I got this article brewing for some time waiting to be finished. Yes, I'm the type of author that starts with something and gets out of focused when life/family/work interferes at the process, good thing I always come back to it and finished one at a time when I run out of topic to write,lol! This was inspired from @Jeaneth from last week when she started writing about her experience in the academe, and @MizLhaine too. Instead of commenting a lengthy experience about mine, I thought how about writing one for an article. So, here it goes.
I never thought I could be a teacher though the teaching profession has been in the bloodline. After I passed the board exam for Physical Therapist, I worked for a few months in a hospital near home as a volunteer. That time my alma mater also scouts for Licensed PT to fill in the position of Clinical Coordinator in Manila since the staff assigned will be leaving abroad soon. I then applied for the position, I was thinking that I could look for better oppottunities in Manila while I have this job on hand. I was accepted and off I vanished Iligan City with new batches of students for internship in Manila for 5 months. The first time was like just a continuation of my internship days, my students were some friends too back in my college days, and one was my classmate back then who got delayed from back subjects. Well, this classmate was always known to be happy go lucky, and no wonder this has been a challenged for me. PT supervisors from some hospitals he got assigned in to would call me that he has been sleeping and snoring while on duty, of course what can I do other than assure them that I will talk to him in the weekend and it won't happen again. Well, the bliss of dealing with adults than kids in school, talk is always diplomatic. So, in my first year I have been most of the time in Manila, I held a short lecture, but mostly exams every Saturday with my interns, after 5 months I would be back in iligan for a week and gone back to Manila for another 5 months with new students for hospital internship.
I love that set-up with my job, I work in my own pace I travel here there, that was the time I was able to explore Metro Manila and some parts of Luzon. However, after a year, I was instructed to suspend the affiliations in Manila because the school has less students for internship. This was the year when enrolees for Physical Therapy plummets, while the College of Nursing enrolees soared. The second year of employment in my alma mater was home-based, thus the real deal of teaching started.
My second year has been a difficult adjustment, I was still the Clinical Coordinator, and travel from time to time to Cebu City and some provinces in Mindanao, since the admin pursued internship program just near here. On top of that, I was given teaching units too for the College of PT, I also teach Anatomy and Physiology for the College of Nursing and Medical Technology. The first semester was a difficult adjustment because I need to make my syllabus and lecture stuffs, after the first semester everything was a breeze because I'll just be lecturing the same stuff over and over again. The challenging part was getting intimidated by students older than me (I was 21 or 22 that time perhaps and some of my students were 30-40+). Mind you this was the year when Nursing got so famous, and some of my students were licensed teachers, engineers, bankers, etc who wanted to pursue the course for greener opportunities. Well, intimidation was short-lived though, I think I really got the bloodline.
Teaching is fun but tiring too. On my third year, my responsibilities escalated. I was given another task as Alumni Coordinator, since I worked and graduated on that same school. Few months after, the College offered Board Exam Review for test takers and I was again appointed to spearhead the review schedule, scout for lecturers and I have my own subjects to lecture too. Eventually, I got burned out and resigned.
When I handed my resignation to the Dean of Academic Affairs- I didn't know she was a friend and co-teacher of my grandmother, she advised me to pursue graduate studies and continue teaching, but I was firm in my decision to resign gracefully because the world is big enough to explore, lol! Of course, I didn't reasoned out being pressure cooked and burnt in my 1st job in the academe.
That was the end.. the next chapters were no longer moments with students, but with patients. Somehow, I love the fact that I started being a teacher because the experience honed me to become a better Physical Therapist.
Why?
Experience can be a great teacher, but the theories and the basics has an edge too!
Today, I love doing what I'm doing. It is fulfilling to see patients recover and living a physically functional body. The challenge it brings is also different because the human body is an engineering marvel and mysterious in many ways!
Thanks for reading!❤️
Lead Image from Pixabay (no attribution required)
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Reading the title I instantly thought of Jeaneth. 😊 I feel like I do not have lots of patience with regards to teaching. I can teach and train some people with regards to our work but after a week or 2, I let them be on their own. And if I saw something that was substandard, that is where I will correct the person. That's why I really admire our teachers and professors. My lola was a teacher too. I just heard it from my dad.