I think the missing word in this debate is engagement.
Whilst we might have been content to sit in school whilst a boring old codger rattled on about something we knew we needed to know, but found it dull, today's teenagers certainly won't just accept it.
Imagine if you went to the theatre to see a play and the actors were word perfect, but had no feeling or emotion about the way the prsented it - you'd leave !
A moot point also is that a truly 'good' teacher is constantly examing the way that they present the information and how they assess it, so that it has maximum impact. Certainly doesn't mean tap dancing on the lab taps, but it does mean being interesting, or rather, making topics interesting and engaging!
kaz