(1/2) “It was here that my journey in teaching began and I have never looked back since.”

Home » Stories » (1/2) “It was here that my journey in teaching began and I have never looked back since.”

“Like any other young adult, I too did not know what I wanted to study at university.

At school, mathematics was my favourite and best subject. I usually scored very high marks in Mathematics and am pretty sure I obtained an almost perfect score for my SPM. The course I chose at university offered many different subjects to major in, and naturally I decided on a course leaning towards Mathematics. As I was not much interested in Mechanics, I decided on a major in Statistics.

Post-graduation, I was quite sure of securing a position at one of the many financial institutions. Unfortunately, the poor economic climate at that time froze applications into financial institutions. While waiting for opportunities in the financial institutions, I was offered a teaching position, to teach Mathematics and Additional Mathematics, in a local private school. It was here that my journey in teaching began and I have never looked back since. After a year, I applied and was offered a position to teach A Level Mathematics at Taylor’s College. I was ecstatic, but still unsure of my direction with respect to my vocation.

The syllabus for A Level required that I teach 3 different components of Mathematics; Pure mathematics, Statistics and Mechanics. The preparation that I had to put in was colossal. I had to prepare notes, practice questions and internal and mock exam papers right away. I used many different books with only the syllabus requirements as a guide to prepare my notes and questions. I used to cart home bags of books and often stayed up late to prepare my lessons. I felt more like a student instead of a teacher. This preparation was very important to build my confidence, and I would go with very little sleep, to ensure that I give the best lesson presentations every day. Moreover, the set of students I was assigned were very intelligent and would often challenge me with questions.”

(Read Part 2 over here: https://www.humansofkl.com/2-2i-share-their-successes-and-failures-their-achievements-and-frustrations-and-i-laugh-and-cry-with-them/)

—
Humans of KL is working with academics from Taylor’s College to share stories which embody their values; Hope, Grit and Slay.