Sr. Teresa Joseph fma
How apt are the words of Nelson Mandela “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Your vocation as a teacher is one of the very best in the World. We are teachers in the making. When we say “We are Teachers in the Making” it means we are currently developing, evolving, transforming, and have the potential to become someone significant. The phrase indicates the ongoing process of becoming or accomplishing something. It is indeed a dynamic process that encompasses: Developing, Nurturing development and growth, Process of Creation and Exploring Unrealized Potential.
Developing: Take a walk into your life as a teacher in the light of: “We are teachers in the making.” Stop for a while and see how you have been developing your qualities, skills or characteristics. Like a budding artist or potential superstar, you are a teacher in the making. “Never bend your head. Always hold it high. Look the world straight in the eye.” —Helen Keller
Development and Growth: “Some people change the world. And some people change the people who change the world, and that’s you.” – Kij Johnson. Focus on one or two children whose growth and development you have nurtured. Imagine you are in a vibrant communication with him/her. Write down what is uppermost in your heart right now. “If you look behind every exceptional person there is an exceptional teacher” – Stephen Hawking. You are that exceptional teacher.
Process of Creation: “Be the change that you wish to see in the world” – Mahatma Ghandi. Now imagine that deep within you as a teacher, something is actively being created or produced like a “film in the making” or a “house in the making.” From change of character to loving gestures of transformation, you will see a constant process of creation that is taking place deep within you. Rejoice and be glad and turn to your neighbour and share how do you feel about what has been created deep within you over the years.
Unrealized Potential: Deep within you as a teacher, you have the potential to achieve great things, they are not yet fully realized or fully known. Write down one thing that you dream to achieve during this year. “It is often the small steps, not the giant leaps that bring about the most lasting change” opines Queen Elizabeth II. It is the awareness that we are accepted and loved unconditionally by God that spurs us on to take small steps day after day, month after month and year after year. “To produce at your peak level, you need to work for extended periods with full concentration on a single task free from distraction” says Cal Newport
Surrounded by a host of people
In the process of becoming, you are surrounded, sustained and supported by a host of people. The management, the students and their parents with dreams, expectations and demands. Everyone around you is in the process of becoming someone. “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, what are you doing for others?” affirms Martin Luther King Jr. Yes, we are teachers in the making. May the awareness of this great reality flow from us to everyone whom we encounter in our teaching mission. All of us are in the process of becoming someone unique and special. “Within you, there is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself” opines Hermann Hesse. May you enjoy the bliss of “me time” and “we time” in abundance.
Sr. Dr. Teresa Joseph fma is a Salesian Sister of the Bombay Province, India, who holds a Master’s degree in Science of Education with specialization in Catechetics from Pontificia Facoltà Auxilium, Rome and a PhD. in Missiology with specialization in Inter-religious studies from the Gregorian University, Rome. Teresa has authored and co-authored several books and contributed numerous articles for various journals in India and abroad. She was one of the 20 panellists on the Global Sisters Report Panel, ‘The Life’ for 2019-2020. She presents papers for national and international seminars.