Recently, I read a story about a girl, Adeline Ng Ai Choo from the book Little Ironies: Stories Of Singapore by Catherine Lim.
Adeline Ng Ai Choo had always been striving for the best so as not to disapoint her parents who had high expectations of her. She did not want to embarass her father whose colleagues' children were very clever. She also did not want to disapoint her mother, who had been constantly encouraging her. However, during her examination, she failed by one mark. Out of desperation, she went to the teacher to plead for an extra mark to obtain the passing mark. However, the teacher curtly declined. Unfortunately, Adeline took it so badly that she committed suicide.
The story continued with a debate on this matter. Some people said that in future we should either just fail or pass the pupil clearly. However, the teacher who refused to give Adeline the extra mark, said that by not doing so, it would spur her to work harder. I think that what she had said is partly true but I think as a teacher, she should also consider her students' condition first. If the student tends to be upset about poor scores, then she should encourage her before revealing her score. In short, the teacher has an awesome responsibility. That is why I believe it is never easy being one.
(Remember to cast your vote on the poll)
No comments:
Post a Comment