One statement that struck me in the article is that most people equate teaching with being a teacher, that focusing on expertise and experience is everything that is important in being good in teaching; that lecturing and memorizing your lecture is enough.
I believe that my strength as a clinical teacher is that my personal learning style is to break down a concept into its components for me to truly understand it. This way, I can better adapt to where my learners get confused and pick it up from there.
I remember having teachers when I was a student who, when asked for clarification, would only respond with “basta ganun!” And I still remember how disheartening and condescending it feels like to be answered that way; thus I am always reminded to put myself into the shoes of my learners, understand where they are coming from and where they need support, and try to provide that support.
What I feel I need to improve more on, as a relatively young consultant, is to gain more experience and handle different varieties of students and case situations. The article also tells us that one challenge in clinical teaching is the element of surprise with case variety and situations. Right now, I handle instances wherein I am also not sure by being humble enough to admit when I am not sure at the moment, and to research and study on the topic along with my students. That way, they can keep trusting that I will only teach them what I know is true, and also let them see the way I search for the answers to questions, which they can also apply for their uncertainties in the future.
