A Teacher's Reward

Come to think of it, I have always been a teacher. And had wanted to become one since childhood as seen in this diary entry at age of 10 years. [yes I know my handwriting is bad :) ]



A teacher's best reward is when a student goes out into the world and makes use of the knowledge gained and acknowledges the one who imparted it to him. As a child I used to teach all sorts of things to my first student...right from alphabets to dances of India [inspired by geography book] by pulling the student's cheeks in different ways to explain difference between Kathakali and Yakshagana and of course practical demonstration by the teacher inspired from "Baje Sargam Har Taraf Se"!! I had subscribed to a children's magazine TARGET and it had all sorts of tidbits in it..[Has any of you read it? loved the mag but it got converted to TEENS TODAY and then got discontinued] It had a travel section and in one issue it covered China. The author had given 7 Chinese sentences and their meanings...like Xia Xia (Thank you), Ni Hao Mar (How are you), Dui Puchi (Welcome) etc etc [I don't remember the rest 4 sentences]. I took it upon my little shoulders to teach those as a foreign language to my student. I used to take oral tests to make the student memorize but as the student was more interested in pulling my frock and leg, I gave up.

Two days back, that student called up from France and said "I met some Chinese people today and when I talked to them in the sentences you had once taught me they were very happy with me. I called up to tell you that today your first student has achieved success". I was so amused and so very happy!! It made my day!! [Of course I said this too "See how it proved useful and you were never serious about it"]

Thank you dear student for humouring me and for being a wonderful playmate.


The teacher Reema in specs and her first & best student Didi

*************
Miss Wormwood: Yes, Calvin? You have a question?
Calvin: Yeah, I was wondering if we could stop the lesson here and adjourn to the playground for the rest of the day.
Miss Wormwood: Of course not. Now then, let's all turn to page 24 and...
Calvin: Miss Wormwood?
Miss Wormwood: Yes?
Calvin: How about just me then?

**************

P.S. Knowledge never goes waste.

[Image credited to schoolclipart.net]

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

Very cute post dear! I didnt know you were a teacher. I also teach, part time though...and I absolutely love it. So, we have something in common.
I wish you had taught some Chinese to me too..that way I would have impressed some Chinese girls who are nice to me..:)

P.S. Can you move to wordpress please? This blogspot is a pain in the ass, seriously

Daroga said...

so.. you teach French .... i c

Bonjour :)

Swathi said...

Good job Reema, now how do we say this in Chinese :)

Canopenner said...

#1 is botanist right?

#2 is teacher

what is the #3 thing you wanted to be?

sulz said...

i've always wanted to be a teacher, but i'm not at the moment (hopefully in the future) and your story mimics how i feel and why i want to be a teacher. i hardly have any experience teaching, but i really enjoy teaching my friends when we revise for exams together. :)

Vaibhav J said...

Teacher is the most resectful profession, hats off.
Cheers!

Anonymous said...

Hey I like teachers very much. I think they are the persons who can build the base of a country.
Cheers
Suda

Dolly said...

My first job was teaching,I can never forget those memorable moments and my mom is a wonderful teacher too :-)

Anonymous said...

hey you have a very bad handwriting and a very good thought :)
I love to teach.. though i don't get many chance..
totally agree with what you say, knowing anything will never go waste.

Reema said...

@Lallopallo..Thanks! I've written my profession in my blogger profile. Nice to know u teach too. Why so much dislike for blogger? Is that why U commented 1st time? Keep visiting!!

@Adarsh ..Err..from where did u infer that? Its chinese I talked about. that too 7 sentences only. And actually I'm lecturer in Electrical Engineering

@Swathi Thanks..oops..Xia! Wish I knew what u asked :)

Reema said...

@Robert #1 do u mean spelling or the term? both r right..one who deals with botany is a botanist...botany is study of plants.. #2 didnt get what u wrote #3 its scientist...come on my handwriting isnt that bad..just click n view enlarged image

@Sulz..yes surely u will be teaching in future..e.g. ur kids!! Else nowadays parents just send their kids to tuitions from the 1st grade..they dont have time to teach themselves or maybe dont feel confident enough.

