What I Like About Teaching

Recently, a young relative of mine needed help with his homework, so he and his parents asked me for help. Doing this was a wonderful experience for me. My “student” is very earnest and intelligent despite the difficulties he has with his homework. Helping him out has reminded me of one of my old dreams: my wish of becoming a teacher. While I am not currently working on becoming a teacher, I do enjoy acting like one to anyone willing to accept my help.

“A teacher?” You may ask. “But why? Teachers aren’t paid well, and they’re often taken for granted. That’s very true, they are taken for granted! Most people learn from authority figures, so teachers are invaluable. But you don’t need a state-approved certification to be a teacher. I talked about before how my mother and father have both contributed greatly to my learning. Given parents like them, it’s no wonder I thought becoming a teacher was what I wanted to do with my life.

That said, my desire to emulate my parents isn’t the only reason why I want to become a teacher. Teaching is a noble profession in itself and can be fun and rewarding to those willing to put in the time and effort. Here are four reasons why I think teaching is awesome.

1. Teachers get to help people.

Nobody bats an eye when teachers monologue about a subject. It’s a part of their job. When we think of teachers nowadays, we usually think of them as standing in front of a blackboard, writing down important information while rambling about the general topic. It’s usually boring for the students, but I find it’s not boring for the teachers.

Because teachers must lecture students in the classroom about the subject they are in charge of teaching, being a teacher allows you to talk about the things you love. Students are a captive audience (in the case of public-school students, this is literal, since children are required to go to school by law), and you are the speaker. Sure, teachers cannot teach any subject they want, but what information is emphasized and how it is taught are determined by the teacher.

Being a freeform tutor, the subjects I teach are more varied than those of the average public-school teacher. Whatever my pupil is having trouble in school determines what I do here. So far, it’s mainly math problems and math concepts that he’s had trouble with, but I imagine it’ll be other problems in the future. Either way, I love hearing the sound of my voice.

2. Teachers like showing off their knowledge.

Knowledge is meant to be shared. At least, that’s what I love to do with it. Whenever I learn something new, I have the irresistible urge to share it with someone, anyone, who will listen. And, lo and behold, that’s what teachers do all the time!

I like to share what I know because I love most of what I know. If I didn’t love something, then why would I bother remembering it? People naturally love talking about what they love, so since I love everything I know, I love talking about everything I know. There’s also an element of vanity involved. Revealing how much you know demonstrates one’s intellectual prowess, like a beautiful woman showing off her appearance or an athlete showing off his physical prowess.

For me at least, I’ve found it difficult in the past to stop myself from monopolizing a conversation to talk about whatever I want. I don’t have to worry about that too much as a teacher. All I need to know is whether or not the student understands what I’m saying. If he does, then I can talk all during learning time.

3. Learning helps people, and I want to help.

People tend to think that altruism and charity are the same things, but this isn’t always the case. Some forms of altruism are callous and done with no regard for the well-being of the receiver. Altruism, if it is to be truly charitable, must be results-based. To see what I mean, imagine if you were traveling down the street and you saw someone who got into a motorcycle accident on the road who needed your help. You go over and provide CPR, only to find that your efforts kill the person accidentally. Would your reaction be “oh well, I tried,” or “oh my gosh, what have I done?” If you truly cared about the person on the side of the street, probably the latter. The actual results matter as much, if not more than, the intentions behind your action.

As a Christian, I care about being as charitable as I can be. Now, there’s an old Chinese proverb that goes like this: “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” The man who has to go to you to receive a fish every day is dependent on you. You could take away his fish at any time, and he’d be left without anything to eat. This gives you power over him. But the man who is taught how to fish is given something more valuable than food: the ability to acquire food himself and be self-sufficient. Therefore, teaching is the most efficacious act of charity.

4. Watching my students grow gives me a sense of accomplishment.

Being a teacher is like being an artist: they put a little of themselves into their work. Yes, helping a student is an act of charity, but there’s a deeper connection between teacher and student that goes beyond the relationship between giver and receiver. A teacher raises and influences a student, similar to how a parent raises a child. Instructing others is like painting a picture or writing a story: you put a bit of yourself into the work to create a reflection of your greatness.

All students bear their teacher’s influence. A good teacher’s instruction helps their student learn how to think about certain problems. In time, the student’s thinking and way of doing things resemble his teacher’s. We all like to think that our way of thinking is 100% original, but without our teachers, we’d never reach the place we are at. We all sit upon the shoulders of giants, and those giants leave their mark on our minds.

Through my teaching, I hope to one day reach many students. But for now, I’m content with only reaching a handful. Little by little, I’ll learn how to teach better until I become confident enough to teach my classes. Then, maybe I’ll write them down on this blog!