Students In The Hands of the Teacher

It seems as human beings, we often underestimate how profoundly our words can affect how people act and think. Regardless of the subject, by reaching to the pathos of the audience, speakers can undoubtedly shape human behavior and the path of history. This is a simple, but not obvious, social axiom. I myself did not realize the power words could have on people until I was engaged in a class discussion in my 11 AP English class on the subject of Jonathan Edwards and his lurid sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God". Edwards was able to shape his words and portray vivid emotional detail to create a sense of immense fear and guilt in his listeners, thus leading to a mass revival of the Puritan religiousness that lived generations before. It is amazing how Edwards was able to create such a change in mood and mindset of the Puritans using only the words he crafted from his brain and delivered by word of mouth.
In the same respect, teachers have the overwhelming power to shape the actions and ultimately the future of their students. While this may seem completely understandable and obvious to society, many teachers often do not realize their full power to impact the lives of their students. Teachers have the power to inspire and aspire their students to their fullest potential. Most of this power lies in the power of their words. I am not talking about the curriculum required lessons, but rather what teachers can offer students that can change their outlook on life and give them a helping hand for their future. For example, a simple "you can do it!" to a struggling student in a class can go a long way in encouraging the student to maintain academic success. One teacher which stood out to me in this respect was my AP U.S. History teacher last year, Mrs. Lorelli. At the beginning of the year, I was struggling with keeping up in the class, and often I found myself behind the herd in terms of both test taking and essay writing. Mrs. Lorelli was aware of my struggles and one day had a talk to me that went like this: "I understand APUSH is a hard class and that you're struggling, but if you keep working hard and putting all your effort to improve yourself, I have no doubt that you will succeed in this class." I took these words to heart, continued to improve myself, and by the end of the year, I had an A+ in the class and received a 5 on the AP Exam. Through Mrs. Lorelli's encouraging words when I was struggling, she gave me hope and reason to keep improving myself, and thus molded me into a better student.
Just as how teachers can affect students in a positive manner, teachers equally have the power to harm and hinder student growth towards greatness. Teachers can often undermine the abilities of students, or fail to notice/acknowledge how hard a student is working and thus give up on the student. For instance, a teacher can notice a student who struggles in the class (but is clearly giving all of his effort into the class in order to improve) and say something even as simple as "you're not succeeding because you're not working hard enough" to kill a student's morale and desire to improve. In this case, negative reinforcement or even a lack of words can affect student's desire to achieve greatness or even maintain a respectable grade in the class.
Outside of the classroom, words have shaped many great events and strides in history. The greatest example in history of how words can promote change in humans and society is the Civil Rights Movement led by Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. is the epitome of how words can shape people for the better. Regarded as the leader of the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King Jr. was able to mold his words to effectively portray to America the inequality of African American's and the harsh realities of how African American's lived in the racist American society. In his immortal "I Have a Dream Speech", King undoubtedly changed the course of history and African American life in America by his powerful words and ability to depict African American inequalities.
Whether we as humans are fully aware of it or not, the words and how they are shaped by the speaker have paramount effects on both human behavior and history. In the classroom, teachers are given the task of shaping their words and lessons to foster the greatest growth in the lives of students. If students are expected to achieve academic greatness and put forth all their possible effort into succeeding in school, teachers should also put in an equal amount of effort and thinking into how they phrase their words and lessons in order to ensure the greatest amount of success in the classroom. In the fast-paced, cut throat society in which the future generation is expected the thrive in, it is ultimately the responsibility of the teachers to teach and foster the success of the future generations.