Ellis, as your last post wisely suggests: Being authoritarian is not a good way to teach anything, no matter how learned the teacher, or how valuable the subject.

Good teachers are ones who "know themselves" and help students know themselves, and to think for themselves. Thus they usually dialogue with their students, not dictate to them.

I am reminded of the Dialogues of Plato, which are all about what it means to:
KNOW THYSELF
http://plato-dialogues.org/plato.htm