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教師と、教えること
奨学金のおかげで、大学院に入ってからこれまで、自分で学費や生活費を稼ぐ必要がなかった雅子さんですが、ここに来て状況は変わってきました。4年生も終わりに差し掛かり、いまだ博士号修得のめどが立たないため、これから資金調達をしなければなりません。その手段として考えられるのは学部生に授業を教えることです。
Teachers and Teaching
By MASAKO YAMADA
I have been very fortunate to have had a scholarship to study ever since I entered graduate school. I did not have to
teach classes and grade papers during my first few years of graduate school, as did most of my classmates.
The first few years are when the classes and exams are the most challenging, and being a teaching assistant in
addition to being a full-time student can be extremely draining. Most graduate students look forward eagerly to the day
they can start doing research full-time. They get sick of classes — both teaching them and taking them — after a while.
Now that I'm nearing the end of my fourth year in graduate school, however, I am suddenly confronted with the
possibility of teaching. This is usually the time when students start dedicating themselves to their research, but my
scholarship is nearing its end and my Ph.D. is not yet on the horizon, so I must think of new funding sources. Teaching
undergraduates is one income source that is common among graduate students in the sciences.
After students take all their courses and exams, it's customary for them to join a research group and be funded by
research grants that go to the group. However, grants are not permanent, so students must occasionally teach, even
after joining a research group. All of the graduate students in my department get a tuition waiver and they can always
find some means of supporting themselves while they get their degree.
In this sense, graduate students in the sciences are luckier than the many graduate students who have to pay full
tuition in addition to living expenses while they get their degrees. Teaching a few classes is a small price to pay for the privilege.
I've always liked teachers and I have kept in contact with teachers that I've known since I was 7. However, I've always
been a bit apprehensive about the idea of teaching. I always considered teaching the same material every semester
boring, the students difficult, and my temper too short.
However, over the years, I've come to realize that the art and craft of teaching is something that I would like to
cultivate. I've come to this realization largely because I've encountered both good and bad teachers, and I've been
trying to figure out what makes certain teachers special. I have also started to feel a responsibility to educate the
next generation and I would like to do a good job as a public citizen.
A physicist friend and I have been talking about some music teachers that we've had, and our conclusion has been that a
"good teacher" is one that inspires you to grow. We've both had teachers who have made us miserable after every
lesson.
However, because we share similar "Old-World" values, we've stuck with these teachers in an attempt to create a
more meaningful relationship over time. (The "New-World" method is more competitive and encourages one to drop old teachers when more attractive ones come along.) Patience can surely improve a bad relationship, but we've agreed that
some teachers can make one feel like dancing with absolutely no effort at all. These are the ones we yearn for.
One thing that I've come to realize firsthand is that an impressive resume doesn't necessarily lead to impressive
teaching abilities. This is not a new observation, but I must admit that I've been blinded by credentials and famous
school names in the past.
It sounds a bit naive to say this, but I'm most inspired when I see dedication toward teaching, love of the subject
and respect toward the student. This is probably because, in most cases, I don't need to receive all of the knowledge that
a teacher has to offer. I just need the push to learn things on my own.
Although I'm still not sure whether alternative funding options will pop up between now and the fall, I am starting
to get used to the idea of being a first-time teaching assistant as a fifth-year graduate student, and I'm starting to
collect ideas on what I can do to be a better teacher.
I have been very fortunate to have had a scholarship to study ever since I entered graduate school. I did not have to
teach classes and grade papers during my first few years of graduate school, as did most of my classmates.
The first few years are when the classes and exams are the most challenging, and being a teaching assistant in
addition to being a full-time student can be extremely draining. Most graduate students look forward eagerly to the day
they can start doing research full-time. They get sick of classes — both teaching them and taking them — after a while.
Now that I'm nearing the end of my fourth year in graduate school, however, I am suddenly confronted with the
possibility of teaching. This is usually the time when students start dedicating themselves to their research, but my
scholarship is nearing its end and my Ph.D. is not yet on the horizon, so I must think of new funding sources. Teaching
undergraduates is one income source that is common among graduate students in the sciences.
After students take all their courses and exams, it's customary for them to join a research group and be funded by
research grants that go to the group. However, grants are not permanent, so students must occasionally teach, even
after joining a research group. All of the graduate students in my department get a tuition waiver and they can always
find some means of supporting themselves while they get their degree.
