Happy Catholic Teacher's Day!

Aside from celebrating the world teacher's day, so there is this Catholic teacher's day. But what differentiates a Catholic teacher from other teachers?

In the trainings I gave to some school teachers, I left them with a Bible quote "Many are called, but few are chosen". Jesus' apostles are no way different from a Catholic teacher. Jesus called many, but few were chosen to become witnesses to Christ's love, mercy, kindness and self-lessness. They took the narrow road and they too were persecuted.

Many heeded the vocation of Catholic teaching, but few stands out to live up the calling. Those who remained devoted to their profession continue to burn their wick to be light unto others, that they may know where they are going.

Seven years of my teaching here and abroad were spent in non-sectarian schools, the other seven were spent in Catholic schools. I appreciate the latter because I feel I make myself vulnerable to Christ's teachings and that I sense more intimacy with God. I feel that Catholic school as a community is a fertile ground where my faith will grow.

A self-made crisis helped me realize that teaching is where God wants me to be. Likewise, I have had discernment that teaching is not different after all from evangelizing. One protestant friend who is also a teacher have always convinced me to devote more of my time to becoming full witness to God's word. I remained with my position that I can be an evangelist as well even if I am in the classroom. With all my heart and mind, I sensed no conflict that teaching is the ministry where Christ wants me to be.

Even if I serve in the Liturgical Ministry in our parish, my ministry still calls for me to share my core gift of teaching others in the group. One can stand a witness to the Gospel by living up its teachings with integrity, through having passion for teaching without being lorded by its yoke, incentives and authority. Teaching that inspires life transformation, positive changes in behavior, excellent motivations to succeed, acceptance and respect for others and all other virtues are not only rooted in the philosophies of education, but in the Gospel of Christ.

Teaching is demanding and the demand is most often not justly compensated. It can be stressful especially when the teacher needs to deal with difficult students, colleagues and superiors. Some of those students even scorn their teachers for not submitting to their whims. Those are the teacher's persecutions. But we are at ease and our faith keeps on burning when we notice that our students are able to learn from us and in everything we do together in the course, amidst the storm and temptations.

What I learned is that Christ evoked us teachers to embrace everyone in love. Find the lost and bring them back into flock. Teach the astray to look up to what is great and virtuous. Tend the sheep. Teach men how to fish and not just give them fish. Feed those hungry for life learning more than knowledge. Embrace the lepers, and take good care of the sick and the needy. These are the apostolic work of teachers. To others, these are not clear, they just don't see the value of Catholic teaching.

Catholic education has long played a vital historical role in the formation of societies. Many were canonized saints who lived their life as teachers. Catholic teachers, you are Christ alive, and your works are witness of the Gospel. Wasn't Jesus called "Rabbi" which means teacher? Happy Catholic Teacher's Day!

What's Your Motto in Life?

A group freshman students approached me in the office for an interview regarding an assignment in their communication skills class. They wanted to get a profile or personality sketch of a college professor. I could not deny the request, because one of the group's member was clever to hold me up by asking her aunt (my colleague) for that interview.

They came more than half an hour late as to the schedule I agreed with my colleague. Yet I still entertained them. They observed the interview protocol by asking some factual questions, like the subjects I handle, my age, my previous work experience, number of years in teaching, etc. But they got so many questions, that I blunted if they would like to read my resume, instead?

They said they had other more important questions. The first one of which is: "What's your motto in life?"

That made me think spontaneously. I answered: "Life is like a rosary that's full of mystery". They laughed and replied, sir a serious motto please. I retorted: "Ah OK, love is blind", and I really hoped that would do them a favor. They laughed again, but oblivious of my replies.

"Sir, I mean like what is your teaching motto? Because your answers are so funny and not serious."

My mind went blank. She got me there! I said "If you asked serious questions, I would have answered seriously. You're getting the wrong answers because you are asking the wrong questions." I explained to them further, that a motto is not anymore important to me at my stage.

Motto's are for kids experiencing puppy loves and enjoying the doodles in a slum book. There is no teaching motto either, but teaching philosophies. Motto's in life are immature not so rationale. Life philosophies are. So they changed their question to ask what my life philosophy is. My answer...

"Who you think you are is who you become."

Collaboration and Working Together

There is more to collaboration than merely working together. To work together may be demonstrated by doing things that seem related to and needed to meet a goal. Tag teams are a form of working together. Helping a co-worker finish her work is also working together. But neither of these signifies collaboration.

According to Friend and Cook (2003) in their book Interactions: Collaboration Skills for School Professionals, collaboration is a voluntary act of coming together to achieve a mutual goal by sharing of resources, treating partners with parity, sharing responsibility and accountability towards meeting the learning needs of students. At the core of collaboration is personal commitment followed by communication skills. Of both I feel, treacherous to the idea of collaboration.

I guess I have never been good in conspiracy that I did not develop the skills of authentic collaboration. Or, was I stricken by pride that I believed I know what I am doing and I can do it? Well collaboration is voluntary, so it does not require me to conspire nor coerce anyone to cooperate with me. But realizing how it could affect the students' transformation, I am compelled otherwise.

Why don't I collaborate? When I was the lead teacher, I had this assumption in mind, that my partners know what to do, especially if they are seasoned ones. When I was a laboratory teacher, most of my partners didn't really mind of what I do in the laboratory. There must have been mutual understanding and respect between teaching partners, but there is no mutual goal set for us to collaborate with.

So we just work together without collaboration. I am a communicator, so I openly share my ideas to other teachers who sincerely come for advice. I also share my resources, like worksheets and activities that I have for my use. But I got a bad experience from this. My materials spread and get to the hands of students even if they are not in my class. Worst, their teachers removed my name from those handouts that I prepared through some sleepless nights.

Regarding sharing of responsibility and accountability, the only thing I know is that we are guided by the course outline. We may reconfigure the flow of the lesson from any given time, and because of our pregorative guaranteed by academic freedom, we can change the order of the lesson. I am human, I seek rewards and avoid punishment. Normally, I would seek that which are convenient for me, before anyone else. It is inconvenient and way too tasking to be teaching so many different things to be able to satisfy partners' requests.

So am I selfish? No, just a normal human being with some shortcomings. I know who I am to my students, and I know my role. But like anyone else, I can't break my back for my own detriment by acting like a superhero taking all the inconveniences, that should be shared between teaching partners. Then I am not committed to my profession? But, that's another thing.

As a teacher handling a course with lecture and laboratory components, I am guilty of not collaborating. I must have been working well together with other teachers, but not genuinely in collaboration with them. Now that I realize this, the best thing that I should be doing is to -- collaborate!