TEACHING INTERNSHIP - STEPPING-STONE TO THE WORLD OF TEACHING

       “Teaching is a passion not only a profession”. I learned that this saying is true when I have my practice teaching for three months. The world of teaching is not easy. I encountered a lot of difficulties and challenges during my teaching internship but these help me to develop my future profession.

I felt mixed emotions when I first thought about practice teaching. I am excited with the thought that I am already in the edge of finishing the degree that I have choose, however, I am nervous for the possibility that I cannot able to perform my responsibility as a student teacher. I am worried that I am not going to be the kind of teacher I had hoped I would be most especially that the mode of teaching is through online. The only weapon that I have before was prayer.

I was assigned at Gosi National High School and the cooperating teacher assigned to me is ma’am Gemma Ballad-Valiente.

February 7, 2022 when I first met my students. I am nervous at the same time excited as I entered the link that my cooperating teacher sent to me. The nervousness that I felt was fade when I received a warm welcome from my students. Two grade level was assigned to me and these are the Grade 7 Masipag and Grade 8 Masipag, Matulungin, Matiyaga and Magalang.

February 14, 2022 was my first teaching to my students. It is a challenge for me because it is online teaching and it is not easy to teach online because there is no immediate interaction between me and my students.  I am also nervous during that day because it is my first time to apply all the theories and strategies that I learned. However, I am grateful that I have successfully delivered the lesson to my students.  

I learned a lot throughout my teaching internship. I learned how to employ different strategies on how to execute an effective classroom management and how to deal to the diversity of learners to achieve their needs. I also learned that a teacher should be dedicated, love the profession and always see to it that the leaners will not leave the classroom with an empty head.

Moreover, it is important to build a good relationship between your colleagues and your students. A teacher should show good behavior towards his/her students so that he/she will be respected by the students.

During the preparation of my final demonstration teaching, my cooperating teacher is there to guide me in choosing the topic that I will discuss, crafting my lesson plan most especially in the objective part and the activities that I will give to the student, and in choosing teaching strategies that I will employ. I learned a lot from her. She taught a lot of things that helps me in developing my professional and personal attributes as a future educator.  

I realized that teaching is a difficult profession, there are a lot of paper works and preparations before entering the classroom. Personal problem should not bring inside the classroom because teachers are the role model to their students therefore it is important to show good behavior towards them. Teaching is not only imparting knowledge to the students but it is also developing their skills and imbibing values to them. The teachers’ responsibility is to develop a globally competitive learners because they are the future of the country.

After my teaching internship, I assess myself, am I now ready to enter the real world of teaching and my answer is ‘yes’. The three months internship may not enough to develop my professional and personal attributes as a teacher but learning is a continuous process and I believe that I will learn more as I go through this path.