By Cherie Nicole
25 June 2022
Bright-eyed and full of ideas about changing the course of traditional classroom teaching, newly-graduated teachers are often full of spirit and vigour to inspire the lives of students. Yet, reality can oftentimes play out differently from imagined.
While it’s good to have a positive mindset, it is also important to prepare for the reality of being a teacher. Teaching won’t always be fun and games, yet it can also be a greatly rewarding job. Here are three things that I wish I had known when I had first started my teaching career.
1. Educating in the classroom is only one part of your responsibility.
Being a teacher is more than teaching. You are a multi-tasker. Besides preparing lesson plans and materials, you need to manage reports and other administrative matters. And don’t forget extracurricular activities and the multitude of ad hoc tasks that come with it!
Besides that, you also need to keep up with your students’ progress in their studies and provide them with the necessary help they might need. Mentoring students is an emotionally heavy task. Because of that, it is easy to feel overwhelmed with the burden that comes with being a teacher.
But don’t worry, as you go along, you will learn to manage your time better and become more efficient in handling your responsibilities.
2. You don’t have to be popular to be respected.
“I hope my students will like me.” — How many teachers have expressed this sentiment? Being well-liked will definitely increase your popularity with students, but if you focus too much on it with the hope that students will respect you more, it won’t necessarily help you in the way you want it to.
You don’t need to be liked to be respected. As an authority figure, it is important to be firm yet gentle so they know that you are approachable while at the same time deserving of respect. Also, perhaps more important than being well-liked is being genuine.
Authenticity goes a long way because students can pick up on it and will learn to respect you on your terms. While it is not easy to be genuine to “problematic” or “disruptive” students, there is a great reward in learning to care for them. They are usually the ones who end up appreciating you the most.
3. Lower your expectations and be prepared for anything.
A good teacher is prepared for anything at all, no matter the circumstances. If you’ve experienced practicum before, know that it is not the same as teaching full time. Leave your expectations at the gate and come to school with an open mind.
Lesson planning will require a significant amount of time at first, but with experience, you’ll get better and faster at it. Be easy on yourself. If you’re feeling the pressure from the amount of workload, chances are other teachers do too. Reach out to them and get help from more experienced teachers who have been in your shoes before.You will find someone who can lend you a sympathetic ear and mentor you along the way. Learn to lean on each other to pull through the enormous task of being an educator.
Final thoughts
Do not overwhelm yourself with expectations. Instead, hope for the best while preparing for the worst. Keep in mind that every student you teach will be unique, so be open to an enriching experience. If you want to enhance your teaching skills, you can register for courses that will help you with that.
Edvolution offers a course for new teachers called the Young Teachers’ Preparatory Programme (YTPP) where we train fresh graduates, new teachers (usually with under one year of experience) or anyone with an interest in teaching to enhance their skills using various techniques and platforms. If you are interested, fill up this form or send us an email to receive updates when we start our next intake.
What do you think about this list? I invite you to share what YOU think are the 3 things that teachers should know in their first year of teaching. All the best and keep inspiring lives!
Cherie Nicole is a Curriculum Designer at Edvolution Enterprise. She is passionate about language and literature, and places importance on building a generation that is both kind and critical-minded.
Prior to joining Edvolution, she studied Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) and English Literature at the University of Malaya.