In this sense, graduate students in the sciences are luckier than the many graduate students who have to pay full
tuition in addition to living expenses while they get their degrees. Teaching a few classes is a small price to pay for the privilege.
I've always liked teachers and I have kept in contact with teachers that I've known since I was 7. However, I've always
been a bit apprehensive about the idea of teaching. I always considered teaching the same material every semester
boring, the students difficult, and my temper too short.
However, over the years, I've come to realize that the art and craft of teaching is something that I would like to
cultivate. I've come to this realization largely because I've encountered both good and bad teachers, and I've been
trying to figure out what makes certain teachers special. I have also started to feel a responsibility to educate the
next generation and I would like to do a good job as a public citizen.
A physicist friend and I have been talking about some music teachers that we've had, and our conclusion has been that a
"good teacher" is one that inspires you to grow. We've both had teachers who have made us miserable after every
lesson.
However, because we share similar "Old-World" values, we've stuck with these teachers in an attempt to create a
more meaningful relationship over time. (The "New-World" method is more competitive and encourages one to drop old teachers when more attractive ones come along.) Patience can surely improve a bad relationship, but we've agreed that
some teachers can make one feel like dancing with absolutely no effort at all. These are the ones we yearn for.
One thing that I've come to realize firsthand is that an impressive resume doesn't necessarily lead to impressive
teaching abilities. This is not a new observation, but I must admit that I've been blinded by credentials and famous
school names in the past.
It sounds a bit naive to say this, but I'm most inspired when I see dedication toward teaching, love of the subject
and respect toward the student. This is probably because, in most cases, I don't need to receive all of the knowledge that
a teacher has to offer. I just need the push to learn things on my own.
Although I'm still not sure whether alternative funding options will pop up between now and the fall, I am starting
to get used to the idea of being a first-time teaching assistant as a fifth-year graduate student, and I'm starting to
collect ideas on what I can do to be a better teacher.
Shukan ST: May 12, 2000
(C) All rights reserved
- fortunate
- 好運な
- scholarship
- 奨学金
- grade papers
- レポートを採点する
- graduate school
- 大学院
- challenging
- 難しい
- be extremely draining
- 非常に疲れる
- look forward eagerly to 〜
- 〜 を熱望する
- get sick of 〜
- 〜 が嫌になる
- (am)confronted with 〜
- 〜 に直面した
- start dedicating themselves to 〜
- 〜 に専念し始める
- Ph.D.
- 博士号
- 〜 is not yet on the horizon
- まだ 〜 のめどがたっていない
- funding sources
- 資金源
- income source
- 収入源
- it's customary for 〜 to 〜
- 〜 は 〜 するのが習慣だ
- be funded by 〜
- 〜 の資金提供を受ける
- grants
- 補助金
- occasionally
- ときどき
- tuition waiver
- 授業料免除
- degree
- 学位
- living expenses
- 生活費
- 〜 is a small price to pay for the privilege
- 理系の学生に与えられる特権を思えば、 〜 は大した代償ではない
- have kept in contact with 〜
- 〜 と連絡を取っていた
- (have)always been a bit apprehensive
- いつも少し気にかかっていた
- material
- 題材
- semester
- 学期
- boring
- 退屈な
- temper too short
- 気が短すぎる
- art and craft of 〜
- 〜 の技術
- cultivate
- 磨く
- (have)encountered
- 出会った
- figure out
- 見つけ出す
- physicist
- 物理学の学生
- inspires you to grow
- 影響を与えて成長させる
- miserable
- みじめな
- "Old-World" values
- 師弟関係を重んじる昔ふうの価値観
- (have)stuck with 〜
- 〜 にいつも従ってきた
- over time
- 長い年月をかけて
- competitive
- 競争が激しい
- drop old teachers when more attractive ones come along
- より魅力的な先生が現れたら旧師は切り捨てる
- Patience
- 辛抱
- surely
- 確かに
- make one feel like dancing with asolutely no effort at all
- すんなり学習できるよう導いてくれる
- yearn for
- あこがれる
- firsthand
- 体験を通して
- impressive resume
- 優秀な履歴書
- new observation
- 新しい発見
- (have)been blinded by 〜
- 〜 に目がくらんでいた
- credentials
- 資格
- naive
- 単純な
- dedication
- 専念
- push
- 後押し
- alternative
- 代わりの
- pop up
- 出現する