Assoc. Prof. Rūta Bendinskaitė. Photo: VU MF
“I’ve never liked competing. I loved sports, climbing mountains, cycling, but hated competing. I am proud that my work at Vilnius University is appreciated and am grateful for the award, but I don’t attach too much importance to being elected the best lecturer. I think it’s not the best or the worst employee, but the employee who either loves their work or does not. So, I’m the one who loves my work,” said Assoc. Prof. Rūta Bendinskaitė. At the annual meeting of the Senate of Vilnius University to review the year 2022, Bendinskaitė was awarded the Lecturer of the Year in the Faculty of Medicine.
Here, speaking with the Lecturer of the Year, we are firstly curious to know how pedagogy appeared in the lecturer’s life. Bendinskaitė noted she did not dream of becoming a lecturer and said it had happened accidentally: “I must say that there have been many accidental things in my life. After graduating from high school, I applied to study medicine at Kaunas University. I was not successful, but they suggested dentistry instead (at that time dentistry was different from what it is today and students with the highest marks did not usually opt for this study programme). So I thought, why not?”
This decision turned out to have a significant impact on the direction of Bendinskaitė’s life. “I became an odontologist and it was fantastic! The work was very interesting. I started studies during the Soviet period, but graduated after Lithuania regained its independence. Major changes followed at the university, in the field of dentistry. If medicine was at the time, let’s say the poor relation, then dentistry quickly took off: there was new equipment, new techniques appeared, doctors came from abroad to conduct training, and so on.” Bendinskaitė explained.
After successful completion of her dentistry studies, Bendinskaitė started her work at public and private clinics. Despite working 12 hours a day, and even after an intensive time at work she easily found time for meetings with friends, sports and entertainment.
Photo: VU MF
“Half a year later, I was invited to work at the university. At the time, I was not looking for such an opportunity, but I agreed because I was interested. All the more so, because the task of my team was to restore the dentistry study programme at Vilnius University. So, I became an odontologist and an educator, completely by accident,” Bendinskaitė laughed and added, “I imagined that I was going to teach temporarily, for a few years, but I have continued to this day.”
Immediately after graduating, the working day of the dentist had been 12 hours long. Has the amount of time spent at work changed over the years? Bendinskaitė admits that she still works 12 hour days and sometimes even longer, “half a day working with patients, half a day with students, and then there is admin and correspondence to attend to. I am often asked why I don’t work for a private clinic, and earn more money. But I can’t complain about working at the university at all, since the beginning of 1995, my salary has increased many times. Moreover, working at a private clinic alone would not be so interesting – routine would probably not motivate me. Meanwhile, students are so much more interesting to me. It’s great if they ask you something, and are not afraid to approach me. At the start of my career, students were only 8 years younger than me. Later, my student age reflected the age of my children, and soon that of my grandchildren. So it is interesting to learn of the issues relevant to young people, their achievements, and many other things, like fashion, music, world events... This is a very interesting job!”
What makes a good lecturer? “I think someone who listens and talks to students, who doesn’t consider any question to be stupid and who finds time for them,” explained Bendinskaitė without hesitation. Today students are brave enough to talk. In the past, this was unusual just because as a student you had low status in the scheme of things. I for one wouldn’t want to go back to my student days. You used to be afraid of everything! And if someone wasn’t afraid, it didn’t always end well for that student. Today students are freer, braver, more confident.”
Assoc. Prof. Rūta Bendinskaitė. Photo: VU MF
Bendinskaitė believes that a respectful, positive lecturer-student relationship undoubtedly has advantages in the process of education/learning. It helps students avoid stress, they feel free to ask questions and thereby gain new knowledge. “It is not me who is responsible for equipping the student with knowledge, but the student must be interested in taking everything from me that I can give them. It is natural that this varies from student to student. Some, may not take anything at all, discontinue their studies, realizing that they are not on the right path,” Bendinskaitė observed.
When asked who was a role model for the professor, she replied that she learns from everyone, from her own children, students, patients, senior colleagues, parents, and relatives. “Of course, sometimes you learn what or how not do something. I get motivation from the people who surround me. If I feel disinterested, I still find something of interest, something that is fun in whatever I do – teaching, treating my patients, going to concerts or travelling. On the other hand, I don’t even know if that motivation is always necessary, because I have a strong sense of responsibility. Sometimes this can be tiring, but I just know that some things have to be done – and I do them,” Bendinskaitė replied.
At the end of our conversation, Bendinskaitė noted that although she is pleased to become the Lecturer of the Year 2022 in the faculty, this is all but a game: “There are many ‘best’ teachers. In my line of work, probably 99% are the best, because they love their profession, and although they can choose from a variety of job options, they still teach – they want to dedicate their life to sharing knowledge.”