--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We teach what we like to learn and the…" description: "\"We teach what we like to learn and the reason many people go into teaching is vicariously to reexperience the primary joy experienced the first time th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/stephen-brookfield-60123_appreciation_we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-r_590008.png" --- # We teach what we like to learn and the reason many people… ![“We teach what we like to learn and the reason many people go into teaching is vicariously to reexperience the primary joy experienced the first time they learned something they loved.” quote by Stephen Brookfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/stephen-brookfield-60123_appreciation_we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-r_590008.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/stephen-brookfield-60123_appreciation_we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-r_590008.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/stephen-brookfield-60123_appreciation_we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-r_590008.png) > “We teach what we like to learn and the reason many people go into teaching is vicariously to reexperience the primary joy experienced the first time they learned something they loved.” [Stephen Brookfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-brookfield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Teaching is driven by the desire to relive the joy of first learning something beloved. **In simple terms:** Teachers teach to reexperience their own learning joy. Key Takeaway Foster joy in learning for both teacher and student. Themes education joy learning teaching reflection Mood inspirational thoughtful Type educational philosophical When to use this quote - classroom design - teacher training - curriculum development - student engagement Key Concepts pedagogy intrinsic motivation vicarious learning Questions to Reflect On - How can teachers balance personal joy with student outcomes? - What methods keep learning joyful for all? A Different Perspective Risk of focusing on teacher's joy over student needs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Appreciation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appreciation/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Teacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teacher/) [Teaching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teaching/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Some people pass through our lives just to teach us not to be like them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/some-people-pass-through-our-lives-just-to-teach-us-not-to-be-like/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [I hardly teach. It's more like a gathering of minds looking at one subject and learning from each other. I enjoy the process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-godwin/i-hardly-teach-it-s-more-like-a-gathering-of-minds-looking-at-one/) [Fay Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-godwin/) > [You could ask me to teach you.” “Huh?” This night is getting weird in a hurry. “Teach me like you’re teaching a class or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/you-could-ask-me-to-teach-you-huh-this-night-is-getting-weird-in-a/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [“We either teach them to be like the world or send them out empowered to seek &save the world”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/apostle-louis-gordon-jr/we-either-teach-them-to-be-like-the-world-or-send-them-out-empowered/) [Apostle Louis Gordon Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/apostle-louis-gordon-jr/) > [I'm a shy, nervous person, and I don't like teaching with "terms." I didn't teach them, like, "This is first person, this is second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/i-m-a-shy-nervous-person-and-i-don-t-like-teaching-with-terms-i-didn/) [Tao Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/) > [One of the reasons I like to teach is that I like to pass things on. That's an unspoken law of show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-reinking/one-of-the-reasons-i-like-to-teach-is-that-i-like-to-pass-things-on/) [Ann Reinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-reinking/) > [Teach like your hair's on fire!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafe-esquith/teach-like-your-hair-s-on-fire/) [Rafe Esquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafe-esquith/) > [I have slowly come to realize that a family is composed of people who are teaching one another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-truitt/i-have-slowly-come-to-realize-that-a-family-is-composed-of-people-who/) [Anne Truitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-truitt/) > [ As a country \[USA\], we can attract more talented people to teaching by raising awareness of educational inequity and getting the public to understand… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-kopp/as-a-country-usa-we-can-attract-more-talented-people-to-teaching-by/) [Wendy Kopp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-kopp/) > [Help people by teaching them to help themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/help-people-by-teaching-them-to-help-themselves/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [The people who are teaching religion and not teaching love are missing the message.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziggy-marley/the-people-who-are-teaching-religion-and-not-teaching-love-are/) [Ziggy Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziggy-marley/) > [“You have to bring relevance to people before teaching them the ways of Christ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/you-have-to-bring-relevance-to-people-before-teaching-them-the-ways/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [There's all kinds of people teaching who don't do anything worth a nickel. Likewise in advertising.