What makes great educators great?

With the pandemic failing to show any signs of slowing, educators across the world are being forced to rethink how they teach. Social distancing and an increasing reliance on online education have allowed education to blossom beyond the four walls of the classroom. And while teachers might have had their technological abilities tested over the past months, they’ve also had another key quality tested: empathy.

Being able to understand and share in the feelings of one’s students is vital, especially in such trying times as these. Whether it’s relating to a student that’s finding a particular topic challenging, suffering from stress or simply lacking motivation, teachers who understand their students are able to teach more effectively. After all, a good educator not only grasps the material deeply, but also understands their students beyond their last exam grade.

So why is empathy so important?

First, empathy allows educators to understand what their students are finding hard. While this might sound like something all teachers ought to know, it’s one of the most challenging aspects of being an effective teacher. Appreciating what their students don’t know is something that makes good teachers great, by allowing them to devote extra time to specific topics. After all, as a parent, you are probably all too aware that asking a student what they find hard seldom results in a fruitful response. For this reason, gaps in knowledge are often only revealed during exams, when it’s too late. By pinpointing any gaps in knowledge early, effective educators can focus on ironing out specific issues students have. For this exact reason, all of EasyA’s Oxbridge tutors are trained to pinpoint any issues from the very start of each lesson, so that they teach each student with a laser-like focus and set them up for exam success.

Fortunately, EasyA tutors are experienced online educators who understand each student’s individual needs and approach each session with a key quality: empathy.

Second, empathy allows educators to appreciate how their students are feeling. In today’s increasingly competitive environment, gauging how stressed a student might be or assessing their level of confidence can (and should) impact how material is taught. By understanding students beyond their grades, teachers can instill a sense of trust in their students, making the learning process far more rewarding. Students, especially during their teenage years, are undergoing huge transformations both inside and outside the classroom and keeping in mind how a student feels can create a far more comforting learning experience that students will appreciate. Instead of simply penalising a student for poor performance, the best educators will figure out why the student is underperforming and tackle the root of the problem. This ability to relate to students is why all of EasyA’s tutors are students or recent graduates themselves, meaning they understand the students they’re teaching and are well positioned to give them advice from their own recent experiences facing exams or other academic challenges: after all, they were in their exact shoes only a few years ago.

Third, empathy allows educators to engage their students. Just as a comedian must read their audience to ensure their jokes land well, effective educators must understand their audience so they can adjust their teaching style and captivate their students. Being able to explain concepts in a manner that resonates with students is vital to successful learning. For example, explaining concepts to a primary school student might involve relating concepts to food or certain toys, while explaining concepts to university students might involve applying these to future jobs and careers: in both cases, empathy is needed to grasp that to which the student will relate. Fortunately, EasyA tutors have all recently sat the exams they are tutoring, so are ideally placed to teach in a way that is not only relevant to the exam board, but more importantly relevant to the students they are teaching.

All in all, empathy is a vital quality of any successful educator. For it is only by understanding one’s students that can one engage them, and only once students are engaged can they learn effectively. And while teachers who show empathy undoubtedly provide a superior learning experience, they might just create more empathetic students too.

About EasyA

EasyA provides students with 24/7, on-demand tutoring from our team of Oxbridge tutors. Our on-demand format allows students to get help in minutes, empowering students to tackle tough problems head-on and build confidence. The chat-based format means students don’t feel the traditional pressure common when asking questions in class. EasyA partners with top schools across the U.K. to help their students get on-demand maths help so no student has to struggle alone.

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