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“Upon this a question arises: whether it be better to be loved than feared or feared than loved? One should wish to be both, but, because it is difficult to unite them in one person, it is much safer to be feared than loved,” said Niccolo Machiavelli.
The classroom is like a mini country. We have the good citizens, the outlaws, the influential people, and the person who leads this country, the teacher. Teachers are pictured as role models to their students and a symbol of learning. They are the second parents of every student. They should be loved right? With my definition of a teacher, you’d start to think that maybe teachers should be better off feared than loved.
A teacher is a person whose goal is to maximize the learning and output of every student. How is this supposed to make me think that teachers should be feared than loved? I’d like to emphasize the word maximize.
The best output comes from the teacher who is feared for students will actually exert effort so that their outputs and quizzes are not subpar. When a teacher starts to become compassionate, he/she starts to reduce the work load of students and will adjust to the students. The students won’t improve. The teacher just does a weak job at maxing their potential.
I’ve had teachers who I’ve feared. I was honestly uncomfortable at first in the classroom. I was quiet and I always watched my words. But that’s what the teacher brings, peace and order. When the instructor wanted us to finish our projects at one date, all of us would pass in fear of what might happen if we didn’t. Everyone had good outputs, we were afraid of what might happen if we didn’t. Everyone actually listened to the educator, for we were scared to know what would happen if we were suddenly called and couldn’t answer.
Of course as a student, I like the teachers I’ve loved more. They were really nice and compassionate. I was comfortable sitting at my chair. But they weren’t able to uphold peace. Students started cheating during exams, talking while there was a lesson, texting during class, having late submissions. We were complacent. Why study when you know you’d have a high grade because he/she was nice? It’s ok to cheat, I know the instructor knows we’re cheating but he/she won’t do anything because they’ve already accepted that students do it. It was a mess and we didn’t learn as much. But yet again, I am a student so hooray to easy grades and nice teachers.
So now that we’ve thought that maybe being feared is much better. Don’t start initiating fear as soon as possible. Be strategic with it if you’re a teacher. Do not punish the whole class only punish individuals severely so that you won’t anger the whole class but only the individual as an example. It only affects the individual but the whole class gets the message. The students won’t oust you for being mean to them, they’ll just fear not to take action on you so that they won’t be like their poor classmate.
I personally had an experience wherein my whole class was scolded for having poor results. A lot of the students got angry and started to gossip about the educator. He/she isn’t good enough and that’s why we’re not learning. Why should she expect anything from us when the teacher’s bad at what she’s doing? You’ve basically angered all your citizens.
All the instructor had to do was call a student, the one with the lowest score. Call him out during class, make him stand the whole period or let him/her go out. The other students would feel relieved they had better scores and start studying in fear of also being called out. Groups against you won’t be made. This is more efficient in sending a message to the student body.
Machiavelli argued that mistreatment of people would not win loyalty, trust, or obedience, and these three were necessary for the ruler to be successful. But, he said, expedient methods, cruelty and violence included, could be justifiable if there were clear and measurable benefits from those acts. Tough love, you might call it.
For the teachers, it’s illegal to be violent so scratch that part. You can place fear in everyone as long as it is reasonable. Some students search for reasons to hate you when they start fearing, but if all your actions were sensible, then they won’t find any dirt on you.
Use just the right amount of fear. Be unreasonable with your rules and overdoing your punishments would have too much fear. Have too weak punishments then it will not be worth enough to obey.
Creating too much fear will make the students hate you. They’ll make groups against you. They’ll talk about you behind your back. They’ll mock your lessons. Their respect for you will be lost.
But having weak punishments would be unfruitful. Why would I effort to have great output if the consequence is not so severe? Let’s keep on cheating because if we get caught, the teacher is just going to tell us off. Late submissions have little effect on my grades? I’ll submit it later. I’m too lazy right now. Chaos will ensue.
Like what Machiavelli has said, it is much better to be both feared and loved. When you can’t have both, choose to be feared. There is much strategy to use to pull it off. But once you’ve perfected it you’ll have better students and you’ve basically saved them from a bad future. Push students to get the best attainable future they can have by using fear, the educational tool.
#FearTeachers
#BetterEducation
#BeFeared
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