My First Class

One important part of my post graduate programme in education (PDE) is Teaching Practise. This is usually done in a secondary or primary school of your choice where you go practice all you’ve been taught in class…

So I started mine on Monday in a secondary school close to my house. My first class was on Wednesday. One thing I suffer from is, whenever I’m about to do something for the first time I get nervous, apprehensive, tensed up e.t.c. This is usually accompanied with sweating profusely, becoming extremely pressed, my heart beating faster, my legs and my hands start shaking uncontrollably, migraine, sometimes my vision even becomes blurry. And these were all what I was going through when I checked my time and saw it was almost time for my first lesson.

This isn’t the first time I’m teaching, I’ve taught both in a secondary, primary and tertiary institution. But this was a new school with new kids and I cant really control my tension and how my body reacts when I’m about to embark on something for the first time.

Thirty minutes to the time of my lesson, I ran back home to relieve myself. On my way to and fro I recited how I was going to start the lesson and all I was going to say throughout. As soon as I got back, it was already time, I took a deep breath, picked up my book and walked to the class.

When I got there, there was just about three students.

“where are the rest of your classmates?”. I asked in a small voice and discovered my voice was a little bit shaky.

One of them ran out to call the rest of them and I asked another one to wipe clean the chalkboard. When there were about twenty of them, I picked up a piece of chalk, which I didn’t see at first until a student pointed out that it was in front of me, and wrote Basic Science and Crude Oil underneath it on the board. As soon as I turned back, everything I had recited flew out of my head. I turned back to the board, said a short prayer while underlining the topic I had written. I turned to the students and asked if anyone knew where kerosene, fuel or diesel comes from, one of them said it came from the filling station which made us all laugh and that broke the tension….

From then on, the lesson went on smoothly and even after my time was up, the students begged me to stay more, that they loved me and my teaching…