Imagine being in a strict, all boys boarding school, where the teachers follow strict teaching patterns and don't allow any trouble... then imagine watching your new teacher walk among the students, whistling a tune, then leave the classroom. A second later, he pokes his head back and says, "Are you coming?" My guess is, you'd be just as confused as those students were!
The introduction to Mr. Keating was very unusual, but not very different from the students in "Stand and Deliver" to Mr. Escalante. Both teachers are unusual, a bit eccentric, and run their classes VERY differently than their students would expect.
In this boarding school, the teachers expect perfection. They want the students to do everything their way, and to do it right the first time. Mr. Keating had a very unusual teaching style that meant to not only teach the students about poetry, but also about life and their own potential.
In "Stand and Deliver" the teachers didn't expect much from their students, and when they did excel, they thought the only way they could have done that was through cheating. Mr. Escalante taught the students calculus... but also how much they really can accomplish, despite any personal situations.
Mr. Keating's introduction surely was unconventional and perhaps confusing, however it got the students' attention! And how nice it must've been for those students to have a bit of fun and normality infused into their rigid boarding school lives.
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