The Day the Student Became the Teacher

Author: Peyton Marion

When I first began my service with ArtistCorps, I was admittedly very nervous. Here I was a recent college grad, with no teaching experience, spending four days a week working with Pre-K students. It did not help matters that we were learning in training just how life-altering a Pre-K education can be for students. I felt the weight of that responsibility growing every day during the first few months of my service. I constantly wondered if I was doing enough.

During my second month of service, my team and I continued to brainstorm ways to connect with a few students who just seemed to continue to struggle with the concepts we were covering. One student in particular seemed to always be just out of reach. One day, while having a pre-lesson conversation with this student, he told me, in passing, that he had four older brothers. Having two brothers myself, I knew instantly what that relationship is like, and how I could use this snippet of information to attempt to help this student. From my years growing up with brothers, I learned that nearly everything could be made into a competition. From how high you can jump, to how many chicken nuggets you can eat, it’s all fair game. So that day, I decided during my one-on-one time with this student, I would use a little friendly competition as a motivator.

That day, our student had his most successful day yet. What I learned during this instance was that one of the greatest strengths of an effective instructor is to be sensitive to individuality. When I took the time to really listen to my student, and understand a little bit about his story, I was able to make a connection and help him learn successfully.