The Uncommon Educator – Sunday Akinrelere

If I was told I would become a teacher and a passionate one at that, I would regard the speaker as a false prophet.

My parents were teachers before they retired from the civil service. My intention was to study a course entirely different from teaching at the University.

I worked towards it and ended up studying Biochemistry, a medical-related course at the University.

After my service year, I resumed the classroom as a teacher because there was no job. I’m sure many became teachers because of this same reason.

As time went on, I developed an interest in the teaching profession because I enjoyed public speaking, but I was neither trained nor certified as a teacher.

I already had over 5 years of teaching experience before I proceeded to obtain a Professional Diploma in Education and graduated with distinction.

Even at that, I still longed to become an uncommon educator every learner wishes they have, and a mentor they will be proud of.

However, it is possible to be a certified teacher with many years of experience in the teaching profession, and still be committing ‘blunders’ in the classroom.

You will also agree with me that, a teacher begins to die professionally the day they stop learning.

Therefore, to be an uncommon teacher, you have to be an uncommon learner. This was my drive when I came across the 1Million Teachers online training platform in early September 2021.

My quest for self and professional development serves as an intrinsic motivation for me to devote my time to the 1Million Teachers self-paced online classes.

The courses I could have obtained at a high cost on other educational platforms were obtained at no cost. All that was needed is my smartphone and commitment.

Beyond the certificates, which could be seen as extrinsic motivation, I found the courses interesting, educative and relevant to the teaching profession, most of which were applied in my classroom and beyond.

Upon the completion of the 10 belts in the first phase of this training, I was moved to the Black Belt program which unlocks access to life-long professional development.

To me, it was more than winning a jackpot!

Permit me to quote the words of Hakeem Subair, the CEO of 1Million Teachers (1MT): “Personal development is a life-long pursuit because life itself is a work in progress. Only ignorant people would think they have reached the pinnacle of their learning.”

I have become a life-long learner through the 1MT platform and the impacts are felt in my teaching and leadership skills within and outside the classroom.