This short essay, accompanied by a group of images, will demonstrate how teachers and learners perceive the process of learning and teaching. The ugly duckling: teachers see learningTeachers see learning as a transformation process: students go from ugly duckling to elegant swan. During this long journey, students must endure intense training, the learning of which is always accompanied by emotions like fear, doubts and anxiety. Students fear making mistakes, doubt their skills, and are often anxious about their performance. Teachers know that these are unavoidable negative aspects of learning and so they will need to create a safe classroom for students to recover from their fall. “If you get tangled, you have to keep dancing.” This famous quote from the film Scent of a Woman (1992) accurately describes the transformation process. Moreover, teachers know that they are never wise on stage; they are simply a guide on the side. As the picture shows, ballet is performed without a teacher, learning ultimately has to be done by the students themselves. Therefore, teachers will intentionally train students to become independent learners. In a safe classroom, teachers allow students to make mistakes, set reasonably high expectations for students to grow, and push students out of their comfort zones so they learn from swinging to swimming. Eventually, teachers can step away from the students, leaving them to perform on a big stage called life. The positive side: teachers see the teaching. This image captures the moment a teacher manages difficult behavior in the classroom and controls his temperamental emotions. The climate of a classroom changes like unpredictable winter weather in College Station,...... middle of paper ......video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8umk4w8kB8Foucault, M. (1995), Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison (2nd ed. Sheridan, A. Trans.). New York: Vintage Books. ISBN-10: 0679752552 Merriam, SB, Caffarella, RS and Baumgartner, LM (2007). Learning as an Adult: A Complete Guide (3rd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-BassPalmer, Parker J. (2007). The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life, 10th Anniversary Edition. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Robinson, K. (January 6, 2007). Sir Ken Robinson: Are schools killing creativity [video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtYScent of a Woman. (1992). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0105323/quotesWarhol, A. (1967). Untitled by Marilyn Monroe [Print]. Retrieved from http://www.moma.org/collection/object.php?object_id=61239