5th SEPTEMBER>>> TEACHERS DAY>>> WHO IS A TEACHER>>> LET US ALL BE

All wants to reach out for the stars. Elders strongly advocate for the same, but there is a word of caution , but after that caution, which engulfs us all is a mystery.

Teachers day…..Who is a teacher? Can the role of a teacher ever get substantiated in the present day context given the entry of hooligans even in the sacred education sector? Can celebrations of teachers day be complete without smiles & wishes from the students?

I always advocate of students being our future, but are we really giving them their due? I am asking all the teachers. I emphatically state no student is bad, disobedient, rowdy or an antisocial type. I came across & still come through students who happen to be otherwise…I just listen out to them, then start speaking their language, then turning them around to be what their parents expect. I remember how many times we used to get upset when our teacher in the class would reprimand us, but now I realize the value of those reprimandations. We all have a brain, mind & a body. We easily get attracted towards colorful centers, that too the deceitful ones & that’s the basic human nature. Under such circumstances would it be fair on our part to expect of our future innovators to stay absolutely focused on their specific target or rather what we are forcing them to be their targets. Whatever is the case ultimately the students suffer & when a student suffers how a teacher can be at ease.

I know life as on date is not confined to earning of bread & butter, it has blossomed itself unto that level where at times coming to terms becomes an impossibility. We as teachers need to realize this. Under stress we have a tendency to play things diplomatically. I ask to all preachers of knowledge to introspect & just be very focused on what is needed to be done. Teaching what, if anyone asks…what we say? The name of the subject….but now I give out 2 options…1)? Are we teaching A,B,C,D of the prescribed syllabus; 2) What about the A,B,C,D of life? Now, when to switch gears between the above 2 options is the major challenge that we teachers face, especially against the background of our mission of ushering in literacy into minds that also needs to be in good health.? Open-mindedness, truthfulness, dedication, honesty, selflessness & finally temperament cannot be kept away for even a second in our lives.

I myself remember when I started taking sessions, I was confident as I was by then used to handling corporate presentations both from the presenter as well as the audience side, then of course interacting with business associates gave me that confidence of not shying away, but when on entering into the academic arena within a span of just 25 days I realized that dealing with students is not just about giving presentations or even getting hooked to polished languages. I was a bit confused but anyways I listened to my conscience…Because I thought how can I appraise myself with respect to the measure of my performance? No feedback can be cryptic enough to jump to conclusions. Today with vast experiences of handling stakeholders of varied moods I ask who is a good teacher.? Options-? Friendly, Strict, caring, knowledgeable, Down to the earth person, at times going out of conventional ways to address the concerns of the students without compromising on the rules & regulations perspective …. Who is a good student? Options- Obedient, Never dissenting, never gets into an argument, disciplined, punctual, better grasping power…….

As a teacher I need to ask myself on daily basis what did I do today that I could make a student to tread innovatively on a path that will make him or her stand out from the rest? See, in any competition, only one gets to top, what about the others? Toppers are always spoken of, appreciated with comments from teachers, what about the rest? What about that student who might be crying of not being able to pass through? How many of us as teachers do reach out to them, consoling them , then ensuring that they come out of their disturbed state of mind? Do we ever even care to do this? Let’s be honest. Excuse- time constraint…yes no doubt time is the biggest intruder in our day to day lives which is showing both the dark as well as the enlightened sides of life. But should it be always be kept as an alibi to justify our failure in carrying out certain responsibilities?? Meritorious students we all take note of but how many have turned meritorious thanks to the dedicated guidance of a teacher. There are teachers who are selflessly dedicating their lives that too at the remotest parts of the country but how many?

Parents- Their prestige is always at stake…for that a mother & a father who nurtures high hopes ensuring the day to day pains of all forms just to see their child smiling coming out successfully, but at times these very parents keeps on simmering when all plans, expectations fall apart. How can we blame a parent? How can we look the other way when a mother is crying for her child is not performing, how we as teachers at any level shrug off our responsibilities citing reason that the mother is being unrealistic? A mother is the last person in the entire universe to be unrealistic, yes, for she endures the labor pain, feeding the milk, always sacrificing her necessities..how can she be unrealistic? Every Mother as well as father have the right to see their child to be humanly human & we teachers need to be ensuring that.

Students:- One factor we cannot overlook, that is age. Yes, at home parents, then neighbors, then at the educational Institution teachers, friends…I would say unknowingly students are in fact walking the tight rope. Every student comes in with over expectations…we say, in reality they need to, because it is their over expectations that will ensure that intellectuality be explored out to the highest level whereby every one returns home emphatically. I speak on varied topics….yes, academic qualifications in place, I am being vocal, aggressive, confident, even defiant on certain issues which at times are dithering but somehow I get to manage through. This I owe it to the then students of K G Mittal Institute of Management Studies, Malad, Mumbai. Initial hiccups did exist but I turned myself on as per the needs. As on date I am aware of the various complexities that a Director of a Management Institute, or the HOD of a MBA department under the school of Social Sciences of any University, respective placement coordinators has to go though, part of the professional hazards. Problem commences when the touts get to have an upper hand which is in fact a major challenge to every educational Institution across the country. Education isn’t a business deal, it is a humanitarian deal which gets colorful & vibrant only & only when a teacher as well as student gets to know the intrinsic value of the overall process , the initiation of which has to be done by us & also ensuring that a student imbibes the concept & then only things start moving on.

Getting slightly away from the main line—we talk of equality, accessibility, humanity…Let everyone of us be it a teacher, student, or any other professional, we need to constantly ask ourselves..Are we being honest to our conscience? Are we listening to our conscience with an open mind? We talk of justifying our existence has it become a proxy?

Finally again I would like to pen about Parents—Child is the priceless Gift. Harboring expectations is nothing wrong but we need to ensure smiling faces around & for that to happen we all need to be flexible. A child be escorted up to that level only where it is absolutely necessary, rest I request all parents to be a mentor, a guide But pl pl pl never ever be a dictator to your own child. Why we need to be in tears? Why to cause pain to others? Why being close minded? How many times we bowed before the almighty for the most priceless gift – our child??