The Art of English: A Conversation with Nick Boskovski | Season 2 – Episode 5

Episode Overview

• English teacher and mentor Nick Boskoski shares his core teaching philosophy, emphasizing that passion, genuine care, and building trust are the foundations of student success.
• The conversation offers practical advice for new teachers on developing an authentic style, finding positive mentors, and navigating the professional environment.
• Strategies for motivating students and managing academic stress are explored, including the use of friendly competition and the importance of early and thorough preparation.
• The episode highlights the crucial role of parental involvement, providing actionable advice for families to support their children's education by engaging with their schoolwork at home.

Key Concepts

• The Foundations of Great Teaching: Effective teaching is built on passion, enthusiasm, and a genuine care for students. This "care factor" creates a foundation of trust that motivates students to succeed.
• Continuous Improvement: A core philosophy for both educators and students is to adopt a mindset of constant growth, encapsulated by the motto "today is the worst you'll ever be."
• Strategies for Student Success: Key strategies include building strong rapport, using friendly competition as a motivator, and completing core learning well ahead of final exams to reduce stress and build confidence.
• Professional Mentorship and Authenticity: New teachers are advised to develop their own unique style rather than imitating others and to seek out positive mentors while actively avoiding negative or disenchanted colleagues.
• Parental Involvement: Parents can play a significant role in their child's academic life by making school texts and concepts a normal part of family conversations, such as at the dinner table.

Quotes

• At 1:44 - "what's common across these great teachers is that passion and enthusiasm for teaching and learning... and that care factor which comes across." - Nick explains that the core of effective teaching lies in a teacher's passion and genuine care, which students can always sense.
• At 9:21 - "Other teachers can be a problem... Stay away from the negative people because it'll just make your day worse and you're not going to learn much from them." - Nick gives stark advice to new teachers about the importance of surrounding themselves with positive, motivated colleagues.
• At 11:38 - "The secret, if there is one, is trust. If they learn and understand that you care... they'll work for you because they know you work for them. It goes two ways." - Nick describes his philosophy for motivating students, centered on building a foundation of mutual trust and respect.
• At 23:48 - "Today is the worst you'll ever be." - The speaker explains this is a motto he shares with his students to inspire a mindset of constant growth and improvement.
• At 32:32 - "Bring those texts to your dinner table... bring those texts to your family." - Offering advice to parents, he encourages them to engage with their children's schoolwork by discussing the ideas and themes from their assigned texts as a family.

Takeaways

• For educators, building trust and showing genuine care for students is the most powerful tool for motivation and engagement.
• Adopt a mindset of continuous improvement; for both teachers and students, the goal should be to always be learning and growing.
• New teachers should focus on developing an authentic style and proactively seek positive mentors to foster enthusiasm and avoid burnout.
• Parents can significantly impact academic success by making learning a part of everyday family life, such as discussing school texts at the dinner table.