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-winogrand/there-s-all-kinds-of-people-teaching-who-don-t-do-anything-worth-a/) [Garry Winogrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-winogrand/) > [The real trouble with film school is that the people teaching are so far out of the industry that they don't give the students…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-de-palma/the-real-trouble-with-film-school-is-that-the-people-teaching-are-so/) [Brian De Palma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-de-palma/) > [“Focus on winning people over and teaching (rather than winning arguments). Recognize”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-akadjian/focus-on-winning-people-over-and-teaching-rather-than-winning/) [David Akadjian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-akadjian/) ## More by Stephen Brookfield > [Sometimes the last thing learners need is for their preferred learning style to be affirmed. Agreeing to let people learn only in a way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-brookfield/sometimes-the-last-thing-learners-need-is-for-their-preferred/) [Stephen Brookfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-brookfield/) > [The most important knowledge teachers need to do good work is a knowledge of how students are experiencing learning and perceiving their teacher's actions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-brookfield/the-most-important-knowledge-teachers-need-to-do-good-work-is-a/) [Stephen Brookfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-brookfield/) > [The best learners... often make the worst teachers. They are, in a very real sense, perceptually challenged. They cannot imagine what it must be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-brookfield/the-best-learners-often-make-the-worst-teachers-they-are-in-a-very/) [Stephen Brookfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-brookfield/) > [“My own existence as a teacher is one of sustained epistemological demolition”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-brookfield/my-own-existence-as-a-teacher-is-one-of-sustained-epistemological/) [Stephen Brookfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-brookfield/) [Explore all 5 Stephen Brookfield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-brookfield/) ## More Appreciation quotes > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [Time can but make her beauty over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/time-can-but-make-her-beauty-over-again/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [The writings of latter-day prophets clearly teach that the sorrows and sufferings endured by Adam and Eve upon their leaving the Garden of Eden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-k-judd/the-writings-of-latter-day-prophets-clearly-teach-that-the-sorrows/) Daniel K Judd > [Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/wine-is-one-of-the-most-civilized-things-in-the-world-and-one-of-the/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [A very small percentage of the people in this world will actually experience and live today. So many people will be stuck on another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-maraboli/a-very-small-percentage-of-the-people-in-this-world-will-actually/) [Steve Maraboli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-maraboli/) > [Stop chasing the things you want and embrace all that you already have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/stop-chasing-the-things-you-want-and-embrace-all-that-you-already-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Appreciation is the purest vibration that exists on the planet today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/appreciation-is-the-purest-vibration-that-exists-on-the-planet-today/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) > [“My thank-yous always come out rather labored. I often don't give them at all. People do what they're supposed to do and then wait…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/my-thank-yous-always-come-out-rather-labored-i-often-don-t-give-them/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Like gratitude, authentic appreciation in the workplace is a realisation that can be nurtured and accessed with daily mindful practice. By and large, people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dines/like-gratitude-authentic-appreciation-in-the-workplace-is-a/) [Christopher Dines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dines/) > [Think of your mind, your emotions, and your spirit as the ultimate garden. The way to ensure a bountiful, nourishing harvest is to plant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/think-of-your-mind-your-emotions-and-your-spirit-as-the-ultimate/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [“Recognize and appreciate little things, and enjoy what Life has to offer”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-nikko-caharian-iii/recognize-and-appreciate-little-things-and-enjoy-what-life-has-to/) Cesar Nikko Caharian III > [Men, when it comes to women, value diamonds and put no stock into copper. Diamonds are rare. You can find copper anywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enhance-dreams/men-when-it-comes-to-women-value-diamonds-and-put-no-stock-into/) Enhance Dreams > [“Everything we perceive to be solid and static is made up of almost entirely empty space.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-p-kauffman/everything-we-perceive-to-be-solid-and-static-is-made-up-of-almost/) [Joseph P. Kauffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-p-kauffman/) > [Be very slow to believe that you are wiser than all others; it is a fatal but common error. Where one has been saved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/be-very-slow-to-believe-that-you-are-wiser-than-all-others-it-is-a/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) [Browse all 2,528 Appreciation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appreciation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We teach what we like to learn and the reason many people go into teaching is vicariously to reexperience the primary joy experienced the first time they learned something they loved.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen Brookfield" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-brookfield/we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-reason-many-people-go-into/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Appreciation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-brookfield/we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-reason-many-people-go-into/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/stephen-brookfield-60123_appreciation_we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-r_590008.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/stephen-brookfield-60123_appreciation_we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-r_590008.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/stephen-brookfield-60123_appreciation_we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-r_590008.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We teach what we like to learn and the reason many people go into teaching is vicariously to reexperience…” — Stephen Brookfield", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Stephen Brookfield", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-brookfield/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We teach what we like to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-brookfield/we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-reason-many-people-go-into/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-brookfield/we-teach-what-we-like-to-learn-and-the-reason-many-people-go-into/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```