Teachers and students should have things easily worked out because the basic principle lies in the fact that as one gives the other should receive and vice versa. However there is a challenge with this because there are several important milestones that need to be first crossed before this relationship can follow a smooth course.

1. Proof of superiority
No student easily accepts to be one despite being placed by order in class or any work of life. The student always needs to justify why they need to listen to someone else. Perhaps this comes easily as children however the same is not true when we wear the hat of a student in our adult lives. Our experiences come in the way and pose a threat to this relationship. The teacher must prove that their credentials are worthy of being listened to before the student can accept their position. Whether it is in the domestic environment, in our occupations or otherwise this principle applies and this is part of building the relationship between teacher and student.

2. The bigger picture
The student generally cannot see the bigger picture. What this means is that the student will have a lower threshold to reach success. The student desires results sooner and expects to attain a superior level based on what they can understand. It is up to the teacher to have a greater understanding, have patience and be tolerant. The teacher cannot fall victim to the student's impatience or else the whole exercise becomes a waste of time. The teacher must always focus on the long term results for their student with a hope for success.

3. Praise
All students need some form of encouragement that gives them the enthusiasm to carry on. There is no better level of praise than that which comes from the teacher. It is for this praise that the student puts in the effort most of the time rather than how they would eventually apply what they have learned. This is another form of relationship building between teacher and student.

4. Familiarity
Teachers and students are not only defined in the classroom. Teachers and students can be between husband and wife, parent and child, brother and sister or just between co-workers. In that case it is often difficult to get past certain boundaries when either person adopts one role. For family, tough love should be practiced. For co-workers, friendship must be kept at a courteous level. If these boundaries are not defined within the teachers mind then they won't receive the respect that is needed to carry out the job.

5. Tests
Teachers must also note that the student will always be anxious to challenge them and see how good they really are. It is up to the teacher to regard this as positive if it is kept within the realms of civility. The student challenging the teacher is seeking to find their strength and tests what they have learned. The teacher should be willing to oblige to allow the student to grow. Generally the results which follow are a means by which the teacher measures whether or not the student is ready to leave the nest.

The key to a good teacher student relationship is in the understanding of the roles of responsibility within it. If both people respect their position then this relationship works in harmony.

I am the author of the novels Divinity Dawns and Eli. My most recent book Eli is a spiritual novel that serves as an invaluable guide for anyone conflicted in spirit. It is the second installment of a trilogy that takes the reader deep into the mind and heart of a devout Christian struggling to reconcile his faith with the often hostile reality that surrounds him. Three words that describe Eli are introspective, philosophical and epic.

My hope on completion of Eli was that it offers its readers a greater sense of spiritual awareness in their surroundings.
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