It's called "Respect"!
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Why do we still call our school teachers by their last name?
- Thread starter maclover001
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Oh wow, that brings a tear to my eye. Such kind words...Hopefully we can have you back fully with us. I miss your posts tbh
Haha. True! My thought process:I love it when people resurrect a really old thread that I was a part of. I get to look back and see if what I said was okay or just plain dumb.
- This looks like an interesting thread.
- Holy cow, it's old.
- Oh my gosh, I posted in it.
I think this sums it up best!
And for those that don't know, Mr Gilbert (actor Greg Davis), used to be a teacher!
And for those that don't know, Mr Gilbert (actor Greg Davis), used to be a teacher!
Holy blast from the past, Batman!
It’s all about respect; respect your elders. Respect the fact their knowledge is far superior to yours.
I work in an emergency department, and I call the doctors by their title, even when we are similar in age. It lets them know I respect them and appreciate their vast medical knowledge - something I am still procuring. Obviously there are some titles that aren’t practical in saying, such as “Nurse Jane” or “Paramedic Matt”. At that point I just call them Jane or Matt.
It’s all about respect; respect your elders. Respect the fact their knowledge is far superior to yours.
I work in an emergency department, and I call the doctors by their title, even when we are similar in age. It lets them know I respect them and appreciate their vast medical knowledge - something I am still procuring. Obviously there are some titles that aren’t practical in saying, such as “Nurse Jane” or “Paramedic Matt”. At that point I just call them Jane or Matt.
I’m sure you are aware this is an 8 year old thread, not that that in itself makes it unappropriate for you revive it, but the person you replied to has not posted in 4 years.
It would be interesting to see what the OP thinks about this now. He/she would be 24-25 year old.
Just because something predates the 60s doesn’t mean it is a bad idea.
This may be an old thread, but it's still an interesting read.
I taught my first college class when I was 27 years old, and that wasn't too terribly many years ago. Especially given the nature of the classes I usually teach, it's not unheard of for me to have students who are twice my age or older
None the less, it's established on the first day that I'm to be called "Mr. ...." or "Prof. ..."(I don't have a Ph.D., even though a lot of students do call me Dr. ...). The issue to me is establishing the student/teacher relationship. Initially I was actually uncomfortable with this, but older colleagues advised me that I be firm on this and there is a subtle dynamic shift I've noticed that seems to "reign in" a classroom a bit more.
I'll also add that even though I've had students older than me, the non-traditional students often the most respectful.
I return the respect to my students by referring to them as sir or ma'am, or as Mr. or Ms. so and so.
I often only have students as freshmen, though, just due to the nature of the classes I teach. I'll often deal with the same students in a different role in upper level courses, and I pretty quickly establish with them then that I prefer to be called by my first name. They're no longer my student, and my last name is too much of a mouthful
When I was in graduate school, my advisor made it clear up front that I should refer to him by his first name. My day job is still at the same school where I earned my masters degree, and I call MOST faculty now by their first name. That was only after being directly instructed to do so, however. There certainly is a dynamic shift when you go from being a student(whether graduate or undergraduate) and working along side the faculty as supporting staff where they often need services from you.
Going back, though, I still keep in touch with a lot of teachers and professors to whom I felt especially close. Not too terribly long ago, I called a middle school teacher I hadn't to in a year or so. Even though I've now surpassed her from an education standpoint, she will always remain "Mrs. ..." I'd be uncomfortable with anything else.
I taught my first college class when I was 27 years old, and that wasn't too terribly many years ago. Especially given the nature of the classes I usually teach, it's not unheard of for me to have students who are twice my age or older
None the less, it's established on the first day that I'm to be called "Mr. ...." or "Prof. ..."(I don't have a Ph.D., even though a lot of students do call me Dr. ...). The issue to me is establishing the student/teacher relationship. Initially I was actually uncomfortable with this, but older colleagues advised me that I be firm on this and there is a subtle dynamic shift I've noticed that seems to "reign in" a classroom a bit more.
I'll also add that even though I've had students older than me, the non-traditional students often the most respectful.
