There are many factors that need to be taken into consideration when one tries to answer the question: how can we raise the standard of our education locally? The main factors, however, remain the teacher and the student. The student must understand the subject and the teacher must teach in such a way that the content reaches the student’s heart. We can focus on other factors as much as we want, but if the teacher and learner are not playing their parts, it will always be a waste of revenues. These exercises are meant for those teachers, who can humbly admit that there is always room for improvement. This is an attempt to provide additional teaching skills. These skills are not taught at teacher training institutions, but they form the basis of what I call: THE SECRET TO EXTRA-ORDINARY TEACHING. This is not just a mere theory. A theory can prove itself to be useless, if not put into practice. This is a feedback, born out of real classroom experience and any teacher willing to try will begin to notice changes in her/his lessons. For new readers, I invite you to Google the previous articles.

The previous exercise advised us to take every subject that we teach as an aspect of life skills. Any subject (be it Mathematics, History, Chemistry etc.) can be seen as a window offering a glimpse into the world. This week’s exercise is about cultivating patience. This is a vital addition to the personality of an extra-ordinary teacher. Do you remember those moments, where you have gotten so annoyed when learners ask you to explain something for the seventh time? Or do you sometimes go half crazy, when you thought you really nailed it, just to realise that the entire class has missed the point? We sometimes get so annoyed and the result is that our learners begin to feel somewhat stupid. The problem is, when learners feel stupid, they stop asking questions. When the questions stop, our learners mentally sign out from our lesson. How can we prevent ourselves from becoming annoyed with our learners? Patience! Patience gives us the ability to stay calm and to welcome our student’s questions with an open heart.

Exercise
Before you enter the classroom, remind yourself of the following: I have studied this subject and I have taught it many times. These learners meet this subject for the first time. They need time to make sense of it. The more they ask, the more they begin to internalise the content. I shall be patient and at peace throughout the lesson.
* Shapumba ya Shapumba is the founder of Natural Learning Education consultancy. He teaches how to obtain a+ in any subject (students) and the secret to extraordinary teaching. For booking:shapumbashapumba@yahoo.com or 0812786925.