Teacher Arlene August 15, 2007

A teacher for the first time

By Arlene Paredes
Inquirer
Last updated 01:23am (Mla time) 08/15/2007

Published on August 15, 2007 in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

Inquirer link [here]

I never thought I’d become a teacher one day. But fate, I guess, had made plans for something far beyond what my imagination could conceive.

After switching from one type of day job to another for several years (while also working as a freelance writer), I wound up as a teacher.

My classroom is not the traditional kind that most of us are familiar with. It is designed for a maximum of four students only, so I am able to pay a lot of attention to the students for the entire 45 minutes of the class. This setup is necessary for a learning plan that is highly interactive, rich yet compact, and fast-paced for young learners of the subject (English as a Second Language).

I started teaching ESL just this summer. To summarize how I feel about the whole experience so far, I’d say it’s been fun, challenging and seriously fulfilling since Day 1.

First, teaching is fun because I’m surrounded by kids whose laughter and antics liven up my otherwise boring and predictable existence. Second, it’s challenging because every child has his or her own learning style, and designing a lesson plan to match these learning styles and the children’s varying scope of interests is definitely not easy.

The subjects I teach are Basic Phonics and Writing. In Basic Phonics, I rediscover words and share them with the children in the most creative and fun ways possible. Inviting fun into the classroom is easy. Teachers can relax, make jokes, encourage kids to talk. However, the challenge is how to use fun creatively, such that the children will not just have fun, but will learn, too.

In Writing, I teach what I’ve always loved doing, but that is not to say that everything is breezy in the Writing class. In fact, it’s just the exact opposite.

Resistance and challenge

It’s so frustrating to witness the resistance level of some students when it comes to writing. Their resistance comes understandably from the fear of not doing the writing task right. On top of that, they’re not even writing in their first language.

The challenge is how to make the students believe that if the teacher, who is not a native English speaker like them, had written compositions in English, then they could do it, too. Planning a 45-minute class in a style that is most beneficial to everyone in the classroom is definitely not a walk in the park.

Finally, I’d say teaching is a seriously fulfilling task because in all the years I’d been working since I left school, teaching is the first job that has marked my weekdays as truly and undeniably productive.

Everyday, students are richer in mind and experience because their teachers labor hard to add a little bit more to what they already know. Everyday, teachers are molding children’s minds.

Teachers never labor in vain, I guess, although this is hardly ever obvious. In fact, it’s so easy to take what teachers are doing for granted. I know this to be true; I was a student for 15 years, after all.

I had absolutely no idea about all the mental and emotional stress that go with this job. Of course, I’m thankful I have this enlightening experience now. Without it, I wouldn’t be rediscovering every day the saying “teaching is a noble profession.” It is, indeed.

E-mail the author at crypticmess@yahoo.com

A degree, finally! March 28, 2007

The journey towards a college diploma
By Arlene Paredes
Inquirer

I’m 27 and a candidate for college graduation next month.

Plagued by personal issues and ruled by a scattered mind, I left the university when I was 20 to join the work force. Originally, my intention was to go back to school as soon as the issues that had upset me had been ironed out.

Turned out, however, that sometimes bad things could get even worse.

I was lucky because I found business owners and executives who hired me despite the lack of a college diploma. My course (BS Development Communication) and early experience in freelance writing certainly opened a lot of opportunities. I was able to work for several companies, explore different industries, meet a lot of interesting people and even hold important positions.

At one point, I was a supervising officer of a small but efficient team of college graduates. Ironically, it was then that I decided to resign to go back to school.

When it seemed to me that I had enough money for all the possible basic expenses of a regular student, I thought it was the time to go back to school. I had enough for tuition, as well as rental and utility expenses for the first few months.

My father and mother had died in 1997 and 2004, respectively, so I thought “home” could be anywhere. Moving to practically anywhere was one of the things I could do without much thinking. Several freelance writing assignments would feed me in the next few months.

Some people ask me why I never worked for a call center. The simplest answer is my concept of a “graveyard shift” includes only spending time with friends, watching movies at home, surfing the Internet, writing articles or playing computer games.

Indeed, I’ve been lucky because in all the jobs I’ve had, I was able to practice what I learned in school. Still, I wondered about the other things that I could still do if I had the diploma.

Reality bites

Going back to school after working for six years is definitely not a walk in the park. The lessons came in one ear and out the other without leaving anything to memory. The schedule was tight because I had several freelance writing assignments, which translated to deadlines everyday. I complained a lot, and thought that if things got even worse than what I could handle, I’d quit.

Then the storm “Milenyo” happened. It swept my university (University of the Philippines Los Baños) like no other storm had done since I first got here. The campus had no classes for a week because of huge fallen trees scattered everywhere. It also brought knee-deep waters inside and waist-deep mud-water outside my apartment, where I lived alone.

Literally, it was the worst storm I’d ever experienced. Figuratively, however, I’d been through a lot worse than that.
So it occurred to me, if I’d been given the gift and the ability to endure trials and challenges in life, why should I quit?

“You were fine without a diploma,” one of my friends said when I ranted and complained about the consequences of my going back to school. I don’t know if he was employing reverse psychology or was simply speaking matter-of-factly. What I do know is that statement has never left my memory since he said it.

He was right; I was fine. And the good news was, maybe things could still get better.

They say life is never about the destination; it’s always about the journey taken. The way I see it, though, it’s about both—the journey and the destination—because you can’t be fully satisfied by one without the other.

Despite this, however, I tend to be reckless of both until I get lost, or reach a disturbing but otherwise interesting point, commonly known as the stopover.

Stopovers come as interruptions in life. People perceive them differently. A stopover makes you realize that you’re on a journey, you have a destination, and you have to go on. It can also make you feel tired, and entice you to forget about the destination you have in mind.

Stopovers can also make you rethink the path that you’re taking. Do you continue on the same track, or do you cut across an unfamiliar way to be where you need to be?

Too many stopovers might have delayed my coming back to the path I’d begun before. But as vicious and emotionally draining they might have been, these stopovers have enabled me to go on.

As an incoming college freshman, it had not occurred to me that I would not graduate, or there would be circumstances to prevent me from graduating after four years. Perhaps I could attribute that to my inherent optimism.

However, some things changed. And some lessons were learned outside the school.

I now think personal issues, however serious they may be, should not be used as an excuse for losing interest in school—or any goal you have set in your life, for that matter.

At the end of the day, the issue is not about the layers of problems blocking your way, but how you find ways to overcome the blocks and continue on your journey, without blurring your vision of what you want to do and why. (Inquirer link here)

E-mail the author at crypticmess@gmail.com.