To Teach and Learn

Trial Examination began today in my school. One of the most boring aspects of being a teacher for me is doing the exam duty. It is three hours of doing nothing. One has to be vigilant and show presence of mind so that the students don't copy. Ironically the most difficult thing to do is to do nothing but just sit or stand in a room for three hours. I thought about things I could do and tried them this morning as I was doing my duty. I tried breathing exercise. It didn't last. There were frequent interruptions for extra answer scripts and other things. Then, I started reading stories in the faces. This was far more interesting than the other things I could do being in the predicament that I was in.  Each face accentuated stories to me. They told stories and kept my imagination busy and away from the time that was slugging by. Out of the many faces, my attention dwelled on one particular face. It was a pretty face. It was fair and the beautiful large eyes in them flickered a...

Drugyal HSS library had many Louis L'Amor books and at one point of time I got myself totally   engrossed in them. I would even read them in the classroom while the teachers taught. Hiding the book under the table and my head stooped over the textbook on the desk made it look like I was looking at the textbook. I enjoyed reading them, especially in the classroom. I don't know how I never got caught. May be I was really good at faking or may be my teachers didn't care what I did in their class. Those were exciting moments when I transferred myself from the mundane monotonous lessons to the exhilarating gun fights of the old Wild West.  Sidney Sheldon books intrigued me for totally different reasons. They had scenes which one might say is not appropriate for a boy. I remember my teachers advising us not to read the book but thinking about it now, as long as one reads I think SS always gave a good reading. The suspense intensified the drama and I could never keep myself ...

It is true that the maximum time an average person can concentrate is very less. The period spent concentrating is refereed to as Attention Span. There are two types of attention. They are focused attention and sustained attention. Focused attention is known to be very brief but sustained attention is the longer span of time when one is able to concentrate. The literature on this says that most healthy teenagers are unable to sustain attention on one thing for more than 40 minutes. Within the 40 minut time span one needs to re-focus repeatedly on the same thing many times. This ability to renew attention permits people to "pay attention" to things that last for more than few minutes, such as long lessons. Now what is important in a classroom for a teacher is to gain the attention of the students. At the College of Education we were taught many ways to gain attention but what they didn't teach us was how to retain the attention we gained. It is easy to gain focused atte...

The dogs in my school behave peculiarly or at least I think they do because I think this is something happening only in my school. I have come to notice this for a long time but one is able to observe well when one is a Teacher on Duty(TOD).  Like today is mine. A TOD's day in the school begins at 6:30 Am and ends at 8:30 Pm. The school courtyard It is quite amazing how the dogs in the academic block behave. I like to call these dogs boys' dogs because they follow the boys. During the study hours they remain quiet. Most sleep. When the bell rings, and the students go for their meal, they follow them because they know it is meal time for them as well. When the students pray or are back in the class doing their study, the dogs wait in the school courtyard as if they know that they should not disturb the boys studying. They wait patiently. The climax of the happening for me is the last bell of the day. When the final bell to end the night study rings, the dogs wake up fro...

A class mirrors a teacher's mood, spirit, enthusiasm, thoughts, energy... This is what I have come to realize with my six years of teaching. Like the over used maxim, " you need two hands to applaud" , it is true that teachers and students have to work together to enjoy a lesson and produce good academic results. However, teachers are the driving force in this commune between the parties. When I am feeling low, I see my students dull. Even the slightest show of fatigue or boredom is magnified under my glasses which then becomes powerful microscopes. The best thing I have realized in such a situation is to mobilized my teaching passion, renew it and reenergize to set our moods right. The most useful thing has always been cracking jokes to refresh their minds, it is a skill and I am sharpening it daily.  But, if I lose myself to anger, all is lost. The promise of an energetic lesson and the happiness of delivering my lesson are destroyed. The frequency of these l...

A true story. Two boys of same spirit and age grew up playing. They were best friends but it was not without some competition. Being boys, pushing themselves a step further than the other one was always something they did. To prove that one could run faster, or jump higher, or simply eat more dumplings than the other was what they did. Though they were fierce  competitors, they were inseparable. They did almost every thing equally. Both were equally strong, equally fast and equally serious when it came to winning. One afternoon they reached the river banks after their ball. Suddenly a new game struck them- who would dare cross the river when it was all murky and swelling with challenge. The first boy said he could easily cross the river because he was a good swimmer. The second boy, though he was not confident didn't want to show he was afraid. So, they stripped themselves and entered the water. The first boy drove into the dark waves and stroke the currents, pushing himself...

 Another poem selected and edited for the School Magazine.  By Tshering Pem 11 Sci B We were a dot in the Himalayas, But our Kings put us on the World map, For many years now peace is unprecedented, Under the Wangchuck Dynasty. For a brighter and bigger sun to shine, On our people and for your country. Democracy was nurtured through the years, Until our noble Kings thought we were ready. Though democracy was a new shoe, With royal guidance we did play our role. A Government was voted to power by us, And it did live up to the aspirations we had. There is no regret for the votes we cast, Five summers ago when we wielded our first right. And those five summers passed by fast, But yielded rich fruits that everyone enjoyed. Like longing for the warm and beautiful sun, That sets to leave you cold in the winter evening, We harbor hope deep inside, To welcome the same sun again. Thought it is with empty hands and only words, W...