The teaching and learning process is something that I can personally associate to learning how

to cook. For a first time cooker, the whole process of cooking will always be exciting and at the
same time nerve-racking, same as to teaching. To cook a delicious meal, someone must always
begin with planning carefully the whole process of cooking through assessing what ingredients
are needed, the measurements it need and how much food is she going to cook. However,
before someone could accomplish this step, she must never forget to think of what food is she
cooking, which is highly associated to teaching for in teaching, the teacher must always know
what her goal is in doing all the necessary steps for her children. This, I believe, is the most
essential part that a teacher must do for in order to teach effectively and efficiently, the teacher
must already have a certain goal in her mind that will serve as basis for the steps – the
ingredients that will be needed to serve a delicious menu. These ingredients might include ½
teaspoon of class collaborative activities, ½ teaspoon of individual activities, 1 cup of
manipulative activities and experiments, 2 teaspoons of timely feedback session, 1 teaspoon of
active-learning encouragement, 2 teaspoons of effective questioning and responding
techniques, 2 tablespoons of appropriate technology integration and 3 tablespoons of “great
job”.

Moreover, I am also a firm believer of how effective John Dewey’s “Learning by Doing” is. This
is because just like cooking, the first-time cooker will really learn even better if she will be the
one who will do the cooking, chopping of the ingredients, and doing the measurements. Thus,
the hands-on approach to learning helps students interact with their environment which will then
let them adapt and learn from it. I also believe that teaching and learning is a two-way process.
A teacher may be the one who will provide instructions and necessary information, but she is
also learning from the point-of-views of her students and so with the students. Also, I firmly
believe that as a teacher, it is always best to set the mood in your class – not less and not
much, it must always be balanced. Just like in cooking, if you do not feel like cooking, it will
always reflect to the taste of the food you’ve cooked. Overall, teaching and learning for me is all
about putting the necessary, appropriate, and exact amount of ingredients to end up having a
delicious menu. A taste that will remain in peoples’ minds and hearts.