stupid?
Friday, April 08, 2011
it's amazing how after so many years, I'm still feeling the same way.
I'm tired of being the one trying and giving. I try to make myself think of different ways, but I guess it's just too overwhelming. Today, I was reminded that I spent all the bad times alone. Yes, there were good times, time that I am reliving today. But I can't forget the bad ones, where I trudged through on my own. Perhaps it was the wrong decisions made, perhaps there were many other reasons. And perhaps I should stop whining and start cracking.
BP Day - Awesome Day with 105.
Thursday, April 07, 2011
Today's BP Day - a new initiative by the school for class bonding. I volunteered to go with 105, and I must say it's an awesome experience.
As compared to the main class activity, Cheering Competition, back in my days, I think this is a much better opportunity for class bonding. How many opportunities do you get to go out with the class and have fun and games the whole morning, with teachers and all students present? Besides, the organising and planning for games and activities are good opportunities for the students to have hands-on experience that will prove to be valuable in the future. Though it's a relatively new concept to them, I'm glad that everyone tried to put their differences aside and tried to make the event a successful and fun one. So kudos to the school's organising committee for BP day, and the students for coming up with so many ideas!
On hindsight, there are so many learning points from BP Day. Students learn how to plan responsibly, work together as a team, and deal with different types of emotions - fatigue, frustration. And this is much better than any normal project work, because the students actually get to see the results of their labour. such learning is difficult to achieve in the classroom, and I think teachers should make use of this opportunity to guide their students along, so that they gain the most out of it.
Honestly, I hope BP Day will be an annual event in BPGHS. There may be hiccups here and there, but I believe with experience these can be avoided, and it will be a day everyone looks forward to. Once again, kudos to everyone! =D
a mistake?
had an unhappy incident in school recently. I'm still very affected by it actually.
what happened was I decided to give this particular experienced teacher feedback that the class has given me. this isn't the first time I'm doing this, but I guess this time round she took offence.
This was how the conversation went. I made the feedback to her, which she didn't really take in. Then she told me how she stoop herself to the 'low' level of the students, and how she actually was very upset over it because, quoting her, she is doing something that she knows is wrong and unprofessional. far enough. so I asked her, how would you conduct a lesson, given the same topic. and she gave me a description of how she would do it. It is a good paedology - lots of thinking involved. however, this method alone doesn't suit all classes. so I suggested to her that she could tweak the plan a bit to suit the needs of different classes. once again, it did not get in.
I don't know how the conversation went on, but the next thing we talked about was her asking me to teach the class, which of course I rejected. She said she wanted to observe my teaching and learn from me. I'm not sure if that is a dig on me and my lack of experience. Whichever the case, I told her that I won't; I would rather spend the remaining time helping the class adapt to her teaching, because after all she's the one who's going to see her through the year. And she didn't get it, either. So I practically wasted my half an hour talking to her. Fine. But what disappointed me was that she went to complain about me to another teacher, saying things like 'I did not offend him, why did he have to do this.' and so on. I told the same teacher that it is ironic that she is complaining about how she doesn't like it when other teachers and students say 'lies' behind her back, when she's doing the exact same thing to me. So much for double standards.
Sadly, It is this kind of teachers that make me rethink about teaching as a career. I guess the real world isn't as rosy as it seems; there are so many complications, so many issues. Like what most of the other teachers think, I believe that students should not be discouraged, or worse, be made to give up a certain subject because of a teacher. They should be independent learners, and try their best to not give up on the subject. And yet this shows the power of a teacher - he can make or break a subject. So I am telling the class, and will continue to tell them not to give up - with the correct attitude nothing is too difficult. Hopefully they will understand the picture one day. Sigh.