‘What prompted you to be a teacher?’
-Well, my teachers have inspired me and I consider teaching as a noble profession.
-I adore children and love spending time with them.
-My passion for my discipline drove me to this profession.
-‘Teaching is one profession that helps you learn as you teach.
The question I penned down above is a common ice breaker that teachers encounter time and again. The probable answers are not too tough to guess. Hence, it was easy enough for me to use it as a springboard to my humble attempt at self-discovery as a teacher.
What exactly does it take to be a good teacher?
To me, teaching is always about giving back.
Returning the gentle pat, from my kindergarten teacher, on my eager head, before she lined us up, the proud smile from my language teachers when they read out my compositions to the entire class, admonishments from my Math teacher since I never quite met up with his expectations, the spirited lectures on Shakespeare’s poetry which made my hair stand up on its end by its sheer brilliance and articulation. All of it.
I have been privileged to be on the receiving end of masterly teaching and heartwarming kindness from my teachers. I have always felt the need to pass on this good turn [again taught by my Moral Science teacher in Grade 1] to my children…my students. Teaching is a responsibility that has been bestowed upon my weak shoulders by these awe-inspiring men and women who have pieced together the jigsaw of my intellect and soul.
I like to believe that through my teaching I make my contribution to the poetry of life.
Teachers are performers in class…storytellers in the staff room and worriers when they try to catch a wink. I have grave doubts about how much our students remember what we officially teach in class. But they sure do remember when we cracked a joke, helped them open their lunch boxes, or praised them in front of their parents. In all these decades of being a teacher, I have realised that the core quality that a teacher needs is the ability to never give up on his/her students. Despite our quota of frustration, silent rage, and disappointment, we keep on scheming and planning to bring out the best in them. Affirmations, one-to-one talks, catching them doing the right things go a long way. Once the bridge of empathy strengthens between the student and teacher, the other jobs become relatively easy.
Like satellites, that glow on borrowed light from planetary bodies, we teachers thrive on the glory of our children. Let every molecule of their effort make us proud…let them grab our hands when they slip and realise if not anyone else, their teacher will stand by them. Always.
Or as Prophet in Khalil Gibran would say,
You give but little when you give of your possessions.
It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.
“Technology is best when it brings people together” - Matt Mullenweg
Technology has always been used in education since ancient times. But with a sudden shift to online education in the year 2020 due to the pandemic, teachers across the globe scrambled to find the perfect technological tools. Personally, I loved this phase as there were so many tools that made learning interesting and effective.
I absolutely love using Google Suite especially Google Slides. There are so many templates that I can and have used to make my presentations eye-catching and interactive. There are many options like animation or using GIFs that make the transaction of a lesson very effective.
Another great discovery was the tool named “Canva”. This app has various preloaded templates and pictures that allow the user to create a poster, an invitation, a card, or even a presentation. My children from grades 8 to 10 love using this tool as it is very user-friendly and easy to use.
Quizzing was made interesting by Kahoot. The interface is great and the children use it to create their own quizzes and host them too. This inculcated the spirit of friendly competition and confidence in them.
Keeping in line with Ekya’s ideals, I was initially in a pickle thinking of interesting ways to put up the Plan for each class. Then I got introduced to Microsoft Whiteboard. It made my life so easy - I could plan and keep my points handy prior to transacting the class. I could draw and illustrate pretty easily too.
Tools like Padlet and Mentimeter made my online transactions easy too. From using them as a forum for expressing ideas, feelings, and thoughts to even voting on a topic, everything became so much easier.
While as a teacher, I looked for innovative ways to make teaching an enriching experience, I also came up with interesting ideas that made Internal Assessments and assignments more fun. One such assignment was to imagine as an author and create a book for Middle School children on the types of mountains. There were so many interesting, out-of-the-box submissions that made me reflect on the potential this generation carries. Another assignment involved creating awareness videos on the conservation of nature and I received very professional well-curated videos. Some children personally expressed their gratitude for giving them such assignments where they could learn and hone their skills.
After from general tools, I found some learning-area specific tools like a Visual Dictionary that not only gave the meaning of the word but also the synonyms and antonyms, the various ways it can be used in a sentence and various forms of grammar (https://visuwords.com).
Another website helped in understanding the concept of antipodal arrangement of land and water in Geography.
With the evolution of technology, the capabilities of the education industry are increasing manifold. The Internet is a vast electronic library of information, and both research and instruction can be achieved through a click of the mouse. With these advances come new responsibilities to the teacher to make sure that learning and growing never stop.
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