It always starts with cracking a couple jokes.
Everyone in the class giggles a little when a student gets a few laughs with the teacher.
You made a special handshake with your teacher? That’s fine. There’s sometimes banter and innocent teasing? That’s not a problem.
However, some students are, unfortunately, unaware of the boundaries with teachers.
I know some teachers are loads of fun and easy to joke around with, but students cross the line when they start ridiculing or insulting them.
It doesn’t matter how much you don’t like a teacher’s personality or their teaching methods. Students need to maintain a professional and appropriate relationship with their teachers.
Your teachers are here to educate you and help you grow as an individual and as an intellectual. They’re not here to be your best friend, put up with your snarky comments or accept your critiques on their ways of teaching.
Yes, I know some teachers like to tease their students, and there’s no harm in that. But be aware of your limits. Don’t be that obnoxious student who has to argue and debate with the teacher every single day and distract the class.
Not every teacher is going to appreciate your humor, but no teacher will appreciate disrespect.
I was appalled when during one of my classes, a student decided to debate with my teacher about whether the teacher had the right facts and if he even had the proper credentials to be an educator. I couldn’t believe that the student had the nerve to insult a teacher about the way he was teaching and the validity of his facts.
It’s understandable that teachers sometimes make mistakes, and they can be wrong, too, just like students. That doesn’t give any student the excuse to attack them.
Keep in mind your teachers also put your grades into Synergy. So, it doesn’t hurt to be polite.
In addition, you want your teachers to take you seriously. I doubt they will want to write you a recommendation letter if the only thing you did in class was insult them and goof off the entire time.
Consider the fact that they’re older than you, and you should respect your elders. They are here to help you and deserve appreciation for making it their profession to guide us through what many would consider to be the most important four years of our lives.
If you can’t understand proper relationships with your teachers and establish mutual boundaries, how do you plan on functioning in the real world?
How are you going to work alongside your colleagues, your bosses or your military commanders?
Acknowledge authority instead of trying to override it.
There should always be a mutual respect between teachers and students. We need to be grateful for the amazing opportunity we have for education and for those who provide that education to us. Instead of ridiculing them and distracting the entire class, take some time to understand how much your teachers actually do for you.
Respect their profession and stop criticizing them.
So, think before you open your mouth to make another snarky comment.