Reema said...

@Vaibhav & Suda..Thanks!!

@Lollypop..welcome to my blog!! Its also my first n present profession and I enjoy it!! Keep visiting.

@Sandeep...awwww come on its not "very" bad.. boo hoo..Welcome to my blog!! Keep visiting!!

Daroga said...

oh yeah... my bad.
and kudos to you for being a lecturer so early !!!

Sandeep said...

okie.. it's not very bad but only that most ppl can't read it :P

just kiddin' :)

Anonymous said...

I had commented earlier also..two times I think.
As for blogger, the problem is that every time you have to sign in to leave a comment..wordpress is much easier since everybody is on it..
It will also help your blog in terms of getting more people to comment.

Anonymous said...

I used to give tutions when I was in college for my pocket money. I was absolutely against asking my father for money. :)
And it is a very different feeling when the children you teach get good marks or come back and tell you that they have achieved something.

Reema said...

@Adarsh Thanks!! I'm in the profession since 3.5 yrs

@Sandeep Maybe I should become a doctor instead of an engineer..u know they r known for their bad handwriting...

@Lallopallo Oh yes sorry for that. All WP users are advising me what u said. :D maybe I'll yield to the pressure

@Amit Very mature of u to do that. Yes its a wonderful feeling when the students come and touch my feet to get my blessings before exam and after result declaration. I feel awkward too :)

Anonymous said...

What? Students touch your feet?? You mean engineering students??
I will die if somebody did that with me..lol
I get perturbed even if a student calls me Sir..

Anonymous said...

Reema: Yes, I read Target too. I also read a Hindi magazine called Mela which was immensely superior and mature in content to Parag or the awful Nandan.

Target used to be a mind-liberating magazine, esp for a 'tell me why' child like me. :-)

And yes, please move to WP. It is easy peasy. Except your images have to be moved manually if you wish to delete this blog - else they keep showing as hosted on Blogger. (I moved one blog to WP hence the wisdom).

Reema said...

@Lallopallo yes.. :) its a trend here in chattisgarh in all college students...I too feel very awkward but I dont mind the Ma'am part cuz its necessary.

@Shefaly I dont think there are any good English magazines nowadays for kids is there?
Thanks a lot for the tip.

Anonymous said...

@ Reema: I wouldn't know. I left India to live in Europe a long time ago.

On my annual pilgrimage, I see few children reading in the first place. I notice the proliferation of English language magazines - of variable quality although most on the bad-very-bad side of the spectrum - and wonder about two things: why do so many speak awful English if English is all they are being exposed to, and what are people reading in their own mother tongue nowadays.

Re the tip, you are welcome. I only thought it is worth a mention because you will never really get around to doing it. It is not just an activity that requires time but also one that presumes devotion to the cause of blogging to the point of irrationality. I doubt you have the former to waste or the latter to fill up anything in your life.

The actual move takes a few minutes. Read the questions in WP forum before the move too.

Reema said...

@Shefaly..yes students studying in so called English medium don't know how to write one application. The Engineering students study Communication Skills in 1st yr but they are hopeless in grammar and spelling of simple words.

Seriously,I cant do all that uploading again.So its better I don't delete this blog.Actually I have moved it already and imported my posts & comments but not yet finalized my decision to break up with blogger :) I'm v resistant to change.

Canopenner said...

I know what 1 and 2 are, just couldnt read #3...

:^)

youre right the handwriting is good for a kid that age, I didnt mean to imply otherwis.

Have a great day!

Reema said...

@Robert oops I didnt think u were asking in context of spelling :)Its ok I dont mind

Anonymous said...

I am no more as disruptive a student that I was then. Now I pay attention to what you teach me (computer stuff, games, etc). But I enjoyed your afternoon classes back then, and I also remember fondly your pottery session (with dough), and your hun huna and dandi march...
love you too.

Reema said...

@Student aka Didi the cartoon is so apt na?? Love u mmuuaahh