"Strong women don’t play victim, don’t make themselves look pitiful, and don’t point figures. They stand and they deal." Mandy Hale
I taught in several schools in Sarawak after I graduated from the university. Three of them had boarding facilities and each one of them had different kinds of wardens who looked after the boarding boys and girls.
Most of them were strict and executed their duties with fairness and firmness.
One particular warden was very strict and the girls did not like her at all. A few of them in fact spoke evil of her and spread wild rumours too. It was totally unfair and we teachers knew about it.
They called her tigress and they disturbed her teaching, which was most unfair because many of the weaker students needed her help. She taught them slowly and with a great deal of patience. Eventually they all passed their Form Three Exams. The girls even called her stupid and slow teacher.....because she was a very slow and gentle speaker.
One day a school girl was in need of blood, so this lady teacher gave her precious blood and none of the student's family knew about it. A doctor had called her up to donate blood and she willingly gave. She was never thanked for the blood donation because she did not want anyone to know except the Principal.
Another time, a student owed the school a year's boarding fees, she quietly offered to pay.
She often visited the school kitchen and she would reprimand the kitchen staff if food was short. She would eat with the students, which made some girls say that she was very bad and stingy. She never took the students' ration. The kitchen staff knew that she brought ikan bilis, chicken and extra vegetables for her meal which the kitchen staff also shared. She was quietly checking on the quality of the food. During the examination weeks, she supplied most of the ikan bilis to give to the girls who had no appetite.
In fact during Mr. Robert Nicholl's principalship at Tanjong Lobang School,for example, he made sure that the staff ate with the students in the dining hall or refractory. This was to ensure that staff and students would eat the same quality of food and the students would have models to look at.
Many students developed gentlemanly behaviour according to one of the seniors I met at one time. He told me that when he looked at his school mates and his teachers, he knew then how some students learned well and how some never learned. He said that his dining experiences in the school helped him a lot when he went overseas. He had excellent table manners.
One of the school wardens' duties was to catch boys and girls for breaking hostel regulations. When they were brought to the staff room for reprimanding and investigation they would tell a lot of lies. So the wardens and other teachers would know who the liars were.
Many students lie just to get out of sticky situations, and to make themselves look like victims too so that they had people's pity.
Talking bad about others and lying to save oneself are two weaknesses of many students. These are the characters teachers must always help try to set straight. Eventually when they join the work force they are likely to have the same character.
Unfortunately teachers who tried their best to set the students in the right path are given bad names. Bad teachers they would say. Only God would know these hardworking teachers tried their best.
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