An essay by Teacher Guiarmiya M. Haron of Sultan Mastura National High School (Calsada, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao)
“Each day is a different experience, and getting to see my students grow, and learn to improve themselves is a very satisfying thing.”
As a young girl I always dreamed about becoming a teacher because my teachers were able to make learning so much fun. As I got older, school was not as easy for me but my teachers always took the time to help me understand what was being taught. My teachers fostered within me a desire to learn, challenge myself and explore. I would like to share this passion with my students. I believe that I can encourage children to explore their world and learn about all the interesting things going on around them.
Another reason I would like to teach science is that I would like to make learning fun. Teaching science will give me many opportunities to capture my student's attention. I believe I can make science an interesting and fun subject for our future generations. If you know science thoroughly, then you are the best for science teacher job in any school. High school is the first place where you can particle your science concepts. The growing mind of a high school student is full of enthusiasm and curiosity that creates a fertile place of science study. High school is the staring steps to implement core concepts and theory. Students in high school become quite matured to understand the complexity of science. They are stable enough to handle different chemical and other lab instruments. If you have good command on science as well as an impressive teaching style and zeal to teach then the high school will be the best place for you.
The love of science and learning new things will be the main goal in my classroom. Hopefully, I will prepare my students for future academic learning and promote a lifetime of learning for them. Anytime I get discouraged, I will remember my past teachers and how much their support meant to me. The state of science education for students is at an important crossroads.
As the first decade of the 21st century comes to a close, we are faced with enormous scientific challenges that the youth of today will have to confront. Some of these issues include the expanding HIV/AIDS pandemic, global climate change, world hunger, space exploration, and the development and implementation of alternative sources of energy. Whereas the need for scientific advances is at its peak, student learning about science in school is facing critical challenges
In my years of teaching this field, I was able to deliver my goals as their science teacher precisely. I designed my over-all evaluation with twin goals in mind. One is to provide in-depth, formative evaluation of the program (not of the mentors and mentees) for the project staff and those involved in the program’s effectiveness. And the other is to promote reflection and sharing of progress, learning, and experiences among all learners within the program. As a long time science teacher, I must say that the educational system and the school environment don’t limit my capacities and capabilities to pursue my teaching goals in a way. But, some of my complex issues in the field of science education include the availability of appropriate textbooks and classroom resources; the preparation and training of science teachers (including both pre-service training and in-service professional development); political and religious opposition to cutting-edge science instruction; the need to meet standards and to prepare students for standardized examinations; and the dramatically increasing use of the internet as a source of information. Given these and other issues, it is extremely important to understand, acknowledge, and build upon the abilities of adolescent learners, while at the same time tailoring instruction to address the unique challenges that I faced. On the contrary, some of these challenges and hindrances specifically the availability of appropriate textbooks and classroom resources were figured out and unraveled by the school administration and the DepEd and also by me. I resolved this problem through our modern technology. We all know that technology has also paved way for more accessible information about such science instruction.
More than just changing the curriculum, the government needs to invest in teachers and facilities to improve the competency of Filipino students and encourage them to enter science and technology professions, according to education reform advocates. In my opinion, what we, science teachers, really need is we need higher salaries and benefits for teachers. If the salaries are too low, then you can’t expect to hire the best ones for the job. K-12 would be rendered meaningless if basic science teaching is not improved.
“Strength doesn’t come from what you can do. It comes from overcoming the things you once thought you couldn’t.” People who know their strengths are likely to build on and make use of them, while those who know of their weaknesses may take extra steps to overcome them. For me, an understanding of strengths is especially important. I am aware of what I’m good at and what could use improvement may also be better qualified to help my students do the same.
I believe that life is a learning experience and being able to recognize our own strengths and weaknesses can help us become better individuals, whether it is positive abilities and skills that can help achieve our goals or negative personal areas that need improvement. I’ve always loved technology, and I am the first person to download a new app and give feedback to coworkers about which tech tools and gadgets work best in the classroom, and which are a waste. In fact, I recently started a small newsletter in which I review teaching software, programs and apps for other teachers. I encourage my students to use technology, and have noticed that they engage more if they can do it with their tools. One more strength that I can share to my fellow science teachers is being passionate, passionate to educate young ones. Science teachers must manifest this attitude and character in order to see the development of the students. We also need to instill to ourselves to love the STEM Education even more. With this, you’ll bear the fruit of your labor, you’ll harvest your hard works and sacrifices and see the bright side of your success. I felt that the strengths I was given reflected me well. Overall, I think that they show that I try and see the best aspects of everyone and want them all to be heard and seen. I think that they show how much I want to learn and connect the world around me and help others do the same. All of these strengths will be vital in my classroom so I can help my students come together to learn and grow. It is my job to use my strengths to find the strengths in others. My weakness is that I can be too critical of myself, often thinking I could have done my academic tasks better, leading to burnout and negative self-talk. Seeing the growth and progress of my own students, I have been inspired to develop my teaching skills. The desire to become more myself so that I can better help others is at the heart of my passion for science education. I just love science and learning about how things in our world come about.
Challenges and weaknesses could either make our break us but we know we always embody the power of turning lead into gold. At the end of the day, it boils down to how we pull together despite our differences. We, STEM Educator, are alchemists of our own kind. We are much tougher with our backs against the wall. Regardless of how this challenges burns us to the ground, we will rise from our ashes and rebuild the empire that our country has always been.