CLASSROOM CHRONICLES PART I : Respect

         

      Once a teacher enters the classroom, it is already a given that he or she should be accorded the respect due him or her, by virtue of being in a position of authority. Respect, however, is not gained instantly, though we have the universal prescription that every person must be respected outright, since the former is a human being and a creation of God. Respect is not given to us on a silver platter, for it is something that we have to earn and work hard for. But what is the easiest way to get respect? The shortest path to it is to respect others, so that we will be respected in return.

        A teacher must respect his or her students in order to be respected by them too. Respect begets respect, and it doesn’t matter who accords it first. Being a part of the administration has given me a new perspective, or a different vantage point from which I perceive students. Students are not just students per se, but they are clients or customers as well. They enroll in a school in order to avail of a product or service we call education, and they pay for such using their parents’ or sponsor’s hard-earned moola. Just like any customer, they should be treated well.

      Being a teacher does not give us the license to be bossy inside the classroom or throw our weight around. Being a teacher is not a passport that will allow us to scold our students down to their last bone. I have heard of students’ traumatic experiences inside the classroom. Whether true or not, such things should not be happening, lest we lose our clients in the process.

     But a teacher is a human being too, with imperfections, flaws, and all. I rarely get mad inside the classroom. But when the inevitable happens, I am sure that it is with the most profound reason. I make sure that the reason for my burst of anger is valid and legitimate, and for my students’ own good above everything else. I must admit that I have walked-out a few times. Not because I can’t handle it, but simply because I want to stun them with all my might. True enough, they were left stunned and speechless. My way of saying “I mean business here” and that “I care about you.” Was this effective? I would like to believe so.

     To conclude this first part, the message that I would like to impart to my fellow teachers, and future teachers out there, is that respect does not happen overnight. Being an authority figure already commands outright respect from our students. But this can fizzle out as the semester progresses, if we will not show respect for them too. So the onus is on us, teachers.