LEARNING TO TEACH IS TEACHING TO LEARN

They say that teachers are ladders to achieving success, they are like candles in the dark for those who find education as their only key to escape the hard path of life. But then again, in the eyes of other people, they see teaching as an easy task, a job that only requires a loud voice and a talkative mouth.

For someone who dreamed to be a teacher, just like any other professional, they have to attain the required level of education as their first step in achieving that dream. Yes, that is just the first step, merely graduating from college does not make you a teacher. Hence, you have to pass the LET (Licensure Examination for Teachers). And passing it is like going through the hole of the needle, graduating with Latin honors is not a guarantee to pass the hard examination. Just in the recent results of the LET, the national passing rate for elementary teachers is 23.62% (13,774 out of 58,323 examinees passed) and 29.91% (22,936 out of 76,673 examinees passed) for secondary teachers. This only proves how well filtered teachers are. After passing the LET and taking the oath to serve their duties in a lawful and ethical manner, then the realization of the dream of becoming a teacher has finally taken place.

Teachers are educators, their main role is to impart knowledge to their students. Parents send their children to school to learn, and it is the duty of a teacher to be a big part of that learning process. But for teachers, teaching is not just a profession, or a job needed to earn a living, it is their passion and it takes more than teaching to be called as a real teacher. The school is said to be the second home for students, and the teachers serve as their second parents. Does that mean that, students can sleep, eat, watch television and play in school? No, what makes a home is not its structure or what you can do in there, it is the family that loves one another, that’s what makes a home complete. And the teacher together with his students, makes a one big family. A teacher goes beyond teaching what is in the textbook, he does things that are not part of the lesson plan and works over the time he’s intended to. He becomes part of every student’s life. Being a teacher is an eye opener, it makes you look into various situations every student is facing. And by looking, it means knowing, and by knowing, it means taking an action. A teacher may not be able to give solutions to the difficulties each student is going through but he is there to give understanding and comfort to them.

The question that has always been raised but never been answered is, “why are teachers not getting rich?”. They produce professionals, and are a factor to change one’s life, it is a profession that should be most compensated, but why? Maybe, the answer to that is, teachers give more than what they receive. Teaching starts when you learn how to teach, but it is a never ending process of teaching to learn from each student’s story and making a difference.

--oOo— The author is Teacher III at San Francisco Elementary School, Mabalacat City, Pampanga