Frank McCourt grew up in Ireland in poverty and non-ideal living conditions. Despite the fact of not having completed a formal high school education, McCourt was able to become an amazing teacher when he immigrated to America. He used his background and upbringings to his advantage in order to connect with his students. His Irish accent was one of the many things that piqued the student's curiosity. I believe that curiosity is an important aspect of learning and 'teacher inquiry'. McCourt used this sense of curiosity from his students understand them on a deep and personal level.
One of the things that McCourt said in the interview was that it was important to take off the 'teacher mask'. He believed that it was important to be honest with the students and not to put up a facade. For teachers its commonly expected that they are all knowing, but I find this is wrong. Teachers are people as well, and sometimes we don't have an answer for everything. For my future classes, if I encounter this situation, I hope to remember to take off the 'teacher mask'. Being honest with students and working together to find a solution is a great way to connect with them.
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