Do you have a passion in teaching? If you do, you shld compromise for the sake of these students and not complain so much. Singapore is so small you do not even need to travel like those in the other countries. Moreover, the government is paying you even better than some of the professionals outside. If you really do not like teaching, then QUIT! stop jeapodizing these poor students who have to suffer under your hands. I believe if your salary is not that high, you would have switched job long time ago

Hi all, guess wat, I am a trainee teacher now and I am typing this reply in NIE! Well...I have gone through my practicum and well...welcome to the real teaching life. I tried to apply what I have learnt in NIE in school...ha...not possible!! MOst often I will go into class, barking at the students, perspire like hell and my arms will be waving wildy around hoping to get students attention....and those good students will simply stare at me with politeness and sympathey. Sigh.....I don't know what I am into anyway....with all those students running around, admin work and CCAs....Haiz....

Trackback from My 2.10 cents worth (with GST):

I couldnt comprehend why is it that I could touch lives and make a difference in my previous school... But yet in this new place, I have become just a education officer ( not a teacher)....

I love teaching. I love giving lots of homework and then listen to all the different excuses my students will come up with.

Once I noticed the students in my Sec. 4A class (the top class) had not been passing up their creative journals. They were so caught with their science and maths. In class said, "Thank you my dear students for making my life so much easier as a teacher, because for the past two weeks, I somehow found time to compose a few poems and essays. It then dawned upon me that I had time to write because Sec. 4A had not been passing up their assignments." The students looked at each other.

The following day, I found a pile of 35 journals on the desk when I came into the class of Sec. 4A. Throughout my teaching, I had never punished any student. Like papa, I preferred to reason with my students. I also realised I had to be a good salesman... to "sell" my subjects..English and Literature....English for life; not just for passing the O levels.
I had to "sell" the languge, to make it so interesting and meaningful that the students would want to master it for themselves. :-)

I remember my lecturer at the Institute of Education, Dr. Low Guat Tin, warning us not to become stale curry when we teach. I thought to myself that the day I become a pot of stale curry, I will resign. How to wake up each day and drag my feet to the classrooms? I will have more joy frying Penang Char Koay Teow for a living if that happens! However, I did not have the chance to become stale curry. The occupational job hazard of losing my voice compelled me to resign from teaching, and try my hand at real estate. My colleagues were worried for me that I might go hungry. I told them God would not let me starve. He would at least give me a bowl of porridge with salted eggs and vegetables everyday. I don't have to be rich. I am contented just to have enough and find joy in simple pleasures of life.... reading a good book, taking a walk along the parks with my dog, enjoying a simple meal with a good friend, etc. etc.

Teaching is a vocation. It is a calling which gives a teacher great patience, love and care for his students. I guess my experience as a teacher has actually helped me in my career as an estate agent because of the same attitude that I have for my clients. I have tremendous patience and I realise I am dealing with clients' sweat and blood money, and will handle my service with great care and professionalism.

I would advise those teachers who no longer can "tahan" teaching anymore. Be brave... come out of the school and do something different. You can still tutor which is less stressful or discover your other talents and potential. In Singapore, if one is diligent, and not overly fussy one can still survive. :-)

Right now because of my love for teaching, I still tutor two brothers once a week. Lovely children with wonderful parents . I always enjoy the company of their retriever, Goldy, who also sit with us when lessons are in progress. I enjoy my real estate work which allows me to organise my own time at my own pace. I enjoy admiring the architecture and design of my clients' properties. Every job has its plus and minus points. Real estate work can be physically and emotionally taxing. It is the toughest of sales because so much money is invovled. A yes today can be a no tomorrow. For every ten agents, eight will drop out of the market.

Instead of complaining and whining, let us all find our own level of comfort in whatever we do and be creative and make the most of life here in Singapore. When I was studying in Canada, I was amused when some Canadians complained about the cold winter. Instead of complaining, why not make the most of the winter to enjoy downhill skiing, ice-skating, and skidooing. During autumn, enjoy the magnificent beauty of the golden splendour of autumn! Happiness and contentment for ourselves - only we can make it happen to us regardless of where we live.

Trackback from Teachers' Day. Thoughts and Random Ramblings. :

A lesser known fact is that most polytechnic and tertiary lecturers are compromising their salary to teach. The majority of them are able to get better-paying 9-to-5s out in the financial industry....

Complaining teachers! We are living in a society of complainers. Will the students also grow up to be complaining, whiner people? Good riddance! Maybe we should relate stories of all the lousy teachers we have had.

The students will not grow up to be complaining whiners. They already are.

Whine whine whine!

With high salaries, job security and state of the art facilities and these teachers whine. Doh.

Whine whine whine!

Please let me know which teachers have HIGH SALARIES....

I dont know ANY.....

i hate tharman?

Trackback from Too Much Homework:

I was never a fan of homework when I was in school. Well, most normal and mentally-sound students probably feel the same....

You would have loved to be my student. I did not give students homework. They handled their creative writing in their journals as if it was a hobby. When a student enjoys what he is doing, it is no longer a chore but a delight. Best of all, students scored good grades in their English and Literature. I detest rote learning.... prefer discovery learning..... when students learn and understand, they remember for life!

i get up at the crack of dawn to fwap!.
i spread ghee on cold cucumber from fridge up the crack of my butt and then fwap!.

fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap! fwap!

i am begining to understand why sg ppl are known to comprain too much!!

i have known enuff ppl who have to wake up 5-6am everyday to make a long trip to another end of the island to make a living for more than 30 yrs... and most of them are blue collar..

and most job i've encountered will have sumthing that we need but will never have... but we just hae to be professional and positive with it...

happy whinning....

hahha i see things to 'comprain' about alright.

I was invited to a few schools (gahmen and commericals) to cover topics like ecommerce and also entrepreunership topics .....and this is what I can say; I believe it be easier to teach primary school kids than adult students. Hahah!

Tough job but also super challenging when you meet just the smartest students and some super K.L uncles that 'eat more salts than you eat rice', to dare to tell them about internet. :)

initially wanted to be a teacher after coming out of National Service. but guess i need to think again.

-lance

Wishing all teachers reading this a Happy Teachers' Day in advance!

I love teaching! If not for the constant loss in my voice, I would have continued teaching. That was 12 years ago. In America, they say teachers are quite versatile....I guess it is true because I am doing well as a real estate agent now. However, from my article, "Words, and only words I know..." which I have just posted in my blog, I am not sure whether I want to teach English in the school now. Every week, I get calls from schools asking if I could do relief teaching .... there is such an acute shortage of English teachers now.

Hey guess what, I am very sure students hate being taught in school by passionless teachers also.

Passionless teachers? It's obvious that these teachers have passion, since they actually care about doing all that crap for their students. I have had my share of teachers who just didn't give a shit, just walked into the room and read from the textbook.

Trackback from A Singapore Teacher's Life:

Yes, I am a changed person. Before the first incident when the student insulted me, I was filled with the illusion that teachers must be respected. I was insistent in demanding an apology. ...

Trackback from Flying Low: Why I Hate Teaching Too:

In response to Trisha’s post on why she hates teaching. Of course, seeing that this comes on the heels of my awful day yesterday, I hate teaching too....