ÐÓ°ÉÐÔ°É

While some teachers rely solely on teaching material and tough love, Dr Glenda Prescod says her real strategy for lasting nearly half a century in the classroom is building an unbreakable bond with her students.

"My challenges were never with my students. I loved my students, and they loved me back," she told THE STAR, after being honoured for 49 years of service at the Jamaica Teachers' Association (JTA) Golden Torch Awards ceremony last Friday.

"There has always been a bond. I have students who are all over the world who still connect with me."

Her statements resonate even louder at a time when hundreds of Jamaican teachers are migrating each year for better pay and conditions overseas. According to the JTA, more than 1,400 teachers left the local system in the 2022-2023 school year alone, a troubling blow for an already-stretched education sector.

But Prescod, who lectures at The University of the West Indies and The Mico University College, said she's always focused on what truly matters.

"I didn't pay what my colleagues did, or what management did, any mind," she explained. "I just focused on the children, because they make me feel good." Still, she admitted that the job wasn't without its share of rough days, often caused by colleagues.

"Even at a certain level, when they see that you are progressing, they will try to do and say things that are unpleasant - that will give you sleepless nights," she said candidly.

Growing up in Spanish Town, St Catherine, Prescod said her passion for teaching started early.

"I taught the dogs, I taught mango seeds, I taught dollies. My family wanted me to do medicine, but I think God wanted me to be a teacher," she said.

Over the years, she has taught at the primary and secondary levels, including Denham Town High School, and now guides doctoral students. But the principle has never changed.

"Treat every child like your own. I'm one of those 'stupid' teachers that if they come to me and I have my last dollar and they say, 'Miss, I'm hungry,' mi will give it to them," she said with a laugh. Prescod's kindness has stretched far beyond the classroom.

"I have had students who I've helped through school financially, and I don't think they'll ever let me go," she said. "They still call me, they still thank me. It's as if I'm not just a teacher, I'm a mother."

Even in retirement, she continues to coordinate doctoral programmes and lights up when former students visit or share their achievements.

"The best thing is when my students come to me and share how much they appreciate how I interacted with them," she beamed. "That makes me truly, truly happy."

Looking back, Prescod opined that her biggest legacy isn't measured in certificates or awards, but in the lives she's touched.

"I always say it's like the starfish that gets washed up on the shore - if each of my students can save even one life, then that would be my greatest honour."