-
I, as an educator and an active social media peruser, have, for innumerabletimes, encountered and came across posts squeezing out rants, pains, fears, cries andcalls for action as we are all confronted by what is potentially one of the most dauntingthreats in the entire history of human race for the longest time now: the COVID-19. Ithas introduced enormous amounts of fear and uncertainty in substantial aspects of thenational and global society, including our schools. Needless to say, this has irreversiblychanged our lives forever.Last night, as I was browsing through a certain social medium, I went past a postof someone whom I presumed to be a student, calling out for teachers’ sympathy,understanding and kindness for he narrated an awful personal experience with a ‘cold-hearted teacher’ as he described him/her in his post. I paused for a while andintrospected; I inquired to myself questions like “Why are there teachers who areapathetic?” “Am I one of them?” “Are we really running out of good-natured teachers?”“Are teachers being unkind for enforcing their rules and thereby training their students tobecome disciplined when it comes to submissions, quality of work, and performances?”,or “Are they being overly understanding by letting their learners’ shortcomings slide?”inquiries as such kept on bugging me for quite a while, then after some pondering, Icame up to a solid proposition, at least for me.From my standpoint, I will attest that there are still a lot of good teachers who aretrying their best to understand everyone’s predicaments and to accommodateeverybody’s pleas. Proudly, I am one among them. I give utmost understanding,sympathy, and kindness every time the situation calls for it. However, as much as wewant to make it up to every single person, we also are trying to uphold standards set forand by us, trying to poise between quality and leniency. It is never our delight, asteachers, to see our students failing or even barely surviving. Never. If people couldonly witness how much our hearts break whenever we see students being left behind,how we would always try our best to rescue them with all our might, I doubt there’d still
-
be people who will have the audacity to trash the names of their teachers who, for thesake of quality and fairness, reprimanded them or gave them failing remarks.It is not apathy. It is not heartlessness. It is not unkindness. It is notmercilessness. Fact of the matter, it is tough love. It may be unpopular, but it is true. It’sus striking the balance between two equally crucial things in teaching and learning:quality and leniency. Sometimes, teachers are left with no choice but to let our studentslearn the hard way. It is our way of helping our dear students realize, as young as theyare, that if there’s one person who is most responsible for their future, it is them.
By: MARIA LUISA D. INGARAN|TEACHER II|BATAAN NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL|BALANGA CITY, BATAAN
