It is important for students to know about how languages are learned, so that they can better manage their own learning through the setting of realistic goals and the selection of appropriate learning strategies. I believe classrooms should be happy places, because people learn best when the head and the heart work together. I believe that learning happens best when students and teachers are excited about what is being learned. We can all remember memorizing facts we didn't care about in school, and forgetting them after the test. But when information means something to us, we learn it for keeps.
Good teachers make students care, and they make students work hard too.
But it's much more than just fun. Academic effort, hard work, and love of learning all go together. Students are unique individuals, with varying personalities, styles, backgrounds, strengths and weaknesses. I begin every semester with the hope that all of my students will be successful. Not all students will succeed, but I do everything I can to see that students who want to learn do learn.