WEEK 5

BECOMING MORE OF A TEACHER

With several weeks of deployment, I already mastered the works. I was used to the system, to the reality of a teacher. Same sequence of events happened. I sorted modules. I managed the retrieval and distribution of activity sheets. I checked the papers and record it. I prepared for lesson plans and instructional materials. I conversed with my mentor and hold my online class.

However, this weren't the same things happening all throughout the week. As days passed by, I am being introduced to more jobs that are part of the teaching profession. This week, the school hold a Parent-Teacher Conference and Card Day. It was my first time encountering parents questioning the teacher about the grades of their children. As a practice teacher, I did not wait for my teacher to instruct me with what to do, instead, I asked him for the things which I could help. I realized that as a future teacher, no one is actually being reminded to do a certain task. It is the teacher's role to manage his works for even before entering the work, they're aware of it.

So for this event, I was told to assist the registration and attendance of parents so there is assurance that health standards were observed. I was happy because even the parents do address me as "Sir". After the conference, parents went to the class adviser of their children to check on their grades. I went to our room and assisted my mentor. I witnessed a lot of things like parents who were mad because of the grades that their children get, complains about the missing outputs, and questions why their children got lower grades than the previous quarter.

I was so sorry witnessing my mentor encountering those kinds of parents, but I was also impressed with the way my mentor handled it. He stay calm and responded the queries of the parents professionally. His manner of speaking was so good that parents suddenly understand the reasons why their children get such grades, and afterwards accepted the truth by how the teacher explained it to them. As soon as the parents went out, my mentor and I had a reflection to what happened. He asked me, "If you are the teacher, how would you handle the situation? Do you think you could?"

I was too stunned to speak. I haven't prepared for it, but I knew I could not handle it all at a time. So my mentor taught me that the approach must be civil. He told me that there are more of these events I will encounter when I enter the job someday. So I have to be used with it and bravely face it as someone who is responsible for what the learners earn. It is just a manner of taking a stand.

As for conclusion, this week's focus isn't just on physical work, but on mental and emotional aspect of ourselves as well. Things may come on us questioning our effectivity as a person. So if you are weak, you will really feel the damage, but if you are strong, then you will not find yourself accountable to why things happen in an unimaginable manner. So that's what my takeaway is, another lesson to bring on facing many more days as a practice teacher.