The Quotable Teacher, installment 6

Returning to a recent theme here at ISW:

At the center of understanding students is learning how to be intellectually and morally attentive as a teacher. ... I found that the language of calling, or vocation, helped capture the underlying motivations and conceptions of teaching better than the contemporary languages of profession, occupation, or job. The language of calling illuminates the sustained and deep regard the teachers have for their students, a quality perhaps shared by dedicated practitioners everywhere. (David T. Hansen, "Understanding students")