Respect

Respect is a mutual appreciation for one's personality, ideas, and humanity.  Respect is the basis for any relationship: parent/child, co-worker/co-worker, teacher/student, and student/student.  It is the responsibility of the teacher to build a classroom in which respect is fostered.  This starts with the teacher respecting their students ideas, but also making it known that the teacher has authority in the classroom.  When a teacher respects all of their students it encourages students to respect other students.  When respect is present in a classroom students and teachers feel comfortable sharing ideas and asking questions and this encourages genuine and fruitful learning for all parties involved.  I believe that respect is something that needs to be established from day one by showing genuine interest in the students lives inside and outside of the classroom.  The teacher needs to be honest about expectations for their class and in their classroom.  Once respect is gained the teacher must work consistently with students to maintain this respect because once respect is lost it is incredibly difficult to regain.