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“Ang teacher kailangan mahalin ang student, pero ang student hindi kailangan mahalin ang teacher.”
That was what my teacher in Filipino told me and my classmates at the start of the school year.
It really struck me because, in a way, I agreed with what she said. Oftentimes, we disregard the role of teachers in our lives, looking at them as kontrabida who seemingly make our lives difficult and not fun by loading us with endless homework and projects.
However, I disagree that we don’t need to love our teachers. For us to learn more and appreciate education, we must learn to love and appreciate our teachers, too.
The truth is, there are many teachers who make a huge impact in our lives every day.
World Teachers’ Day
In celebration of World Teachers’ Day on Thursday, Oct. 5, I thought of sharing the little stories that often go unnoticed, as a way to pay tribute to the true MVPs that shape us to become better students and people.
To the teacher who wrote in longhand on a manila paper the answers to our worksheet (imagine drawing molecular and geometric structures!) for our Valence Shell Electronic Pair Repulsion theory discussion in Chemistry: Thank you for taking the time to do that, and for offering lesson consultations after class to make sure we understood what was discussed.
To the teacher who took time out of her class to teach us not just about her subject but about life and values: Thank you for reminding us to always respect others before anything else. School isn’t just about learning formulas, but also about becoming better students and people.
To the teacher who went out of his comfort zone to teach in an all-girls school with a predominantly female faculty, who will burst into song at random moments in class and who will talk about “EverWing” to better relate to us: You are the true hero.
To the teacher who gives us endless support each day no matter the outcome: Thank you for never giving up on us and for always cheering us on. You might not know it but we appreciate it more than we show it.
To the teacher who continues to come to school and smile at each class every day despite having a PE teacher’s worst nightmare, a full anterior cruciate ligament tear: Thank you for being a true example of grit and resilience to all of us.
To the teacher who finds ways to inject the values of nationalism and doing the right thing in her lesson plan: Thank you for never failing to make us laugh, smile and feel the importance of giving back to our country.
To the teachers who have had to put up with all the not-so-pretty grammar of their students in two-page-long essays, who stay after school hours to finish checking papers: Thank you for always valuing our answers and strong opinions in class.
To the teacher who has guided me and countless others in developing our talents, who, with her tough love, gave us the confidence to perform on stage to the best of our abilities: Thank you for believing in us when we didn’t believe in ourselves.
I could go on and on as there are many other stories that show the heroic deeds of our dear teachers every single day. They really deserve much more than what we give or show them.
So, to all the teachers who love their students unconditionally, who believe in us, thank you. Trust that we, your students, love you, too.