Being a better teacher

“Don’t try to fix the students; fix ourselves first. A good teacher can make even the poor student good, and make the good student superior. When our students fail, we as teachers, too, have failed." Marva Collins. My choice to become a teacher was not made lightly. This decision was a culmination of a process of reflection about what I wanted to do with my life. I have chosen a career in education because I believe that it is one of the most important functions performed in our culture. I believe that teachers individually and collectively have the ability to not only to change the world, but to improve it.

I am currently teaching in a Home school centre called KGB which is located in Bandar Puteri, Puchong, Selangor. I attached to this school for the past 3 years and this homeschooling is a type of educational method that relies on workbooks (Alpha Omega LifePacs) for each subject, with analysis questions, hands-on activities in areas such as science, and quizzes and tests. This Alpha Omega curriculum usually has good scope and sequence, providing foundational knowledge on all topics and then building on that through the high school years. Here student don’t attend government based schools or private schools. Students are enrolled according to their English proficiency level and they are placed according to certain grade from grade one to eleven (pre-school up to form 5). Once a student has completed grade eleven he or she will have to sit for IGCSE examination and he or she will be eligible to enroll in any universities or colleges. Each teacher will be given a class with mixed age group and the teacher need to teach all the subjects such as Language Art (English), Maths, Social Studies, Science, History & Geography and Bahasa Malaysia. Their method and syllabus is American based. Teachers in homeschool play an important role as facilitator and student’s learning are self paced.

I am teaching students from grade one to eight where students at the age of seven to sixteen. I teach Mathematics, Language Art (English), Science, Social Studies and Geography. Though I was asked to teach all these subjects yet I realized that English plays an important role in order for these students to be able to cope with other subjects. I was not really satisfied with the way of teaching and learning in homeschooling system. Students learn without knowing what are they learn and why they learn. Many questions arise within me. Upon having a discussion with my principal pointing out that English classes should be conducted in a classroom base for effective teaching and learning, I was given permission to conduct English classes from grade one up to grade nine. Majority of students that I am teaching are Chinese. These students are all from urban with very little English speaking background. They are very weak in language. I clearly realized that my foremost work here is to help them improve their English language. I believe that a professional teacher has a commitment to those they teach and applies decision making skills, reflective practices and professional knowledge to enhance their lessons and provide maximize learning opportunities.

Teaching Chinese students with no background of English is not an easy task. Chinese students, particularly those who were not exposed to English until after six years of age, face a particularly unique set of difficulties because of the characteristics of their first language, Chinese, itself. Chinese students have distinctive difficulties with certain consonant and vowel phonemes. Most Chinese students have difficulty hearing the difference between the consonants "r" and "l" and will typically pronounce "right" and "rice," for example, as "light" and "lice." American English consists of thirteen single vowel sounds and three triple vowel sounds, while Mandarin contains considerably fewer vowel phonemes. Consequently, most of my Chinese students were not be able to distinctively pronounce words such as "sheep" and "ship" or "pool" and "pull," for example. Besides pronunciation they also faced difficulties in grammar and vocabulary. This is the major problem I faced during my first year of teaching. I did not want to give up on them. I tried my best to guide them and drill them with basic knowledge on the language.

I was able to identify the problem that my students were facing and I worked towards to help them. As a teacher, it is important that I develop content knowledge of the lesson topics so that I can relate and teach this knowledge to my students. Further richness is added to these lessons through the use of authentic learning experiences. I always try to make my students enjoy learning the language. We had so much fun learning together. Whatever I teach I will make sure my student know the clear purpose of that particular lesson. What's the point of reading and writing anything if they don't know why they are doing it? I always aim to provide my students with a clear purpose to all reading, and especially writing tasks. Whether it is letter writing, an email to a friend or an article for a school newspaper, students should know why the quality of their writing matters.

