I didn't want to be a teacher.
My father's Grade 1 teacher was my Grade 1 teacher and my sister's and brother's too. I graduated from elementary and then, from high school. She was still in the same grade level. I thought that teachers never advanced to a higher stratum of society. That's why I never wanted to be a teacher.
But why am I teaching? A complete irony of what I didn't want and what I am now is all I got. I used to say that I wanted to be a radio anchorman. I loved to talk to other people but at least not in front of them.
When I graduated from high school in 1997, my Alma Mater offered college courses: the BEEd and the BSEd Major in Math and in English. I spent another year there before I transferred to Tacloban. I took BSEd though I couldn't do well in either field of specialization. I ended up taking English as my major because Math was my waterloo.
Now that I am a full-fledged teacher, so as to say, I hold on Alexander Pope's judicious comment: "A little learning is a dangerous thing." Such statement has been a challenge for teachers since the bygone era. It seems that reading a few books doesn't make me a teacher; it may take more than that. It may take more than just training me like a dog. That's why I don't have the guts to handle subjects that are "bizarre" to me.
I am all smiles when my students learn from me. I can proudly say, "I can equip them with things they need in facing the challenges of the offing once they step out from school."
My Grade 1 teacher is still teaching in the same grade level. But looking back on my graduation day in college, I couldn't help but thanked her. Once again, the art of teaching was passed on to the next generation.
And the art continues...
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1 comment:
Nine years ago, I had a co-teacher who asked my age. When I told him, he said jerkily, “You’re young but STUPID.” He explained to me that I was stupid (like him) to teach strangers. Sometimes, according to him, teachers didn’t have time to teach their relatives. That’s what made us stupid. Whatever!
I may not be so dedicated to the teaching profession as others. I salute all teachers especially those who can mold the future of individuals more than I can. After over a decade of teaching and after choosing the legal profession, I still believe that teachers will always be teachers.
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