The Chronicles of a Teacher #8: That One Mind-Blowing Question from...

Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash

Teachers, how would you respond to this conversation from your students?

Julia (not a real name): Hey Jessie. Miss Cally said, that we only have FOUR WEEKS left before we graduate from fifth grade, before our summer holidays! We are going to lose another nice teacher. AND.. We are going to a new school for sixth grade!
Jessie (not a real name): No, she is NOT a nice teacher. She is a good teacher.
Julia: Well, it is the same. She is nice, and she is good too.
Jessie: NO! It is not the same! A nice teacher is not a good teacher, but a good teacher is always nice.
Julia: Let us ask Miss Cally!!!
Jessie & Julia: MISS CALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Honestly, I was not expecting that one mind-blowing question from my students on a Monday morning, slightly after my regular coffee cup(s). It is true that the current academic year is coming to an end, and I am ever grateful for this first year of working abroad. It was not all happy times, definitely - BUT it is definitely rewarding. When Julia and Jessie asked me THE question, it then dawned on me that I literally have four more weeks with these lovely bunch!

I responded this way...

Miss Cally: Jessie, what makes you think that way? Why would you say, that a nice teacher is not a good teacher?
Jessie: Miss Cally, I think a nice teacher will always be nice to us. But you are not nice, you correct us when we do something unkind or something wrong. So, you are a good teacher, because we know you want the best for us, even when we make mistakes.
Julia: Mmmm... Yeah, that sounds quite true.
Miss Cally: ((thinking and maybe, daydreaming))
Jessie: If Miss Cally is always nice to us, then she will be nice and let us do everything, all the good and bad things too. And we won't realize our mistakes, because Miss Cally won't warn us or advise us - because she is "too nice".
Julia: Ohhhh.... Miss Cally, are we right?
Miss Cally: I really love your thinking, and I admire how much you both have grown over the last 11 months here in this class with me. A nice teacher, a good teacher, I feel that different people will have different meaning to it, but based on your explanation and definition, I am pretty sure you are the right track! Maybe someday, you will find bigger meaning to it. And thank you for letting me be the good teacher, I know I am firm sometimes. So, shall I give more homework today?
Jessie & Julia: NOOOOOOOO!

This question was lingering in my mind for a couple of days, and I was in search for answers. I asked several colleagues and of course, I asked Mr. Google. LIKE DUH~ Many of them were, first and foremost, amazed with the above conversation after I shared with them. I also thought to myself, I should really post this up on Steemit and get more perspectives about this. On a side note, I spent close to 75 minutes talking to one of my closest colleague, and it was such an interesting conversation. We both finally concluded that above the argumentative question, the overriding question that we should be asking ourselves is...

What kind of teacher do you wish to be remembered as?

Karl Menninger quotes that, "What a teacher is, is more important than what he teaches." Essentially, this extends to just basically, life too. What kind of person do you wish to be remembered as? What kind of parent do you wish to be remembered as? What kind of friend do you wish to be remembered as? What kind of neighbour do you wish to be remembered as? What kind of leader do you wish to be remembered as? And the list goes on...