Essay

The Unsung Heroes of Our Lives

How Teachers Shape Us

Photo by Quilia on Unsplash

A generation can be influenced by many things, and one of them is teachers. They don’t get as much praise as they deserve, but many of us can attest to the fact that teachers have a huge impact on the lives of their students.

I remember one time in primary school, (which is the foundational level of education in my country). We had just gone back to school after the holidays. At that time I was in the 8th year and was due to do my national exams, which usher you into high school. My mathematics teacher was giving us a speech at the start, just to get our mindsets right on how important these exams are for our future. In the middle of his speech, he looked at me and told me, “Nancy, you look very stern, stay like that.”

Those words, up to date, still echo in my mind. That was one of the first times I saw someone see in me what I saw in myself. It’s very rare for someone else to echo out to you what you already feel. And I was stern because I was not going to fail my exams. I was only 15 at the time, but very much aware of the reality that my life lay in my own hands.

Those words still play in my mind a lot.

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Often, young people carry a quiet, fragile ambition. When an authority figure notices it and validates it, even with a simple phrase like "stay like that", they act as a catalyst. They give you the permission and the courage to fully inhabit your own strength. My teacher anchored my self-belief before the world had a chance to shake it.

There are a few people God will make us cross paths with that will change our lives. Our teachers were very encouraging at that level. They emphasized the fact that we were not kids at all. They always told us, “You’re grown enough to shape your future. You’re not a child to be told what to do.” That kind of talk wakes your mind up to the reality of life.

This went on into high school. We had the best teachers in high school. I didn’t go to a prestigious school, but honestly, if I were to repeat, I would still choose my school. Our Swahili teacher was one of the best. She used to give us one-on-one life lessons, especially when we were failing. At first, I used to think it was just about passing exams, but now I’m realising it was more about the mindset of not allowing mediocrity to creep into your life.

Then we had our music teachers. Music festivals were the highlight of my high school experience. Not just because we used to travel when others were in school, but mainly because of what it demanded from us. We had a very strict timetable for practice sessions, and there was no room to play around. They instilled discipline in us. At one time, we were supposed to be practising in the evening, and they came to the music room and found us not there. Everyone was busy with their own life endeavours.

They were so upset, they made us sweep almost the whole school. It was humiliating, especially because we were the darlings and we were winning at the festivals. But they didn’t care about our Beyoncé voices — “Take the broom, Beyoncé” 😂

The interesting thing about the music group was how many people were kicked out because they didn’t have the discipline to attend the practice sessions. It taught me that talent is never enough if you don’t have the discipline to put in the work. After a while, they trimmed the group to only a few of us and maintained it like that for three years. What they wanted was discipline to stay, not just having a Beyoncé voice.

Music demanded sacrificing our breaks, sacrificing our evening sports time for practice, and the discipline to stay up late while others were going to sleep. We were travelling while others were back in school studying, so that meant we had a whole lot to catch up on. It demanded a lot, but interestingly, it never gave us fatigue. It taught me the law of trade-offs. To achieve something extraordinary, you have to be willing to pay a price that others aren’t willing to pay.

The last thing I will touch on, because this can go on forever, was our principal. When we joined in our first year, we got a new principal in place. The school at that time was not in its best state at all. But for the next 3 years, we watched a whole transformation happen in front of our eyes. She built a whole new laboratory in like 3 months which was the quickest construction I know of. She built new classes, sorted out the ablution block, and the student experience was enhanced in all aspects, even meals.

The school we found and the school we left were two completely different places. Just a leader who decided they would put the student first and they did. We were watching a whole masterclass on leadership happen right before us.

The best leadership lessons aren’t taught in textbooks; they are caught through observation. Our principal didn’t just tell us to be excellent; she built excellence right in front of our eyes, proving that a dedicated leader can shift the entire culture of an institution through vision and swift execution.

And then after high school, I joined university. In university, we had all kinds of lecturers. There were those who cared and those who didn’t at all. For some, it was simply, “It’s you and your God. If you want to mess up your life, that’s your problem.”

But some actually cared.

One of them, for example, used to bring up discussions about what was happening in the country, and we would talk about it. We discussed how these things were affecting us, what leadership looks like, for example, what the new regulations on the national health fund meant for actuaries, and so much more. It was really good because it made us pay attention to the news and not just assume that life happens around us without our involvement.

She used to tell us that we have to be aware of what is happening in the country. This is life, not a vacation.

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We often look back at our lives and measure our success by the degrees we hold, the projects we build, or the titles we achieve. But if we trace the lines back to the absolute foundation of who we are, we almost always find the face of a teacher. They saw us when we were unformed, pushed us when we were lazy, and refused to let us settle for less than our potential. We are, in so many ways, the living monuments of their quiet, tireless dedication.

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