WITH the new academic year just around the corner, parents have begun making a checklist to prepare their school-going children, while shopkeepers may expect a large number of customers flooding their stores. As for teachers, they need to gear up for a new adventure in their careers.
Today’s generation is too obsessed with following unhealthy trends that influence the way they speak, write, dress and think. Their thoughts and actions may sometimes take us by surprise. Their varied personalities may be interesting to explore, yet they are challenging to deal with.
Thus, it is important for teachers to equip themselves with strategies and skills to survive this bittersweet journey together.
Rote learning, drilling and spoon-feeding were once popular techniques applied in classrooms as examinations were the main focus. Now, students are expected to be creative, innovative and imaginative individuals who are able to lead, communicate effectively and develop multiple talents through co-curricular activities, school programmes and co-academic competitions. Teachers are to take a back seat to let students become autonomous learners and make calculated decisions.
Every lesson has its fun elements and flaws; it is nice to have enthusiastic learners participating actively in class, but uncooperative, disruptive and lackadaisical students may make it difficult for a lesson to proceed smoothly, resulting in other students getting distracted. To make learning happen and to make students behave is a great challenge, especially when it comes to classes with demotivated, weak and problematic students. Therefore, it is advisable for teachers to prepare alternative plans to solve the problem.
To conduct lessons using varied teaching methods in the first few weeks of the year may help teachers learn about students’ personalities and learning styles. This strategy will help teachers prepare better plans for future lessons to keep students intrigued and motivated during lessons.
All students share something in common. They wish to be seen, heard and appreciated. While some students may volunteer to ask or answer questions to be noticed, others may choose to cause trouble to get attention. It is easy to jump to conclusions and decide which learner is interested in learning and which one is not, but teachers need to be smart in analysing their students’ behaviours before working on solutions.
Students come from diverse socio-economic backgrounds and they have life experiences. Their behaviours and attitudes are influenced by their upbringing and surroundings. Their low self-control and peer pressure make them feed their curiosity, satisfy their desires and relieve their stress in the wrong way, resulting in bullying, smoking, abuse of drugs and sexual offences.
Disciplinary problems may be inevitable, but teachers may ameliorate the situation by having heart-to-heart conversations and building close relationships with students. Everyone loves to have somebody to confide in, so this personal touch may help troubled students reveal their innermost feelings, reflect and change.
Students need firm, friendly and insightful teachers to save them from negativity and help them build good self-identity.
MUHAMAD SOLAHUDIN RAMLI
Marang, Terengganu