Do Teachers Remember Their Students?
Throughout their careers, teachers come into contact with a huge number of students. Teachers engage with a wide spectrum of students in their job, from educating new students to general involvement with students outside of their allocated classes.
The number of students teachers teach per year can range from as little as one to hundreds of students. While having a class with only one student is rare, lecturers can sometimes only have one student signed up for their courses.
With teachers dealing with a large number of students yearly, do they really remember all the students they’ve taught at every point in their profession?
Do Teachers Remember Every Student They’ve Taught
Like everyone, teachers cannot remember everyone they meet during the course of their profession. That said, it’s easier for teachers to remember outstanding students (both positively and negatively), friendly students, naughty students, comic relief, teacher’s pet, and students who continue to keep in touch after graduation.
Teachers can’t remember every student they’ve come across but a teacher might easily remember students who made some form of impression, although this is dependent on the teacher’s good or bad memory.
Some people have an easy time remembering faces and names while others have a harder time. No teacher chooses to forget their students but time and other factors contribute to most teachers forgetting a majority of their students.
You’ll only meet a few teachers who might easily recognize their students, although most would still forget the majority of their students’ names. I’ve personally taught several students in my life and I hardly remember the faces and names of a majority of my previous students.
Let’s take a look at some of the students that may be difficult for teachers to forget.
Kind Of Students Teachers Remember
While it may be easier for a teacher with few numbers of students to remember the majority of students they’ve taught, it’s a lot more difficult for those who have taught a larger number of students to remember all their students.
That said, there’re some types of students that are easier to remember even after they’ve graduated.
You will also like:
Teacher’s Pet
These students take front seats in the class and laugh loudly at teachers’ jokes. They have the teacher’s favor, ask the most questions when the teacher is in class, and never miss the teacher’s class.
Other students sometimes find them annoying or hate them for trying too hard or trying to show their intelligence. The teacher complements them and they’re actively volunteering when the teacher needs someone.
Comic Relief
We all remember the somewhat intelligent kid who tried to put a spin on the subject matter. Always sensed the mood in the class and tried to make it less tense for everyone else while also respecting the teacher.
Comic relief differs from class clowns who simply make jokes for attention. Comic reliefs genuinely have an interest in the subject matter and can make insightful jokes about the topic to make it easier for others to understand.
Focused Student
These students can sometimes arrive in the middle of the semester with no understanding of previous lessons. However, they’re able to make their way up from poor grades to become one of the best in class.
Teachers love such students and use them anonymously as an example to other students even after the student has graduated from the school. These students have proven to their teachers that hard work pays off and teachers hope their students can put similar effort into their studies.
Such students are difficult to forget and teachers easily remember them even decades after their graduation.
Stay In-Touch
Some students may not be very memorable during their school days, but they try to stay in touch with their teachers after graduation. Teachers hardly forget such former students as they invite them for events and try to keep in touch as appropriately as possible.
Excellent Students
While teachers may meet good students in their classes, they sometimes come across students with levels of understanding that can surprise the teachers. Teachers sometimes learn certain concepts from such students. It becomes difficult to forget such students’ years after they graduate from these institutions.
Tearjerker
Teachers have a huge responsibility to protect and educate their students. Unfortunately, there’re situations where teachers become helpless as they’re unable to provide their students with the help they need.
While teachers may have their challenges at home, students sometimes deal with uniquely horrifying situations that remain unknown to the teacher. Teachers sometimes become privy to these stories and challenges some students face which can leave an indelible impression on them.
Attached
Most teachers enter into the profession out of love for children. At the early childhood education level, students can sometimes leave a lasting impression on their teachers. Some students become so attached to their teachers that they even begin to cry when their parents come to pick them up from school.
While children grow out of this phase eventually, teachers at the early childhood education level will always remember these children.
Naughty Students
Popularity can either be positive or negative. Unfortunately, some students have caused a negative impression in their schools making it easy for most teachers to remember them even after their graduation
Do you remember the naughtiest student you’ve come across in your teaching career? The answer is most likely “yes”. In some cases, naughty students are used as cautionary tales in some schools. Students who consistently made trouble and got penalized for them or even escaped punishments.
Public Figures
While a student may not be very visible during their education, teachers always remember them in cases where the student goes on to become a public figure. It becomes difficult for a teacher to forget a student when they acquire some form of fame or notoriety.
A typical example is a student who goes on to become a senator or some form of a public figure. It becomes difficult for any of their teachers to forget them especially when they’re all over the various media platforms.
Do Teachers Remember Shy Students
Yes, teachers remember shy students, especially when there’s noticeable progress in students’ behavior through the intervention of the teacher. That said, teachers mostly remember outstanding students the most.
Do Teachers Remember All Their Students
No, teachers cannot remember all their students but they may remember some outstanding students. Teachers teach hundreds of students each year making it difficult for them to remember every student they’ve taught in their teaching profession.
In some cases, teachers might simply be able to recall the faces of their students but would forget their names.
How Do You Get A Teacher To Remember You
Excellent academic performance, being naughty, or becoming the teacher’s pet is no guarantee that your teacher would remember you after graduation.
If you need your teacher to remember you even after graduation, you can
Ask Them To Remember You
The first option is to ask the teacher to remember you when you graduate. While they might still forget after some time, this would ensure that they would remember you for some time. After all, how many students personally asked their teacher to remember them.
Keep In Touch
The best option is to stay in touch with the teacher even after you’ve successfully graduated from the institution. Some students keep in touch with their students even after they’ve successfully graduated from the school. They invite them to events and stay in communication with them.
Take A Picture With Them
While simply taking a picture may not be enough, it can accomplish the purpose. Simply take a picture with your teacher and frame it if possible. This decreases the chances of the picture getting easily ruined
Present Them A Lasting Gift
No need to look for the most expensive gift for your teacher. Simply find something you can give them that will last. It doesn’t need to be purchased. If you can draw or paint, you can present them with a drawing or painting you made of them.
