Writing 101, Day 5: Let social media inspire you

One of the goals for writing 101 is is to tap into new and unexpected places for post ideas.Today let’s look to Twitter for inspiration.Below you’ll see five tweets : each tweet is interesting in its own way, and we hope one will elicit a response from you.My pick is #5.

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EJ Koh‏@thisisEJKoh

You study, study, study, and at the end, you are lucky enough to discover the greatest gift of education: that you know nothing at all.

I agree but  not everything I studied made me feel I know nothing at all. I remember, one fine morning I decided to teach in a school. I needed a degree in education to qualify for a teaching position.

I and a classmate of mine took a train to Mymensingh, Bangladesh, where there is a teacher’s training college.

Standing in front of the door of the college was the Principal herself. Looking at us curiously she inquired what brought us to her doorstep.

We were at a loss for words, we didn’t even think how we’d react to her questions. While I stood silent my classmate blurted out, oh we’ve come for admission at the Bed. faculty in your college.

She was furious, she said , “Do you know registration for the faculty is closed, where were you all this time?”

This time I spoke, we were preparing for our Master’s degree exam, we completed the written part yesterday and are waiting for viva which is next week.

Her attitude suddenly changed, knowing that we were not fooling around but finishing our exam, seemed a light went on, in her head. She called the Vice principal and instructed her to register us. Everything was happening so quickly it seemed to me I didn’t really make up my mind to study here. How will I tell her I need time to think.

We went back to Dhaka the capital of Bangladesh where we were students of Dhaka University.

I was unhappy, I did not want to study in that college. It was a dark dingy place, there were lights but they seemed very dim. It was like a ghost building, besides I’ll have to ask my brothers to pay for my tuition one more year. What will be their reaction, these thoughts scared me. Did I have a choice, at that moment I didn’t.

I sincerely asked God to help me out. I went to the common room to check the newspapers, I loved reading the classified section, you can call it my hobby. Believe me when I tell you, I saw an ad to apply for scholarships to study a whole bunch of subjects and to my delight, B.ed. was one of them. I tore the piece of paper and thought perhaps destiny is smiling, I applied and won the scholarship.

My joy knew no bounds, I told myself ,’Ranu you won’t have to ask your brothers for money.’

I flew from Dhaka to Lahore(Pakistan). I was received by the superintendent of the residence where I was to spend the year.

My classmates  were exceptionally nice to me. Every day I was excited about the courses, History of education, Psychology, English,Math etc.at the end of the year I passed the course and came back to my home town  Comilla ,Bangladesh. I was happy I had qualified to get a job.

Wait a minute,’I said to myself what did I learn in one year, did they teach me how to handle,the ten, twelve or five year old students I’d face  ? No was the answer. How will I deal with it?’

One thing is encouraging, your mind automatically takes over, you take those baby steps and voila after a few cuts and bruises you are injury free.

Yes I had a piece of paper that assured the interviewers, I was a teacher,  I knew what the  piece of paper said but in my heart I knew I know nothing at all about teaching kids, even though I had a certificate to prove I was a teacher!

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Daily Prompt: Isn’t Your Face Red ?

When was the last time you were embarrassed? How do you react to embarrassment?

Once in our college, our teacher Sr. Barbara Jeans was looking for students for Shakespeare’s play, The Twelfth night. I hoped she would not pick me, I was extremely shy and nervous. Suddenly she  looked at me and said, “Chaman , are you interested?”

I told her I wasn’t. The teacher then looked for other girls who’d be interested. There was one part no one wanted, it was that of the  priest. The teacher was frantic, she asked my friend Evie if she could suggest someone. Without batting an eyelash Evie said, “Make Chaman take the part, it’s only a short one.”

Sr. Barbara Jean announced ,”Yes Chaman you have to take the part.”

I couldn’t refuse I took the part. On the day of the play, I was extremely nervous, I felt even the few lines I  had to repeat might be difficult.

