Lack of Respect to the Teachers from Students at School
A teacher or an educator is a person who provides schooling for his pupils and students, either in formal or informal ways. Usually, the role of a teacher is formal and outgoing, carried out by way of occupation and at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to be a teacher as a profession must first obtain professional qualifications or credentials from a university or college. The professional qualifications may include the study of pedagogy (which I may explain some other time), the science of teaching. Teachers may have to continue their studies after they qualify. Teachers may use a lesson plan to facilitate student learning, providing curriculum or a course of study. While the role of a teacher varies among cultures, the teachers provide education instruction in literacy and numeracy, craftsmanship or vocational training, arts, religions or spirituality, civics, community roles or life skills.''
The reason of my explanation above regarding the role of a teacher in society is because I am also a teacher, or rather a teacher in training. I am currently studying in one of local colleges in my country, a college that solely made to educate the teachers to teach the children throughout the country. I am rather exposed with many issues regarding the educations or anything that has something to do with it.
Although I am not a teenager anymore, I am still in a transitional progress from a teenager into an adult, so basically I am considered as a young adult who still has some traits of a teenager, no matter physically, mentally, psychologically or physiologically. I still may have some rebellious streaks of a teenager that I will have to deal with before reaching adulthood, but it helps me to understand the issues regarding the educations from a youngster's view.
From what I have seen nowadays, youngsters usually have such a lack of respect towards those individuals we call as teachers. It is even portrayed in many forms of media such as in films or even in cartoons that usually tell us the lives of children and teenagers in schools in which the teachers are portrayed in such antagonistic ways. Just look at the cartoon Recess, a teacher, Muriel P. Finster or Miss Finster is portrayed as one of the nemesis of the main cast, which consists of a group of children who will occasionally pull some pranks towards Miss Finster. In one hand, the audience (usually children) will assume it as something awesome but in other hand, it gives such a negative impact for the children.
It's not like I'm blaming for the lack of respect from the students towards their teacher comes from the media, but I see that media is partially responsible for spreading the negative influences of not seeing teachers in high regard towards the children. I know it's not the children's fault for seeing the teachers as some kind of individuals that shall be antagonized (since I dislike Miss Finster as well. Ah, such a memorable childhood), but the way the teacher is portrayed, in this case, as a strict nasty teacher, the children can't help it but to cheer as the main characters, T.J. and Co. win against Miss Finster (even I did cheer sometimes, such an innocent past). In this case, the producer is the one who must be blamed for portraying the teachers in such a disgraceful way.
I won't deny that teachers are not saints. They do mistakes like other people too. It's not even surprising if sometimes, I receive some news that tell us something terrible that has been done by a couple of teachers, like a teacher sexually harassing his students. While I won't deny it that the teachers may do something like that, students and parents must not antagonize the teachers if a couple of us are doing such thing. They must know that teachers, including me are responsible for the building of society in this world. Just ask politicians, or doctors, or even some people with big names, how could they get their fame like they do have now? Were they taught by their parents in their homes? No, the ones who are responsible for giving the people into the roads of success are us; teachers!
It's not like I want you, dear readers to lift the teachers into sainthood, no thanks, we are fine in this current way, teaching the kids in the classroom, writing the Arithmetic formulae on the board, but sometimes, teachers are tired. Teachers are tired for being treated as something that shall be feared by the students. Teachers are tired for the mistreatment of the society due to the stereotype portrayals of teachers in media, being antagonized by the kids because the kids assume that we, the teachers may eat them alive if they forget to complete their homework. No, we eat salad!
The teachers need the trust from their students. With enough trust and respect, the teachers can be an understanding friend, a surrogate parent or the most importantly, a great teacher for the kids. The current view of the society regarding the teachers nowadays must be changed so the relationship between a teacher and student can be improved and the kids won't see the school as an ominous fantasy dungeon that has the teachers as the villainous monsters that shall be hated.
Wednesday, November 03, 2010.
PS: Yes, teachers love salad.