What Makes A Teacher Good?

With the studio quiet, and all clients participating in virtual Pilates mat sessions, I have found more time to reflect on myself as a teacher. Recently the following question came to mind, “What really makes a teacher good?”

We are living in a time where we now have virtual access to many mega-star Pilates teachers that we normally wouldn’t be able to work with on a weekly basis. Personally it has been so great to work with teachers who live all over the world, and virtual classes are such a fun way to experience a variety of teachers and teaching styles. But what is it about these luminary teachers that makes it so desirable to work with them?

Is it because they offer us new material to play with? Or because they give an extremely hard workout? Or because of their lineage in the Pilates community? Or because they make us pause to question and problem-solve? Or perhaps because they make us feel welcome and valued?

I don’t think there is a single right answer, but I will share that I am selective about Pilates teachers that I take classes from. All of the motor learning material that I have studied inevitably fills my head in every session that I take with a new teacher. I know scientifically how people learn movement best, and it has been hard for me to find teachers that teach like this intuitively. So for me, a good teacher is a teacher that makes me problem-solve and think. They do not give me the answer, but rather make me think about how my body is moving and what I need to change for improvement. This is how I can retain the correction when I am working on my own. Instead of focusing on how hard the workout is, I relish the simplicity of their corrections and movement choices that target exactly where I am weak. 

As I said, I don’t think that there is a wrong or right answer to this question. We all gravitate to a different teaching style as we are all unique. I ask you to think of the teachers that you have been taking virtual sessions with. Why do you think you are attracted to their teaching style? What are you getting out of their classes each week? What do you think makes them a “good” teacher? How does this influence your own teaching style?

I think the more often we have this discussion about the “WHY” and the “WHAT” the stronger our industry will become, especially after this pandemic. This type of open exchange will give us a foundation to build interesting discussions from different viewpoints. I am eager to have open discussions with many great teachers to learn more from their thought processes. We can learn something new from anyone, so why not take advantage of having access to all of these wonderful teachers around the world. Just as no single teacher knows everything, there is no single definition of what makes a teacher good. It is the sum of the parts that makes our community whole.