MaltaToday previous editions

MALTATODAY 13 October 2019

Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1176246

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 18 of 55

19 LETTERS & EDITORIAL maltatoday | SUNDAY • 13 OCTOBER 2019 Mikiel Galea Letters & Clarifications World Teachers' Day THE 5th of October marked World Teachers' Day, and the Faculty of Edu- cation commemorated this by starting a new academic year with 156 new entrants into its Initial Teacher Educa- tion course, the Master in Teaching and Learning. These students join another 87 who are in their second year, as well as hundreds of other students who are currently enrolled with the Faculty either in first degree education courses or in postgraduate courses which serve to further their studies. These numbers place a huge respon- sibility upon us, as a Faculty. We are aware that being a teacher requires one to adopt multiple roles simultane- ously, and to discern which is the most adequate according to the needs their learners present in class. This also requires teachers to be ac- countable for a range of processes and outcomes, some of which they have no control over. They need to use their knowledge, experience and reflexive selves to make good decisions, to eval- uate every scenario and its potential repercussions, and to ensure that they are providing a learning inducive envi- ronment for their students. It is precisely because of these com- plexities that teaching is so rewarding. It is anything but mechanical – it is a unique, very personal activity which brings you closer to people; it requires a rich dose of humanity but it also allows for the bonding with learners which all teachers crave for, and appre- ciate when achieved. As a Faculty, we help our students develop into effective practitioners and nurture in them the love of teaching. Our role goes beyond the teaching of educational theory or curriculum plan- ning. We want teachers in our schools who understand where their responsi- bilities lie, and rise to the occasion in an effective and professional manner. We are striving to develop teach- ers who are also critical in their ap- proach to education, activists in their communities and vocal in the face of injustice. It is thus important to thank all teachers who are good exemplars of this mission, and to celebrate the act of teaching which served to change so many lives for the better. Dr Colin Calleja Dean, Dr Michelle Attard Tonna, Faculty of Education at the Univer- sity of Malta Shallow slogan RTK radio has a new slogan: "It's cool to be Christian". There is nothing "cool" in being told that you're a "sinner" and that Jesus was a scapegoat for your sins. As Richard Tarnas observed in his book The Passion of the Western Mind: "In an era illuminated by science and reason, the 'good news' of Christi- anity became less and less convincing a metaphysical structure, less secure foundation upon which to build one's life, and less psychologically neces- sary... Under the spotlight of the modern demand for public, empirical, scien- tific corroboration of all statements of belief, the essence of Christianity withered. "The Judeo-Christian God was a pe- culiarly durable combination of wish- fulfillment fantasy and anthropomor- phic projection – made in man's own image to assuage all the pain and right all the wrongs man found unbearable in his existence. If, by contrast, the unsentimental human reason could adhere closely to the concrete evi- dence, there was no necessity to posit the existence of such a God, and much that argued against it. "With its apocalyptic prophecies and sacred rituals, its deified human hero and world saviour motifs, its miracle stories, moralisms, and veneration of saints and relics, Christianity seemed best understood as a successful folk myth... "Raisings from the dead, miraculous healings and exorcisms, a divine- human saviour, a virgin birth, manna from heaven, wine from water, water from rocks, partings of seas - all ap- peared increasingly improbable to the modern mind, bearing as they did too many similarities to other mythical or legendary concoctions of the archaic imagination." John Guillaumier, St Julian's

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of MaltaToday previous editions - MALTATODAY 13 October 2019