New: "I'm Not a Wizard, I Just Teach" by Alikhan Dinaev

Contents:

Full title of the book: "I'm not a magician, I only teach. About motivation, discipline and love for the profession for teachers."

Publishing company: "Alpina.Children".

Year of publication: 2025.

Alikhan Dinaev, who became a laureate of the all-Russian competition "Teacher of the Year of Russia - 2018", notes that "teachers with 40 years of experience could laugh at my 13 years of work." However, modesty aside, during this time he managed to acquire a wide range of teaching skills. He taught at a technical university, taught classes at a private Unified State Exam preparation center, worked as a teacher at one of the largest schools in Grozny, and at a rural school high in the mountains. Alikhan was also a research fellow in the Faculty of Pedagogical Education at Lomonosov Moscow State University. He currently manages a teaching workshop at the Chechen State Pedagogical University and teaches social studies at various schools in the republic.

According to the teacher, he has long wanted to create a book that would collect sincere recommendations, ideas, and practical methods that he himself sought at the beginning of his professional career. Without unnecessary words, boring reasoning, and high-flown expressions—only those approaches that are truly applicable in the context of the Russian school and can simplify the teacher's life by providing support.

Having gathered his experience, communicating with colleagues, and researching both scientific and popular sources devoted to education and training, Alikhan Dinaev has created a collection of recommendations and practical solutions aimed at overcoming the current difficulties faced by teachers.

Each chapter in this book focuses on one of the identified problems and is divided into three sections. In the first, the most extensive section, the author delves into aspects of interaction with students. He discusses issues related to academic motivation and engagement, as well as effective feedback and maintaining discipline in the classroom. Alikhan offers various approaches to awakening students' interest in the subjects they study, fostering a love of reading, organizing productive group work, and introducing elements of humor and play into the learning process. He suggests improving traditional textbook assignments by making them more appealing to teenagers and taking their interests into account.

"Is there a need for calculations? Stop referring to abstract characters from textbooks. Imagine Elon Musk driving a Tesla from point A, and Olivia Rodrigo approaching him on a hoverboard. When will they meet? Let math or physics problems involve youth favorites; for example, Ovechkin could calculate how much he's surpassed Gretzky's record. Don't limit yourself to counting apples; sometimes it's much more fun to count Bitcoin, experience points (XP) in video games, or goals scored by Salah and Haaland.

"I'm not a magician, I'm just a teacher," says Alikhan Dinaev.

This section provides recommendations for combating bullying and preventative measures, as well as approaches to working with students exhibiting ADHD symptoms. The author also touched upon the important topic of using artificial intelligence, offering several options for how neural networks can assist teachers in creating lessons and educational resources.

In The next section provides recommendations for interacting with students' parents, as well as with both older and younger colleagues. Alikhan offers advice on how to involve parents in school life, how to effectively organize meetings and pedagogical councils, and how a male teacher can feel comfortable in a predominantly female team. Two chapters in this subsection discuss the problem of emotional burnout, which, according to a 2025 study, more than half of teachers in Russia have faced.

The book concludes with a section focusing on career growth and developing a personal brand for teachers. It covers aspects such as preparing for professional competitions, blogging, and finding a unique element that reflects the personality and values ​​of the teacher. The author also offers a number of ideas for increasing income, such as creating your own teaching materials and launching an online course.

The author notes that readers can explore the book in any order, choosing the chapters they find most engaging or helpful in solving pressing issues. In addition to recommendations, the book includes links to additional resources—cheat sheets, tools, templates, and articles—that will allow you to delve deeper into the topics discussed. The author also includes sample assignments and exercises designed for working with students.

This publication will undoubtedly be primarily useful for beginning teachers who are just beginning to face various challenges in their professional work. However, more experienced teachers will also find many ideas inspiring and perhaps encouraging them to experiment with new approaches.

This material will be useful for teachers and tutors, as well as for instructors in colleges and universities.

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