The first two people I saw when I stepped into 4E2 on 2 Jan 2009 were (the pretty and delicate features of ) Cherlyn Hoo and the cute and wide-eyed Fatin. The first question from Fatin was “Teacher, what are we doing today?” I didn’t know then that was actually very typical of Fatin :) Deep in my heart, I prayed that my new form class would be just as sweet as the first impression I had of the two girls. I never thought my prayers would be answered – way beyond my expectations.

Back in 2006, I had a Sec 4 class as my form class (31 boys + 8 girls). I wouldn’t say it was a peaceful year – how could it be when I had 31 guys to handle? (Imagine having 100 Taufiqs...gosh! ) But they treated me like a queen and despite everything, I thought I would not love another class like how I loved them. 4E2, you have proven me wrong.

The past 10 months with you are the best 10 months of my (7-years-old) teaching career. Never have I met youngsters – who are barely 16 years old - as hardworking, jovial, respectful, cooperative and most importantly, compassionate, as yourselves. I remember the first few EL lessons that we had. You guys were SUPER quiet. That’s probably a dream for some teachers. But I found it too quiet for my liking. I like my students to be vocal and not afraid to air their views – only then, in my opinion, would education effectively take place. Thus, I was pleasantly surprised when you responded enthusiastically to any activities that I tried to carry out in the subsequent lessons. <> I am sure some of you had probably wondered if I was rather mad at times but, thank you for not making that too obvious :P

Along the way, the class definitely had its ups and downs. I was really sad when our EL whiz fell very ill. I thought that the world was unfair - I mean there are so many evil people (or students) out there – why must our kind and harmless EL representative be so down on his luck? Then, unexpectedly, our artistic debater was soon struggling to cope with her eyesight problem. Again, I questioned the existence of justice... but well, things happen for a reason and like they say, every cloud has its silver lining. What I am most grateful for is how my dear 4E2 stuck by one another throughout the whole ordeals. I admire the innate strengths in all of you, I admire the compassion you possess. Thank you for being such angels to your two classmates. I hope that their resilience and tenacity have motivated the rest of you to reach for your goals, no matter what obstacles you may face.

Now that we’re reaching the end of the year, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all of you for making 2009 one of the most memorable years of my life. Thank you for
1) being such an noisy yet, lovable bunch of people
2) always greeting me with much enthusiasm
3) making me exercise my vocal chords every morning : “Move forward, people.. hurry up, move to the front...”
4) for giving me the nicest Teachers’ Day T-shirt ( I was the envy of the whole staff room! )
5) for putting in lots of effort to improve in EL
6) for just being you.

All the best for the ‘O’ levels! I expect nothing but the best :)
XOXO (thanks for telling me what this stands for!),
Ms Haryani

Posted by nasir at 10:03 PM