The Teacher's Assistant

I dedicate this blog to the memories brought by my teaching assistantship at Baliuag University.

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The most magnificent flower blooms in silence.

Esther Jedidiah C. Meneses

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First Thing’s First

It was the day of our deployment for assistantship! I was quite thrilled about it. It was my first time meeting with Ma’am Jennifer Labao. 

My other classmates simply met with their cooperating teachers (CT),but Ma’am Labao already gave me two tasks: (1) Make PPT slides about Aralin 8 and Aralin 9 for her ESP class, and (2) Think of a motivation for both Filipino and ESP subjects. Tayutay was the topic for Filipino, and I was tasked to make an activity for Aralin 8 (Ano ang Maituturing na Tama o Mabuti?). 

I was actually quite happy that she gave me assignments already. It paved the way for me to learn and experience much more. It really made me feel like an assistant, and I loved it!! It made me feel useful and important. 

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“Stand Up, Father!”

The time finally came! ‘Twas time for me to conduct the motivation for Ma’am Labao’s Filipino classes. Nervousness was crawling up to my bones. 

Since the topic for the day was Tayutay or figures of speech, I decided to lead an activity that made use of simile. 

For the mechanics, the students were instructed to think about three things:

1. An important person in one’s life

2. An object that best represents that person

3. The reason for choosing that object as a representation

Of course, this was done using the Filipino language, which was why I had a bit of a hard time conducting it. Dr. Jose Rizal, please do not be so mad at me. 

Nonetheless, the students from 10-Excellence and 10-Humility definitely enjoyed the activity. One could even say Ma’am Labao had some fun, too! 

The beginning of my assistantship was truly a blast. I loved my first day so much. Moreover, I felt my confidence level increasing because of the active participation of the students, as well as that of my cooperating teacher. It turns out, motivation activities are not just advantageous to the students, but also to teachers! What a fun trade. 

Unfortunately, I had an afternoon class, and so I was not able to join Ma’am Labao’s time with 9-Respect. When she gave me her schedule, she started from 7:30am and ended with 12:30pm. I was happy to join the morning class, despite our actual time starting at 8:30am. However, I did not have such freedom in the afternoon, as I had my Technical Writing class. Nonetheless, I still shared the ESP motivation with Ma’am Labao. 

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Assessing My Assessment

Today, I finished the assignment Ma’am Labao gave me yesterday. Since classes were halted, I had more time to do research in able to understand more how I should make the test items. I gave it all I got, and I was actually pretty satistified with the final output~! 

Here it is: 

Of course, I also provided Ma’am Labao the answer keys to the test items. Hopefully, she liked them enough to truly include it in the upcoming assessment~!

This task let me experience the feeling of making an actual test paper. It was thrilling, and I had a lot of considerations while constructing every line. I strived to make the questions not too easy, nor too difficult. I wanted them to be able to assess the students’ learning, as much as possible. After all, that is the whole point of this exam paper.

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My Very First CT

This is a picture of my very first Cooperating Teacher, Mrs. Jennifer Labao, and me. I was truly quite grateful for being under her supervision, even if we only spent a day being physically together. I have learned and experienced so much working with her. Indeed, she gave my assistantship and internship the boost that they needed. 

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Morning Duties~

Arriving to school on an early Monday, I was surprised when the students began to line up. It seemed that I have forgotten that there is such a thing called “Flag Ceremony.” Nonetheless, when Ma’am Gayas arrived that morning, she let me follow her and we stood behind the learners. We also participated with all the ceremony’s segments. It was such a refreshing feeling! What a way to start the week!

After the morning activity, I was assigned to check the students’ seatworks. It was an enjoyable experience, too! I have always found satisfaction in consecutively marking the numbers with a check symbol. After this, I was tasked to record their works, and this was when I learned the importance of having the students’ papers arranged by their surnames-- it was so much easier after organizing it that way! 

Truly, I was learning a lot, despite this being my first day with Ma’am Gayas, and my third day being a teacher’s assistant. 

