“迎大運(yùn)師德師風(fēng)”英語(yǔ)故事演講比賽
why i teach
good morning, ladies and gentlemen.
i’m very honored to be here speaking to you all about why i teach. we are all teachers here, and i wonder if you’ve ever asked yourself the question, “ why do i teach?”
“why do i teach?” i ask myself the same question time and again.certainly i don't teach because it is easy for me. teaching is the most difficult job there is. for me, teaching is a red-eye, sweaty-palm, sinking-stomach profession. red-eye, because i never feel ready to teach no matter how late i stay up preparing. sweaty-palm, because i'm always nervous before i enter the classroom, sure that i will be exposed for the fool that i am. sinking-stomach, because i leave the classroom an hour later convinced that i was even more boring than usual.
why, then, do i teach？
i teach because teaching is a profession built on change. when the material is the same, i change – and more importantly, my students change.
i teach because i like the freedom to make my own mistakes, to learn my own lessons, to inspire myself and my students. as a teacher, i'm my own boss, and every year i return to my work with fresh ideas and a new sense of purpose.
i teach because i like to ask questions that students must struggle to answer. the world is filled with too many easy answers to bad questions.
i have left out, however, the most important reasons why i teach.
one is jian jun. he was a shy little boy from a poor family. one day i noticed that he used his paper twice. once with a pencil, then with a pen. i guess he didn’t have enough money to buy more paper. as a teacher, i can offer him my help easily. but he was very sensitive. how could i help him without letting him feel embarrassed? after class i asked him to my office. he was a bit nervous. first i gave him my suggestions on his writing. then i handed him a pile of white paper. “ by the way, i have too much paper here. i can’t use them up. could you please do me a favor to use them up?” he looked at my smiling face, a bit surprised, and then relaxed and happy, “ yes, of course.” he helped me use the paper for three years till his graduation.
jian jun is working in the central sea oil company now. every teacher’s day and every new year’s day, he may give me a phone call to send me his best wishes. i just offered him a little help, but to him, it was love and care deep as a well.