For two semesters I’ve been trying to have personal talks with some of my students. I’ve been trying to understand them as well as their problems as they have not been able to perform well in my class. Today, after some of them did their presentation, I voiced out my disappointment in class. I told them how I felt. After I dismissed the students a student walked up to me and asked me if I think he should continue his studies. I asked him why and he told me his doubts. As I was speaking to him, his classmates started to gather to listen to what I had to say. Eventually, I ended up having the whole class sitting around me telling me their challenges.
I was not prepared for such a serious conversation with such a big group of students. All of a sudden, I was overwhelmed with problems faced by the students. Each of them wanted to be heard, expecting a solution to their problem. It was indeed a challenging day for me in school. It was a day I failed to get a single minute of privacy at school.
I know that talking to them on those problem is not in my job description but I just felt I had to do it for they chose to open up to me and they might not do the same if I had referred them to a counselor. I have always desired to know my students better so that I can not only their teacher but also their friend. I got what I wanted today but am I able to carry on this responsibility? My feelings are mixed at the moment.
Part two:
When I was in school, I always told myself that I wanted to be either like my teachers in school or be an even better teacher. Today, I learnt that it was not easy to actually provide extra attention to all the students who needed it. My diploma students are preparing for their group presentation and I have forced them to show me their outline prior to the presentation. Out of all the outlines that were submitted, only a handful did not need corrections to be made. I am not impressed and am determined to help them work on a better outline. However, I have one major problem which is time. I can hardly find time to sit down and conduct personal consultation with the students. As a result, I need to be very brief when I explain to them. Sometimes, I do not even have the time to make sure that they comprehend what I tell them.
I look back and thought of my teachers back then at school and I can’t help it but to solute them for their patience and sacrifices when they taught us. They too I’m sure found time to be precious yet they gave us all the time that they could give to help us learn.


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