PSY 438: EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

DELA CRUZ, Gianina Patrice R. 16

2P3/Tuesday&Thursday/2:30pm-4:00pm/Rm. 314 August 27, 2019

How Can I be A Good Teacher?

First of all, I am not a professional educator so I may not be able to give legitimate
examples such as being able to teach to a classroom full of students such as our professors.
Although I am not a licensed teacher, I am an elder sister to my younger sibling Gabie. She tends
to take after me and copy me. She is also very competitive and she likes to try and be better than
me in multiple ways one being volleyball. Since she looks up to me I have to remember to set a
good example to her and to be a good role model and teacher to her.
One thing that good teachers all do in common when teaching is trying to explain a
certain concept in simple terms so that it will be easier to grasp the difficult idea. She likes to ask
me volleyball related questions since we both play the sport and both have the same position.
Instead of getting mad at her for not being able to do something that is somehow mandatory to
our position I teach her in both words and actions. I make sure to explain how to set for example
in a descriptive way and next I follow it up with a demonstration. If she is not able to follow I
make sure to correct the main error and allow her to demonstrate it herself. If she is able to do it
properly I make sure to affirm her so that she knows what she is currently doing is right. I also
have her polish it by doing the action multiple times and making sure that I affirm her when what
she does is right. One thing about being a setter in volleyball is that you can change the game. A
good setter is the team’s key to winning a game so you might say that we play a very crucial role
in the team. Sometimes the pressure and burden on a setter can cause a lot of stress. My sister
and I have felt this firsthand form our perfectionist of a coach who specializes in setter. It can
come from the multiple screams from her for us to play properly or it could come from the one
on one talks our coach would have with us. Sometimes it is just too much and we end up
breaking down and I was lucky to be home when my sister could not handle it anymore. We
ended up having a heart to heart talk about how hard it is to set and all I could do was agree with
her because it was the truth. One thing I told her caused her to smile and it was that coach only
gave her that position because she knows Gabie can handle it. After the tears and the hugs she
asked me multiple questions about how to set in this and that way and I explained to her and we
even ended up going outside at night just so that I could demonstrate it.
I knew that after that night I was able to do something good for her and my heart felt
fulfilled and I felt accomplished knowing that I was able to lift the some of the burden of being a
setter for her. Not only that but I was also able to turn something negative, which was being a
setter, into something positive. I should always remember that when I teach her I must be selfless
and considerate. May it be night time I should sacrifice my time to teach her skills that she
cannot do yet. I should also consider her age when teaching. Since she is only thirteen I should
stay away from jargons when explaining, or if needed I should explain it in simple terms so she
could understand. I should always remember to set a good example and to be a good teacher
since she looks up to her ate so much. I know that if I continue teaching her like this she will be
able to surpass me when it comes to skill since she already surpassed me in height.