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Many times I find myself thinking about my time back in school and about my teachers. Some of them I remember with great appreciation. They not only taught me what I needed to know, they also influenced me in a positive way and most importantly, they made me feel like they cared for me as a human being. That is the type of impression I want to leave on my students. I not only wish to help them succeed in learning a new language, I care to make them feel valued, I desire to learn about their needs and goals, and I want them to remember me as a good teacher. I studied to become a Spanish/English interpreter and translator about 14 years ago. That career taught me about grammar, intonation, vocabulary, etc. However, it did not focus in teaching. After working for more than 10 years in Customer Service and doing translations for individuals and companies, I have developed a good understanding of what is needed to build a good relationship with customers and I have discovered that I have a passion for working with people and helping others. That is the main reason I now want to focus in the teaching career. Learning teaching skills was essential for my new goal. I learned that a lesson can be more successful if the teacher is organized, knows how to manage the class, and the lesson remains clear and consistent, however, building a good relationship with your students is the key to help you motivate even the students who may not have the same interest or may be reluctant to participate. Many times, teachers are not aware of what might be happening with their students outside the classroom and how that may affect their performance. I do remember how some of my teachers were able to realize when I was going through difficult times. The fact that they were able to notice that without me even telling them anything, and how they always had a word of encouragement to make me feel better motivated me to want to succeed in their class because I knew that they cared for me as an individual. I learned that teaching requires patience and dedication, as teachers we are mentors and can either have a good or bad impact on our students. Some of the most important tools that can help teachers build a good relationship with the students are: To learn about the students weaknesses and strengths and be willing to help them when they struggle, to include fun activities during lessons and motivate students to participate so they do not become bored and lose focus, to avoid showing favoritism towards some students, and to always treat them equally. In order to maintain that rapport with the students a teacher must also keep a balance between a good relationship and discipline. The teacher must be a good example, otherwise, students may lose respect towards the teacher and that will affect the rapport. I know I will learn new things about how to interact with my students and I will also learn more about me as I build my experience in this career, but I am already committed to always helping and encouraging my students, and to never make them feel embarrassed or humiliated. An important aspect about human relationship that I personally learned through-out my life is to always remember that at some point we all started from zero, therefore, we should never make other people feel bad about themselves if they do not know as much as we do, that is something I will always apply in my teaching career.