I have also had the opportunity to reflect on my strengths and weakness as a teacher and a learner. I feel that I need to learn how to incorporate a multitude of learning styles and interests into a lesson. This had been another challenge that I was faced with during my teaching time. As a teacher, I found myself wanting to work with everyone and help them especially when those tears started to roll down. The most interesting thing is that I also shed tears during these experiences. This has made me think that it is okay to see your students and yourself struggle through a lesson or activity, that this is a natural part of learning. At the same time, as a teacher, I need to offer support and guidance for my students so that they may strive for success and not begin to foster negative feelings towards a particular subject.

Students are people who have feelings and who don't want to feel cornered. They want to learn but they also want to feel as if they have some control over themselves. I never made assumptions again about a student before they came into my class. Every student is different; no two students react in the same way. It is our tasks as teachers to find not only what motivates each student to learn but also what motivates them to misbehave. If we can meet them at that point and take away that motivation, we can go a long way towards a more effective classroom and learning experience.

Besides that each classroom is a microcosm of our larger communities and within that space the hopes and aspirations for our future prosperity are cultivated. There is constant interplay in a classroom between individual knowledge, experiences, learning styles, social relationships, and curricular goals. It is the teacher’s ability to integrate these variables that creates daily opportunities for success. In addition to deep content knowledge, I as a teacher should know how to motivate, inspire and challenge my students so that they move beyond the comfort of performing acceptably and into the power of accomplishing excellently. Motivation plays an important role in language learning. I always encourage my students never be ashamed of making mistakes. Planning lessons, analyzing student work and progress, collaborating with other teachers, and enhancing one’s own knowledge and all require work beyond the school bell’s ring. I as a teacher must reflect upon my instructional practices and consider the needs of my students on a constant basis. I need to motivate myself in order to bring change into my students. I saw huge improvement in my students after a year. I was totally contented. My hard work did not turn void.

Just like any other teachers I strongly believe in teaching theories introduced by many theorists. Theories are aimed to provide a guide to strong teaching practice that will lead to an improvement in the knowledge of learners. Regardless of which theory of learning is being examined, it is essential that teachers enable an open and flexible approach to their practice. I hold on to the theory of Piaget and Vygotsky, Constructivism. The theory of Constructivism suggests that learners construct knowledge out of their experiences and ideas. Students bring schemas of their own into a classroom and whilst some will be shared, others will be kept personal and this idea needs to be kept in mind by teachers in their planning of classroom tasks. I always take on an active role and understand the individuality of each of my students before any group work can be applied. I need to know the appropriate level for a task or activity and I must make sure it is as accurate as possible to ensure the development of learning. I also strongly believe that learning must be optimized through talk and co-operation. The way I talk, set up the classroom, move, and set work, all need to be carefully considered to allow peer tutoring and co-operative working between my students. Classrooms need to be places where teachers create environments in which the students feel encouraged and secure enough to be able to express and explore their thoughts, feelings and emotions. Drawing clearly from Constructivist ideas, it is claimed that students should be able to use speech and communication to make connections between what they already know and any new experiences and ideas they may encounter. This is important in teaching my students to master in their English proficiency level.

As an educator, I strongly believe that nurturing and nourishing all students must be my utmost concern. I dream of students whose fullest potentials are developed to make them become responsible citizens. They must be properly taught to read, write and speak English. They must use these languages as an avenue for self improvement and community building. They must know how to process ideas, solve problems, apply concepts, and make decisions for themselves to make them empowered learners. They must be students who are always hungry for knowledge, seeking truths and facts of life for them to give meaning for their existence. They must be valued as persons whose ideas, thoughts, perceptions, views and beliefs are essential for him and for others. They must be immersed to the complexities and realities of life so that they would be able to survive and continue living and valuing life. They must be regarded as God’s precious gift whose life is essential for his or her school, family and community. I can only do these, by making them the heart of the operation of the school where the program and projects are students centered.

