for a
very short amount of time in their life span, and one question I will always ask myself is, what
am I doing to differentiate myself from their other students? Is what im doing sticking with
them? If the answer, every time, is a no-hesitation yes, then I can continue and feel that I myself
and being a successful teacher in their lives. The moment my answer shifts from yes to know, I
will know that I need to get back to my authentic teaching self, bringing positivity, emotion,
strength and empowerment back to my class and thus to my students.

References
Sullo, R. A. (2009). The Motivated Student : Unlocking the Enthusiasm for
Learning. Alexandria, Va: Assoc. for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Demirdag, S. (2015). Classroom management and students self-esteem: Creating

positive classrooms. Educational Research and Reviews, 10(2), 191-197.
Ollerton, M. (2004). Creating Positive Classrooms. London: Continuum.
Wilkins, J. (2014). Good Teacher-Student Relationships: Perspectives of Teachers in Urban High
Schools. American Secondary Education, 43(1), 52-68.

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Running Head: ENSURING AUTHENTIC TEACHING IN THE CLASSROOM

Hunt, G. H., Wiseman, D. G., & Touzel, T. J. (2009). Effective Teaching: Preparation
and Implementation. Fourth Edition. Charles C. Thomas, Publisher, Ltd.
Hue, M., & Li, W. (2008). Classroom Management : Creating a Positive Learning
Environment. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press.