If I have a "Bible" of teaching, it's Greta Nagel's The Tao of Teaching. I have a well-thumbed copy with underlining, arrows, and margin notes. Every year I come back to it, dipping into it every so often for inspiration. If you haven't read it, this is Nagel's application of the Tao Te Ching to teaching, and she spotlights three teachers and their classrooms to illustrate various maxims. The chapters are only a few pages each and, like the Tao itself, are not linear, so you can open the book to any page and drink deeply. But here's the cool thing. I wrote a fan letter to Ms Nagel and actually got a response. Read on for more.
It occurred to me that a living, breathing author would want to know how her words were affecting others. So I wrote a longish email, thanking her for her book and telling her how it continually inspires me in my teaching. This was back in January, and I forgot all about it till an email from her showed up in my inbox a few weeks ago.
Of course, she was gracious and appreciative and even asked for advice on how to get her book wider readership. Not that I know anything about that, but I was flattered to be asked.
I will end this post with something from chapter 17:
Have faith in others so they will have faith in you (Tao Te Ching).
Faith does not survive where there is criticism, suspicion or fear. The wise teacher treats all students as if they were deserving of respect. Their treatment of their teacher can be respectful and gratifying in return. The teacher-student relationship in the Tao promotes activities together as opposed to having the teacher play the role of primary giver and doer.
Have faith in your students' responsibility for learning. It will allow them to fulfill your expectations.
