“ A teacher affects eternity, no one can tell where his influence stops.” – Henry Brook Adams.

            I have read many quotes about teachers but this is the one that stole my mind, rip my soul and embedded in my heart.

            Many people raised their eyebrows when I took up Education as my course in college because there is a mantra that teaching is for women only. But I proved them wrong. I took up my course seriously. I studied very hard just to finish my course. Because I knew in my heart, that the path I want to take in life is the road that leads to educating people.

            I had the chance to teach indigenous learners when I was assigned to Eva Aeta Elementary School. And later, I was transferred to Sabatan Elementary School where I was a teacher for seven years.

            Teaching in these two schools made me realize that teaching is a noble profession. As a teacher, I learned to sacrifice a lot in order to make my learners’ learn. I had to bring home my paperworks in order to have a smooth teaching-learning process. I had to make creative, colorful and attention-grabbing instructional materials which can help my pupils to easily understand the lessons. More often than not, I shell out some cash to buy useful reading materials and educational toys which can help them become holistic learners. I always find time to use the internet in order to download useful videos and visual presentations to create rich imagination among my students. I impart to them my knowledge and skills not only to enhance their cognitive skills but their psychomotor skills as well.

I realized that a real educator must build a relationship with his students beyond their classroom. Teachers are not only responsible for academic enrichment but also in inspiring and developing the every aspect of their students which can help them reach their full potentials in order to become productive and useful citizens of one’s country.

As I continue teaching, I have learned to appreciate what I give rather than what I receive. No amount of money could ever repay whenever my former students tell me how greatly I affected their lives. As what I have read from a book, “ A teacher who was feeling isolated and lonely, that he should think about how the fruits of his labors continue to grow and flourish and dynamically impact the world.” Those thoughts do, and will, sustain me for as long as I live—and, hopefully, beyond.

By: MARK ATHONY C. BAUTISTA | T-III | SABATAN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL