As a teacher, I never really know exactly what is happening on at home for my students. Some do a great job at hiding their struggles while others do not. We all have our own struggles to go through in life. Students should feel good when they are in school. They need to see teachers genuinely care and want to help them succeed.

Learning from my students is one of the things that I look forward to the most when teaching. They inspire me constantly to learn more and look at things from a different perspective. They remind me to question what I read and what I am told.

So much of teaching is focused on test scores today. As a math teacher, I find that not only students but teachers are more worried about test results than what learning is actually taking place. Taking a test is not an easy task for all students. There needs to be a better way to indicate learning than simply taking tests all of the time.

I find this to be related to what I have been learning through STEM lessons. Much of the push requires students to learn through their own experimenting and hands on activities. It is much more student centered than teacher centered. Students are able to find solutions and defend their work rather than simply follow steps to produce results.

Students like many adults today need to find a reason to do something. Learning does not happen fully if a person does not see the value in what they are learning. There has to be a motive.

I find this more of a triangle in today's education system. It is not only teacher and pupil or teacher and child, but rather all three in constant communication and contact. It truly is a team effort when it comes to learning.