What can I do to look and act more like a teacher and less like a student as I do my student teaching and begin my career? I’m wondering how to navigate the authority-figure/friend territory, especially in the case of high school students who are only a few years younger than I am.
—Lee, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Your appearance and demeanor won’t automatically make you a better teacher, but they can be factors in how students perceive you.
Be sure to dress professionally, even if the teachers in the school tend to have a more casual style. You can of course be stylish and comfortable, but save the tattered jeans, t-shirts with messages, very short skirts, flip–flops, and gym wear for other occasions. Be conservative in terms of hair and makeup, if you wear it.
In addition to attire, your confidence level adds to your professionalism. Stand up straight and look the students in the eye. Use correct grammar when speaking to them and avoid using a lot of slang (although once in while the students will get a kick out of it). Practice projecting your voice so you don’t have to scream to be heard in the back of the room. Proofread any written material you give to students and parents.
As a science teacher, you’ll want to model appropriate attire for the lab, too (no open-toed shoes or dangling jewelry). I know several science teachers who wear a white lab coat on lab days. Talk about an authority figure!
Here are some suggestions from the participants in a related NSTA discussion forum:

• From Patria: I like to dress appropriately in school, but it seems that the younger teachers are into the casual wear. It depends on the school culture where you are. After several years working at the high school, I am learning to dress casually (but appropriately) on casual days or spirit days. I think the best way is to act like most of the teachers and administrators at school.

• From Tina: Although professional dress is probably called for rather than casual, if you want to project that you are an adult you must do so through your actions. There will be adults in the building who’ll mistake you for a student (and as you get older you may wish that was still true!) but what is important is how your students perceive you in class. Even in high school, if you act kind and respectful and stick to your rules students will get the idea that you are a teacher and not a classmate.

• From Monica: My experience has taught me students will be very likely to follow instructions and work hard when they know how much you care about them.Once I started to relax and enjoy them everything fell into place.

• From Molly: One thing I tell my students is that while they are in our school, they are like my own kids. I’m like a mama bear at school, and they do call me Mama. We laugh about the fact that I’m not really old enough to be their mom, but that I care about them and want them to be successful. I’ve found my kiddos like having a parental figure at school. We can laugh, joke, share some issues, but they also know the look. Many say, “My mom gives me that look!” They know when I’m serious and we need to focus, and they know when it is OK to joke.

• From Sandy: How you present yourself physically is only a small part of having students respect you. You have to have confidence in what you do and say. Talk to students with professional yet friendly language. When you write notes on the board or in a lab notebook, don’t take shortcuts and use text language. Plan your lessons ahead of time and know where the obstacles are. Be prepared to lose electricity, have a fire drill, or only a portion of the equipment you thought you would have. In this day of technology at your fingertips, don’t “friend” students on Facebook or other social media. I know there are some teachers that do so with no ramifications, but I know a whole lot more that have gotten themselves in trouble.

Most teachers would admit that the first few years are the hardest. It takes a while for you to build a reputation with students. When you are starting out you have to decide what that reputation is going to be. I had a college professor in my methods course whose mantra was “Be a fair, firm, and friendly adult.”
Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/spicytimothy/2118949297/sizes/l/