A simple piece of recognition can give someone an extra bit of energy, confidence and motivation to keep improving.
Super Tutor — again
This month I was recognised as a Super Tutor on Preply again. I have honestly lost exact count, but this is around the eighth or ninth time I have received the status.
I am proud of it, not because a badge suddenly makes somebody a good teacher, but because repeated recognition usually reflects the things that matter behind the scenes: preparation, reliability, student feedback, consistency and helping people make progress.
Teachers are usually focused on the next lesson
Teaching can be a strange job because you are constantly thinking about what needs improving. You finish one lesson and immediately start thinking about the next student, the next activity, the mistake you want to explain better or the person who needs more confidence.
That mindset is useful, but it also means teachers do not always stop and look at what is already going well. A message from a student, a positive review, good exam results or professional recognition can force you to do that for a moment.
It is a small reminder: something you are doing is working.
Recognition can actually improve teaching
Good recognition is not just about making somebody feel good for five minutes. It can create a useful cycle.
- A teacher sees that their effort is being noticed.
- That gives them more motivation to maintain the standard.
- They become more willing to prepare, experiment and improve.
- Students get a teacher who is still invested in the work.
I have always believed feedback should work both ways. Students need useful correction and encouragement, but teachers also benefit from knowing what students value. When a student tells me a presentation went better because of our preparation, that a lesson helped them finally understand something, or that they feel more confident speaking at work, that feedback matters.
Give teachers specific flowers
The best appreciation is specific. Instead of only saying “great lesson”, tell a teacher what actually helped.
- “The way you explained that grammar point finally made it click.”
- “I used that phrase in my meeting today.”
- “The interview practice made me much less nervous.”
- “Your corrections have made me notice mistakes I used to repeat.”
That kind of feedback tells a teacher what to keep doing. It is appreciation, but it is also useful information.
Recognition should not become the goal
There is another side to this. Teachers should not teach for badges, reviews or compliments. The goal still has to be the student in front of you.
Some of the best teaching moments are not visible publicly at all. They might be helping someone find the confidence to speak up in a meeting, getting a nervous student through an interview, correcting the same pronunciation issue for the twentieth time until it finally sticks, or adapting a lesson because somebody has had a difficult week.
The recognition is meaningful because it sits on top of that work — not because it replaces it.
Make the compliment specific
If a teacher has helped you, “Great lesson” is lovely to hear. But “I finally felt confident enough to answer questions in my meeting today” tells them exactly what made a difference.
Recognition doesn't have to be a badge or an award. Sometimes it's a sentence about progress that reminds a teacher why the preparation, the corrections and the patient repetition were worth doing.
What this one means to me
After more than 13 years teaching internationally, I still care about improving. I have taught in the UK and Asia, managed teachers, run a language centre and worked with learners from very different backgrounds and professions. I still come out of lessons thinking about what I could explain better next time.
So getting Super Tutor again — around the eighth or ninth time now — is a nice reminder to also notice the progress on my side of the classroom.
Teachers spend a lot of time giving encouragement. Every now and then, it is good for them to receive a little of it back.