Zachary Hirschman

The First Days of School Critique

Wong and Wong take a very pragmatic, professional approach
to teaching. Many teachers enter the profession fresh with
idealism for making the world a better place; Wong and Wong
offer a fresh dose of reality such that teachers who want to
improve the world have the tools and mentality to do so. While
some of their advice is presented brusquely, their central focus
on preparation is golden advice for teachers.
In any business, luck favors the prepared. Teaching is no
different. A teacher who plans to wing it with respect to
potential issues of discipline or procedure will compound those
issues. The best time to deal with a problem is before it
happens. An effective teacher is ready to set a problem-free
atmosphere before the students have a chance to set it as they
prefer.
Wong and Wong translate successful business practices into
successful classroom practices. Just as a successful businessman
makes his or her clients feel valued, a successful teacher makes
his or her students feel valued. Techniques such as eye contact,
positive body language, repetition of students names, and
polite language can all make the job of teaching much easier.
They are no substitutes for content knowledge and effective
lesson planning, but they can make a world of difference in
classroom management.
One point in which I disagree with Wong and Wong is their
characterization of the importance of procedure. While routine
can be helpful in education, it is by no means intrinsically
positive. Wong and Wong seem to be describing a strategy in
which teachers train their students to play their parts in the
educative process; I believe that some conflict and creativity
are essential to developing critical thinking and problem
solving skills.