The Ideal Teacher?

1. What are the main characteristics of an ideal teacher?

• Take a big piece of paper and put it on the table.
• Write down in the middle: The ideal teacher
• Now write down your ideas. Use different colours. Comment on your fellow-student’s statements. (Silent written communication)
• Stop after 15 minutes.

2. Structuring the results in a mind map

Structure your thoughts in a mindmap. Exercise I. should help you.

3. Your own experience with teachers

Write an essay of about 250 words: The best teacher I ever had.

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4. Analysing different lessons from the text

Form groups of  three or four. Read one of the following scenes describing either Keating’s lessons or things related to them and

• describe the plot
• describe the relationship between teacher and students
• explain what is uncommon
• give evidence of your statements by marking important lines in the book

1. p. 1-8         About Welton Academy
2. p. 20-27     Keating’s first lesson
3. p. 37-42     The Pritchard lesson
4. p. 69-71     The soccer lesson
5. p. 72-77     The YAWP lesson
6. p. 85-87     The marching lesson
7. p. 111-115  The college lesson
8. p. 163-166  Nolan’s lesson on Pritchard

1. About Welton Academy (p. 1-8)

• Description of the place where the story takes place
• Welton Academy (boys’ school, school uniform)
• Headmaster Gale Nolan welcomes the students
• An old man hands over the light of knowledge to the new students
• The headmaster called the four banner carriers one after another and lets them explain the four pillars of the Academy
• Mr Keating is introduced and the old English teacher is discharged
• The oldest living graduate is called to the podium and says a few words to the students
• While the parents say goodbye to their children, the headmaster welcomes some students personally
• Clear hierarchy among teachers and students
• Tradition, honour, discipline and excellence are to be taken literally

2. Keating’s first lesson (p. 20-27)

The plot:

The anxious students experience their first day in school. Not only do they get their books handed out to them, but their maths and geography classes immediately start off by announcing tests. However, their first encounter with Keating proved to be much more pleasant than that. They initially noticed the difference between him and the other teachers just looking at the way he dresses. His extroverted behaviour at first confuses his clueless students but he also manages to completely capture their attention as he does try to educate them about the value of time.

What’s uncommon:

Mr Keating’s lesson is unconventional to the point where it utterly confuses his students.

He jumps up and down the furniture, yells, starts wisecracking and is dismissive towards the teaching of raw book smarts. Much rather he encourages his pupils to think for themselves and pursue their own dreams, which at that time is uncommon indeed.

3. The Pritchard lesson (p.37-45)

Plot:

• The students read the instruction for a poem analysis.
• Keating says to them they should rip out the entire page.
• Relationship between teacher and students:
• At first it is an unusual pupil-teacher relationship, one student has to read aloud. Suddenly Mr Keating begins to scream and quote poems. The students are shocked.

Quotes:

• Ahhhhggggg! Refuse! Garbage! Pus! Rip it out of your books - Go on, rip out the entire page! I want this rubbish in the trash where it belongs! (p.39)
• … human race is filled with passion! (p.41)
• But poetry, romance, love, beauty? These are what we stay alive for! (p.41)

4. The soccer lesson (p. 69-71)

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5. The YAWP lesson (p. 72-77)   

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6. The marching lesson (p. 85-87)

In this part of the book Mr Keating awaits his students in the courtyard for a “marching lesson” Three of them should walk around. As Mr Keating begins to clap his hands the students join in, Dr Keating is clapping and singing. p. 86, lines 7-9: “One, two, one, two, one, two, one, two… We’re all having fun in Mr Keating’s class.”

The relationship between Keating and his students is that he tries to be somebody who shows them to find their way by their own. p. 87, lines 6-9: “Lads, there is a great need in all of us to be accepted, but you must trust what is unique or different about yourself, even if it is odd or unpopular.”

Uncommon is, that it is normally an English lesson and not a “marching lesson” over the courtyard.

7. The college lesson (p. 111-115)

Mr Keating told the boys about the best way to analyse books which you have not read.

On the one hand he gives them advice like a good friend and on the other hand  he behaves like a “real” teacher by writing a test which counts. Certainly the test seems not serious because he shows pictures of beautiful girls to turn them away from the test.

Normally a teacher doesn’t give advice to his pupils how to cheat.

Page 112: “Begin your essay by disclaiming the need to restate the plot while at the same time regurgitating enough of it to convince the professor that you’ve read the book”.

8. Nolan’s lesson on Pritchard (p. 163-166)

In this chapter Mr Nolan is reading a book with his class as Mr Keating enters the room. Everybody is silent. Mr Nolan wants Mr Keating to go out of the room. He is getting angry. Some of the students are having tears in their eyes. As Mr Keating wants to leave the room one student is standing on the desk and says “O Captain, my Captain.” Then other students are doing the same and Mr Nolan isn’t having his class under control any more. Mr Keating is thanking his class and leaves.

The relationship between Mr Nolan and his students is not very good but in this chapter you can read how the class likes Mr Keating. Because of that Mr Nolan is getting angry. The class is more interested in Mr Keating than in Mr Nolan.

It is uncommon that the students are having tears in their eyes when Mr Keating is coming into the room and how they stand on the desks and salute Mr Keating.