3T: Kindly introduce yourself and tell us how it was like growing up.
Imchenmeren: Well, my name is Imchenmeren. I hail from the Ao community of Chungtia village. I was born in Dimapur, Nagaland. I did my High School at St. Anthony School, Chumoukedima and my Higher Secondary education from Carmel Higher Secondary School, Dimapur. I am an alumni of Tetso College. Yep! I completed my undergraduate studies here at Tetso. Then, I did my post graduation from St. Joseph University, Chumoukedima and completed my MPhil studies at ICFAI University, Chumoukedima.
To talk a little bit about my experience with regard to my short stages of life so far, I at first was a nerd. When I was a young and cute child, I was usually bullied by my classmates. It was quite difficult for me to adjust and express myself with anyone so I usually stayed low, and tried my very best in not standing out in front of my other classmates. That resulted in me growing up as a low self-esteem individual. I usually loved being alone during my high school and higher secondary years because it made me feel safe. I lacked confidence and was quite vulnerable.
Honestly, I was quite naive. But everything about me changed when I joined Tetso College. I remember the first day of my class at Tetso and I must say that it was AMAZING! Thank god that I chose English as my major paper! Being taught by the one and only ‘hyperactive’ Anjan Behera from the English Department transformed me into the person that I am today.
I am no longer an introverted person. I can say that the old me was not the best version of me. I confined myself by thinking that I would be prejudiced by my own classmates if I spoke out my thoughts. But I was wrong! I have learned so much throughout my short stages of life. Today, I am a confident individual who wants to help students learn and grow beyond the scope and knowledge of bookish education. I want my students to learn, understand, and apply the knowledge learnt through my teachings in the physical world so as to bring a change in the society. Striving for excellence in every field of my life is what I aspire and desire.
3T: What is a typical day like in your life?
Imchenmeren: Hmm….. a typical day? Well, I usually wake up at 6:00 AM. I clean my room by 6:30 AM. I freshen up and eat breakfast by 7:00 AM. In the midst of that, I always check my phone for work related emails and messages, and then I sit in my working space inorder to focus on my research. If I am bored, I listen to music, watch youtube videos and movies, or I go out to kill my boredom. Other than that, since I am also a member of my tribal students’ union, I go for meetings in order to work for the welfare of the student body.
3T: What are your must-have smartphone apps?
Imchenmeren: Umm… Whatsapp is the number one app that I must have on my smartphone. The second app would be the Gmail app for connecting with my work colleagues. The third app would be the English Dictionary app for sure. The third one would be the Youtube app no doubts. Lasty, the fourth one would be ummm… Netflix!
3T: Everybody has good and bad days. As a teacher, how do you motivate yourself on bad days to impart knowledge to your students without fail?
Imchenmeren: I agree that everybody has good and bad days in their lives. And I cannot deny that there are days when I really feel down but I do not let it affect my work in any way. Teaching has always been a profession that I yearned for and wanted. I motivate myself by motivating and teaching my students. As a teacher, I understand that I am a role model for my students. It is because of this reason that I always tell myself that I cannot let my students feel demotivated because of me.
3T: In which other teacher’s class would you like to enroll, even for a day and why?
Imchenmeren: I would love to enroll in my own class as a student so that I can look at myself from students’ perspective.
3T: Is there a quote or saying that you live your life by?
Imchenmeren: Yes, I have a quote that I wrote by myself and I live my life according to that. “Lovers will love, and haters will hate. So, just let it be and live your life without regrets.”
3T: What book are you reading at the moment?
Imchenmeren: I am reading a book called “Beyond the Pleasure Principle” by Sigmund Freud. This book talks about the conscious and the unconscious mind whereby it says that there is a destructive pattern of behavior in each and everyone one of us.
3T: Can you tell us your hobbies? What is one of your hidden talents?
Imchenmeren: I love reading manga, manhwa, webnovels, and research articles. I love listening to soft and electronic music. I love playing online games such as MLBB, and Idle Heroes. I love watching Chinese fantasy movies. I love collecting stuffed toys. And I love playing the piano during my leisure time.
A lot of my friends, my family, and my students have no idea about the fact that I can rap really well.
3T: Would you rather go back in the past to undo an action you regret or go to the future to see what the future holds?
Imchenmeren: It would be wonderful to go to the future to see what the future holds for me but that would not be interesting for me as there would be no suspense in my life. Instead of going to the future, I would rather love to go back in the past inorder to slap myself for being a weakling during my high school years. I would stand up for myself.
3T: Who inspires you the most and why?
Imchenmeren: Anjan Behera inspires me the most in my life because without him, I wouldn’t be the person that I am today.
3T: What’s the one thing people do not know about you?
Imchenmeren: The one thing that people don’t know about me is that I am quite shy.
3T: Having been a student yourself, is there any mistake that you committed as a student that you don’t want your students to make?
Imchenmeren: I used to think that I knew everything about the lessons that my teachers used to teach. But I eventually realized that the knowledge that I had was just a miniscule of what my teachers knew.
3T: Among the people you’ve worked with, who do you admire and why?
Imchenmeren: I admire Sir Anjan Behera. I admire him because his knowledge on the subject matters that he teaches are vast. I have so much to learn from him. In fact not only from him, but from all the other talented teachers.
3T: Describe Tetso College in 3 words.
Imchenmeren: Progressive, vibrant, and Professional.