Parents' Guide

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My Teaching Journey – Tracy Yong

Tracy Yong

What made you choose to become a teacher?
My earliest influence was my dad. The warmth and enthusiasm with which each of his students welcomed me every time I visited his school, convinced me that being a teacher was cool! I also had encouraging and intelligent teachers who left a really positive mark in my life. Besides, I loved English language (EL) and literature and excelled in these two subjects while in school, so teaching seemed a natural choice.

What are the qualifications needed for this role?
A real interest in the subject, a heart for the students and a desire to keep learning. Great teachers possess an inexplicable charisma that allows them to manage the class while enthusing them at the same time. We have to be clear and structured but not boring, firm but approachable.

Great teachers possess an inexplicable charisma that allows them to manage the class while enthusing them at the same time. Click to Tweet

Tell us about your teaching experience.
I’ve taught in MOE schools, joined MOE HQ’s Curriculum Planning and Development Division as an EL planner, and have taught in one of Singapore’s premier enrichment centres. Besides that, I started giving home tuition since I was in university. You could say that my career path has been mapped from young!

What are some of the biggest challenges you face in the course of your work? How do you deal with them?
Managing expectations and maintaining trust would be the most crucial and yet challenging aspects of being a teacher. Sometimes, the parents and their child come in with different levels of motivation or expectations, and I try to counsel both sides so that they’ll better understand each other’s point of view. Especially in the case of subjects such as English language and literature, where the marking scheme tends to be more subjective and results may not be obvious overnight, communication and my professionalism are important in building a trusting and constructive relationship.


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