Life as a Teacher in 2017

     Dear me, has it been that long since I first stepped foot in my school as a newly appointed teacher?

     Five years.

     Five years, which does not sound like a particularly long period for much senior teachers. Some of them have been in the field for ten, fifteen, twenty years. I know a few who have recently retired. They should have around thirty to thirty five years of teaching experience under their belt, I would think.

     Five years, which to those who have recently entered service, may feel like they would soon come the same mark without so much as a blink of the eyes. I'd started to think of retiring in my second year of teaching, come to think of it. The staff and teachers at my school used to joke about it.

     Five years, which to those who have perhaps recently graduated and are currently waiting to be posted (I must say I have no idea of the current situation. Are there any of you out there who are?) may seem like an eternity. After all, it took slightly more than five years (six for me) for you to have completed your studies in the training institutes. And now that you're waiting to be posted, which feels like it will never happen, you cannot possibly imagine what it would feel like to have been in the field for five years.

     And five years to me, which in a strange but real and relatable way that time works for everyone seemed to have passed so swiftly that I cannot see it go by without trying but also feels like a long, long time. To be exact, it is roughly equivalent to one fifth of my entire life.

     January 16th seems like it happened a long time ago. I have to actually sit down and recall what had happened on the day I reported for duty at the JPN. When I have managed to remember the details, though, I cannot help but muse at how anxious my friends and I had been. How much we had looked forward to getting posted.

     Now, five years later, I wonder how many of us are still teaching. Probably more than 90%, as I have heard of a few who had decided teaching was not what they wanted to and have left to do other things. I'm sure most are married, with children and perhaps less time to spend at school.

     In the five years that I have been teaching, I've also experienced a lot in terms of teaching and education. The kids who were in Year One when I came to the school are now in Year 6. Haslina and her friends went for their UPSR last year and are now in Form One in secondary school. I went to at least ten courses on KSSR, if not more. (I managed to go to KSSR courses every year, from the one for Year 2 up to Year 6). I went for a course on I-THINK, VLE Frog, LINUS and many more, all of which reflect the ever changing education system in the country. Last year, the new format for UPSR was implemented (I hope I can devote at least one post to this). This year, a revised version of KSSR for Year One started, with new textbooks, activity books and DSKP. My school was chosen to be in the Dual Language Programme which is akin to PPSMI. We were also chosen for something called the Highly Immersed Programme, which we have yet to understand what it is about but definitely know that it has something to with English.

     On a much more personal tone, I also came to understand what it feels like to be under constant pressure, heavy workloads, having sleepless nights and long hours at work and also how to be on the point of giving up on everything. Alhamdulillah, I did not.

     In short, a lot has happened. I'm sure you have been through a lot too. I cannot tell if people still blog or read blogs. I know many of my favourite bloggers have decided to stop blogging and turn to much easier ways of sharing such as Instagram and Facebook. I too, prefer to post on Instagram. It has occurred to me though, that one of my very few talents may lie in writing, and Instagram and Facebook and Twitter is a little limited in that sense. For one, too many people know me there. Here, most of the people who drop by have no idea who I am. And what amazes me is that the blog still manages to attract readers. There are visitors every single day.

     Which brings me to this conclusion- if there is good in something, keep doing it. I cannot promise to keep writing and sharing, but I do hope whatever I have posted is still of value to some of you. I have had so many people contact me personally, asking for advice and insights. Though I was not able to be of much help, I'm glad that we all know that there is something we can learn from one another.

     Let's continue to be part of that community of people who share, care and love.

Happy Ramadhan!

   I'm late! Again. Haha. Let me say it anyway- Have a blessed Ramadhan everyone! This month is the time to train ourselves to be better Muslims and individuals. If you are a Muslim, fasting, performing your prayers (both fareedah and sunnah), giving sadaqah... all those things have to be given extra work and effort! Ramadhan is our training ground. It will help prepare us for what we need to face after Ramadhan in syaa Allah.

