Learning While Teaching

This post is written by Woudnesh Yilma.

Woudnesh serves as a Health Educator at Erie Family Health Center - Westside.

December 8th, 2014, I woke up at 5:30am from a restless night of sleep. I was so nervous about how my first day of teaching sexual education and how it would play out. Would I completely blank once I stand up in front of the room? While getting ready I thought to myself,'How am I going to teach 7th and 8th graders about puberty and human anatomy?"

As I hop on the brown line, to a part of the city I had yet to explore, I look over my notes and blast Beyonce to calm my nerves. As I get to the last stop I find myself now rushing to get to the school with only 20 minutes before my first class. After getting lost with 13 minutes left on the clock, I hop into the first taxi I see and frantically say the address to the driver who was quick to tell me I was going the opposite direction. The cab driver dropped me off right in front of the school free of charge because he just felt sad for me. I arrive with only 8 minutes before my first class and walk into the lobby of screaming little children. I looked to my amazing teaching partner, Mayra, and I silently laughed to myself thinking,'This is who I have been afraid of?"

As I walked into my first class at Albany Park Multicultural Academy, there sat a room full of 7th graders who were eager to learn. They were eager to learn about their bodies and discuss topics that may be taboo within their homes. Throughout the day I experienced one earnest and engaged class after the next. Their energy gave me confidence and kept me refreshed. I must admit after my first day my body did go through some sort of shock as I have never stood up in front of a classroom that long or talked that much in one day. Fast forward to December 12th and I am teaching my last class... the week flew by as I answered obscure questions and had intense discussions about what it means to be in a healthy relationship. I realized I was sad leaving them as I built some sort of connection with my students in only a short four days. I left Albany Park Multicultural Academy having a greater understanding of the amazing work teachers do on a daily basis and the power and importance of education.

Nelson Mandela once said'Education is the most powerful weapon, which you can use to change the world." Education empowers individuals to make a difference and I want to be a part of empowering others. Education provides hope. You are able to learn from various ways in which you can change your life and community for the better. Whether it is learning the true nature of a virus in order to decrease stigma or learning about the struggles of a population that you have never experienced before. Education, in its purest sense, is the tool to change and live for the better.