Guru's Handbook

Recently I was asked to discuss the notion of “advanced.”
As teachers, we typically rank students by the level of work they do. This may be a formal or informal ranking, but we know who can do what kind of work, and how well, and how they compare to each other. It is also typical [...]

Teach from your knowledge
Teach from your ignorance
There are days when it will seem that you know everything you need to know to teach your subject well. These are the days to be modest, to seek your own ignorance so that your sense of competence does not blind you to the possibilites of seeing beyond [...]

It is often useful to see your teaching as service: the student’s need is to learn, and your duty as the teacher is to serve that need. Whenever you are uncertain about what to do next in your teaching, this ideal of service can be a touchstone.
Not service to the student. Service to the [...]

Not all silences say the same thing
I have written about silence as a teaching tool. Just as you can use words to say many things, so can you use silence.
I once asked my teacher for guidance on a particular problem, and in reply was given a faithful, generous silence and an encouraging smile. [...]

Every student drives
at different speeds
When should they pass?
Not everyone learns at the same pace, and it may be that while one student will make steady progress one step at a time, another will do better to go forward faster, even if that means dropping back later. It is sometimes worthwhile to give a particularly motivated [...]