I believe that patience and the ability to keep encouraging students are key qualities of a good teacher. I grew up in Japan, where students’ abilities are often judged by test scores. I was always afraid of not getting good grades. As an adult, I reflected on that time and realized that the environment wasn’t ideal for learning languages. Fortunately, I’ve met some great teachers since then. They view my language progress with a long-term perspective and offer advice with warm, supportive words. Meeting them made me realize that I needed someone who would run alongside me and think things through with me. I’m writing this on the bus, thinking about my kind teacher, but I just remembered I missed today’s class. Now I feel like I should punish myself…