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PROFILE
Ms
Antoinette Boben teaches English to senior
classes in Bangalore's prestigious Bishop
Cotton Girls' School.
Ms Boben became an English teacher almost
by default and hasn't regretted it. Since
she holds Grade VII in Pianoforte from Trinity
College of Music, London, she joined Bishop
Cotton in 2002 primarily to teach music.
"My first love being music, in addition
to the fact that I enjoy the company of little
children, made me think that teaching music
was the ideal thing to do. But Fate had something
else in store for me," she says.
Having barely started with music lessons,
Ms Boben was asked to substitute for a French
language teacher instead, for she also holds
a Senior Diploma in the French language (from
Arts College, Osmania University, Hyderabad).
After substituting for a month, she however
ended up teaching English to senior students
of the school (courtesy a post-graduate degree
in English, a post graduate diploma in English
Language Teaching and a BEd, from Karnataka
State Open University).
"Initially, I had apprehensions about
being able to handle bigger children. But
the fact that I have three teenagers of my
own stood me in good stead….it was literally
'child's play'. I found that I could empathise
with them and we enjoy a fairly good rapport,"
she says.
Ms Boben finds teaching 'fulfilling' and
feels that a teacher has the ability "to
touch, influence and mould young minds"
but regrets that students today are bombarded
with information which tends to take the joy
out of learning. "Education should be
more specialised and child friendly,"
she says.
Today, apart from teaching, Ms Boben is constantly
engaged in several activities in the school
including organising seminars, plays, musicals,
competitions and workshops. Moreover, she
is on the editorial board of the school magazine
and serves as master of ceremonies during
school functions.
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