Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Passion for teaching
Passion for teaching
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Passion for teaching
Was Mr. Keating A Good Teacher? What is a good teacher? In many people’s opinions, a good teacher is an educator who not only gives the students the education needed for the course, but teaches them life long lessons to help them succeed as human beings. In the film Dead Poets Society, Mr. Keating, an english teacher at an all boys prep school called Welton Academy, was a good teacher. He really reached out to all of his students and changed them in a way that a not all teachers can change their students. His goal as a teacher was to teach his students to live life with absolute passion, and to do so, he used poetry. Mr. Keating had the strongest impact on 7 boys in particular who attended his english class. Their names were Todd Anderson, …show more content…
Keating used poetry as a way to teach his students many things. One way he used poetry was to teach them to be brave. One day in class, one of the more shy students, Todd Anderson, was asked to recite his poem that they were assigned to write. Todd told Mr. Keating he had not written one and was asked to make one up on the spot in front of the entire class. As Todd stood in the front of the classroom, watched by all his classmates, he became very nervous and didn’t know what to say. Mr. Keating stood with him and questioned him, which brought out the true poet within Todd, and Todd started to recite something beautiful about a picture of a madman on a wall. After Mr. Keating did this for Todd he changed, and suddenly having the pressure of being put on the spot in front of people didn’t daunt him so much anymore, and he truly realized that if he seized the moment and the day, he could be brave. Adding on to why Mr. Keating was a good teacher, was the fact that he made his students do certain exercises to take them out of their comfort zone while still teaching them what they needed to know. To teach them poetry meter and rhythm, he took them to the courtyard and had them march around and clap while reading poetry. Some students thought that the others looked ridiculous when they did the exercise first and did not want to participate, but in the end they all joined in and ended up having fun and learning, even though they were taken out of their comfort
Mr. Keating first shows an example of transcendentalism ideas during class, when he encourages his students to tear out the pages of the introduction to their literature book. Mr. Keating believes the boys need to learn to analyze the poetry for themselves, and not listen to someone else's interpretation. He tells his students, “Now in my class you will learn to think for yourselves again.” ( Dead Poets Society: Final Script). Mr. Keating wants his students to look beyond what a book says, and interpret things the poetry the way they see fit. Mr. Keating represents transcendentalist ideas again in the courtyard scene. He is emphasizing the dangers of conformity, and how the boys need to hear a “different drummer”. As the boys march around, they start to comport to the same beat. He uses this to emphasize the point that “you must trust that your beliefs are unique, your own, even though others may think them odd or unpopular” (Dead Poets Society: Final Script). The boys are slowly accepting that they are their own person, and
Mr. Keating encourages Todd to speak up and voice his opinions. He makes Todd realize that the world will accept him because his thoughts and feelings are so deep and heartfelt. Charles Dalton receives just the spark he needs for action from Mr. Keating. He reforms a group called the Dead Poets Society.
Keating is very adamant about how his students need to be their own person in a society that tells them not to. He is a huge inspiration to his students, especially Neil, and impacts all of their lives in a unique way. Neil has a father which represents society as a whole on the youth of today. He tries to force his son down a one-way street and for many years Neil complied, but once Mr. Keating opened his eyes to poetry and the beauty of life Neil had a new view on things. He always tells them to find their own voice and to express it to the world, and he tells them how poetry is a profession of emotion. The students recreate the Dead Poets Society as the story goes on and Mr. Keating gets a quote from poetry which compares life to this powerful play to which people can contribute a verse to. He asks them what will their verse be. He is encouraging the students to speak out and be their own person to make a change in the
The movie, Dead Poets Society truly captures the essence of the conformities that children are facing. The difference is letting the hourglass run out of time, or making the best of time, facing tough challenges along the way. Todd Anderson makes the best out of his time thanks to the teaching of Mr. Keating, his beloved English teacher. From a misunderstood adolescent to a courageous man, Todd shows his true colors and releases the inferior thoughts stirring up in his developing, young body. In the end, romanticism crushes idealism with power and envy, showing the eye-opening ways that a teacher can contribute to such a tightly wound academy such as Welton.
Keating also shows his heroism through how impactful he is. Throughout the entire film, Mr. Keating is constantly striving to help his students improve their lives. By the end of the movie, it is clear that he achieved just that. Because of Mr. Keating's guidance, Todd gains the courage to stand up for what he thinks is right. He is able to speak in front of people and even stands on top of the desk in respect for Mr. Keating. Knox also takes Mr. Keating's advice and seizes the day. He pursues the girl of his dreams and ends up going on a date with her. All of the boys are changed directly due to Mr. Keating's positive influence. Even Neil was affected and was able to seize the day. He followed his dream and was the star of a play. Even though Neil commits suicide shortly after, he was able to follow Mr. Keating's advice before he died by thinking for himself and achieving his dreams. All of the boys, even Richard who betrayed Mr. Keating, were impacted in their own, unique ways by Mr. Keating's teachings.
