Tuesday, July 10, 2018

Qualities that Make a Great Teacher


One truth about children that resonates with me was explicated by Rousseau: Children are neither good nor evil. They can be either. It’s how they are brought up that determines that. Therefore, parents and teachers play a crucial role on the lives of children. While teachers are given years of education to do just that, the task of shaping the lives of young, impressionable children can be daunting at times.

The qualities that make a great teacher are not easy to inculcate or duplicate, but understanding these qualities can set a distinct standard of excellence to strive for.

ACCEPTING. Create an environment of love by accepting any kind of learners.

BUBBLY. Teaching is a high-energy job that requires constant interaction with different students and an upbeat, bubbly personality is a must.

CONSIDERATE. Students need to feel that they are equally valued and their ideas, beliefs and tenets are respected.


DEEP THINKER. To gain understanding of the children’s complex development, a deeper insight is needed.

EFFECTIVE. Studies revealed that students who were placed with highly effective teachers significantly outperformed comparable students on various assessments.

FAIR. Our society is founded on the idea of justice and equality and teachers play a vital role in instilling this.

GENUINE. A child can see through a looking glass and he/she can can feel if you genuinely care about her/ him.

HONEST. Teaching honesty helps develop character and self-esteem.

INTERESTING. Children can be truly engaged if teachers present lessons in a thought-provoking manner.

JOYFUL. Learning is futile if the experience of “doing school” destroys children’s spirit to learn. Boredom is a disease of epidemic proportion.

KIND. Too often, we underestimate the power of kindness. A kind teacher helps students feel cared for and loved.

LIGHTHEARTED. Teachers have the power to create lighthearted fun out of serious learning.

MOTHERLY. An explicit mothering role to students can bring an inexplicable amount of positive change.

NATURAL. Be natural. If your heart is in teaching, it will naturally show.

OPTIMISTIC. When students are facing hurdles, the teacher can influence them to be more optimistic in attaining their goals.

PASSIONATE. Passionate teachers believe in the importance of their job and their role to promote student’s intellectual and moral development.

QUINTESSENTIAL. Teachers find gratification that their job is worthy of sacrifice.

REFLECTIVE. The ability to reflect and draw decisions on thoughtful analysis is an integral part of being a teacher.

SINCERE. It runs through the core of your soul and reflects to the way you deal with all kinds of learners.

THOUGHTFUL. A thoughtful teacher carefully plans to foster learning.


UPRIGHT. The role of a teacher in a society is undeniable and being an upright teacher means displaying good character worthy of emulation.

VIRTUOUS. The old mantra holds true: virtue is first “caught” and then “taught”.

WILLING. Be willing to explore new teaching ideas and strategies.

YOUTHFUL. Teacher’s enthusiasm is infectious. Be youthful. Be alive.

ZEALOUS. A zealous teacher can make a world of passionate and energetic young learners.

Most importantly, teach LIFE.


Wednesday, June 27, 2018

Five Reasons Why You Should Never Give Up Writing a Thesis


Overwhelmed would be an understatement to describe the emotion that accompanies thesis writing. When the word ‘deadline’ is mentioned, writer’s block can get magnified ten times. As you desperately wrestled with many negative emotions that might hurdle your final requirement for graduation, do not forget that oftentimes, procrastination is mostly because of fear. The key to continue fighting is reminding yourself that you can do this. Here are some helpful tips on how to handle this difficult situation:

1. Set your goals. Start with small goals and be positive when things don’t work your way. Make sure they are realistic and attainable. 

2. Listen for feedback. The sooner you know what changes must be made, the easier it would be for you. Nobody wants to rewrite the whole chapter after working so hard on it. Sometimes, listening would give you many ideas on how to proceed with your study. Instead of taking feedback as a stumbling block, think about it as a motivation for improvement.

3. Be analytical of expectations. Follow the advice given by your professors. Expectations differ on every professor so the key is understanding exactly what’s expected from your research.

4. Rest if you must but don’t give up. We do get tired and there’s nothing wrong admitting that. When you force yourself to write more at times that you are so tired and discouraged, the harder it will be. Recharge then go back fighting.


5. Stop making excuses. At the end of it all, what matters most is that you need to finish the race or you’re out of the graduation. Stop making excuses and continue writing.

Tuesday, June 19, 2018

Chris Pratt Unveiled Nine Awesome Rules for the Next Generation at the 'MTV'

Chris Pratt's Nine Awesome Rules for the Next Generation.
1. Breathe. If you don’t, you will suffocate.

2. You have a soul. Be careful with it.

3. Don’t be a turd. If you are strong, be a protector. If you are smart, be a humble influencer. Strength and intelligence can be weapons, so do not wield them against the weak. That makes you a bully. Be bigger than that.

4. When giving a dog medicine, put the medicine in a little piece of hamburger and they won't even know they're eating medicine.

5. It doesn't matter what it is. Earn it. A good deed. Reach out to someone in pain. Be of service. It feels good and it's good for your soul.

