One day you are sitting in a classroom, studying for exams, gossiping with friends, worrying about marks, notes and assignments. And then, you are standing on the platform and everyone in the room is looking at you with apt attention.
The transition from student to assistant professor was one of the most strange and disorienting experiences of my professional life. Not because the subject matter was unfamiliar but because the entire focus of being inside the classroom changes.
As a student, you were careless and relaxed and can answer “I don’t know.” As a faculty, that can and should never happen.
Academics was not the only challenge. The day-to-day activities of managing the class with a myriad of students with varying levels of learning and comprehension capabilities, rowdy and unruly students, balancing teaching, self-learning and with research and administrative responsibilities, finding yourself the youngest amongst colleagues with decades of experience, all these and much more made the entire start quite an unconventional ride, one which I wasn’t prepared for at all.
In such situations, it was honesty and willingness to give the best to the students that helped me. It would be appropriate to say that my teaching style may not be filled with years of experience. But giving my best to teach my students the best is what helped me grow and earn respect as a teacher.
The students are the best educators. Guide them to success and they will never forget you.
Did you have similar experience when you entered academics?
MBH/PS