Chapter 2: Respect, Liking, Trust, and Fairness

“If the teacher doesn’t like you, they won’t say, you can do it, or push you to your full potential” (P. 22). This section that discusses, “Must teachers like students,” brought me back to when I was in high school. Even if not on purpose, teachers many times show signs of favoritism towards students during class. Teachers display that they have a better relationship with certain students in their classes.

This stood out to me as an issue that could really affect the education a teacher provides to all of his/her students. Teenagers are dealing with a developmental period full of choices, change, and confusion. When teachers give the impression that one student is more important than another “the students can also tell, and it affects their learning” (P.22). Another student's story stated that his teacher referred to some students as “advanced,” this created learning barriers between himself and students in class. Displaying bias for one student over another could lead to a reputation, all students talk and share their thoughts about teachers outside of class. I feel it is extremely important to treat all students equally, and to also make each student feel important by recognizing their qualities.