This year I have noticed a larger number of student teachers in my classes. I never would have noticed a difference in grade school because it was normal for my classes to have a student teacher. In fact, I always had several.

I usually enjoy having student teachers. It's a way to learn from someone other than your primary teacher in a new way. In younger grades my peers and I always developed close relationships with our student teachers because we always perceived that they were nicer and were often closer to our age.

The kind of student teacher I became used to were the ones who would come in every day for a semester and assist the main teacher or lead small groups. It wasn't until later in my education that I had different types of student teachers who wouldn't come in every day, or who would become more involved in the lesson plan.

When I first had a student teacher actually take over the teaching responsibilities for my regular teacher in grade school I didn't enjoy it at all. I felt as if I was missing out from what my normal teacher had to say, and that the student teacher was doing a lesser job of conveying the information. I even started a countdown calendar for when my regular teacher would resume teaching.

The student teachers I have had in high school normally come in for a couple of weeks and observe a certain class and then teach one day and leave. I enjoy this type of program because I get to experience a different type of teaching than what I am used to, but it only lasts for a day. Soon enough my normal teacher will resume his or her own lesson plans.

Observing the short-term student teachers has developed into a sort of game for me. After years of schooling I have come to understand what characterizes a good teacher and a good lesson plan. Assessing the teachers or sympathizing with them is a great amusement for the duration of a class period.

The long-term student teachers I have had in high school have been excellent. I suppose this can be attributed to more thorough selection. But I also think it has something to do with how well they understand a class and how much they are willing to get to know the students. My favorite teachers throughout all of my schooling have been those who have become more acquainted with the class so that the learning environment is more open. The age of the students is also closer to that of the teachers in later grades, which may explain the difference from when I was younger.

Student teachers can be wonderful, but they can also overdo their role as a teacher in a way that prevents them from getting to know a class. I, for one, welcome the opportunity to learn from someone new, but I'll just have to be prepared for less than extraordinary teaching as well. It's the same as with many other things in life where you will have terrible experiences, but there will always be the unbelievably intriguing ones to counter them.