Teachers, students and tourism

I WAS cordially invited to a gathering of secondary school teachers and student leaders in a public school to look seriously on what should happen inside the classrooms. Teachers in the upper years are complaining that some of their students are non-readers. They cannot use their textbooks very well because some students cannot even identify whether the word is a noun, an adjective or an adverb.

The student leaders are thankful that there are teachers who are committed and dedicated to their profession. And, there are also some teachers who are always absent. Some teachers lack the necessary skills and knowledge in imparting the lesson properly. Competencies can be achieved only if the teachers have many things to share and the students are properly motivated to be receptive in a teaching – learning situation.

After many considerations, I was requested to share my experiences as a former teacher and now a tourism officer. My personal and vicarious experiences made me more confident. You are a teacher because you love to teach. You enjoy in teaching. In your heart, you have the passion to educate others. Teaching is a profession and a mission. A teacher is a link between a learner and knowledge. To be an effective link, the teachers should become first a ‘tourist attraction’ and an excellent giver of knowledge.

A teacher should be a beautiful landscape, a song, a dance, a vault of history, an underwater beauty, a food to be tasted, a figure to be adored and a crown to be owned. Teaching is acting inside the classroom. The teacher should be able to create an emotional journey while having his lesson. The classroom is a stage where the teacher directs and acts. The students and the pupils are not merely listeners. They are parts of the cast and they have stellar roles to play.

The teacher starts with a good motivation. He creates sub-plots. He assists students to reach the climax, the highest point of interest. He gradually brings down the subject matter to a happy ending. There are no ‘very bad students’ only ‘misplaced teachers’. Any achievement of the learner carries a ‘teacher factor’. A teacher is a leader with varied strategies. He applies the art of war in attacking difficulties in the classroom. Good teachers should be canonized as saints because they are the living witnesses of God in the altar of education.

On the other hand, students need motivation. They can only be motivated by someone beautiful moving around them. Students want to see a heavenly body. They want to listen to a pleasant sound. They want a friendly playmate. They want a friend who can be trusted. They want to be with a teacher who knows his role. Students are like empty vessels but they can only be receptive if the truth given to them is artistically offered. The learners can only be inspired if the source of inspiration is doubly inspired. Coeds are curious in nature. Their curiosity can be satisfied only if the teacher is consistently consistent with his consistencies. These young people can be demanding and teachers can only satisfy them by giving more than what they demand.

The youth always expect that what was promised to them should be accomplished. They follow the teachers because the teacher is their role model. A teaching-learning habitat can only be established if a biodiversity has been harmonized. Students are like customers. They are always right and they can only be contented if teachers offer them ‘worthy knowledge’. Worthy knowledge could be an input that affects life, liberty, integrity and other people.

The tourism approach can be effective for it brings out the best. It is easy to understand something fine-looking, something toothsome, something that could be appreciated, and something that is fun. It is fun in the classroom…not something funny. After all, there is fun in the Philippines.

Together, let us make a wonderful world of learning. We want to produce learners who will be the future leaders of the world. They are excellent leaders because they are products of excellent teachers. Cheers to excellent teachers!