What makes a good teacher?

I have been pretty fortunate when it comes to having good teachers. Maybe I just have low expectations, but I thought most of my teachers at O’Dea high school did a really good job. I think a good teacher has to have a good relationship with the students. If the students aren’t comfortable talking to the teacher as a friend, I’ve found that it is harder to ask for help when you need it. The teacher also needs to take the students other classes into consideration. I know a lot of teachers don’t believe in this, but they need to move their tests around so it doesn’t fall on the same day of another class. It puts the students in a really stressful situation and they just don’t test as well if they have more than one or two tests per day.  I also really like it when teachers keep you updated with your grade week by week. Many teachers like to wait until the last couple weeks before they post their grades, but it’s a lot less stressful if they let you know ahead of time.  Lastly the teacher has to be enthusiastic about the topic. The only way the students are going to become interested in organic chemistry is if the teacher is enthusiastic about it, and provides good examples. Being enthusiastic may the most obvious, but I believe it is the most important. When I was at WSU, I had an environmental science teacher that really had a passion for what she taught. Bringing in physical examples, and letting us work with our hands made the class much more fun and brought the class closer together as friends. Overall, it was a better learning experience because of the teachers interaction with the students, and her attitude about the subject.