Can a teacher call a student stupid?

Defn of stupid: Lack of intelligence, understanding, slow to learn…

Does that mean if we suck at Math, we’re stupid?

Definitely NO!!!

A small anecdote: My maths teacher would often refer us as being stupid/retarded cos we’re not understandin any shit he is explainin! He would even say, I quote, “You need to be clever to do Maths, which you are not!”

Soo, can a teacher call a student “stupid”?

A teacher, by no means, should call a student stupid or retarded! A teacher’s job is to explain you when you don’t understand something, and not the opposite! As one of my teacher said: “A teacher is a guide, someone to make a difference! Someone who should treat the students the same way he treats his own child…”

Teachers should have good pedagogical skills:

Effective teachers use an array of teaching strategies because there is no single, universal approach that suits all situations. 

Different strategies used in different combinations with different groupings of students will improve learning outcomes. 

Some strategies are better suited to teaching certain skills and fields of knowledge than are others. Some strategies are better suited to certain student backgrounds, learning styles and abilities. (Souce: http://the-teacher.wikispaces.com/Pedagogy+-+Teaching+and+Learning+Strategies)

Besides, intelligence has to do with your capability to learn new things & think intuitively, creatively. I really think that being street smart is far more important than being book smart! Book smart will get you through your calculus class, but it will not get you through life! Math is just a learned skill, you just need to study them enough until eventually you can just memorize most of the information!

Personally, I think that street smart and common sense skills are much more important than something in a book… :)

You can also check out: What defines a good teacher?