IT would be wrong to assume that those with the best academic qualifications make the best teachers.

The truth is that those teachers, when students, who had difficulty understanding the more technical subjects such as mathematics, physics and chemistry, are often better-placed to understand why some students also have difficulty with those subjects.

The gifted person who, with little effort, obtained a first-class honours degree, often fails to see why less-gifted students may struggle.

We should judge a teacher on his ability to teach, inspire his students and hold their respect, rather than on the level of his university degree.

DR JOHN SANDALLS, Locks Lane, Wantage