Photo illustration: Mukti Mulyana
This article is part of the Teachers' Notes series on unpleasant teaching experience.
Being a teacher has been my wish since college.
I had many experiences, both good and bad, during my tenure for the past year working at a primary school in Klaten. I used every experience I got to prepare for the new school year.
Did Not Have the Confidence
My most challenging experience was when I was assigned a homeroom teacher for Grade 6. I was surprised to get the assignment from the school principal because my only experience was teaching Grade 3 students. Nevertheless, I accepted the assignment and did the job with full responsibility.
At first, I did not have the confidence to teach Grade 6 students. I was losing sleep and anxious every day for a week. I was worried that I would not be able to perform my new role well.
As time went by, I began to feel more confident with the role. I tried to deepen my knowledge by buying source materials for Grade 6. My anxiety was slowly gone.
More Tasks, More Burden
One problem's solved, another comes. I was given an additional assignment as the school operator. This role made me lose sleep again because the work was never-ending and disrupted my main job, which was teaching.
I fell ill due to exhaustion from the many work of school operator. I often had to work past regular working hours. I had to work overnight at home because I had to focus on teaching during the day and did not have time to do anything else.
Fortunately, I managed to do all the assignments well.
Something to Reflect on
My first-year teaching at a new school was exhausting, although it offered me many experiences. I saw them as a learning opportunity and as something to reflect on. Every problem, every task assigned to me taught me the meaning of hard work.
Being a teacher means I have to be prepared for challenges and risks.
Being a beginning teacher also means that I have to be ready to work hard to help students realize their dreams.
*This Note was written by TA, a primary school teacher in Central Java.
**All articles published in the Teachers' Notes are the views of the authors. They have been edited for popular writing purposes and do not represent the views of RISE Programme in Indonesia or RISE's funders.
