My Blog for Educators

 

Patience, a powerful teaching skill,why shake it off ?

Handling learners can be very challenging, and I know that.

I also know that handling learners with patience makes the journey easier and better. A closer look at patience shows that it is a virtue worth possessing by a teacher. It refers to self-control or discipline. "The capacity to accept or tolerate delay, problems, or suffering without becoming annoyed".

That means that it has a lot to do with a positive attitude.

Colossians 3:12 -13 encouraged us to wear the garment of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience when dealing with others. So why shake off your patience?

This particular portion of the Bible is for us, teachers. It teaches us that patience is a ‘must-grab’.

Patience is a powerful tool in relationships, especially in teacher/learner relationship. This is because learning is a huge process. It requires remembering, understanding, analysing creating, evaluating and so on. Therefore a teacher needs to be patient with learners to enable them to navigate the learning process authentically. It is not all about waiting, but waiting with a positive attitude, because you believe they will finish strong. The teacher/learner relationship is a great one and patience is required for sustainability.

Recall that teaching is like building a house, nothing about each process is easy but as you pass each level, the beauty unfolds. In fact, at the foundation stage, you don't even get to see the beauty of the house. Sometimes it might seem as if you are throwing a spoon of salt in the ocean. Never mind, do not be challenged by the struggles of your learners, continue with your patience. One day it will add up. Working to overcome the discomfort is your biggest advantage.

Patience is crucial. This is because diversity exists in our classrooms in culture, language, religion, learning styles and so on. These differences can only be incorporated and embraced totally with patience.

Impatience is never an option because with that we tear the learning walls down.

Finally, the beauty of patience as a powerful tool and impatience is deeply emphasised in the lines of a Chinese proverb which states that👇👇

This is a moment of reflection for us teachers to revisit and evaluate our practices to ensure that patience is in our toolbox.

I encourage all to embrace and nurture patience as a teaching skill because, without it, there will be no learning field but a battleground.

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