Blog (Week 6)

Haven't had time to write blogs for blogspot these days, because I have a blogging assignment from NIE!

One of my modules require us to blog weekly. Sai. That explains why my scarce blogging energies was sapped up by a non-appreciative audience.

Anyway I had decided to "da bao" one of the blogs from my assignment for everyone to take a look. Sounds like the most meaningful/sane piece of shit I had put up over there so far.

Blog (Week 6) - edit history delete
Created on Thursday, 02/22/2007 10:33 PM by . KHOO SHUN CHIH (PS0607)
Updated on Thursday, 02/22/2007 10:40 PM by . KHOO SHUN CHIH (PS0607)

I think I had missed out on last week’s blog.

Nevermind, I think it would be all right to “da bao” one week’s worth of blog from Dr Khong. At most she also “da bao” one week’s worth of marks from me. That would only be fair.

Anyway I am seldom so “hardworking”, as in posting a new entry on a weekday. However it would be a good idea to write down my reflections and thoughts after Mdm Aslinah’s sharing session while they are still fresh in my mind.

I found her opinions very refreshing, since the bulk of the module had been emphasising on homes as important stakeholders due to the school-home partnerships. Then came along a practitioner at ground level telling us that “students comes first, students first, students are our primary stakeholder, everything we do is for the benefit of the students.”

That really highlighted the gulf between NIE as a “think tank” institution and schools the “reality”. I feel that an exposure to both extremes is important for the complete development of a teacher. No point having a teacher who is so idealistic that none of his/her ideas can be implemented. Also no point having a teacher who is so jaded and seasoned that he/she rejects any refreshing changes/solutions.

I rather liked her ending message, which was about “staying true to the service”. Teaching is not a lucrative job, but it provides more than enough to get by. Since we are all in it, we should make the most out of it. It will be encouraging to know that at the end of the day, we had done something to change the lives of students positively, or at least make their learning experience more enjoyable.

I was a victim of teachers who were highly proficient in their CK and PCK such that their lessons were a mechanized production of ’A’ producing products/students year after year. I am grateful to them for the quality education they provided, but not so grateful for the quality of time spent in the classroom.

The greatest testimony a teacher could receive from students would be the memories of the time spent in the classroom with the teacher. It would be a tragedy if students could not remember anything, or could only remember the grades they got in that subject, or worse remember the teacher for all the wrong reasons.

Whenever I look at my brother before he leaves for school, it was a reflection of what I was during my school days. “Sian, have to wake up early and be tortured to tears again.” or “wah today have a lesson from this )@)(#@*%#(&%*(#$&. I don’t want to go to school already!”

Sounds like schools haven’t improved much over the years.

Why not do something such that they would think “wow today this guy is coming to give us a lesson again. Sometimes he is funny, sometimes he is lame. He knows our names and is concerned about our grades. His assignments we can manage and he encourages.”

I think if anyone could ever do the above, students will confirm wake up with a rage... err I mean wake up with a start in the morning before they go to school.

A clown cannot teach, a clown can only entertain. A sage can teach, but a sage might find it hard to entertain. So a teacher should be somewhere in the middle.

A sagely clown? Or a clowning sage?

No. A teacher should just remain as what he or she is, because he or she is unique.

That is simply, a teacher.