The Art of Teaching: Reflections

I graduated with a baccalaureate degree in philosophy from the University of San Carlos in Cebu City in 1998. Immediately upon graduation I worked as a teacher in an elementary school, took the requisite courses in education at the University of the Philippines to qualify to sit for the LET (Licensure Exams for Teachers), which I took and passed in 2001.

I love teaching. It's like a creative release for me. It enables me to exercise my talent in bringing people to the cusp of realizations, which I think is the ultimate goal of teaching. So what is it about teaching and bringing about "realizations" in my learners?

More than the common perception that teaching is the mere impartation of facts and knowledge, teaching requires a creative impetus to bring about the best in people. I have come to realize through my experience in the classroom, that when the teacher creates an open atmosphere of creativity and free expression, the learner will realize that he has interests, and such interests are compelling as to drive them to do it. Why? because such interests induce in the learner a feeling of bliss, satisfaction and fulfillment.

The "realizations" I am referring to therefore speaks about creating creative outlets that enables the learner to "realize" that he can do things, great things, if he puts his heart and mind to things he is interested in. When the learner realizes that he has potentials, that his potentials are his interests, that his interests provides a feeling of fulfillment - then the learner learns to learn - not the mere facts, information and knowledge that is attendant in the learning process, but even more important, that in learning, he discovers more about himself, his humanity and his surroundings.

Teaching therefore is indeed an art because there is no one fits all formula. The great teacher first of all believes in the educability of his students, the wise teacher is able to harness the learners potentials, and the best teachers know themselves will enough to adapt to the learners idiosyncracies.

Unfortunately, I have painfully witnessed that for some, teaching is only a job, a way to earn a living. They do not live the life of an educator. I have personally experienced teachers who harass their students with humiliating words, give arbitrary grades based on their personal like - or dislike, of particular students, and most tragic of all, foment a sense of unease, fear and even paranoia.

I have realized that the best teachers are not necessarily the most academically gifted. In fact, in my personal experience, most of the most effective educators are those who are most committed to the learning process of their students.

I have also realized that teachers, in the way they manage the classroom and handle the class, inevitably display what their emotional states are, the stability of their personal lives and the sense of fulfillment they have in their careers. Teachers who are arbitrary in the classroom, meting out grades on a capricious and whimsical manner, are those who are most likely unhappy in their private lives. They display palpable arrogance in the classroom by constantly reminding students of their mistakes and failures, in fact, they are projecting their own failed relationships and dreams.

Teachers who rob students of the sense of hope are teachers who are themselves hopeless. They are so unhappy in their personal lives that they lash it out on students because that is the only place where they can have control - and power, over others. This results in a very unhealthy learning environment. Students become fearful of learning, they learn only the facts, not the essence behind them.

In the end, I can only retort that not all teachers can become educators, and not all teachers should even be allowed in the classroom. A bad teacher can irreparably damage the psyche of a learner, forever scarring him of the beauty that is learning, of the wonder that is the world and of the limitless potential that is himself.