   This year marks my second year as a working lady (ewahh kelas gitu bunyi). I am getting more and more work and tasks at school, and it doesn't help that I feel so exhausted and tired all the time. Sometimes I get frustrated because I get caught up with so much clerical work that my pupils are left to fend for themselves. It truly irritates and frustrates me.

   To be honest, I was afraid that when Ramadhan came, I would feel even more burdened. Normally, I always get hungry all the time as I spend most of it running here and there, from my classes to the office to the staff room, upstairs and downstairs, from one building to another. I would feel drained so if I have time I will run to the canteen or at least suck on a lollipop (of which I have an endless stock- my pupils make sure of that!). I wondered how I would get through Ramadhan without eating or drinking anything throughout the day.

   Allah truly knows best. I have never felt as strong and energetic as I have during these past seven days. Now that the Mid-Year Exam is over and done with, we have started using a new timetable (Jadual Anjal). We have also split the Year 6 classes from two into three groups. This means more teaching periods, which sums up to around 34 periods for me per week. I know that for some people this is normal but at my school the normal teaching periods per week is 25. Added to that are tuition classes, endless filing and clerical work, helping a teacher with his or her course assignments (doing it for them actually -_-) and so on. You name it. Sometimes I have so much work to do that I feel my head would explode. Sometimes I get so bewildered that I would just sit down and stare at all the mess on my table. Sometimes I just don't know what I should start working on.

   What worried me the most is that all this additional work would take away my focus away from my real job- to teach my pupils. Alhamdulillah. Allah has granted me the strength and energy, so far, to still be able to plan my lessons and teach in class. I used to get a bit tardy sometimes. I'd go into my classes without a single plan in my head and just teach spontaneously. I notice that the past seven days of fasting has helped me to be more serious in planning my work. It helps that we get up so early for sahur. I now set off for school at 6.00 a.m. so that I'll arrive at school at around 6.45 a.m. I have early morning classes with my Year 6 pupils. After school I'll continue with tuition classes, twice a week during school days and probably once during the weekend.

   Today, for instance, I had to teach for eight periods. Just imagine. We only have ten periods per day. I only had two periods to sit and do other work. When I entered my last English class, I thought I would collapse. But I didn't. To my surprise my voice has grown stronger (if you read my posts on my first year of posting you would understand how much this means to me) and I can still jump around and have fun with my children. Ma syaa Allah. The power of fasting. The beauty of Ramadhan. Allah truly knows what he has in store for us in this blessed Ramadhan.

   So dear friends. Take the opportunity to be even more productive this month. If you ever need any ideas or tips to plan better and become more productive especially during Ramadhan, do visit productivemuslim.com. It's a wonderful, wonderful website. On that note, I must end here. Sorry if it all sounds rather abrupt. I wish you a happy and blessed Ramadhan. In syaa Allah, let us be become better Muslims, people and teachers throughout this training process. Take care!

Remember...

List of Duties for 2013

   Well I've been out of sight for quite a well. The start of a new year is always action-packed, whether you're at school or in university or at school again, as a teacher.

   This year I've been assigned quite a share of responsibilities and duties at school. To be completely honest with you, I'm not quite sure I'll be able to pull it off but I will give it m very best shot and try to accomplish whatever there is to be accomplished. For now, I shall have to put any notion of continuing my studies aside just a teeny tiny wee bit. Just so I can see if I can manage well at school. I f I can, then Insya-Allah I shall do my best to go for my M.Ed. Yes!

   I thought I'd share my list of duties at school for this year. You never know, we might have a lot to share and talk about- just in case you also happen to have been assigned to teach Year 6 for the first time ever in your teaching career, giving you cramps and nightmares and panicky moments even at the start of the year. Or etc. Here we go:

Teacher Mayah's 2013 List of Duties at SKST

Pentadbiran (School Management)
-Penyelaras SPLG/LDP (Sistem Pengurusan Latihan Guru/Latihan Dalam Perkhidmatan)

Hal Ehwal Murid (Students' Affairs)
-Penyelaras Unit 3 K (Kesihatan, Keceriaan dan Keselamatan)
-Penolong Setiausaha Unit Kecemerlangan
-Ketua Biro Motivasi dan Kepimpinan bagi Unit Kecemerlanagan
-Guru Kelas Tahun 4

Kurikulum
-Penyelaras Bilik SAL (Self Access Learning Centre)
-Guru Bahasa Inggeris bagi Tahun 3 (KSSR), 4 dan 6 (KBSR)

Ko-kurikulum
-Penyelaras Persatuan Bahasa Inggeris
-Guru Penasihat Bola Baling (uh-huh)
-Guru Penasihat Persatuan Bulan Sabit Merah (what??)


