Teacher, Teacher

Today, someone called our house asking to speak with my 94-year-old lola. It turns out that said caller was one of my lola's students when she was an English professor in NU way back in the 70s. I had to wonder what kind of teacher my lola was to have someone call her and check up on her almost 40 years later. She would often tell me about how she would be a terror prof to her students, but also about how beloved she was. When she retired from teaching with 30 years under her belt by then, she had her former students' kids going up to her and saying what a pity it was that they couldn't have her as a professor. These narratives leave me affirmed with my own decision to teach.

My lola, the teacher and also a big PBA fan

Of course, it's quite presumptuous of me to think that I would make a similar impact on my students. I've really only begun teaching, and there's still so much to learn. Reaching that level is probably more of a work in progress at this point. I'm just glad to see some marked improvement in my students' performance in their second exam, though I've still got quite a handful who seem not to understand the subject matter. That, or they don't care enough to try harder. I suppose this would be my challenge to myself - to make my students care more, and make them realize that Psych 101 is not just another class that they have to pass. I always tell my students in their essays and reflection papers to dig deeper. Perhaps this is also something that I have to do to make my classes more relevant to them. I guess another challenge would be knowing how high I have to set my expectations. No matter how hard I try, not all students will do well. Individual differences do exist, and my assessment tools wouldn't be very effective if all of my students performed excellently. Still, it won't hurt to keep trying. Maybe I'l also receive a call from one of my students 70 years from now, if they haven't given me a heart attack by then.

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Yes, I'm trying to start writing more often again. Certain conversations in Cebu have built up the difficulties that lie ahead in working on my thesis, the biggest hurdle being the writing part. So I'm trying to maximize this blog to sharpen my rusty writing skills with the hope that it might make this task even just a bit easier.

* Calling on the other half of this blog team to join me again here.

Psychologists Unite

(c) PAP

I had recently taken another step towards my serious pursuit of my academic psychology goals by attending the Psychological Association of the Philippines (PAP) convention in Cebu. Even if I had to spend for this myself due to the absence of any papers presented, I decided to go anyway because I needed a clearer idea of how people present their research when the time comes for me to do so myself. It was also a way for me to get out of my comfort zone because I had planned the trip alone, although I knew that my co-faculty from both UP and Ateneo would be there. Now I'm back home and I know that I made a really good move. I got what I went there for and so much more.

On a personal level, I had managed to make my introverted self inch out of my proverbial shell, gaining a sense of comfort with my colleagues that I knew would have taken much longer if our interactions were only limited to the department. My sense of independence has also improved, since I had made all my arrangements and stayed in my room alone. Yes, it was planned too late and I had to suffer the delays that come with taking the last flight in and out, but I can now take pride in this step that I took. Listening to the different presentations have also helped me gain confidence in my own abilities, both as a researcher and a presenter. This is not to say that I won't be crazy nervous when I finally face my own audience. But at least now I know what to expect.

More than anything though, going to this convention has strongly reinforced my desire to stay in the academe.   For one, there is still so much to be done in the field of psychology. Listening to the research presented by my colleagues, it became apparent that we've only just begun to scratch the surface especially in the Philippines. Psychology is such a dynamic science that changes along with the society within which its processes take place. Topics of interest have begun to take a more solid form, and the idea of collaborating with people excites me. The opportunities (and also the challenges) that lie ahead are also becoming clearer, giving me a more realistic idea of what I can do.

So yes, barring the very real speed bump presented by the Psych Bill (which still needs much ironing out, by the way), I now know that I want to be a psychologist through and through. Then again, you might want to ask me again when I can't afford the comforts of life that I want. For now, I can say that I'm in the right place.