I remember waiting on the right side of the stage waiting to come to the front , I walked two or three steps and prayed all that time I wouldn’t collapse, to my surprise the lines came out of my mouth like a parrot. I was relieved when I did my part. The audience clapped , one of them said : “The teacher should have given her the longer part.”

Little did they know how hard it was for me to deliver those lines. Was I embarrassed ? Certainly.

I always used to  hide  myself when the teacher  looked  for kids to play certain parts in the plays that were staged in our school.

When I taught in school I made it a point , to pick the shy kids in my class to play the important parts to overcome the shyness. 🙂

 

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Daily Prompt: Dear Mom

Write a letter to your mom.Tell her something you’ve always wanted to say, but haven’t been able to.

Dear Mom,

When I was a little girl, I loved listening to songs, I wanted you to hire a teacher for me, so I could learn to sing. You refused, you thought I would give up my studies and will be illiterate.

You hired a teacher for Yasmin and bought her a harmonium as well. I wish you’d give me the same opportunity as you gave her. I know it’s too late now and you might say,”Let bygone’s be bygone’s “, sometimes I feel sad thinking I could not learn something I loved because you did not trust me.

I know you had lots to worry about after dad passed away, you had to take care of everything by yourself. I’m sorry to bring this subject again, it only gives heartbreak to both of us.

I will try not to bring this subject anymore, I do love you for everything you’ve done for us.

All the best to you mom.

Regards,

Your daughter,

Ranu  🙂

Daily Prompt: Futures Past

As a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? How close or far are you from that vision?

When I was eight, I became  interested to know how my siblings were learning the new language Urdu. I discovered very quickly  the teacher knew nothing about teaching. He let my siblings repeat the words in the book after him  without looking at the words in their book. On close examination  I  became aware they didn’t even know the alphabets of the language they were learning. How can anyone learn to read  without knowing the alphabets.

This was my first encounter with teaching, I didn’t think at  that time I’d  be a teacher or anything else. I had no goal in mind.

I was a happy child. I sometimes sat with my mom and watched her cooking. Once I saw my mother baking a cake, she was getting the ingredients ready while I watched her. I was so interested I asked my mom if I could bake a small cake, mom agreed , I got a round tin, measured the ingredients and baked my miniature cake.

The thought  I’d  be a professional   Chef never crossed my mind.

My only aim was to go to school, do the tasks  while I was there, come home finish my homework and go to sleep. This was my schedule in school and  college , but I changed my outlook when I stepped on the university campus.

Suddenly I began to think what was I going to do after I graduate from the university. I thought of teaching I knew I needed an  education degree  to do that. I registered in a college to get my  degree. After I got the degree I applied for a teaching job in a school  in my home town, Comilla, Bangladesh. I was lucky I got the job.I always loved children and it motivated me to be a school teacher. This is how  things worked out for me.

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https://justmywriting.wordpress.com

At one point in my career in teaching, the members of the department of education made a rule which I thought was crazy. In their efforts to promote writing, they made a rule, which encouraged the kids to write.

They did not have to worry about spelling, spacing of the words, they were just told to write. When I got the group of kids and tried to read their story,which is what they called it. I was lost, the words meant nothing because the spelling was so far removed it made no sense.

I took one of the students aside and asked him to read it for me. I noticed the words he read were completely different from how it was  written on paper.

I did not expect this system of free writing to last too long. When a teacher has a class of thirty two students how can it be possible for the teacher to let the students read while s/h tries to make sense of it.Even if we gave five minutes to each student which multiplied by thirty two comes to  one hundred sixty minutes.

Each period was forty minutes. The school started at 9 am and was over at 3.45 pm.  out of six hours and forty five minutes, lunch was an hour and recess fifteen minutes. The total teaching time was five hours and thirty minutes.

I wasn’t sure we could teach the other subjects, if we devoted one hundred sixty minutes for correcting writing.

