On Tue, 16 Aug 2011 19:31:20 -0400, Bill wrote:

wrote:

Again, you assume that only a "professional teacher" can teach. That is a
*very* bad assumption. One which is partly responsible for our ****-poor
education system.

Bill wrote:
I am Not saying that only a professional teacher can teach. I am saying
that my department is not willing to take the chance on someone that has
never taught a class before. It's just a matter of "prudence".
Plenty of things go astray every semester even without taking such risks.

krw: replied
That is not what you said. YOu were making a general statement. The argument
is nuts anyway. There is no magic to teaching. ...well, other than having a
good grasp of the subject matter (something "professional teachers" *very*
often don't have).

"There is no magic to teaching. ...well, other than having a
good grasp of the subject matter"

If you took that attitude into the classroom you'd disappoint
everyone except yourself (seriously)!

Wrong. THat's the only "magic". Everything else is natural.

You may get away with it in a
class of graduate students, but at the other end of the spectrum you'll
encounter real issues if you are concerned about student success.

Try teaching HS kids math without understanding math. Ditto physics....

If you expess a sentiment like the one above during a teaching
interview, you won't be teaching.

You've already made it clear that you're rather hire a "professional teacher"
who knows nothing of the subject matter. You're wrong. That's what we have.

Ironically, you don't need a "perfect understanding" of the subject
matter to be a good teacher. You might even be a better teacher if you
don't have it (and in many cases, concerning ever-changing technology
for instance, it's practically impossible to have it).

Utter nonsense.

I hope you have a chance to teach someday, and I hope you get great
results!

I have! Are you an English teacher? ;-)

However, before you do so, you'll have to learn something
about teaching. The students will not applaud you over your knowledge,
no matter how vast--in fact, if it appears too vast, they will tune you
out even faster. The sooner you accept this, the sooner you can be an
effective teacher.

You 100% wrong about everything you've said so far. ...particularly about me.