Forum: Lead teacher looked beyond fall in my son's steady grades
For months, my teenage son was lost in a fog of mischief and boredom. He began scribbling inappropriate doodles during class, acting out in the restroom, dozing off at his desk, and locking horns with his subject teacher. His once-steady grades also plummeted.
To many, he was just another 'disruptive' teen. But my son's school, Bedok View Secondary, was willing to work collaboratively to help him grow.
In the lead-up to the recent mid-year parent-teacher meeting, I had a few conversations with my son's lead teacher, form teacher and the school's discipline master.
During the meeting, which my son also attended, the lead teacher closed his report card, and gently but firmly said: 'This isn't about academics. Tell me what's really happening.'
In that moment, I realised the true power of a teacher who looks beyond the surface. While others reacted to the symptoms, he sought the cause. He understood that teens don't act out without reason – they communicate in the only ways they know how.
Teachers like the lead teacher are society's unsung heroes. They don't just teach subjects or languages, they read the defiance masking misguided thoughts and actions and see the child that needed subtle mentoring.
They're not just shaping students, they're rebuilding futures.
Lee Wee Sian
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