An article I wrote about a school memory

 

Hello, my name is Mana Atieh. I am 31 years old now. It has been a long time since I graduated from Al Makassed Secondary High School which I spent my kindergarten till grade twelve in the same school. I loved my school a lot and it was considered one of the amazing and special schools in Saida – Lebanon. I still remember every single detail about it, the class, the teachers, the supervisors, and the administration.

 I’ve had many great moments but perhaps the best moment that took place was in my English class in grade 12, I had a 10-15 minutes presentation and I felt pretty confident, 30 minutes before my presentation I decided to incorporate an actor for visual appeal to corresponding with my presentation. I felt even more confident assure that I would captivate the audience’s attention and keep them engaged. When my presentation started, I gave a signal to my actor which led me to drop my 8 notecards all over the floor. I was aware that the time was ticking, so I quickly grabbed all the notecards off the floor. I became overwhelmed with embarrassment, listening to the echoing laughter of the audience as I tried to rearrange the cards. The cards in my hand then became extremely restraining. My anxiety levels rose, and the disorganized cards just added stress to my emotions. I placed the cards down and felt a great sense of relief. My words, my explanations, my connections all flowed out my mouth with harmony, and I felt more natural and free as I presented my topic.

My introduction was a determination of a character with schizophrenia, clarifying the indications and the thinking behind my analysis. The development of my hands and my misrepresentation introduced by a drive of energy, alongside my visual agent, kept the crowd hostage. I felt like a totally unique individual, before the finish of the introduction I was sweat-soaked, not by apprehension but rather in light of the fact that I left it all on the floor. I understood that the way to giving individuals isn't standing out enough to be noticed just by visual allure, however, you need to allow your heart to spill out with the goal that you can enamor their hearts, arrive at their spirits. You can't simply be the focal point of consideration, you need to give the crowd consideration, you need to converse with them. Above all else, you can't present without feelings, anything you present should be worked off of energy. As long as you can discover an association between yourself and the theme and radiate your energy, you will keep the crowd locked in.

Let me tell you more about my classroom at that time because I really believe that classroom setup can dramatically affect students' attitudes toward and habits of learning. Creating such an environment entails arranging a practical physical layout, supplying diverse materials and supplies, and encouraging students to have a sense of belonging and ownership and that’s all that the students need to succeed and improve.

My classroom was divided into many areas, a quiet reading corner, a music area where students can play soft music while completing work of course by wearing headphones, a large table for cooperative projects at the end of the class, space for wet or messy projects next to the window and individual work area. I wish I would go back to that time again, because I loved my teacher a lot and I think I have so many things I can learn from her. My teacher was the best, she really knows the needs of her students so that she keeps them engaged all the time with very interesting activities so that all students will be on task and there is no time to waste or to allow any the student to disrupt the class with any misbehavior like disruptive behavior or bullying between any students.

Even the reading part I enjoyed a lot, she had a unique technique to keep us all the time focused and waiting for our turns to read, it was like a game. I was excellent at reading with a very high speed and showing interaction as if am performing a play. I remember one time the teacher took me to other sections and she asked me to read in front of them, I felt very self-confident and she gave me a push-up and positive vibes so that I overcome my shyness and she was very happy and proud of me. This small thing affects me a lot as a student, I felt more popular and all the students in other sections now know me and recognize my name, in this way, the teacher builds my connection and relationships with others.

 Also, technology played and still playing a very vital role in the teaching and learning cycle through visualization which brings all the academic concepts to life with visual and practical learning experiences, helping the students to understand how their schooling applies in the real-world which improve cooperative learning and build a strong connection between the student and the teacher for better academic performance.

The rules of the class were very clear and distributed all over the walls of the class in a very nice and colorful way where every week the teacher chooses the student of the week, the board- eraser, the distributer of the papers, the messenger …. Every student took a turn in these roles equally so that no one would feel neglected and our right as a student is reserved, ensuring that no student will be penalized or singled out based on anything but a violation of established rules.

Everything was perfect during that time so that there was no disruptive behavior from any student, we were all like one family, understanding and cooperative teamwork and that’s all because of our teacher and our will as a student because we loved the material and the teacher. I don’t remember any time the teacher was sad or shouted at any student, even we don’t know what the meaning of punishment is. That’s what all call successful classroom management.