When I was still a kid, I remember my mum sometimes asked me if I can help her check her students’ papers. And enthusiastically, I will check them and correct them as if I am a teacher. While I am checking, I would notice the wrong answers and misunderstandings of my mum’s students. In college, my professor will call me after every quizzes and tests to check my classmates’ papers even without key to correction. I solved and checked it myself without reservations.
Not in my wildest dreams, that I see myself as an educator or a teacher. It never was on my list whenever people will ask me what I want to be in the future. I always say I want to be a doctor or a businessman or a scientist. But a teacher – No. Not even close to that.
However, whatever I do and wherever I go, it always leads me to this end – TO EDUCATE. Whether it is dancing, or sports, or academics, I always end up teaching, people from all walks of life, online or face-to-face.
But why? Why here? Why teaching?
I came to realize that my passion is not to teach. But to LEARN. I have great exuberance to know things and explore things. I am a pragmatic realist. I wanted to experience things to learn things.
Before, I always think “Why people should make mistakes for them to learn.” If they already know it is wrong, then why do they still do it. Then, I found the answer. Because they wanted to know. They wanted to know how it feels like, they wanted to understand what will happen. People do things because they wanted to know.
In order to achieve great things or greater things in life, we should continuously learn and improve ourselves. And this leads me to teaching. Because I wanted to gain knowledge and so I impart knowledge.
MITCHEL AFRICA 