David Pollak — Website DesignerDavid Pollak is an Elementary Education Major with an ESL endorsement, looking towards becoming an upper-elementary grade teacher. He grew up in Wilmette, Illinois. When not working with children, he is capturing the world as a photographer/cinematographer. David hopes to one day combine both his passion for teaching and his passion for camerawork to further enhance his classroom.
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Student Voices with David Pollak
On Motivating His Students
Throughout my schooling, I was lucky enough to experience many teachers who helped motivate us as students in general, and specifically helped to motivate me. Looking back now, the ways in which my teachers related to me, naturally motivated me and pushed my work ethic. Specifically, I had several teachers in middle school who you could tell their classroom was their world. When one of their students needed help, they were there immediately. My sixth grade homeroom teacher embodied this principle perfectly. No matter what it was, no matter when it was, she was always there to help me or give me guidance. A large portion of the time, she would actually refuse to help me, because she knew I was more than capable of answering my own questions. Educators who truly care for and know their students inside and out, are the ones who motivate them the best.
In my future classroom, I hope to behave in the same way as my favorite educators did. I want my students to know I care for them, their well-being, and their success. It is important to me that my students know I will not just treat them as students, those who are below a teacher in authority, but rather as equals and human beings. I want them to know I will always expect the best from them, because that is what they should expect of themselves. I plan on instituting a flexible due date system in my classroom, that will suggest due dates for things but they will not be hard deadlines. If a student feels they need more time because they will have a busy week ahead of them, or feels they will need extra time to produce their best work, I will always be open to conversations regarding their assignments. In this way, I hope my students see me as an honest teacher, and one who motivates them through passion.
In the same ways that my educators have motivated me, and I plan on motivating my future students, I also work towards motivating my reading students at the Boys and Girls Club. I think it is important to be flexible and understanding when working with students. One of my students gets frustrated sometimes when she has a headache, and begins to shut down and close herself off. Instead of trying to push her to keep reading, I think it is more productive to ease off, and work on something else. Then, when the time is right, we pick back up again. This way of motivating students allows them to see their teachers as real people, who care about their big picture results, and not the nitty-gritty day to day materials.
In my future classroom, I hope to behave in the same way as my favorite educators did. I want my students to know I care for them, their well-being, and their success. It is important to me that my students know I will not just treat them as students, those who are below a teacher in authority, but rather as equals and human beings. I want them to know I will always expect the best from them, because that is what they should expect of themselves. I plan on instituting a flexible due date system in my classroom, that will suggest due dates for things but they will not be hard deadlines. If a student feels they need more time because they will have a busy week ahead of them, or feels they will need extra time to produce their best work, I will always be open to conversations regarding their assignments. In this way, I hope my students see me as an honest teacher, and one who motivates them through passion.
In the same ways that my educators have motivated me, and I plan on motivating my future students, I also work towards motivating my reading students at the Boys and Girls Club. I think it is important to be flexible and understanding when working with students. One of my students gets frustrated sometimes when she has a headache, and begins to shut down and close herself off. Instead of trying to push her to keep reading, I think it is more productive to ease off, and work on something else. Then, when the time is right, we pick back up again. This way of motivating students allows them to see their teachers as real people, who care about their big picture results, and not the nitty-gritty day to day materials.