Make a Difference, One Child at a Time

I would like to share to you this quotation that I have read in one of the stories. The quotation says: “It is better to build a child right than to rebuild a man.”

This is a life message of mine. I want teachers to know that failure not only affects students academically, it also damages students emotionally, and socially. When I had my second child I opted to stop working and be a full-time mom and wife. As my son was growing up I knew that he’s going to be like his older sister, smart and friendly and when he was just like 2 or 3 years old, he talks like an adult. There was even a time that he was the one who convinced the client of my husband to close the business deal because the man was so impressed on how the kid talked to him.

When he was in the Nursery School, he loved his teacher so much. He was so excited to go to school. But after a few months, the school hired another teacher to handle the class. Not long after the shift, the teacher had to take a maternity leave and there was a substitute teacher. Then my son started to cry in the morning because he didn’t want to go to school anymore. When we asked him why he would only say, “I hate school, teacher is bad.” So I had to find out myself what really happened. The teacher said nothing’s wrong with the kid. Until one day, as I was standing by outside the classroom, I saw with my own eyes that the teacher spanked the hands of my son just because she counted 5 and at the count of 5 all the things should be kept away. But that time, at the count of 5 my son was still trying to collect his coloring pencils which were borrowed by his classmates.

The boy came out crying and he told me, “Now, Mommy, you see why I don’t want to be in this school, my teacher is bad, she does not like little children.”

I couldn’t say anything. I didn’t want my son to know also that I felt bad with what happened. Although deep inside me, my heart grumbles against the teacher for what she did to my son but I didn’t want to show him that because after all we still wanted him to respect his teacher. We went home, and as a family we prayed about the situation. Although the school director had talked to the teacher but my son didn’t want to go to school anymore. He missed his classes many times. That incident was the beginning of the struggles we had. I watched as my son’s friendships dwindled when his learning difficulties became apparent. Before that year was over, I saw my four-year old son lost interest in learning.

The irony is that his IQ measured far beyond most of the students in his class. His vocabulary equaled that of a first grader, and his verbal skills were astounding. He could learn anything orally (except math), but he was unable to put what he knew on paper. He was far from being retarded but he couldn’t produce the proof like the other kids could.

The next year, my son got a wise, caring, and seasoned teacher who salvaged him. She promoted his verbal skills before the class. She asked him to give devotions, and lead discussions in Science. She posted his wonderful original art work on the bulletin board. She handled his struggles with Math, tests, focus, and written work privately. Difficulties were only discussed between the teacher, us, parents, and the student. The teacher’s response to his need made the difference. It was the same group of kids, the same school, the same curriculum. He’s got a teacher who had an understanding of how to teach the child and not just the curriculum. She gave my child the joy of going to school again.

Now, as this school year begins, he is here with me in Thailand. My fears came back when the school registrar told me that he’s going to be with the EFL class. When he knew about it, he told me, “Mom, I will just go back to my old school if they will insist that I won’t be in the same class (Grade 6A) that I am now.” My heart started to grow weary but I was so thankful that they didn’t move him to the EFL class. I could see the joy in his face now. One day, he told me that so far now, he felt he belong to his class. He liked his teachers and classmates.

We, parents, teachers, or anyone can make a difference for years to come, one child at a time. Are you willing?

You Raised Me Up

The first chapel program for the 2nd semester was a tribute to all the teachers. RAIS celebrated Teachers’ Day last January 12, 2011. There was a hand mime performed by the Grade 11 students and the teachers were invited to be seated in the front rows. I was not very much surprised because i saw my students bringing flowers in going to the auditorium. But what touched me the most was to see the kids giving flowers not only to their homeroom teachers but also to their activity teachers to show their love and appreciation to the teachers. As a homeroom teacher in the 2nd grade, I received gifts and  flowers, a jade bracelet brought by a student from Myanmar and a hand-written letter by another student that says, “Dear Teacher, thank you very much for teaching us not only the lessons from our books but also for teaching us how to become good boys and girls. I love you teacher and I know you love me too.” … oh, I was almost in tears before the program ended.

Everyday, I am teaching the children but I am also learning many things about life from them. Bob Talbert once quoted, “Teaching kids to count is fine, but teaching them what counts is best.” Teaching is never easy but when you learn to like what you are doing, you will learn to love it and it makes teaching easier and worth-doing.