A doctor, an engineer, a recording artist, a painter, a film director, a businessman... I could have been like that...but God gave me the patience to make daily lesson plans and IMs, the strength to go the extra mile of what is expected, the creativity and enthusiasm to develop and innovate better strategies to suit learners’ individual differences, a heart to understand the way students behave and learn the best way they can, and believe in the power of their dreams. That’s why He made me a teacher.
I am Raffy Lacsina Berina, 24 years old, a teacher by profession and an artist by passion. I live in the humble town of E.B. Magalona where I started making my dreams come true. I grew up with stage parents and grandparents who are always there to support me from the very first time I stepped on stage from elementary to college and always there to remind me that success comes to those who believe, work hard and keep the humility.
Long before I became teacher, I never thought that it would be this challenging. You go to school very excited to deliver the lessons you have prepared overnight, happy to see students smile everytime you crack jokes in class, tired posting and removing visual aids an hour after the other...but you go home fulfilled and you slept blissful knowing that somehow, you touched young minds.
I entered the teaching profession at the age of 21, full of idealism that I can make my students be the best they can be only if they believe and study the lessons very well, listen to my discussions, pass the needed requirements, get high score in the exam and all. But the two-year time is not short enough to make me realize that my students are human. They sometimes fail, they commit mistakes, they break rules but at the end of the day, I should be there to help them realize that learning is fun and there’s more in learning than reading books, taking quizzes and making projects.
A line from one of my favorite musicales—Mary Poppins, always reminds me that, “In every work that should be done, there must be an element of fun!” TRUE! If we make the students enjoy the process of learning, there’s no way they need to be absent, cut classes, sleep in class and be passive in classroom activities. If we show them that we enjoy teaching them and love what we are doing, they will surely do the same thing as they crave for more learning.
Before you make fun happen in the classroom, you have to accept their strengths and weaknesses...and of course we have to show them that we care for them. A classroom is like a box of crayons with different colors, one may be brighter than the other but each one complements another. They come from different walks of life—with different stories of survival, of success, of failure, of unforgettable memories, of making dreams real. Thus, we should be there to serve as their guidepost to light their way and help them choose the right path.
Being a teacher is not easy. In the future, I know I will have more challenges to face, more battles to win and more lives to touch...but one thing is for sure: I will continue to learn from this job where God hired me.
I know I still have more things to learn about being a more effective teacher...but one thing is for sure...I am here to make a difference—for my students and for the rest of the world.
