18-20 October 1999, Monday - Wednesday

18 October 1999, Monday

I realized the importance of exercises and one-on-one tutorials as an effective means to develop mathematical skills. I gave them a seatwork today and I brought with me a bagful of patience so I could devote time to those who are in need. They appreciated it very much. There was an atmosphere of wanting to learn. Most of the students were not hesitant to ask me questions and I like that as a teacher because I know that humility is the first step to learning. And raising their hands for a question was a desire to learn. The raising of the students' hands is a joyous affirmation of wanting to learn and the exercise of a lot of virtues. Honestly I get excited when they raise their hands for either an objection, a question, a statement, or a permission.



19 October 1999, Tuesday

After the seatwork yesterday, I thought they are ready for a quiz. I gave them a quiz today and I was happy that there are less people who asked for help. In this case, I am happy because I know that they already know what to do and that they have a certain percentage of mastery of the skill. They got the lesson. I was more patient this time. I was more generous this time because I have fallen in love with my students. I have advanced from loving the subject to a love for the learners. Now I guess it would be easier for me to teach them with a lot of patience. However, I cannot say that this will go on forever that I am always excited. I still believe in that statement that "my spirit is willing but the flesh is weak." It can still happen that I lose my enthusiasm. But what I won’t lose is the fact that I know I have a responsibility for these students in trying to imbibe in them a love for learning.


20 October 1999, Wednesday

I checked the quiz today. To my surprise and pride, a lot of them got a perfect score in the quiz yesterday! When I gave them the results of the quiz, they were extremely exuberant that one student wants to hug me and another one wants to treat all her classmates. That was my gift for them: the joy that they feel in winning over their presumed incapacity to understand Algebra. I was able to make them realize that Algebra is a subject they can actually understand with their patience and mine.