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Full Day!

Before Ma’am Gayas taught me how to use Baliuag University’s LMS, we first shared a pizza or two with her advisee, 7-Responsibility. It was a celebration for their victory in the Field Demo. During the Pizza Party, she took the opportunity to encourage her students to participate in the Scholastic event. The students were very much excited and they were elated with the simple celebration. 

It was with this experience that I have learned and appreciated the importance of building connection with the students. Teachers should allow the students to celebrate their victories, earned with their hardwork and perseverance. Doing so paves the way for teachers to effectively encourage the students to soar even higher. 

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Classroom Diversity: Our Reality

WARNING! LONG THREAD AHEAD!

Since our classes were young Grade 7 students, I deemed it best to strictly adhere to their data privacy. Nonetheless, as part of the documentation, here are the observation notes that I took ~!

I even had some notes that were related to the topic itself, since Ma'am Gayas was so motivating, I had to listen attentively as well!

As what can be seen on my notes, I have learned and saw with my own eyes that students really do vary. Their understanding, retention of memory, and even pace in picking up new information distinctively differs from one another. It was a sight to behold-- seeing how even though they all had the same topic, they had their own ways of absorbing it. Thus, Ma’am Gayas also had to teach the same lesson using diversified methods.

Apart from that, students also have their own needs, which may be so crucial it affects their studies-- just like the aforementioned student in 7-Responsibility. Teachers should extend their understanding during such moments like these.

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Towards Progress

After today’s classes, Ma’am Gayas instructed me to do something. I felt her excitement as she told me to make my own test items based on the previous topics. I picked up my pen and the book, then began writing some ideas down. This was what I came up with: 

She gave me a few comments about how I could make the items better, such as keeping the sentences short and avoiding too much clues within the statements. I took note of her suggestions on my heart, so that I would be able to apply it the next time.

After she stated her remarks, she took a photo of my work and said that she would include it in their upcoming seatwork. That was such a beautiful melody to my ears! Truly, it is fulfilling to be an effective assistant and to bring joy to one’s CT. 

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Rest, Teacher. Rest!

After staying up and striving to condition myself for three hours, I came to a conclusion that I really couldn’t go to school today. My stomachache was not getting any better, and I would not dare to cause a scene during class. 

With that said, I still wished to be a helpful assistant to my CT, Ma’am Gayas. Therefore, I asked her if there was anything I could do to help her, even while I was resting. Since it took her some time to reply, I also messaged another student assistant and even Ma’am Labao regarding my condition. I was worried that my CT would be surprised that I would not come in today. Thankfully, she did receive the message. I was even more grateful for her kindness and generosity, as she gave me the whole day to recover instead. 

This experience has taught me to be more caring of myself and to not be afraid to seek for help when needed. Moreover, it reminded me that empathic considerations and extensive understanding are always there. Hooray for humanity! 

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Reviewing to Make a Reviewer

Ma’am Gayas’ schedule was relatively relaxed today. She didn’t have classes, and so we stayed in the office the whole morning. However, that did not mean that working nor assistantship would also be halted. 

 My task today was to help Ma’am Gayas finish these two reviewers: the PowerPoint for the Review Game, and the test document. I didn’t have a hard time with the PowerPoint, as I only had to copy what was on the book. Nonetheless, the test document was a bit challenging because, this time, I had to give my OWN EXAMPLES!!! Being a multiple-choice type of assessment, the answer had to be there; thus, I would also have to compute. That would have been easy-- if it were not for my forgetful mind, which had thrown away the formulae we learned in high school. 

 It was a very good thing that I was holding the book and that I had access to the internet. I studied some of the examples and reviewed the formulae. Ma’am Gayas also taught me some techniques to make things easier, such as staying close with the original given, so as to not be too confused. It’s safe to say I also aced this task. Haha! 

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Duties or Perks? That is never the question...

Today, I was quite surprised when Ma’am Labao offered me some donuts. I was a bit hesitant at first, since my stomach was still healing. However, the treat’s call was far too strong!! >__< 

It was a pleasant day at the office~. I was enjoying my last day there. 