   That is as far as I remember. I'll come back and edit if I've left anything out. What's on your list for this year? Do share.

New (School) Year Countdown: Weird Dreams

   I have always found it odd how when I'm looking forward to or am constantly thinking of something, it ends up in my dreams. Of course it's probably not odd since studies have shown that dreams are usually affected by what you think and do (eceh jadik saintis pulak tetiba). You know what I mean though.

   And guess what. School is about to start in less than a week.

   And last night, I had the strangest dream.

   I dreamt that I was getting ready for school. Then I realised that I was late for school. I quickly jumped on my bike (what the... a bike?) and pedalled as hard as I could. Then suddenly the tires went flat. I cycled home (apparently I was supposed to pick her up. Wait. Where did I cycle from in the first place??) and informed her that we had better  go to school by car since my bike had managed to get flat tires. Then a man suddenly came and knocked on the window and asked if we were planning to move out since he was looking for a house to rent.

   I don't think we went to school at all in the end.

   Complete rubbish.

   As if I would EVER cycle to school. Crazy kot. Mungkinla jauh.

   Hehe. Happy end-of-holidays and let's get ready to get back to school!

   Anybody been lucky enough to get your own share of weird get-back-to-school dream/nightmare? Do share.

Teaching of Phonics Course: A Sneakpeek

   I really enjoyed the Teaching of Phonics course I went to and I wish that I could really get down to posting about what I've learnt there. For now, take a look at these pictures to have some insight into what we did there...

   We got some really great ideas on how to teach phonics:

 













  Okay I may be a bit biased here so feel free to disagree. I simply think that English teachers are just the best sorts of people to be around. Even when I was in school, I always felt that vibe from my English teachers. They were just different. They were fun, creative, full of energy and I always looked forward to my English classes. I had the same sort of experience during the two courses I've attended which involved English teachers. Things were never boring because everybody was just so enthusiastic. I met so many lovely people there and I feel truly privileged.

All the CPs with our wonderful instructors.
All prim and proper.

That's more like it.

My crazy, energetic and fun, fun fun group mates. You guys rock!

 

















































   Good luck dear friends! It seems like the world is so much better with people like you in it, and your pupils are truly, truly lucky getting you as their teachers.

Delima Diaries : Of Pencils

   My pupils eat pencils. Figuratively, of course. Since the start of the year, I've gone through at least 7 boxes of pencils. Most of them never bring pencils to class, and if they do, they'd lose them in five minutes. They don't seem to have an appreciation for their own things. If they lose something, it's either borrowing from somebody else or simply buying a new one. And then losing it all over again.

   That's how 2 Delima is. In fact, that's just a tiny piece of what defines 2 Delima.

   My pencils either go missing. The ones that come back are either broken into two or three pieces, or are whole but with the leads inside broken, or split into two,etc. Some of them even look as if they'd been chewed on.

   You may say, why pamper these children? I should be strict and insist that they bring their own pencils. Well, I've tried and it doesn't work. I'm just not at the level where good teachers are yet. I feel that what's important is that pupils are able to do their work, and if it means I should bring pencils, then I will.

   A month ago, I stumbled upon twelve boxes of pencils sold at around RM 12.00 (less, I think). In exasperation, I bought the whole lot. 12 boxes times 12 pencil equals to 144 pencils. That should last at least three months, I thought.

   I'm happy to report that after two weeks, I've only has to use and am still only using one box of pencils. All twelve pencils from that box are still in good condition. None is missing. Only one has a broken lead but it's still usable.