There was only one hundred seventy minutes left for the other subjects.

The group of students that went through this system, i.e just write do not worry about spelling or anything else , had a difficult time in the higher grades.

This is my post for “Just my writing.”

Daily Prompt: Barter system

If the world worked on a barter system,how would you fare? Would you have services to barter? Would you be successful,or would you struggle?

If the world worked on a barter system, I think I’d do all right. I am a teacher, it will come in handy, I’d be able to barter my services for buying different things I need.

I believe teachers will do well, people need to be able to read and write and to speak correctly to be able to carry on their day to day living.

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DP Daily Prompt: Three Letter Words

Write an entire post without using any three-letter words.

Today is first April, it reminds me of my students, they were only interested to fool me. They were never successful, because I tried to be cautious.

When I think of it I remember when we were little kids going to school by school transportation. We always sang this ridiculous song: Station school there is no rule, tell your teacher their students more likely belong to a class of fools.

It is difficult to leave three-letter words!

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: https://sabethville.wordpress.com/2015/04/01/dp-daily-promp…e-letter-words

 

DP Daily Prompt: Tagline

Often, our blogs have taglines. But if humans did, too? What would your tagline be?

My tagline would be, “I was born to be a teacher”.

When I was seven going on eight, I was able to know my siblings were not learning to read Urdu they were memorizing every page in the book. I also recognized the teacher my father hired was unable to teach.

I knew how to get the attention of the students I taught, I did well.

In my mind teaching with love is an Art most successful especially when one is teaching  children. Children look forward to teachers who have patience and love, kids are intuitive by nature they can tell which teacher can get their attention.

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https://sabethville.wordpress.com/2015/03/31/dp-daily-prompt-tagline-2

 

 

DP Daily Prompt: too Big To Fail

Tell us about something you would attempt if you were guaranteed not to fail( and tell us why you haven’t tried it yet).

I seriously would attempt to write a book of all my experiences I encountered in my life. I haven’t written it yet, I cannot try it without the guaranty I will not fail.

Some of my well-wishers want me to write about my experience as a teacher, there are some interesting anecdotes I’d be able to share.

It might bring out a smile for some who probably experienced it as well.

The schools I have attended , the things I liked and others I did not, it’s the way life is you do not like everything that happens to you.

My interaction with children, who I thought are the sweetest and most innocent human beings on the planet. I’m willing to bet if they were at the helm of our beloved planet, they would make it the best place on earth.

When they love they are sincere, they do not know how to pretend, some are influenced by adults who unknowingly say or do things just to impress the adults they come into contact with.

When I was six  there were two sisters who were our  neighbors their religion was different from  mine . To impress their older cousin they pointed out to her in a very awkward way this is what one of them said in Bengali: “Ora na mucholman”( they are Muslims). her way of saying showed she does not like  us. How do I know because the proper word in Bengali is, Musalman, not Mucholman, this was her way to scoff at us. Neither she nor I understood at that age why she did that.

Sometimes certain events are  deep-rooted  in our mind this was one of them. We adults do great harm to children by teaching them to discriminate.

I need reassurance that I will not fail, this is the only reason I have not tried to write a book!

https://sabethville.wordpress.com/2015/03/10/dp-daily-prompt-7/

 

DP Daily Prompt:We Can Be Taught!

What makes a teacher great?

A great teacher understands and respects his/ her students.

A great teacher  instills in the student that they are important and they belong with the rest of the students.

A warm friendly, caring and enthusiastic is the mark of a great teacher.

Each student is expected to excel by a great teacher.

Teachers also need to keep up their knowledge of the world so that they can pass it on to the students. It is another sign of a great teacher.

A great teacher is able to change their way of teaching to suit the needs of the students.

A great teacher cooperates with colleagues.

These are some of the attributes of a great teacher.

https://sabethville.wordpress.com/2015/03/08/dp-daily-prompt-7