Society is in dire need of heroes, people who heed the call to serve. Often, we look at our soldiers as heroes for keeping us safe from threats. We also regard doctors and those in the field of medicine as heroes for tending to our health. These are the people we consider working above and beyond for the betterment of our society. However, people need to take a better look at the most basic and yet dignified profession that contributes in indescribable ways to society: teaching.
All of us have teachers that we will never forget. Teachers who eventually turn into our mentors, and at the same time become our friends. You are probably thinking one of your most memorable teachers right now, whether it is your 6th grade English teacher or your 11th grade Math teacher. Whoever it may be, this teacher of yours must have shared his or her knowledge and wisdom not just to you, but to your whole class. Depending on how you interpreted this invaluable piece of knowledge, it struck you so much that you kept it within you for years.
Psychologist Julius Segal wrote, “One factor turns out to be the presence in their lives of a charismatic adult — a person from whom they gather strength. And in a surprising number of cases, that person turns out to be a teacher.”
Multiple sacrifices
A teacher’s job is often overlooked. “Teachers need the same kind of support that doctors receive who are doing their residency training under supervision,” psychologist Isaac Prilleltensky says. “And they usually don’t get it.” When young kids are asked what they want to be when they grow up, how many do you think would answer “teacher”? Teaching isn’t really seen as a glamorous job, and yet, it is one of the most laborious. Imagine the stress that a teacher undergoes in preparation for a semester, or better yet, the school year.
The list of things that a teacher does as a job is seemingly endless. For one, he or she has to come up with lesson plans every single day. But before this, a teacher must read and fully comprehend the lesson to be taught to his or her class.
Another responsibility of a teacher is finding effective strategies to teach the topics so that the students would remember and retain the lessons for future references. Moreover, materials to be used for a day’s session are also provided by the teacher, frequently with their own resources or money.
In essence, a teacher’s work is never really done. They are always so busy that it’s difficult to find time for themselves. Not to mention, many teachers are also doing their own studying, taking up further studies and completing their master’s or Ph.D. degrees while balancing their career as a teacher. These are some of the things that teachers sacrifice for the benefit of their students.
Shaping the future of the students
The teachers who strike us the most are those who taught us during our formative years. This is mainly because our teachers in the classroom are the ones who help us to be better individuals, not just in the classroom, but also in the outside world.
Some of them become our friends or our advisers and we can turn to them when we need some guidance. Essentially, they are our counselors. You can just come up to a teacher of yours and talk to him or her about things unrelated to school at no cost, so you wouldn’t have to worry about how much is therapy: https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/therapy/can-i-afford-to-see-a-counselor-how-much-does-therapy-cost/.
Teachers provide us with answers to our questions about school and about the world because they are more experienced than us. They share with us many things that we can apply to our personal lives.
A good teacher will not just simply teach you academics. He or she will also impart how to live your life in an ideal way. They shape their students’ malleable minds. It is up to them to make the next batch of individuals responsible and knowledgeable so that they can contribute to society. This is why we need more competent and dedicated teachers today.