Thursday, September 30, 2010

teaching assistants

one more semester is over. exams are round the corner. valuation will follow and then a much needed break. teaching is a calling as you need to love the job to stick on for a life time. the other day, two of the teacher assistants, merlin and namrata after two sessions on media ethics with final jpeng students wanted feedback about their teaching. the first class was intense with students listening and taking part in the discussion with enthusiasm. but the second class turned out to be a lot more noisy, disorganised and the only concern was to conclude the class quickly.

how can one motivate others to take to teaching. there is very little by way of personal satisfaction. teachers are constantly struggling to control the class, with very few students interested in the subject. every class is a challenge. new methods need to be evolved to keep the interest of the majority in the lecture. after all the effort one rarely finds full satisfaction. teaching in schools and colleges are increasingly becoming difficult. the average attention span of a student is going down drastically. career choices are aplenty. why would anyone want to be a teacher?

3 comments:

Jessie Cherian said...

I think it comes down how much a teacher likes to learn. Ultimately if you enjoy learning things, then you are trying to pass that on to others. I think it's possible to find great joy in teaching if you find great joy in learning.

Istar Rómestámo said...

Agree with Jessie and sir, sometimes, you really know deep down, that's what you want to do. I guess, teachers will always find ways to keep a class interested. Our batch was a noisy lot and yet some teachers managed to keep us interested in and excited about every single class they took. So I guess it's all about making that connect nowadays. Students look to teachers to be much more than mere knowledge-givers these days.

alisha said...

I agree to both of the above comments. Sir I do understand what you are trying to say because I too dream of being a teacher. I honestly think its one of the most challenging task to keep a bunch of noisy confused students on the go and focused, but at the end of the day its the feeling from with in that makes one wake up the next morning with a sense of newness and excitement.
and sir its also the persona, sincerity and the passion for teaching that makes the students want to be a part of what a teacher is saying and doing for the class.I don't think any one can ignore what you(no flattery intended) or suparna ma'am or Mr anil pinto sir say cause all of you motivate us to think. You are educating us and not merely making us aware or literate. This is something I think lacks very much in a lot teachers and the educating system.
And unfortunately 'teaching' that once used to be a 'service' has now become a profession, and this I speak of in a very general sense. teachers must understand that students are not storage devices where information can be cut-copy-pasted.
u must watch the movie 'freedom writers' and read 'Tuesdays with Morrie'. they are quite inspiring.