and so she taught

“We teach for our students, not for ourselves.”

Bumbling through her banter, she paused only to take a spoonful of meehoon sprinkled with spring onions and skinny prawns. Pak Li Kopitiam, another one of the mushrooming kopitiam outlets in Dataran Sunway, was the start of our culinary adventure for the day.

“If you spoon feed your students, how will they break out of their high school mindset, and think for themselves through a challenge? Results say something, but most importantly, you must groom them while they are still in their foundation year.” Outside, the drizzle turned into louder taps against the wooden canopy roof.

“And that’s why the few of you are around, to uphold what should have always been..”, I declared. “I used to think that there was a severe lack of professionalism in this industry, but I was proven wrong. You inspired us to break out of the mould, to have faith in ourselves to achieve the unthinkable. And look, we came out tops!” I looked back on M2, the class of 2004.

She smiled. “You guys were great. It’s the students that keep me going. But.. it's tiring. I’m getting tired of fighting the authority, of the accusations that fly around the office.” The sparkling eyes looked away for a split second, failing to disguise the pain harboured inside. “They’ve misled me into renewing my retirement contract for a higher position but a lesser involvement in the classroom, and now they give me scholars to teach… against my own will.”. A look of quiet disdain passed through her façade. “Scholars who question my competence the minute I step foot into class!”.

“I want a wholesome class I can develop; playful but intelligent students who listen, argue and accept with respect. I may get the blow during BOD meetings every week for underperforming results, but what do they know of the quality of my classes? At the end of the day, the year-end results speak for themselves. I am in no competition with the others who stuff look alike exam questions down their students’ throats. It’s about teaching them how to apply the concepts, and not regurgitating memorized answers.” She sighed. A strand of graying hair fell across her forehead.

The next instant, the shadow lifted.

“But more importantly, what are we going to have next?” Her eyes gleamed. We looked at each other- one, a former student, the other, an experienced mentor. I, along with many other of her students in her 30 odd years in education, was living proof of her dedication. Decades may have separated our age, but the bridge to friendships transcends time. How I loved this woman. Her passion to teach, her courage to fight for what she believes in, her optimism spilling over even in the bleakest moments. And the love of food! That does me in anytime.

“Well, there’s one of the best tau fu fas just down the street…”