For the 10th year in a row, the country celebrates the National Teachers’ Month (NTM) from September 5 to October 5, 2018, with the theme of fostering a culture of gratitude. Teachers play a major role in the lives of their students; arguably in the same way parents influence the lives of their children.
In our country, it has been a perennial challenge for every administration to address the lack of quality teachers in our public schools. Some of our teachers have raised the issue of being underpaid and overwhelmed. But is the issue merely a problem of supply and demand where a majority of Filipinos seem to engage in the more lucrative and glamorous professions, medical and legal for example, than join the exhausting and less financially rewarding teaching profession? In the Bible, Exodus 18:20 tells us, “Teach them his decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave.” Such statement was made in the context when Moses got tired and overwhelmed by the volume of people who sought him to resolve their disputes. And interestingly, it was Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses, who advised Moses to select capable, God-fearing and trustworthy people to help him resolve some disputes. It appears that the Biblical solution of identifying and developing good people to become teachers is just as applicable as today’s need for more teachers.
More than 200 centuries ago, the criteria used were “capable, God-fearing and trustworthy” when it comes to identifying potential teachers. Aside from these biblical criteria, I believe every aspiring teacher should have the SMILE to allow their students to be inspired and, perhaps, be teachers like them in the future. As I have been teaching for 20 years now, all of my students would attest to the fact that I rarely smile. But this is not the kind of smile I am referring to in this article. The SMILE, which I think all effective teachers must have, stands for sincerity, mastery, ingenuity, love and eternal perspective.
Teachers, when sincere in what they do, understand that for any knowledge to be pure and ideal, they should be without bias and prejudice. Regardless of their personal affiliation or orientation, good teachers should stay sincere to the facts or to the truth. Opinions ought to be minimal, unless the situation or discussion calls for it. Teachers should not corrupt the minds of their students. It also goes without saying that knowledge of the subject is critical for the teachers to be effective. Teachers cannot effectively teach unless they have mastery of the topic, which mastery requires the cognitive skills to study, retain and transfer whatever knowledge necessary for the students to have that same mastery of the subject. And when it comes to mastery, I recall my favorite teacher in Ateneo Law School—Atty. Avelino Sebastian Jr. In my eyes, he knew the subject, Wills and Succession, inside and out, from left to right and from whichever angle you want to look at it. And he has mastered his style of teaching it. Years ago, I might have been intimidated by him a bit. But I learned a ton from him.
To be effective, teachers must also find and develop creative ways to educate their students. One of the oldest methods of teaching—preaching in the pulpit or lecturing behind a desk—no longer works as effectively in this millennial generation. In my case, I use a visualization technique where I make use of drawings/pictures to help my law students remember legal doctrines. After all, I think images remain in their memory banks longer than words. I also require them to solve estate-distribution problems on the board and make them explain to their classmates how they arrived at the solution. Other innovative teaching methods include the use of role-playing games and digital presentations where I think students remember more what they do and see in class than what they just read at home.
Teachers must love what they do. It is the best if not the only way they can surmount the daily challenges of teaching. My mother Ione and her parents Ramon and Maria Bueno were full-time and tenured teachers where they spent their entire careers inside a classroom. For them, teaching was not just a profession; it was a lifelong passion. Teaching for them is such an activity that produced a psychic income that no amount of financial compensation can match. And, finally, a good teacher should have an eternal perspective knowing that their influence over their students go beyond the four walls of the classroom. Teaching is not making yourself look better than others but helping others to become better than you, for His greater glory. A teacher’s legacy can go beyond generations and will certainly be pleasing to His eyes. I have met up with former law students who have been successful professionally either as judges, prosecutors, congressmen and even a Cabinet secretary. Atty. Dominic Mendoza is one student whose success I attribute to my own mentor, Atty. Avelino Sebastian. He was one of my better students in the University of the East College of Law, joined me in Malcolm Law Offices as one of our dependable associates and passed the California Bar sometime in 2016. He currently leads an immigration law practitioner in the United States. If ever I managed to inspire Atty. Mendoza to be a good lawyer, it is because Atty. Sebastian inspired me to be one, not too many moons ago.
NTM was conceptualized to pay tribute to the sacrifices of the Filipino teacher through simple acts of gratitude. In relation to this year’s celebration, I dedicate this article of appreciation and admiration to all of my teachers with a SMILE—sincerity, mastery, ingenuity, love and eternal perspective. Of course, special mention goes to Atty. Sebastian, Mrs. Lucila Aguila of the University of the East High School and my mother Ione Bueno, the current headmaster of the Mison Family School of Desiderata (Desired Things). They all serve as my inspiration to aspire and become a positive influencer in the lives of others. Since we cannot all be teachers, let’s be thankful to those who are. Our world can be better off with more teachers, especially those with a SMILE.
For questions and comments, please e-mail me at sbmison@gmail.com.