By Janet Mizrahi
Before I teach a class, like many of my coworkers, I take a moment to switch gears. I am no longer a colleague or a faculty mentor or a career counselor—I am a teacher. And for me that has always been a bit like playing a part, one in which my passion for teaching and learning serves to motivate my students.
It turns out that those of us who assume a teaching persona and who view teaching as a rousing performance may be onto something. Research indicates that such enthusiasm is catching much like laughter and can be a predictor of student engagement. Students notice when their instructor makes eye contact, gestures, and speaks with a varied vocal tone, cues that demonstrate that the teacher is not just slogging through a job. What’s more, dynamic instructors tend to instill connection with a topic that can even influence students’ choice of a major.
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