Priceless rewards of teaching

TADONG, with a student in her classroom. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Teaching is my life and I cannot see myself in another profession.

For me, no other job is as fulfilling as teaching. Shaping minds and touching lives are far nobler than counting profits and shares of stocks. Sharing knowledge and facilitating learning are far more enjoyable than conducting business meetings.

They are priceless.

Every day, entering my classroom and sensing my students’ thirst for knowledge get me excited and fired up. They ignite my passion to unceasingly quench that thirst.

So I see to it that I prepare highly interactive activities that will deeply involve my students in the learning process. Through this I am able to create a learner-centered classroom, which is integral to the K to 12  curriculum.

Seeing my students act, join a game, solve puzzles and enjoy listening to songs fills my heart with profound joy. I know that the sheer enjoyment they get out of these activities is also priceless.

Hearing them laugh heartily as they do the interactive activities that I prepare for them makes me tremendously ecstatic. My inner muse gets more inspired.

My students’ excited response to the interactive activities makes them worth the  sleepless nights that I spend preparing them. The students’ mirth and enjoyment are enough compensation for the stress and sleep deprivation.

Feeding their minds with wisdom through collaborative learning is priceless, too. I want them to believe that learning is fun.   I also want them to realize that collaborative learning means they can also learn from their classmates, not just from their teachers.

Gone are the days when teachers were the only sources of learning.

In  the 21st century, learners, or the so-called digital natives, are exposed to a multitude of learning resources.

It is my belief that a teacher in the K to 12 curriculum has three roles: designer, assessor and facilitator. Never a  dictator.

I want to produce students who are “knowledge constructors” and not just passive observers and listeners. My students, most of the time, are noisy but not unruly. They are busy and rambunctious because they are interacting with one another.

Some teachers of the old school frown at this practice, especially when they hear the noise from my classroom. I understand them, for their ways and techniques are different from mine.

But their opinions and negative perception of me will never affect my staunch belief that teaching should

be fun, collaborative and learner-centered—and achieving those three requires noise. Who am I to stop my students from learning?

Feeling their appreciation and gratitude as I do my job is again simply priceless. Having them learn while I do what I love most is truly a blessing from God.

I want to grow old in this profession even though the monetary compensation is not enough. The sense of fulfillment is overflowing and it makes me feel rich.

Cynthia Montemayor-Tadong, 37,  is a Master Teacher I at Quezon National High School in Lucena City, Quezon province.