The Heart of the Students: a Teacherly Story with Genevieve Braza Borita
Everybody loves a good story and nobody tells one better than a teacher. These are Teacherly Stories: for sharing authentic moments, shining a light on the human side of teaching, and celebrating the incredible teachers we know.
Genevieve is a primary teacher from the Philippines, with 11 years of teaching experience. She graduated in 2008 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Education and Certificate of Information Systems Management, Cum Laude. She currently lives in Dubai, and considers the UAE her second home.
I never thought I would become a teacher. I grew up during the internet boom and like most millennials I was attracted to the possibilities that technology held for our future. When I was in high school I was very fond of technology and planned to get a Computer Science degree at university. I read that an IT analyst could earn a lot and since I’m from a poor family I knew that money would change our lives. My father was a security guard at the time and my mother used to work in a cafeteria; I wanted to get a high-paying job to support myself and the rest of my family, so when I graduated from high school I took a Bachelor of Science in IT. I wanted to be a computer genius. After my first year of studying, my father lost his job. He didn’t have the money to support me in college, especially while my three sisters were still in school, so I had to drop out.
My heart was broken. I am not an outgoing person; my life was just at home and school. I got a job in a manufacturing factory for a year but I was so depressed. My aunties saw that I wasn’t happy and wasn’t going to meet my full potential there. They knew I could get a great job if I had a chance, so they decided to pay for my college degree. There was one condition: I would become a teacher.
I come from a family of teachers, my relatives have positions in the Department of Education, Division of Cavite and most of my aunties on my mother’s side have Masters Degrees and were heads of departments. They insisted that I wouldn’t have a future with any other degree. “Even if you get a degree in IT, you will still end up working in a factory.” That’s how life is in the Philippines. They told me, “if you’re a teacher, at least you can work in a government job and get benefits.” I didn’t know if I wanted to be a teacher, but I was desperate to study. So I just kept my mouth shut and agreed. I found out that my new university was offering a Degree in Education with a Certificate of Information Systems Management. I finished both degrees at the same time. It was a very tight schedule but I was so excited to go back to school since I really wanted to help my family. To make money while studying, I sold recharge cards to my classmates. Then I found out that if I got good grades, I could get a scholarship. I earned three scholarships: one from school, one from the government, and two from government officials. I was basically a walking business. I was glad to be studying but by the end of my third year I still didn’t really want to become a teacher.
My first time teaching
My first teaching placement was part of the university program. Before I started teaching I watched this popular Japanese TV show called Gokusen. Yankumi is from a gangster family and she’s trained in martial arts, but she wants to help kids and change the world, so she becomes a teacher. I was so inspired by that TV series that I even tried to copy her costume and hairstyle during my first English session. I met one student at that school whom I’ll never forget. He was like teachers’ enemy number one. Whenever there was a faculty meeting, his name came up. He was sixteen years old and he failed for two consecutive years so he was still with the younger kids. The worst part was that he was encouraging all of them to skip school. Sometimes my class would only have fifteen students out of forty because of his influence. As the teacher, when your students skip, you feel annoyed and worthless- what’s wrong with me, why aren’t they attending my class?
To fix the problem I decided to start with that boy. I asked him what was going on and gave him some leadership roles to encourage him. Eventually, I made him the president of our Filipino class and asked him to look after the other kids. I found out that he’s from a broken family and I met with his Mom to learn more about how I could help him. I started to understand him and little by little I saw a change. He stopped skipping classes and then started to encourage his classmates to attend school. When I saw a change in their attendance I started building a more positive relationship with the other kids and tried my best to understand and help them too; at first it was very challenging but, in the end, there was a huge difference with their grades in my class.
At the end of my placement there was a Valentine’s program, where the kids were asked to give flowers or letters to the teachers they love. I cried that day — I have goose bumps just thinking about it. My table was filled with paper flowers, letters and hearts. There was also an evening party where my students danced with me. That day I understood that being a teacher is not about having a good job, getting a lot of money, or having a government position. It’s about changing children’s lives by serving them.
I realized that most kids go to school because they need love from their friends and their teachers. After my first teaching experience, my reason for being a teacher changed. I still needed money for my family, but now I make sure that when I go to school I do my best, especially for the students who need love.
Being a Filipino Teacher in Dubai
One of my most unforgettable experiences happened when I was teaching in a premium-market school where most teachers are Europeans. I’m from the Philippines and I teach in a country where most Filipinos are nannies, nurses, caregivers or cleaners, so the parents were surprised to see a Filipino teacher in the classroom when the rest of the teachers were Europeans. There was a group of them who couldn’t accept me at a prestigious school. They noticed every single little mistake I made. I would go home at eight or nine and message them until eleven p.m. to support their children but it wasn’t enough. They wrote a letter to the principal that they wanted me to be replaced; they wanted me out of the classroom. I was devastated, I felt like I wasn’t good enough because I’d made too many mistakes. But my leaders told me that it was not about the mistakes I made, it was because of my nationality. I broke down that day. The parents set up a meeting with the principal, asking him to replace me, but when he sat down with them he told them he would not replace me. I am a fully qualified teacher.
That’s how supportive my leaders were to me even though I am not Western-educated like them. I still have a journal filled with all the tips they gave me about the British way of teaching. One of them gave me two books that she used when observing and supporting teachers. I still re-read them. I kept learning and finally, all my hard work was paid off in 2018 when I was given the award for being the teacher of the month. The following school year, I received the Best Reading Corner and Excellent Feedback Award in the Primary Department.
I’ve learned that serving people is a way of showing love and you might not realize, but the parents and students will appreciate your care in the end. Just live with your purpose and stand firm with your calling.
