Emotions; My Students made me happy

The school year in Nigeria just ended, and I am very happy because of the feedback I got from my students and some of their parents.

When this school year started, I sat down and drew a plan on how I was going to improve my students academically and socially. Well, I started by jotting down the names of my students who needed help academically and socially. There were 18 people in total who needed help academically and 15 socially. It was not going to be an easy task.

Well, I had to make sure that I could balance my relationship between my special students and my other students. At first, I was scared about it, but I knew I had to do it. I met with a senior colleague of mine and discussed my plans with him, and he encouraged me that it was a good idea.

My students resumed, and I informed my special students about my plans, and all of them bought the idea. I was very happy about it, and I knew deep down that it was going to be a success. We started our extra classes, and the first month was a success because, after my students first continuous assessment test, I saw a remarkable improvement. Out of the 18 students, 10 scored 8 out of 10. I didn't allow the result to get into my head. I saw it as a challenge; we can do better. Some of the students came and met me and said they were happy about their scores. I had to tell them it was not time to celebrate and that we still had a long way to go.

For my 15 students who needed social help, we had a small coaching session for them. The school counselor helped me coach them, and I could see them come out of their shells. I was happy about it; I could see them in class answering questions without being scared or intimidated by anyone.

After the second terminal examination, I could see my 18 students doing well, and I knew they would all pass their promotional examinations. But I told all of them I was not really impressed with their performance. To be truthful, I was impressed, but I did not want them to feel so relaxed. I felt bad because I should have told them I was happy with them. I could see the disappointment on their faces. They all felt that I was angry with them.

I saw my special students putting in a lot of effort into their studies. And I was sure they were all going to be at the top of their classes. I just saw students who were ready to make their parents proud and make me proud too. The promotional examination result was out, and my special students came out on top of their classes. I was very happy when one of them was the overall best student in his class.

At the end of this school year, I was happy with myself and with my special students. I just knew it was justified that those students who were once regarded as the worst were now regarded as one of the best.

All pictures are mine