Informative Essay: The Role Of Bad Teachers In Education

Bad Teachers
There is such a thing as a bad teacher. Students agree that whether it’s because they hate kids, abuse their authority, or have personalities that are unsuited for their profession, some teachers are just bad. However, upon closer inspection, categorizing some teachers as “bad” becomes complicated. Take for instance, Mr. Shepherd Quincy, described by a former student as the “most caring teacher I ever had,” who now “does battle with students on a daily basis” (Michie 123). Gregory Michie asks, “What has changed?” One possible answer is teacher disempowerment. Jaded and discouraged by the educational system, teachers who were once beloved may become burnt-out and disinterested in teaching, no longer motivated to make a positive impact on students’ lives. This teacher powerlessness has roots in systemic issues that rob teachers of control in their own classrooms. Yet the effects of these discouraged teachers manifest most strongly in their classroom, where students can receive the brunt of their frustration or apathy. Only by understanding the causes and issues that contribute to

As one of the authors of Our Schools Suck writes, “far from being saved by [miracle-worker] teachers like Steve Lange, this system of unequal schooling had worn him down… It was having a second teacher in the classroom that allowed him, a dedicated teacher of thirty years, to feel again that he was really teaching” (Alonso et al. 80). The structural challenges teachers face show that committed teachers are not enough when facing the enormous system that they and the students are up against every day. Believing they have little effect on their current situation and pessimistic about future improvements, even the most dedicated teachers may become burnt-out and