6. God is real. God loves you. God wants the best for you. Believe that, I do.


7. If you have to poop at a party, but you're embarrassed because you're going to stink up the bathroom, just do what I do. Lock the door, sit down, get all of the pee out first. And then, once all the pee is done, poop, flush, boom! You minimize the amount of time that the poop's touching the air.

Because if you poop first, it takes you longer to pee and then you're peeing on top of it, stirring up the poop particles, create a cloud, goes out, then everyone at the party will know that you pooped. Just trust me, it's science.

8. Learn to pray. It's easy, and it is so good for your soul.

9. Nobody is perfect. People will tell you that you are perfect just the way that you are, you are not! You are imperfect. You always will be, but there is a powerful force that designed you that way, and if you are willing to accept that, you will have grace.
And grace is a gift. Like the freedom that we enjoy in this country, that grace was paid for with somebody else's blood. Do not forget that. Don't take that for granted.





Thursday, June 14, 2018

After 20 years, Yahoo Messenger is finally shutting down


I am being sentimental. Twenty years of service and Yahoo Messenger is shutting down. After the death of Friendster, it is the next casualty of the evolution in messaging platform. The news came as a crashing blow but there was really nothing surprising about it. With the increasing number of Facebook messenger users, it was bound to happen.

The 20-year-old app finally capitulated to the competition and will bid its goodbye to the virtual world of technology on July 17, 2018. It will be a sad farewell to one of the pioneers in this platform which paved way for the improvement of communications of friends and families all over the world. I believe that the rise in popularity of emoticons in Internet forums could be attributed to Yahoo Messenger. After all, who could forget the smiley that used to greet us in opening the app?


It is therefore with a sad heart that I remember the five unforgettable features of Yahoo Messenger.

1. The BUZZ- The ‘buzz’ button that shakes the window message whenever you press it is on top of the list. There’s this feeling of urgency and excitement whenever you hear that ‘buzz’ sound combined with the moving box. Facebook messenger doesn’t have this and I doubt if it could replicate this YM’s feature.


2. The ‘OPENING SMILEY’- The opening smiley is a welcome respite from a long day of work and you’re trying to get in touch with your friends and family. Well, it becomes a sad emoticon whenever the log in is not successful. Again, current communication platforms do not have this feature.

3. The YAHOO MUSIC- This feature allows you to choose different music by theme or genre. I remember working long hours while listening to jazz and country music. You could even show your contacts what music you were listening to! 

4. The STATUS- Long before Facebook asked you ‘what’s on your mind?’, YM already allowed its users to let your contacts know about your day and whether you’re available or not. It also has the option to keep your availability hidden by showing that you’re offline even though you're technically NOT.

5. The Emoticons- Yahoo Messenger has it all. From celebration, daily greetings, to sad emotions. And it definitely deserves a sad emoticon right now.

Yahoo Messenger was my first taste of modern instant communication. It’s a cliché’ but it’s the truth nonetheless that not everything has a happy ending, and not everything has an ending. Some things just kind of dribble away or cut off abruptly. Yahoo Messenger might be joining its virtual friends in Technology heaven but the memories will be left forever in the hearts of its loyal users.

Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Why You Should Be Proud as an Introvert

I was in first grade when my teacher brought me in a room full of kids rehearsing for a dance. Apparently, she was expecting me to join them and prepare for the End of the Year program. I was standing at the corner for more than an hour just staring at them much to her chagrin.

When I was in high school, a teacher told me that my younger sister has better ‘Public Relations’ and she advised me to mingle more with my schoolmates. In my last year of high school, I won as president of the school government organization. How did I do it? My sister campaigned for me in the entire school.


Growing up, I could not understand why speaking came naturally for my younger sister and whenever we’re with a group of people, she fits in perfectly. I, on the other hand, stayed quiet and never initiated a conversation.

I hated delivering speeches or being at the limelight. Still, I won awards for public speaking and even became president of Public Speaking Society back in college. However, it takes a lot of mind conditioning before I could do it.

One day, I stumbled upon the word that best describes me- an introvert. I used to think that it was sort of a deficiency but through the years, a deeper part of myself made me realized it is not.

I am an introvert and it’s perfectly fine if I didn’t like speeches or initiating conversations. It’s not because I could not do it. Discernment comes first- should I say it or not?


I am an introvert and it’s definitely okay if I don’t prefer working in a group. It’s not because I could not do it but I thrive more working by myself.

It’s okay if you don’t see me mingling me with the horde of unknowns. Believe me, I enjoy the company of friends but I’d rather spend some quiet time ‘observing the world.’

I am an introvert and it’s probably not the best thing knowing that I live in an extroverted society but I gather my energy from within and I am focused on inward turning than seeking out external stimulation. The world of an introvert is just more meaningful, more peaceful, and closer to the unknown utopia.

Yes, it’s okay to be an introvert. As Ghandi puts it, “Speak only if it improves upon the silence.”

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