AM I Superman/woman ?
Are teachers Superman/woman? Is this really how society, especially the students see teachers? First, to answer this question, I want to explain what Superman/woman means for me and secondly, how I thought in my childhood, were my teachers my Superman/woman?
Superman/woman is a person, who has magical powers, fights for the rights of the innocent, poor and underdogs. Superman/woman fixes all problems and tries to make the world a fair place. He/she is always there, when people needs his/her help.
My elementary school teacher was like an angel. She was an old woman and she never got married. Her students were all she had. She worried about us more than our parents sometimes. And yes, she was my Superwoman, because I knew, she would help me with my problems and she would help me, when my classmates bothered and made jokes about me.
In middle and high school everything change rapidly. New school, teachers and classmate. It was a big change in my life. My Teacher was a young woman and she was full of life. I was looking for my Supermanwoman Teacher, unfortunately, she was not be there. 30 Students in one classroom. It was too much for my Superman.
I felt so uncomfortable, that I could not speak in class and my grades, become worse. I was really waiting for my Superwoman, that she would say something and take care of me.
I think yes, Teachers are like Superman/woman. We are not in class because we want to teach them, science, language or literature. No, we are there, because we want to “create” a person, who can survive in society. We have to teach these kids, how to do well in life, in their relationships, families, careers and so on.
When I think of my immigrant students in Germany I knew, I was there Superwoman, because I was one of them. We had the same background and my students knew that I went through what they were going through.
I was able to see in their eyes what they expected from me. Therefore, it was never important for me, how much money I would make as a teacher because what I gave to my students is to valuable to give a price.
You know, this is an interesting topic given the movie Waiting For Superman. I think you're right - teachers can represent something supernatural to students. Your comparison of your teachers also struck me as a very real difference between teachers. Some teachers are "married" to their jobs like that older teacher you had. Others treat the job like any other job. Like you, I think I was fortunate enough to have many teachers that treated me and my classmates like more than just work. They cared about what and how we were learning, but also took interest in our lives beyond that.
ReplyDeleteIt's also really wonderful that you feel you can be that teacher to others who need you as well. If only all teachers could be that involved/caring/devoted!
In several of my Childhood Education undergraduate classes, instructors asked students to compose education philosophies. It was an excellent exercise whereby each student had to focus on areas of education that he/she considered important and explain how, as an educator, he/she would work to ensure that special attention was given to each specific area. I chose to build strong relationships with parents, create a student centered class environment, and improve the moral outlook of students (try to).
ReplyDeleteAs educators we all need to have ethics. Obviously we are not teaching for the money; so why do we teach? We should all have an answer, a deep and meaningful response when asked this question.
I can remember the name of every great teacher that I had from elementary school to college. The bad ones have been lumped together and have one face; the face of the worst math teacher I ever had. When I started teaching I decided to be an excellent teacher, one who cared both about the educational and personal growth of her students. It was not always easy, but I still try to follow the lives of many of my first students. Why? Because many of my former teachers have kept in touch with me, have encouraged me to be more, have cared.
I can remember the name of every great teacher too :)
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