World Teacher’s Day
Today, we celebrate Teachers…
All over the world, this group of people have dedicated themselves to teach pupils what they themselves have learned and mastered. Isn’t that what we all are supposed to do? To pass on whatever we learn as we journey through life? No matter what field or area of study?
As I was preparing this blog, I came across this Teacher’s Oath.
Socratic Oath
As teacher and educator, I undertake,
to respect and to defend against anyone the uniqueness of each child;
to stand by for his and her physical and mental integrity;
to take aware of his and her emotions, to listen to him and her, to take him and her seriously;
to search for his consense for all I will do to this child, as I would do with an adult person;
to interpret the rules of his development in the most positive way and to support the child to accept these own rules;
to challenge and to promote his gifts and potentials;
to protect him, where he is weak, to support him, where it is needed, in overcoming fear and guilt, malice and falsehood, doubts and mistrust and snivelling self-help addiction;
not to break his desire, not even where it appears nonsensical, but to support him to take his will under the reign of his reason, to teach him so the mature use of mind and the art of negotiating to understand;
to prepare him to take over responsibility within and for the community;
to let him learn the world how it is without subjugating to the world how it is;
to make him feel what a good life might mean;
to give him a vision of a better world and the confidence that it might be achievable;
to teach truthfulness, not the truth because "it is with God alone".
So that I undertake,
to give example, as well as I can, how to deal with difficulties, challenges, opportunities of our world and with his own limited gifts and how to cope with his own always given guilt;
to ensure, according to my power, that the next generation will find a world worthwhile to live in, and where the inherited burdens and difficulties will not crush ideas, hopes and forces;
to justify publicly my beliefs and deeds, to expose myself to criticism, particularly of stakeholders and experts, and to suspend my judgements by continuous and conscientious review;
and to resist to all people and circumstances, the interest of parts or service provision, if I believe they might hinder intentions expressed here.
~ Hartmut von Hentig – 1993
**(copied From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
How many teachers really take their calling to heart? Some have used this honourable position to ruin innocent children’s lives. Some have abused their authority by sexually abusing their students. Some professors demand that students of the opposite sex have affairs with them before they can pass their courses and so many ugly stories we hear all over the place. However, I want to celebrate the true teachers.
I use this medium to celebrate my mathematics teacher, who to this day is still impacting lives by his dedication to his call as a teacher and educator in the continent of Africa. Because of this teacher, I discovered something I would never have known about myself, that if I just put my heart to any course and press pass the seemingly insurmountable challenges, I can succeed. That is how I taught myself mathematics (through the inspiration of my mathematics teacher many years ago) and got an “A” in mathematics in high school. That was an eye-opener for me.
I wonder how many people have gone ahead to achieve great things just because of a teacher. Are you a teacher today, as we celebrate you, we ask that you take a look at the Teacher’s Oath (above) and see if that aligns with what you are currently doing. Remember, you will be remembered for making a positive impact. I once read a story of a student whose teacher was the only source of encouragement he had and later on in life he located that teacher to honour the teacher for his input in making him (the student) what he had become in life.
My message to all teachers today is, make a difference! It will be worth it!
To the rest of us, let us celebrate all the teachers – at all levels and spheres of life.
Happy International Teacher’s Day!
Olayinka Hephzibah Ekenkwo