Being a teacher is far from easy. Teachers have many responsibilities as they work to shape students into useful and educated people. This dedication and effort are vividly illustrated in a recent TikTok video shared by Elden, a teacher from Sarawak.
Cheeky M’sian students call teacher ‘Abang’
Elden’s video, which features his experiences with first-grade students at a Chinese primary school (SJKC), has garnered attention for its mix of challenges and endearing moments.
The video has a caption that sums it up perfectly: “Teaching standard 1 kids is more exhausting than going to the gym.”
In the video, Elden is seen tirelessly helping every student who comes to him. One memorable moment happens when a student keeps calling him ‘abang’ (big brother).
Surprised, Elden jokingly insists, “Call me teacher.” But the student continues to call him ‘abang.’
The video ends with a student mischievously balancing a pencil on his nose.
Speaking to WeirdKaya, Elden shared that this happened during a Malay language lesson where he was teaching sentence formation.
Reflecting on his experience with such young students, all of whom are just seven years old, Elden noted several significant challenges.
“As teachers, we need to patiently handle various problems and challenges from students,” he explained.
“We must adapt to the constantly changing teaching environment and student needs, using new teaching methods and strategies. Teachers also need to continuously learn and update their knowledge and skills to keep up with the ever-changing field of education.”
Elden emphasised that teachers serve as role models in education. “The words and actions of teachers serve as examples for students to learn from and emulate,” he said.
He also shared a personal practice: “After I lose my temper, I usually apologise to the students. I once told them, ‘Even though I’m an adult, I make mistakes too, and I will apologise to you.’
Soon after, the students started to mimic my actions. Because teachers are like mirrors, students will mimic our actions. However, when necessary, I still deal with issues firmly.”
‘I get called auntie’
The comment section of Elden’s video is full of other teachers sharing their perspectives.
One user wrote, “Lucky to be called ‘abang’. I get called ‘auntie’. Next year it will definitely be ‘grandma’.”
Another shared, “Standard 1 students are really creative. They called one of my senior friends ‘grandma teacher.'”
Watch the clip here:
