Dear Editor,

WHILE I empathise with those who belong to the oldest and noblest of professions, it is with mixed feelings, however, that I welcome the impending agreement that will allow for a payout/increased salaries for teachers.

As in any profession, however, there are members who are truly deserving and those who, to be honest, are not deserving at all. Sir, as in any profession, there are those who are time-wasters. Excepting student-teachers who leave sometimes early to attend classes, there are those who are known as ‘clock watchers’ who waste no time in sneaking out the classroom just after the post-lunch session is over. Time, they argue, is of essence and they are not prepared to stay in after 14:30hrs, etc., etc., for they are not being paid overtime.

The fallout with the teachers’ union and any government will always be because of a few of its recalcitrant members. They sometimes give a bad image of what the teaching profession is all about. One person reminded us all of the multi-faceted roles of a teacher: nurse, parent, counsellor, psychologist, pastor, and the list can go on. But, generally speaking, is this true today? I wonder. Gone are the days when teachers will give you that assurance in school, especially in the ‘prep’ classes, that they are there for you. Gone are the days when teachers will take time out to visit homes in an effort to build bonds of friendship within the community. Having a cookout, an after- school event, perhaps once a year? You cannot tell the positives that may result from these kinds of activities in order to help nurture the child.

Yes,gone are the days when teachers would take time out to send “thank you” notes, etc. at appropriate times. Today, it seems as if some schools and the home are estranged partners; no longer coalescent, no longer partners in the ‘struggle’ for a better community. Human nature says we would become good stewards only when we obtain  better salaries. We must get first!  That’s in the natural.

However, the Good Book says “it is in giving (first) that we receive.”
Congratulations, albeit belatedly, to all teachers on World Teachers Day! Hats off to all of you hardworking teachers who continue to work tirelessly, overtime, in school and out of school, to mould the minds of our children.

Remember, what our children will be tomorrow would be an extension of what the school is like today.

Yours truly,
Rev’d Joseph Atkinson.