I return the respect to my students by referring to them as sir or ma'am, or as Mr. or Ms. so and so.
I often only have students as freshmen, though, just due to the nature of the classes I teach. I'll often deal with the same students in a different role in upper level courses, and I pretty quickly establish with them then that I prefer to be called by my first name. They're no longer my student, and my last name is too much of a mouthful
When I was in graduate school, my advisor made it clear up front that I should refer to him by his first name. My day job is still at the same school where I earned my masters degree, and I call MOST faculty now by their first name. That was only after being directly instructed to do so, however. There certainly is a dynamic shift when you go from being a student(whether graduate or undergraduate) and working along side the faculty as supporting staff where they often need services from you.
Going back, though, I still keep in touch with a lot of teachers and professors to whom I felt especially close. Not too terribly long ago, I called a middle school teacher I hadn't to in a year or so. Even though I've now surpassed her from an education standpoint, she will always remain "Mrs. ..." I'd be uncomfortable with anything else.
I think out of respect teachers/professors should go by their title. I think it also helps encourage proper boundaries. I had I think one professor who insisted we call her by her first name- and she was basically one of the students. I’ve had some other professors outside of class (that I knew well) insist I call them by their first name outside, but not inside class.
I work at a psych hospital and often it seems to be the convention for healthcare providers to call each other Dr. But when it comes to patients most of us usually go by our first name as that creates a more welcoming, personal connection that can make the job easier. In some cases however it’s better to go by your title for people who don’t have good boundaries and any extra bit of authority or professionalism is helpful.
I work at a psych hospital and often it seems to be the convention for healthcare providers to call each other Dr. But when it comes to patients most of us usually go by our first name as that creates a more welcoming, personal connection that can make the job easier. In some cases however it’s better to go by your title for people who don’t have good boundaries and any extra bit of authority or professionalism is helpful.
This is something that I ran into some in graduate school, and still run into now with TAs.
As I said, my advisor pretty early on insisted that he was "Frank." Still, when I was a TA for one of his courses, I referred to him as "Dr. ..." . I TAed a lot for "Lenore" but she was always "Dr. ..." in front of the students. Similarly, my TAs all call me by my first name, but not in front of the students.
I also have to watch myself when I working with students who are not MY students. I want to be sure that I'm referring to the senior instructor of the course by their preferred title(prof., Dr., etc) and have to catch myself sometimes.
This may be an old thread, but it's still an interesting read.
I taught my first college class when I was 27 years old, and that wasn't too terribly many years ago. Especially given the nature of the classes I usually teach, it's not unheard of for me to have students who are twice my age or older
None the less, it's established on the first day that I'm to be called "Mr. ...." or "Prof. ..."(I don't have a Ph.D., even though a lot of students do call me Dr. ...). The issue to me is establishing the student/teacher relationship. Initially I was actually uncomfortable with this, but older colleagues advised me that I be firm on this and there is a subtle dynamic shift I've noticed that seems to "reign in" a classroom a bit more.
I'll also add that even though I've had students older than me, the non-traditional students often the most respectful.
I return the respect to my students by referring to them as sir or ma'am, or as Mr. or Ms. so and so.
I often only have students as freshmen, though, just due to the nature of the classes I teach. I'll often deal with the same students in a different role in upper level courses, and I pretty quickly establish with them then that I prefer to be called by my first name. They're no longer my student, and my last name is too much of a mouthful
When I was in graduate school, my advisor made it clear up front that I should refer to him by his first name. My day job is still at the same school where I earned my masters degree, and I call MOST faculty now by their first name. That was only after being directly instructed to do so, however. There certainly is a dynamic shift when you go from being a student(whether graduate or undergraduate) and working along side the faculty as supporting staff where they often need services from you.
Going back, though, I still keep in touch with a lot of teachers and professors to whom I felt especially close. Not too terribly long ago, I called a middle school teacher I hadn't to in a year or so. Even though I've now surpassed her from an education standpoint, she will always remain "Mrs. ..." I'd be uncomfortable with anything else.
Probably because they're more secure in the who they are