PASSION: A WAY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE
MARIA RICIA B. NAVARRO
I look at the eyes of my pupils and there I find my passion again. A month of teaching in public school has already made me see the reality. As a special education teacher, I got to see a different angle of life in school. I have to tell myself every day that I am in a mission more challenging, like what others say, yet, more inspiring for me. I am set in an adventure where I need to be more conscious of what I say and do because my pupils look at me as the best model they will imitate. I need to be the best model, for my pupils learn more through my actuations than what I teach.
A month of teaching in public school as a special education teacher and I already see the huge responsibility tasked upon me. I have to help these pupils with diverse age bracket and individual needs learn the basic of literacy and life skills wherein the simple introduction of their name is already an “achievement”. I have to help them write and read the ABC and 123 whereas the recognition of each letter and number takes a long time to develop. But I have to. I need to. For these pupils who are ‘special’in my heart whom I know have their dreams also kept in their hearts.
Deep within me is the ardent desire to help them be promoted and included in the regular class but before that is the challenge of teaching the complex lessons in order to ‘learn’with regular pupils who will be their classmates. If they are not yet ready and are placed into the regular basic education program, they will just lag behind and will not enjoy the fun of learning. I firmly believe inclusion is possible, but this visionseems quite elusive in my class as of now. My experience reveals to me the importance of the level of parental support and the presence of the multidisciplinary team. There is an obvious difference between the improvement in the performance of my pupils who simultaneously undergo therapies and those who do not.
Again, I am in the public school and the parents of my pupils are openly telling me that they cannot afford to have their children receive a therapy for its cost. Sending their children to school is already an ache to their pockets, what more of paying for a professional fee for therapies? Empathizing with these parents, I feel their hearts to help their children to develop their maximum potential but lack of finances paralyzes their dream.
I know these pupils will improve faster than the way they improve now if I can only touch all their senses when teaching. If I only have all the time to teach them one by one. If I only have the ability to provide the materials to support their learning. I got all my plans, programs and activities on the back of my mind but the lack of financial resources paralyzes my vision, too. I know that I have to think of alternatives and innovations … I tried. I did. Yet, it is not enough. I got eight hours of stay in school and I only have few hours remaining to prepare the lesson for tomorrow. But still I am optimistic that one of these days, brilliant idea will spark in my mind and that will make a difference.
Innovations. Some can be done quickly, but most of the materials for special education are realistically cannot be made in a snap and cannot easily be produced by a teacher who only studies about technology, principles, and academics. Though crafting alternatives is challenging and time-consuming, still I am trying my best to do it apart from other paper works and documents that need to present as part of my job description.
The seemingly ambitious vision to fasten the learning of my pupils in special education, increasing “work demands”, searching of evidences for selffulfillment, aside from the salary which is also being shared to produce instructional materials probably have made me forget the very reason why I am teaching. These might have caused me to feel gloomy and to lose part of my motivation of being excellent in every opportunity.
I honestly open, there are times when thoughts of trying out other fields enter my adventurous mind but inside me is an ironic feeling of happiness whenever I am teaching my pupils. Every day is a happy day. Every lesson is a meaningful time. Every class is an inspiring one. It is not that easy to let go of things that make you feel that you have a ‘special and definite’purpose here on land.
The challenge is set. This it is more rewarding than ever. For I am set in a challenge where I can make a difference to learners who are mislabeled the norms of the society. I got enough inspiration not to be knocked out by the trials I am into. Whenever I look at their eyes that seem to speak, I tell myself, this is passion. Doing difficult tasks with love.
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The author is SPED Teacher at Jose Escaler Memorial School, Apalit District