TEACHING COMES EASY

In life, humans have a characteristic of growth that occurs in stages. Each stage (or period) has its own new developments and maybe some deletions as it goes on and on from one stage to the other. Likewise, the concept of nature is at times such that an individual might not be able to explain some abilities he or she possesses. Some may amaze people and they come asking you to reveal the secrets of how you are doing a certain thing. And there you are telling them you have got no secrets or cheat codes to doing it, rather it just comes easy and natural to you.

For me, Teaching comes easy to me. Growing up, it was my father who was fonder of academics between my parents. My mother was actually into teaching too but at the elementary level, so I guess my dad took it up from there. He was neither a teacher nor in academics at that time.

I remember growing up to see my two older brothers being taught at home with a strong arm. He was usually home at months intervals and when he comes my brothers knew they were in for it throughout the weekends or his stay at home before he goes back to work in another state. My father is actually an Engineer. So he taught us more Mathematics than any other subject and we were never disappointed. He taught us so well that I always thought there was no teacher more brilliant or intelligent than he. Because most times, he taught us topics before they were treated in school.

Seeing through all these over the years, I believe that really rubbed off on me. So in school, I was eager to teach anyone that does not understand what was done in class. But in secondary school, I seldom teach others because, as I said, I was only eager. Only eager to do it, I didn’t feel I could do it. My teaching grew well in me when I got into the university, you know, brand new people and mindset too. That was how my love for teaching came in.

Although there is a clause in this ability of mine, it is the fact that I can only teach what I have a broad understanding about. That is, if I see that I have little knowledge about something, I might not teach that little to another person. But if I could grasp above what I feel is little, my dear, even if the lecturer comes I will definitely teach him. There was a time when some of my guys had read a course and they couldn’t comprehend it, I had to take it as a challenge to read it up and understand it with a sole aim – to teach it!

However, teaching others has helped me become a better person. A better person is the aspect of yearning for more knowledge. This is in the sense that since I knew I was going to teach someone, it pushes me to read up and absolutely understand a concept in detail enough for me to teach. Besides, my self-esteem and social interaction grew well from how I was in secondary school. I am more confident in myself from the way sometimes I have to stand before people, write and explain things to my students.

Above all, there is this eternal feeling of joy when you teach someone or a group of people and they really understood the message you were trying to pass. Oh my! It’s heavenly. For me, the feeling is even more perhaps the person I am teaching does not quickly understand some things. It is as if more time spent equals more joy. I always look forward that those moments of joy.

I believe this ability of mine did not just jump down from a tree. I think I got it from my father because he told me that after his secondary education he got a state job to teach in a school. Can you imagine a young school leaver employed and teaching his direct juniors? Well, the country was good then. And the funny thing that confirmed the story was that one of his former students was an immediate elder sister to my mum. Are you seeing that?😎