The Subject I Hated Became What I Needed

There is always one or two subjects we disliked in our Secondary school days and I believe I am not the only one in this situation. For me, it was Mathematics. I hated the subject so much that when the teacher walked into the class, I would leave for the next available free class until the class was over.

Guess why I hated that subject? I get frustrated at some of the topics like graphs, Pythagoras' theorem (finding X and Y), as if they got lost. Do you remember finding dx and dy, divided by a lost number you can’t think of? Lol. Those are what actually chased me off the subject completely. Unknown to me, I was deceiving myself without anyone telling me I was. I was ignorant, too.

I guess it was also a lack of information and guidance because I could not remember anyone sitting me down to explain how Mathematics is a core subject you must pass to enter the University, and also very useful in everyday life.

It was when I was in the 200 level at the University that my eyes were opened. So, is mathematics this simple? I said to myself during one of those morning lectures we had. I would not forget Doctor Monday, the lecturer who taught us Statistics then. I love his method of teaching, as if he were teaching a kindergarten child. That opened my eyes to the understanding of Mathematics to a little level I did.

I was proud of myself for not allowing anyone to teach me Statistics in the exams I wrote, unlike during my NCE, where we had a guy in our group who was a "guru" in the subject. Guru means someone who understands and so expert in something. It was during exams that I would make sure I sat beside this guy so he could help me work all the questions in my paper, and at least, I got away with it without being caught. But in the university, I did Statistics in different semesters myself. It was an achievement. Lol

But what brought back these memories?

In fact, I wouldn’t say I know everything about Mathematics today because there are still some parts I don't understand, and it's time for me not to keep running away from Mathematics but to face it head-on. I said to myself one day, "I must understand this Mathematics."

This was as a result of the fact that I am now teaching in a school where I wouldn't escape from what I have been running away from because it's like Mathematics is the order of the day for these pupils. The headmistress shared her experience with me on how she didn’t know Mathematics, not until she became a teacher in the same school I am teaching at where she would work herself up with Mathematics questions until she was confident of teaching the subject without an issue.

That gave me a push. If she could do it, I can, too. That motivated me, and since then, I have worked on mathematics every time in school, and I have also decided to watch on YouTube some formulas, e.g., how to find distance, speed in kilometres and meters, different shapes and their formulas, graphs, etc. Geez, these were "almighty formulas" in Mathematics back then which made me run away from it, but now, I can't because it's impossible for me as a teacher.

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