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Hari Pertamaku di SMA 1 Padang (Day 1: My First Step in SMA 1 Padang)

On this day, January 25, I have formally met my cooperating teacher from SMA 1 Padang, Ms. Wiwi Rosaria. She seemed like a very pleasing and fun filled teacher inside the classroom; for upon meeting her, she greeted and welcomed me warmly. She first asked me things about myself such as my prior experiences in terms of teaching in the Philippines. I gladly shared to her my experiences not only in teaching inside the classroom but also in terms of building relationships with my students and peers in school.



After a quick chit chat, Ms. Wiwi and I then proceeded to Grade X MIA 2, the class that I will be observing for today. She has asked me to take note of the probable strategies that I can observe from her which I could also apply in my own teaching.


During my observation in the class, I have realized that Indonesian students and Filipino students are very much alike. They are very brilliant students who needs extra effort to push them into diligence. They are also natives of the era of technology, thus making them easily distracted in terms of using their gadgets, such as their cellphones and tablets, during the classroom discussion. In addition, they are also very liberal and critical, thus

there is a great need for teachers to also become critical in providing the students with meaningful learning experiences for them to connect their past experiences to the new things that they will learn.


The most different, however, is the students' ability in terms of communicating in English. My students, given their background in coming from a good senior high school, could indeed understand English. However, their speaking and listening abilities in the said language is a different thing. This brought me to an understanding that I should always be mindful and considerate in my delivery of my lesson in order to make sure that my students and I are in the same page of learning.


After the classroom discussion, Ms.Wiwi then presented me with the list of topics I shall cover during my one month teaching. The topics are the following: Advertisement, Song, Narrative, Recount texts, and poem. I was indeed very excited to tackle all of these topics to my students - not only to teach them but also to learn from them through their insights and experiences.



It was very humbling because upon giving me the topics, she still consulted me whether I am comfortable in teaching the said topics. She was also very generous in terms of giving me tips, such as using media and real objects, to aid my discussion. She has then reminded me of the lesson plan that I would need to pass to her for my first teaching demonstration. Luckily, she gave me the rest of the day to prepare for my lesson the following day.


In general, I realized that what I will do as a foreign teacher here in Padang would not be very much different on what I did in the Philippines. I would still need to become a teacher of mind and heart - a mind open to new ideas and learning and a heart loving each student I will encounter.












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