Walking in My Shoes

Hey there! Shevaanni is the name. I was born and raised in a town called Subang Jaya. I am an aspiring educator and am currently pursuing Bachelor of Education (HONS) at Unitar. I will be majoring in Language and Literature and hope to teach English related subjects.

   Nice to meet you ! :)

I became inspired to teach English after studying in an international school in India. I went there to do A levels and acquire a spiritual studies degree. There were many students from all over the world who came from non-English speaking families. Although it was informal, I discovered that I really liked helping my fellow school mates improve on their English. I also got inspired during my frequent class essay readings during my English classes. It really fascinated me to hear amazing narratives from my everyone in my class, including my own teacher! Constructive and encouraging feedback was always given and shared openly amongst ourselves. There was always something to learn from everybody. I never knew how beautiful the English language could be. It had the power of stirring up so many emotions in us, sometimes humorous, poignant, and also deeply insightful. People’s minds were revealed in such an artistic way. My English teacher always pushed us into doing our best. The sky was the limit for our creativity. It personally gave me such a sense of satisfaction as I surprised myself with what I was actually capable of, with the right motivation. When we graduated, my classmates and I showered her with many compliments and gratitude for being so inspirational. She always said to us ''I'm only inspirational because you all inspire me to be!'' It was then that I realized that I wanted to do exactly the same in the future.

Nationalities from left to bottom : UK, Malaysia, South Africa, US, Argentina, Brazil, India, Russia

My philosophy in teaching is based on a slogan from my spiritual society – ‘simple living, high thinking’. I want my students to become active thinkers and not to learn to love knowledge and not just for the sake of getting good grades. Anyone can digest facts and just throw them back out during an exam. But what’s the point of learning something without any application? Hence, a higher thinking principle should be applied where education should be viewed as a lifelong process. It should not have to end the minute you are done upon completion of an examination. I believe that all my students should be equipped with all the necessary knowledge and values to prepare them to face the real world. Nothing should be lacking. At the same time, I want my student to not get too puffed up or ahead of themselves. This is where the ‘simple living’ principle comes in. No matter how intelligent or successful they become, I want that they still remain down to earth and have a humble attitude. There are many talented people in this world with world records. But what people really admire and respect is someone with a good attitude. It is what makes you really stand out from others. 

I aim to base my teaching style based on the student-centered concept. As English is a creative subject, I want my students to be able to enjoy it in the most fun and stimulating way. I want to make even the most boring lessons seem exciting and educational at the same time. In this era, there are all sorts of educational material, technologies and games to facilitate learners' needs. I hope to be able to creatively dovetail them to engage my students and keep them entertained. In my opinion, a teacher's style and approach reflects the students' attitude in class. By participating actively with proper guidance and feedback, I am sure that the best results may be produced. This is the quintessential learning environment i hope to create for my students

I aim to also encourage my students to read and be inquisitive. With hundreds of people around the world using it daily, English is undoubtedly one of the most important global languages.In virtually every country, it is an essential part of business, research, commerce, technology, politics, news and many other fields in which the exchange of ideas is important. The pivotal key to mastery of English or any language for that matter, is through books. Unfortunately, statistics say that the average Malaysian reads about only a rather alarming half a page a year! It is really such a shame and hence I want to take it upon myself to make a change to that. It may be a challenging feat, but not impossible. Impossible is a word only in a fool's dictionary. I want to show my students how fun reading can be and how it can help them in the long run. 

*cue hallelujah chorus

Research has shown that when young people know their sparks (their unique interests, passions, and talents), and have adults in their lives who support them in pursuing those sparks, they tend to have greater academic success and school attendance, lead happier and healthier lives, and contribute more to society. As a future teacher, I hope I will be able to ignite those sparks in my students. No matter what their background, race, religion etc is, each and everyone of them has potential waiting to be unleashed. Just like a match stick, waiting to be lighted.  Keeping the flame of education alive would be an such an honour and a noble way to give back to our society. I hope this dream of mine will come true one day.

Don't worry, the flame is just a metaphor. I promise you won't get burned lol

Thank you for your patience in reading! Might have ended up a little longer than expected (I'm still new at blogging, so please bear with me :p) I will be doing write ups on my reflections on the Pedagogy of Education classes next, so stay tuned! Have a nice day! :)