Authenticity

I am hesitant to say that authenticity is the most important disposition in teaching. In reality all of the dispositions are equally important in my opinion. As for authenticity, this disposition can be one of the main factors as to if students trust their teachers. Teachers who are not authentic or 'fake' seem exactly that, 'fake'. Students would tend not to trust such a teacher, for if you can't trust a teacher to be themselves when teaching, how can you trust them to give you factual information that is useful in the real world.

In addition to losing the trust of the students, fake teachers also put their classes in awkward situations. Such a teacher has to essentially pretend to be someone else every day during the school year. Having to put on a mask every day and pretend to be someone else takes a toll on a person. This stress and tension will show both inside the classroom and out. Class will become unbearable, and make both the students and the teacher miserable. Life outside of class then becomes focused on how to deal with the stress of the classroom, and will soon seem as miserable as class.

Those who think that they can fool a class, are just fooling themselves. Students are very perceptive, and notice when people are trying to be someone else. In fact most everyone can tell when someone is just putting on an act for the world. That person seems very forced and unattached to the world. Any emotion showed seems to come from nowhere and be directed exactly where it came from. It can be like watching an amateur production of any play. Every line and movement seems forced, and has no motivation, almost as if every word or action comes from nowhere, and is heading in that same direction.

To seem authentic in the classroom, you have to be authentic, and just be yourself. That doesn't mean telling students every detail of your life. It means going about teaching a lesson with out attempting to be funny, when you just aren't. It means letting go of some preconceptions about "the proper role of a teacher". It is possible for a teacher to keep personal life and work life separate, and still be authentic. In fact it is almost necessary. Not letting issues at home affect how you teach is very important. Every teacher is a human being, and so is every student. Remembering this helps with many different dispositions, but in this case, it helps a teacher to stay true to themselves and be authentic in the classroom.