Have you ever thought about the great role a teacher has in everyone’s life? It would be impossible for us to expand our knowledge, skills, and points of view without great teachers. Now, you have an opportunity to be that person for your students. The classical principles of teaching no longer work. You’re no longer expected to sit behind your desk, give a lecture, and assign homework your students would have to complete. In fact, today’s teachers are not expected to teach. They are meant to educate.

There’s a subtle difference between the two terms:
• Teaching means shaping the student’s actions and thoughts through instructions that lead to the desired thinking patterns and behaviors.
• Modern educators teach, but they also inspire. They focus on the complete personality of each individual in the classroom, and they make efforts to help them develop skills and knowledge they will benefit from in future. An educator prepares the students to make real changes in this world.
In order to become the force of change, you need to start from yourself. You should be competent in many new skills, which were ignored by your predecessors in the classroom. In the continuation, we’ll give you tips that will help you become the modern educator your students would love to have.

How to Be More than a Teacher: Turn Yourself into a Modern Educator

1. Be a Leader, Not an Instructor

Your teaching style is all about the approach you have. Instead of positioning yourself in the role of someone who gives instructions to students, you should become a leader, who will guide and support them through the educational processes. An educational leader is distinguished with the following qualities:
They provide different instructional resources related to the curriculum. These materials can come in the form of eBooks, printed materials, website recommendations, readings, articles, and other resources that encourage students to discover the concepts a bit further.
They make learning easier for the students through games, team work, and other methods that make the educational process effortless.
A leader guides students to their future. They recognize each individual’s potential and encourage them to explore new interests and develop skills.

2. Teach Them How to Write

Writing is an important part of today’s educational system. Students are not only supposed to write thesis and dissertation projects at graduate school, but many other types of papers and assignments at all other levels of education. As a teacher, you have a responsibility to help them develop the writing skills they need.
According to the daunting statistics provided by BestEssays writing service, 92% of all students who order papers online don’t know anything about the structure, style, and purpose of academic writing. Teachers require several types of projects with strict deadlines, but they don’t bother explaining how the students should tackle essays, research papers, book reports, term papers, lab reports, case studies, and other assignments.
A modern educator doesn’t simply assign these projects; they guide the students through all stages of completion. Make sure to explain why your students need to develop writing skills, and show templates of exemplary papers. Give only broad guidelines about the theme of the paper and allow your students to be as creative as possible with the topic.
If the students in your class don’t know anything about writing, you can devote few lectures to teach them how to craft brilliant projects. Then, form teams and don’t be too strict with the deadline.

3. Share Ideas and Resources through Social Media

Social media can really distract your students from the process of learning, but you can also turn it into an effective educational tool. Think about it: you can form a private Facebook group, where you’ll share useful online resources with your students. Then, you can give discussion prompts and you’ll notice something strange: students are much more willing to join discussions through social media than to speak up in the classroom.
You can also use the Facebook group for reminding your students about upcoming project submission deadlines and test dates. Of course, you should let them take initiative, too. Tell them that everyone can ask questions, share links, and start discussions.

4. Write a Blog

When teachers use the blog as a platform for summarizing knowledge and sharing expertise, they instantly turn into modern educators. The blog motivates you to expand your areas of interests and inspire your students to do the same. You can share an article on an interesting topic from the curriculum each week, and then you can discuss the matter in class.
If you’re looking for a blogging platform that’s specifically designed for teachers and students, try Edublogs. It’s a safe environment packed with features that make blogging fun for teachers and students.

5. Tolerate!

Old-school teaching methods were quite despotic, weren’t they? The teacher was the main character in the classroom, and everyone had to respect the authority. Things have changed. Today, the students are the main characters, and the teacher has to do everything to recognize and accept the differences between them. It doesn’t matter what prejudices you have; you need to treat all students equally. Showing favoritism is strictly forbidden in the modern classroom.
Tolerance is a beautiful thing. It allows you to get to know your students much better. You will learn where their bad habits and behavior are coming from, and you’ll change them by showing support.

The 5 tips listed above are valid for educators at any level. Today’s educational processes are more flexible and fun than they ever were. We haven’t come to the final point, though. Education is an evolving process, and you have a chance to be the force of change. Use it!