   I guess 2 Delima has grown up a bit. Maybe I'm getting better. I don't know. What I do know is that in this profession, you should never, ever give up. Never. Ever. Your children need you. You need them too.

Teachers: Jack of All Trades

   Yes. That's what we are. Sometimes I wonder how I'm ever going to manage all these things that I have to do. There's so much work, aside from teaching. Teaching makes up just a tiny bit of what teachers have to deal with at school. Sometimes I wonder if the tasks teachers have to complete (apart from classroom activities) defeat the purpose of their original job. At the moment, I don't have as much to do as the seniors teachers do. They are so busy, that I wonder how they manage their own personal lives. 

   I found this somewhere on the internet, and I thought, how true! I'm not married and of course have no kids of my own, but after I started work it's like I gained a whole bunch of children to look after. 

My Pupils - 2D

   I enter smiling.

   I leave ten years older.

   2D. Everyday after leaving their class, I'd sit back and stare into the air, thinking of how and what i could possibly do to manage them. They are a handful. No, I take that back. They are a hundred handfuls! (If that makes sense). I'm too tired to write a detailed story on them, but here's a few details tat might help you picture what they're like:

   1. They walk on the desks. Yes. When I'm in class. I can't chase them around in case they trip and fall. They're nimble too. They run around on the desks as if it's what they do everyday. Wait. They do do it everyday.

   2. One boy (WMDA) treats me like... well, like I'm not his teacher. He hangs on to my hands as if they're branches. He just will NOT listen to what I say. He likes to pretend that he's sick and exaggerates and puts on acts all the time. Sometimes it's funny. At times.... arrrggghh!!!! His books are clean as slates. He has done any work at all. He cheeks me.

   3. One girl (H) is a bit strange. Some teachers call her 'special'. Well, some of the special things she's been doing in my class:
- going through my stuff without asking for permission
- walking on the desks, and running away from me (nimbly too!) when I try to catch her. I'm just afraid that she'll fall and hurt herself.
- following me around after class, and when I tell her to go back to class, she sticks her tongue out at me
- these few days, she's been dabbing paint on her hands and going around trying to dab paint on everyone else. One day I caught her going around the class, intending to dab blobs of paint on every desk. I caught her before she managed to complete this interesting ritual. Every time she dabs paint on her hand, I have to drag her to the toilet and help her clean them off, because she also puts them on her lips and I'm afraid she'd swallow them. She gets paint on her clothes, tudung, kain. She seems to enjoy the ritual of dabbing paint on her hands and having me to take her to the toilet to help her wash them. Every time we go to the toilet, half the class would tag along. This morning, I ended up singing "This is the way we wash our hands, wash our hands, wash our hands" with them. At the girl's toilet.
- She hasn't quite developed... well, any embarrassment. She lifts her kain, showing her (thankfully) shorts underneath. Thank goodness for her shorts. She keeps pulling off her tudung too.
- For the most part of my classes, I run after her. During the last fifteen minutes or so, after I've manged to 'catch' her, I'd make her read or write or do something, and she does them all surprisingly well.

4. As soon as they see me come in, they'd either ignore me or start running around. They shout, kick each other, jump on the table at the back of the class, play with the brooms, and they find it fun to kick just about everything they can get their hands on. Crushed tin cans (new ones everyone I enter), bottle caps, erasers, even crumpled up paper.

5. There's no table for the teacher in their class. instead, there's this trolley with a vase on it. Today, they climbed up ad began pushing each other around.

6. While I'm teaching or looking at some pupil's work in front, half the class is either running around at the back or running in and our of the class.

7. I've tried the Silent Treatment. Only worked for a few minutes. I've tried shouting, scolding. They're not afraid of me. I try coaxing, bu I have to do it pupil by pupil. It works, but while I do it, they others kick up chaos around the class.

8. Nearly everyday, at least one kid will cry. They don't cry silently. It's usually an all-out, I-want-everybody-to-know-that-I've-been-wronged sort of crying.

   And yet, even with all that, I still want  to find a way to make them interested to learn. I've found some to be such sweethearts, and in the two weeks  that I've been with them, most have started doing their work. They still run around and fight, but at least I go back with books filled with some written work. At least I know that a few can read. They're just kids, most come from difficult family backgrounds. They need my help.