While waiting for Ma’am Gayas’s next tasks (she didn’t give any anymore), I played with Ma’am Labao’s daughter. She had been talking to me all this time, and so I decided that, since we had some free time, I gave her more attention apart from responding to her statements. 

She began explaining the mechanics of playing with slimes, until we reached the point that she admitted being a cyborg and a scientist. She laughed and retracted the first claim, but never the second mentioned profession. 

Then, we started making slime figures. I made a baby sheep that later on became this dog’s right ear. I found it quite cute, and so I asked her if I could take a photo. 

In the middle of our play, Ma’am Gayas joined us and sang along with the child. It was a peaceful day in the office, indeed.

This experience taught me how, sometimes, in a teacher’s life, we should also learn to take a breather. Playing simple activities like this with a child can be a healing therapy for the week’s exhausting hours. 

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See You Again, Coors!

This picture rather made my heart feel warm. It was my last day of staying in the Coors’ office. It was quite peaceful there, and they were very kind to me. I learned a lot from Ma’am Gayas-- from classroom management to doing some works behind the scenes, such as uploading discussions and assessments on the LMS, as well as some tips to follow when constructing test items. 

Truly, I am thankful for the opportunity of being her assistant. I hope I can work with her side-by-side again in the future. 

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Pleasure to Meet You

Sunday evening (March 5), I contacted Ma’am Jerilyn Delos Santos, my new Cooperating Teacher (CT) for this week. I had clarifications about our schedule, since it was abruptly changed due to the sudden jeepney strike. However, despite the modality being virtual, I still wanted to be the best assistant that I could be; therefore, when she was not able to give me some tasks the next day, I directly asked her what way could I be of help to her the following morning. 

She then generously taught me how to use the LMS. I learned quickly because of her clear instructions. Hooray for new experiences and learning!

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Essay Writing. Essay Judging!

The time for my first task with my new CT had come, and it’s checking the students’ essays! Yay! Just recently, I won first-place in the essay writing contest, and so I felt pretty thrilled being the judge this time. 

Ma’am Jerilyn gave me her LMS account and let me check their outputs. As expected, I enjoyed reading the students’ answers. They were all so creatiive in answering the question. Here, I had also learned one thing about essays: One’s deserved score does not stem from the output’s length, but rather on its content and essence. Some students had elaborative answers, but they were far from the question. Others, on the other hand, had short answers, but address the question exactly as how it should be answered. Awesome possum!!

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Exam Day~

The day that the students thrill about had finally come. It’s time for their quarterly assessment. Today, I observed and learned how to manage the classroom during such season. 

There are three things that I have taken note of based on my observations:

1. A teacher must keep his/her voice firm. This is to express one’s authority and strictness. 

2. Prior to greeting the students, the teacher first instructed them to arrange their seats. The seating order consisted of five (5) columns and six (6) rows.

3. The teacher must be keen with details, even with the seat arrangements. He/she must also walk around the room every once in a while. 

Since Ma’am Jerilyn often had to go outside due to her cough, I gradually applied the third note to myself and began walking around the classroom whenever she’s not around. Eventually, I grew comfortable in doing it. I even answered some questions raised by the students regarding the test instructions. Yay!

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Productive Waiting Moments

While the students were taking their examinations, Ma’am Jerilyn gave me some tasks. First, she had me arrange the test papers by the students’ sections. Being myself, I decided to go beyond the given instruction. I also arranged them alphabetically. Furthermore, the test papers of the girls were separated from the boys’. To this, Ma’am Jerilyn showed great appreciation, and it made my heart warm, receiving such response. 

After that, she also assigned me to check some essays. She first explained the model answer before letting me proceed. I had a great time reading the students’ answers, as it reflected how each of them understood the topic. Moreover, I saw how every student differs in their writing styles and in developing their ideas. 

Because of this experience, I became even more excited to check my future students’ essays!