In the movie Dead Poets Society, Robin Williams's character as Mr. Keating the English teacher is a hero. "Carpe Diem, lads! Seize the day! Make your lives drastically. Keating's viewpoints and thoughts on life stayed the same throughout the movie no matter what conflict was occurring. The students that Keating taught were the ones who
Throughout the text Keating connects with people on a personal level through his word choice and tone. This connection with his audience allows him to further develop belonging, and evoke a greater emotional response in his audience. This word choice and tone can be seen in the lines, “We took the traditional lands and smashed the traditional way of life. We brought the diseases. The alcohol. We committed the murders. We practiced discrimination and exclusion. It was our ignorance and our prejudice.”
Keating demonstrates to his students that books and poetry are necessary in life, but should not be relied upon completely. For example, Mr. Keating tells his students that, “ ‘We don 't read and write poetry because it 's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for’ ”. Similarly, Emerson believes that, “Moses, Plato, and Milton is, that they set at naught books and traditions, and spoke not what men but what they thought. A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within, more than the lustre of the firmament of bards and sages”. Poetry, books, tradition, bards, and sages are essential for people to have passion and knowledge in life, but it does not mean that they should live a life base on those ideas. At some point in life, people have to think for themselves. They should pursue what their heart wants them to because everyone has to think for themselves and find their own talents. This is the main idea Mr. Keating and Emerson are trying to explain. Thus, this is the concept that Mr. Keating is trying to pass
“Seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary” is the sentiment new teacher Mr. Keating leaves with his students after the first day of class at Welton Academy (Weir). Mr. Keating teaches in an unorthodox manner, evident on the first day of class when catching the boys off guard by calling the introduction of their poetry textbook “excrement,” and instructing the boys to rip that section out of their book (Weir). His unique style of teaching forces the boys, who face immense pressures from their parents to excel, to think on their own. Using this idea of living for today, a group of boys reestablish the Dead Poet’s Society, which Mr. Keating describes as “dedicated to sucking the marrow out of life” by reading verses of famous poetry (Weir). This live-for-today mentality
That is part of the reason that John Keating stands out. Of course, anyone who likes to stand on his desk to get a fresh perspective is going to be noticed. However, Keating is different in other excessively. The young English teacher tries to awaken a sense of individuality in his students. He urges them to "seize the day," to live each moment to its fullest.
I think that Mr. Keating would be a good teacher, as he adds that interactive element that lets you get 'hands on' with what your learning, but I would still be wanting to be able to do some writing at some point, considering it is English after all! b. I believe that Mr. Keating is saying that anything that you feel is extraordinary, or amazing in some way, can be turned into poetry, wether it be something as simple as a cat sitting on a mat, or something slightly deeper like a sunset. As long as it fills you with a type of wonder, it has the opportunity to become
In Dead Poets Society, John Keating becomes the new English teacher at Welton Academy, an esteemed school rooted in tradition, after attending as a student years ago. He teaches using an unconventional style which is different from the traditional English curriculum, and in the process, he exposes the students to a new perspective on the subject and principles for living life. Keating encourages free-thinking and condemns the textbook which prevents the students from thinking for themselves. Other individuals, including the principal, Mr. Nolan, disagree with his unconventional method of teaching and prefer that he follow a traditional method of teaching through an English textbook. The lessons that Mr. Keating presents the students reflect the transcendentalist beliefs of Ralph Waldo Emerson found in “Self-reliance” and influence the students to become more independent thinkers.
In the movie, Dead Poets Society, the basic idea of expression is being taught by Keating. Keating is a very unique instructor who uses many different methods of teaching to get the students involved, but he shows them ways to have fun also. That in itself is very unique. Keating is trying to release the emotions these students have within themselves. He is teaching them to make their lives extraordinary, think for themselves, and be an individual instead of a follower. In one lesson with these students he expressed this to the fullest, by having them rip out the introduction of their text books because of what J. Evans Pritchard, Ph.D. tells them to do with poetry. By ripping that out they realize that they have a mind of their own and others should not think for them or tell them what they should think. The most important lesson Keating teaches is "Carpe Diem," which means "Seize the Day." Even though this method of instruction is phenomenal and has many benefits, there are a few critiques on Keating's method of ...
Since Keating was a Progressive, he provided a student-centered curriculum. A student-centered curriculum “focuses on the needs and attitudes of the individual students. Emphasizes self-expression and the student’s intrinsic motivation” (Ornstein, Levine, Gutek, Vocke, 2004, p. 522). Keating believed that learning is not about forcing routine packages of knowledge on them, but that it has more to do with triggering and inspiring the deepest feelings of his students. His purpose was to have his students think for themselves. Keating tells his students “Try never to think about anything the same way twice!” If you’re sure about something, force yourself to think about it another way.” Student-centered learning allows students the flexibility to learn anytime and anywhere, meaning that student learning can take place outside of the classroom. Keating really wanted to embrace this in his students. It is no coincidence that the Dead Poets Society cave in the woods is where most of the students’ engaging experiences occur, instead of at school in some classroom. According to Bramann, “Classrooms, schools, curricula, and disciplined instruction may be necessary for the education of the students and the maintenance of the life form into which humanity has evolved, but they are meaningless unless some deeper inspiration or vison will
Keating goes above and beyond at developing the minds of his students, including helping Todd find the poet within himself, and supporting Neil when Neil’s father didn’t want Neil to act. Overall, Mr. Keating and his actions pushed the ideas of creativity and self-thought throughout the film.