   I didn't write all of this with the intention of complaining. I just want you to know that being a teacher, especially when you're just starting out, is not easy. If you're going through difficulties in managing your class, know that you'e not alone. Know that other teachers face problems too. Know that you will one day work them out, though you may have to work (really, really) hard to do it.

   I have such a long way to go. I don't know how I'll manage to cope with 2D but for now I won't stop trying. I want people to stop saying, "2D? Ahh... they've always been like that." "Unmanageable." "Hard to get through to." And the lot.

   2D.

   *collapses in exhaustion

RULE NUMBER ONE: Teachers MUST Like Their Pupils

   So begins my life as a teacher.

   I have spent 5 days in service at SKST. There is so much that I do not know. So much that I must learn.

   I received a temporary timetable on the second day I was here. Apparently, I was sent to SKST because I was supposed to fill in an empty spot left by a teacher who was supposed to report here earlier this year, but never did (she got a transfer to another state). Mr L's words were, "We are so happy to get an English teacher. We need another female English teacher." I feel wanted. Hehe.And needed.

   I was assigned to take over the classes which were supposed to be taken by the Teacher Who Never Came. Three Classes. 2D. 3Z. 4D. You'd better remember them since I predict i will be talking about them a lot. A LOT.

   Each grade is streamed into two classes- the Z classes for the higher ability pupils and the D classes for lower ability ones. You may have noticed that I go two D classes. It's all right! I thought It is best to start with the more difficult classes. You learn and gain more experience that way.

   I want to talk 2D.

   2D.

   The first time I entered their class, they managed (or I managed to make them) stay in their seats. New teacher alert. (Nearly) all was good.

   The second time I entered was two period before the final bell rang. They were already wearing their bags, ready to go home. They yelled, kicked, ,banged the desks and simply ran amok. The Silent Treatment did NOT work. I began to get a foreboding of doom. Grey clouds. Heavy rain. I was determined. When I next entered, I would be strict. Garang. These children need to learn that I was in charge. I prepared for battle.

   Every time I talked to my friends or other people, I would describe the horrors that these children had presented to me. 2D this. 2D that.


   The third time was yesterday. I'd received the permanent timetable and I was ready to rock these kids' socks. In short, it was a total flop. A huge disaster. I went back to the staff room and brooded at my table.

   Mr L happened to be there, so I started talking to him. He's my mentor, so I told him all about it- how my planned activities never got carried out because the children would not listen to me... and so on. We talked about it for quite a while. I was down in the dumps and not ready to climb back to the top. Though I nodded in agreement to what Mr L said, the words did not enter my heart.

   Then, Mr L said something that struck me right at the core of my heart. It was such a simple statement, but it shocked me right back into existence. He said:

   "You must enjoy (being with) the children. Then you will enjoy the class."

   Realisation flooded into me. I was dumbstruck. Just with those words, I began see things clearly. It was as if a door had been unlocked and I was walking out of it, meeting sunshine and fresh air and all good things.

   I had made a mistake. When I was at SKP, however bad things were, I knew that I loved and cared for the children. They were special. I did not only want to teach them and help them learn, I also wanted to be their friends.

   With 2D, I had fallen into a trap I fell into the Teacher vs. Pupils trap. It was me against them.

   It should have been me AND them. Teachers and Pupils. I had set myself apart, and I did not try very hard to remember all their names. I did not even think about  whether I liked  them. Whoever they were, I just wanted to teach. It was wrong. I was wrong.

   Today, I entered and smiled. I joked, and laughed and teased. I began to learn their names, and I could feel that I liked being there. Let me tell you it was no a total success. We're a long way from there. However, I think whatever happens, I won't want to stop trying. These children are special. They need my attention, and my help. I want to look forward to going  to class. I don't want to dread the thought of meeting them every day. In order to execute change, I must change. It starts with me.

   2D, let me be your teacher. Let me be your friends. Let me into your world. Let's make learning fun, shall we?