I was quite fortunate
that this school year, there were some good things that happened to me
professionally. First, I was able continue my part-time stint as a college
instructor in my alma mater. I have passed through the SOPs of the hiring
process, so hopefully no one would question my teaching post. This was quite a
nice experience for me now that I am teaching in college because I would be
able to discriminate teaching younger to more mature students. Most of all, I
would be able to share what I know in education and LET-related topics that I
initially started here in my blog. This time, I would not just be posting but
rather be “teaching” and discussing these for real to college students. My
worries however, is that my teaching approach would be different most
especially on dealing unwanted behaviors from my students. Since my students
are in college, and I assume that they are at the “right” age, I hold quite a
high respect to them. I assume I don’t need to reprimand them because they know
already what they are doing. They may as well reject or accept what I will say
to them, since they have perhaps already established their personal beliefs and
principles. I am just hopeful, very hopeful, that they would not mistake my
respect for weakness.
Second, my application
for reclassification from being a Teacher I to Teacher III has been approved. I
am just happy that in my five years as a teacher, I would be promoted to the next
stage of my position. Most of all, I am
ecstatic not for the title, but for the increase in my salary of course…hehehe….I
may sound too shallow but practically saying, I really need the raise since the
loan that I had eats up almost seventy-percent of my monthly salary…hehehe…I just
have to wait for my appointment and I pray that it would not take too long.
(They say that it would take very long since a lot are in the waiting list to
become Teacher III. I’m just hoping that we will be ranked since I’m quite
confident about my credentials..hehehe..but some say it is seniority basis, and
if this is the case...hay I dunno when will I have my appointment.)
This school year, I am
quite discouraged because of the change in leadership in my school. I think my philosophy
as a teacher is quite in clash with some people. You know, as teachers, the school
head would ask something from us to be accomplished, and I have no problems
with it as an obedient teacher. Yet, I have this belief, that my priority is
always and will forever be my STUDENTS. Between being a subordinate and a
teacher, my being a teacher manifests most of the time. Sometimes, they would
ask me to accomplish reports and do certain tasks in the office, and I am quite
uncomfortable being asked about this while I’m still doing my classes. Not
because I am “lazy” or “disobedient”, but I don’t want to leave my students
hanging in the middle of nowhere. You know the teacher’s effort to capture and
maintain the student’s momentum with the lesson and all of a sudden this will
come to a halt and be disrupted because you were asked to do something in the
office, this is quite frustrating for the teacher and the students. This is the
reason why when I am being summoned in the office, I most of the time answer
that I will do or come after I finish my class. Hay…however, this has been given
a bad meaning of insubordination in my part. I am just a bit saddened by the
idea that I am implied as bad teacher because I prioritize my students’
learning than an order from the superior. That while some teachers would stay
at the office and are not teaching their students are commended as good teachers
because they obey their superior, while I who would dedicatedly teach my
learners and be implied as the disobedient one.
As a teacher, I
sometimes command and ask my students to do an errand. But if that student couldn’t
immediately attend to my errand because he was studying or doing a learning
task, would that be disobedience on the part of the student??? Hell NO!!!! But
in my case, I was chastised because I was doing the most fundamental task of
being a teacher: to TEACH and make students LEARN.
Let me make myself
clear. I am not saying that I do not recognize authority, nor I refuse a task
or an order given by the superiors. In fact, when I am tasked to finish a
report, I do it as efficiently as possible, even bringing my work at home. I also have such a high regard and respect to
the authority. I am just saddened by the
idea that prioritizing my learners first before an order from a superior is
tantamount to being a bad teacher. The school
head at the end of the day, would still has the last word and would rate and evaluate the performance of a
teacher (and honestly, I am not worried, or to blatantly say it, I don’t care).
And to save me from any conflicts which I find unhealthy personally and
professionally, I just have to adjust. Obey before complain as the cliché of
some of the teachers goes. Perhaps I just have “to have to leave my students
and give them seat works to immediately attend to the superior’s needs”.
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| Thank you Caloy for the Suman...hehe...one of the days he needed to stay because of unfinished seatwork... |
On the brighter side,
what made my day was the fact that one of the most naughty and the most crybaby
students that I had sent me Suman Latik (a delicious local delicacy of sticky rice topped with sweetened coconut meat). I totally
didn’t expect it since I scolded him a lot when I was his teacher. He gave this
to me through his granny and when I asked why he had to send me this gift, his
granny told me that he remembered that I also have once given him food most of
the times. He might have also remembered that I jokingly told him that when he graduates,
he must not forget to give me snacks. I
was quite ecstatic that my students recall my “goodness” to them. It affirms my
belief that my worth as a teacher is never limited neither on the opinion of
other people nor of my superiors. My worth as a teacher is how my students see
and appreciate me as their teacher, how I have helped and inspired them, in one
way or another, develop their potentials and grow as a person. It made me feel
that maybe I am not that “bad” teacher after all.
P.S. Please enlighten
me. Am I being a bad teacher if I prioritize my students first before a
superior’s order? If you’re a teacher, a school head, a supervisor, a
superintendent or the DepEd secretary (as if he can read this…hehehe), please
comment and enlighten me.
