First Person: Rita and Julia: Contrasts in the art of teaching excellence

Abstract

When Paul Graseck hired Rita and Julia to teach 7th-grade English, they presented a study in contrasts, with their different temperaments, classroom designs, and understandings of the teaching art. Both knew how to cultivate a safe haven for students and enrich student life, and their extremely different classroom approaches demonstrate that the art of teaching eludes simple description and cannot be replaced with lockstep adherence to a script.