I appreciate this way of looking at tolerance as a positive concept. In the past, I have always thought of the term with a more negative connotation, i.e. the connotation that goes along with "acquiescing to the intolerable."

I think this is such an important sentiment. It reminds me of a quote my dad always tells me when I am nervous about something (such as giving live presentations, which always feel like they'll be the death of me), which is "confront the dragon, get the gold."

This reminds me of an anecdote I read about a teacher who asked the students in his classroom to raise their hand if they thought they were of above average intelligence, and ~80 percent of students in the room raised their hand. I think it is common for us to think of ourselves as having higher than average intelligence, but what is "average"? "Average" in terms of what? I like to stray from describing myself or others as "intelligent" or "smart" (or to use the word from the article, "competent") because everyone brings different types of intelligence and competence to the table. So to summarize, I agree with the importance of humility as a quality for teachers to possess, because I think it opens the gates for us to learn as much from our students as they (hopefully) learn from us.

I like the emphasis here on acknowledging that becoming better versions of ourselves as teachers is something that comes with time, careful thought, and practice. It is OK to acknowledge that you don't know everything and that you are continuously learning and working to become a better teacher (and person) than you are today.

Thank you for laying these deadlines out so clearly, Deniz! Looking forward to these readings/interactions with the text and class.