Have Empathy When Teaching

I was recently having a discussion with a fellow WordPresser on the topic of teaching and she raised a very good point.

I’ve noticed with people…that they forget what they didn’t know in the beginning.

This is not only a fantastic point (and something I have been guilty of), but it’s a bit of a problem for people who teach, especially in my field – programming. It’s incredibly important to have empathy for your students when you’re teaching them a difficult subject.

empathy: (n) the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.

The big issue in my field and likely others, is the very point my friend made: once you know something for a while it’s easy to forget you didn’t always know it. It becomes apparent when you try to teach that concept to someone else; you’re more inclined to get frustrated when whoever you’re teaching doesn’t catch on quickly.

I’ve seen talks and attended sessions where the speaker went really fast through complicated subject matter saying things like, “obviously,” “just do this,” “it’s simple,” and more. I’ve also seem speakers put down people who don’t know what they know or attack other people in the same industry. None of that makes your viewers comfortable. And because of that, they will probably not get a lot out the session or class. Even worse, they will think that because you made it seem so easy, they probably aren’t cut out for it.

Finding a Balance

Teaching isn’t easy by any stretch. You need to find a good balance between empathizing with your audience and not getting so basic that it feels like you’re taking down to them. On top of that, each person has a different background and skill level. That’s something that’s out of your control.

What is in your control is how you handle communicating your thoughts to those people. Don’t make it seem like what your teaching is the easiest thing in the world. It might be to you now, but I bet it wasn’t always that way. Using words like “obviously,” or even worse, calling others stupid in your talk (I’ve seen it – I’ve done it) is toxic.

Instead, be approachable. When I teach WordPress, I try to remember that these people could be seeing the admin for the first time. It can be disorienting. Speak slowly, show by example, and encourage practice.

Saying things matter-of-factly, like everyone should already know it cane be outright harmful. Try to remember what it was like when you were first learning the subject matter you’re now teaching. Have a little empathy for the people who trust you to teach them.