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<p>That may be true but on the other hand, the greatest teachers were always brilliant themselves. You can’t be an average scholar and expect to turn out top scholars. Does it matter at the undergraduate level, where you still deal with building a foundation? You bet it does! The mind is most agile during those formative years. In area such as mathematics, most of the productive work is done by the time you are 25. If you want to be competitive in any field of science, you have to get a head start. It is no surprise that the vast majority of graduate students at leading research universities come from the USNWR top 20 undergraduate universities. </p>
<p>The most brilliant teachers teach without textbooks. They work from primary sources. They master concepts that the average teacher simply does not fully comprehend. They have honed their teaching skills over many years making hundreds of presentations to students, peers, government committees and general audiences. Some, like a Professor Lewin at MIT are actually ‘performers’ with a worldwide following. They instinctively know their audiences and can adjust their presentation for the maximum effect.</p>