Interview with the Longest Serving Teacher of CITA International School on their 40th Anniversary Ceremony
Meet Esther Onwuka, the longest-serving teacher of CITA International School.
Watch video here
- For how long have you been working as a teacher in CITA International School?
Response:
Have been working with CITA for the past 24 years. When I came to CITA, I came in as a caregiver, I was able to run with big aunty’s idea of furthering your education. Like she always tells us ” Go, look for something better to do for yourself, because you can never continue to be a caregiver forever”. I took that opportunity and today I’m a better person, I can fit into any classroom and work with the children, courtesy of big aunty’s advice.
2. How were you able to handle classroom discipline especially in some cases where you have students who are constantly disruptive in class?
Response:
Discipline is not just about flogging a child. Sometimes, children can be disciplined by taking away what they love most, you can deprive them of playing with what they like to play with something they to play with, you can deprive them of a task or an exercise they like to carry out by so doing, directly or indirectly you have disciplined the child. It doesn’t necessarily mean you must hit the child with a cane. But for a child who constantly disrupts a class, all you need to do is to engage the child in an activity that is being channeled towards achieving a particular goal. As the teacher, you know what you have in mind, you know what you expect from the child, all you need to do is to get an activity and engage the child in that activity. It will also help the child to think critically and achieve this using some hands-on exercises, depending on the child’s age.
3.How have you impacted your students outside academics?
Response:
Outside education, I have impacted my children with ethics and the need for them to always comport themselves in their environment.
4.How were you able to manage teacher-parent relationship?
Response:
I have always maintain a good relationship with my student’s parents, I give ears to their complains, thereby helping me know how best to work with the child. If a parent complains about something and you did not do anything as a teacher, you will end up not being able to work with the child, but when you are in a better relationship with the parent, that will give you an opportunity to hear what the child does at home and it will give you the opportunity of trying to find out where you can fit in, is the emotional needs, academical needs or social needs, so as to work on those areas. If you don’t have a cordial relationship with parents, you will not be able to work with the child, because the child is the person you are actually focusing on.
5.Being the longest-serving teacher of the school, how do you motivate and encourage other teachers?
Response:
I motivate and encourage other teachers by making them understand that we are working as a team because without teamwork we cannot achieve success. In schools, it is not just about one person, it is teamwork. So by the time we bring our ideas and work together as a team, with that, we will be able to achieve something at the end of the day.
I also give ears to their complaints, we talk about things outside academics and also look at how best we can tackle a situation, and at the end of the day, we will achieve success. I try to give in my best because most of them are looking up to me being the longest-serving staff of CITA International School, to see how have been managing all these while, so if I don’t do my best, most of them will relent or misbehave.
6.Any word of advise to every parent and prospective parents of CITA International School?
Response:
Parents should know that training of the child is not just the teacher’s responsibility. It’s a two-way thing, I work from the school as a teacher, you work from the home as a parent, then we come together to share our ideas concerning their children to know-how will help and what we will do. If you leave the work alone for the teachers, you might not have a good record but if you work hand in hand with the teachers you will find out that the child will be a better person in the future. Working with the parents is the best any teacher can do.
And to our prospective parents, ” come to CITA, entrust your child into our care and watch us nurture your child.