What Makes a Good Teacher怎样做个好老师

On June 1， 1988， I began a new career as a teacher as an associate professor at the Asian Institute of Management. I had just completed more than a decade of work with a leading commercial bank where my last stint was in corporate planning after many years in the human resource management department.

1988年6月1日，我开始新的职业生涯，成为了亚洲管理学院的一名副教授。在此之前，我在一家知名商业银行工作了十多年——在人力资源管理部门就职多年之后，最后的一份职务是企业规划。

On the occasion of World Teachers Day （Oct. 5）1 after the month-long observance of Teachers Month， I pause to reflect on what I have learned as a teacher.

在为期一个月的“教师月”纪念活动后，值此世界教师日（10月5日）来临之际，我静下心来思考自己作为一名教师所学到的东西。

My first assignment was to teach in the Master in Business Management （MBM） program. The first subject I taught was a second year elective on Labor Relations. Years later， while serving as program director， I was given the opportunity to redesign the curriculum and align it toward globalization which had become the lead driver of international business and economics.

我的第一项任务是在商业管理硕士项目任教。我教的第一门课程是二年级的选修课——劳动关系。几年后，在担任项目主任期间，我有机会重新设计课程，使其与全球化接轨，当时全球化已经成为国际商业和经济的主要驱动力。

I had the opportunity to be part of two trail-blazing2 initiatives： the Master in Development Management （MDM） and Master in Entrepreneurship （ME） programs that were led by my former Professor Ed Morato. He also tapped3 me to lead the Executive Execution and Lifelong Learning Center （EXCELL）.

我有机会参与了两项开创性的方案：由我曾师从过的埃德·莫拉托教授主持的发展管理硕士项目和创业硕士项目。他还委任我领导行政实施和终身学习中心。

Allow me to share three reflections.

我谨在此分享三点思考：

First， to teach well one must first listen well.

首先，要想教得好，必须先好好倾听。

At the AIM， the case method was used to enable students to witness and analyze real-life situations in businesses and industries. “Because wisdom can’t be told” is a catchphrase that embodies the learning process in the case method.

在亚洲管理学院，我们采用案例法，让学生能够观察和分析商业和行业中的现实情况。“因为智慧无法言传”这句流行语体现出案例教学法中的学习过程。

Case studies are stories on the life of corporations and organizations： how they were organized， their fledgling years， their growth and evolution， and how they dealt with challenges. To quote Clyde Freeman Herreid， “Stories capture our attention， entertain us， stir our emotions， and expand our visions. Preachers use them for moral persuasion， comedians to tickle our funny bone， and teachers as exemplars of good practice.” Case method professors must wait and listen patiently as their students express their views on how the decision makers in the case studies tackled the challenges faced by their organizations. They must resist the urge to predominate the class discussion， mindful that every minute that they take up denies the same amount of time that could have been given to a student sharing what he has analyzed and learned from the case study.

案例研究就像是关于企业和组织发展的故事集：它们如何创立，它们的初创时期、成长和发展，以及它们如何应对挑战。正如克莱德·弗里曼·赫雷德所言：“故事引人入胜，让人欢笑，激发情感，拓宽视野。传教士用它们来进行道德劝导，喜剧演员用它们来逗人开心，而教师则把它们作为良好实践的典范。”在案例课堂上，教师需要耐心等待，倾听学生就案例研究中决策者应对挑战的方式提出自己的观点。教师须克制主导课堂讨论的冲动，并谨记他们占用的每一分钟都会耽误学生分享从案例研究中分析和学到东西。

Professor Gabino Mendoza， in my view， was the quintessential4 case method professor. He would stand stoically in front of the class， wait for students to start analyzing the case study， nod his head minimally5， and utter the word “So？” to prompt students to carry on with their recitation. By encouraging students to speak up and analyze， professors empower them to become owners of the lessons they themselves have acquired.

在我看来，加维诺·门多萨教授是使用案例教学法的典范。他总是泰然自若地站在全班同学面前，等待学生开始分析案例，微微点头，然后说“所以呢？”以此鼓励学生们继续发言。通过鼓励学生大胆发言和分析，教师赋予了他们自主权，让学生们成为自己所学课程的主人。

Second， a good teacher cares about the needs of his students.

其次，优秀的教师会关注学生的需求。

Professor Francisco Bernardo， Jr. was the Dean of AIM who invited me to join its faculty. He was our professor in Operations Management in first year MBA. From whom I learned the maxim， “I don’t care what you know until I know that you care.” I recall a student—one of around 150 in the Development of Enterprise course—who approached me to say that she was unconvinced that she deserved the grade I gave her： Pass or 82 percent6. She said she believed that she deserved a higher grade. I was taken aback by what she said and could not remember anymore how I tried to justify or rationalize the grading system I used.

小弗朗西斯科·贝尔纳多教授——亚洲管理学院的院长，邀请我加入该学院的教师团队。他是我们第一年MBA课程的运营管理课教授。我从他那里学到了这句箴言：“直到我了解你真的在乎，我才会在乎你了解什么。”我记得有一个学生——她是企业发展课上大概150名学生中的一员——找到我说，她不认同我给她的分数是合格，或者说82%。她认为自己应该得到更高的分数。她的话让我大吃一惊，我已经不记得自己是如何试图合理解释我所使用的评分方法了。

Years later， after I had returned from a two-year sabbatical7 during which I worked full time as a corporate executive， I adopted a novel grading method. I told my students： I will grade you on the basis of your best performance. That way， I think I succeeded in motivating them to do their best every time： be it in recitation， quizzes and exams， or in projects.

多年后，我结束了为期两年的学术休假，在此期间我全职担任公司高管。回来之后，我采用了一种新颖的评分方法。我告诉学生们：我会根据你们最好的表现来给你们打分。通过这种方式，我想我成功地激励了他们每次都全力以赴：无论是在发言、测验和考试中，还是在课题项目中。

Third， the classroom is a microcosm of the world of lifelong learning. My creativity and adaptability as a teacher was put to its most severe test in executive education. Learners expect to know about the latest knowledge and knowhow; they also place a premium on “war stories” based on a professor’s field of expertise. Partnering with corporate customers that were innovators in the banking， pharmaceutical， telecommunications and fast food industries enabled me to keep abreast of leading edge practices.