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” This was once said by Mahatma Gandhi. Throughout the years of teaching, along the way, I discovered myself. Through the process of planning and teaching I have gained a deeper understanding and awareness of my role in the teaching profession. There is a challenge to be found in every day I teach, a talent to be discovered, and a moment to cherish that which touches my soul and reinforces my devotion. My question developed from a desire to know myself more not only as a person, but also as a teacher. Through my life up to this year, I do not think I really knew who I was, how other people saw me, and how I viewed myself. I am an avid writer. I write in journals almost everyday. These journals contain poetry, song lyrics, quotations, devotions and just my thoughts for that particular day. I view my journal writing as an opportunity to use the process of writing to describe and explore my own teaching practices. It allows me to vent and to examine the source of my frustration. My personal story is my metaphor for change. I have changed tremendously this year just by rereading my story. I have grown as an individual and as a person. Reflection seems to be the key to personal and professional growth which reflect on my lessons, my students, and myself and my experience will guide me the rest of the way. All of this has been a treasured learning experience that will be looked upon years to come. It is now a part of me. I found myself asking for more, I found ways to explore myself to get in touch with parts of me that I wasn’t familiar with, I explored my inner world, I got to know myself and to value my own insights.

Within the process of teaching, I hope to find both personal and professional renewal. I want to be a part of a noble profession with the hope of one day being counted among those in whom future teachers find inspiration. Many of the great teachers that I have had throughout my education have become my heroes and role models. I began to understand in high school and college that great teachers have skills that I wanted to learn. I want to follow their examples. I remember that great teachers were good at explaining content, were patient yet firm with students, were always fair, set high expectations, knew how to motivate, and used humor appropriately. They were great communicators who had a command of their subject matter content. This is the type of teacher that I intend to become. However, I understand that my personal teaching style will evolve as I draw on my own strengths, knowledge, skills, values, and experiences.

I desire my students to learn in a comfortable environment so that their self-esteem will be increased. A high self esteem will enable them to strive for and accomplish any goals they set for themselves. As a teacher, I will play a part in helping them to do that. I will have the privilege of shaping future parents and productive members of society. For all of these reasons, I ask myself, what better job could there be. My answer is none because teaching is more than a job. It is an important contribution I can make to better our society, and I am excited about the opportunity to do so. With the love I have for children, along with my education, and the experience I have had in the classroom, I know that teaching is a career that I will be successful in.

Why do I want to become a teacher? A teacher has the direct opportunity to make a difference, to change the future. I have been told that I am an idealist. I want the best for everyone. I will set high goals as a teacher and do my best to show each and every student that these goals are within their reach. I will expect every one of my students to want to learn and more importantly to understand. I want my students to fight over the seats in the front row as if they were attending a concert, not elementary school. I want to make my students wonder, make them question, make them think critically, make them write, make them read, read, read.

An excellent teacher is not just someone who explains. Not someone who just demonstrates. An excellent teacher is someone who inspires. An excellent teacher goes the extra mile. They can take any individual and make them believe, truly believe, that their hopes and dreams are within their reach. An excellent teacher will not let a student walk away until every question is fully explained and completely understood, no matter how long it may take. If the day ends and the student still has not understood the lesson, an extraordinary teacher would brainstorm. He or she would think, “How can I explain this concept to the student so that he or she can better understand it?” I intend on being that type of teacher.

The chance to inspire another human being is not an opportunity it’s a challenge. There are too many educators that haven’t accepted this challenge, and it needs to change. Students go to school because they are forced to. Many times learning is not their top priority, but the teacher’s job is to teach. Students are always learning. Unfortunately, it just may not be what the teacher is teaching. Since this is the case, I must not only know his or her content area, I must also be prepared to teach other “things”, such as character and morals, which may prove to be more valuable than knowledge itself. This is the reason why I want to be a teacher. I want to inspire the children who will represent the future of our great nation. As Swami Vivekananda, quotes “You have to grow from the inside out. None can teach you, none can make you spiritual. There is no other teacher but your own soul.”