When I look back on
my years as a school boy, I remember a few teachers who have left an indelible
impression on my mind for various reasons. The first two were teachers, who coincidentally,
both taught Mathematics. They were energetic, strict and determined to see that
no pupil was left behind in the subject. They were empathetic, motivational,
original and caring. Period after period and month after month, they went about
their task methodically. For them, teaching was definitely a passion. While I
did not excel in the subject, what they taught me, stayed with me, and today,
when I look back, it was probably one of them who unknowingly motivated me to
become a teacher.
The second group of teachers
who left an impression on me was a kind of happy-go-lucky set of teachers.
Rather friendly, often smiling, they went about their jobs hoping to make a
difference in children’s lives. They were good human beings, but they did not
believe in pushing students beyond their expectations. Their method was simple.
They taught us what they had learnt and how they had been taught, and so period
after period, month after month and year after year, they taught the same
topic, gave exactly the same assignments, repeated the same tests and hoped for
the best. I clearly remember one or two of them picking up notes given a few
years earlier to the previous batch and dictating the same to us. Pupils and
parents swore by their notes and by their methods and they ensured that
everyone passed.
I am talking about
the 1960s – 1970s, where we sat in rows at desks and listened dutifully to what
the teacher said. Interaction between teacher and student was minimal and we
learned without questioning.
Times have changed,
haven’t they? Today pupils are living in the most intensely stimulating period
in the history of the world. They are being besieged with information from computers,
smart phones, televisions and advertisement. The goal of the teacher in the
twenty-first century learning environment should be to bring together data,
resources, tools and expertise to positively impact teaching and learning. What society needs are
people who can ask good questions, come up with creative solutions, critically
examine those possibilities to figure out which one creative solution is most
likely to be effective, and communicate that solution effectively enough to motivate
others into action. In the educational field, it has been realized
that students aren’t just consumers of facts any longer nor are schools just
brick and mortar structures. They are centers of lifelong learning.
Today’s teacher,
besides delivering content, must also be a role model, part time parent, counselor,
cashier, administrator, tech expert, nurse and care-provider. He/she must be
organized and knowledgeable and must realize that information isn’t bound
primarily in books anymore but is available anywhere and everywhere.
When I was in school,
teachers dispensed information and education was almost like a production line.
Teachers were told what to teach, when to teach and how to teach. I clearly
remember no differentiation and all of us were taught exactly the same way. My
teachers used the same methods as past generations. Everything has changed today.
Teachers are encouraged to adapt new practices that acknowledge both the art
and science of learning. They have been made to realize that they first must
get to know the student as an individual, in order to comprehend his / her
unique learning styles and abilities.
The need of the hour
is a generation of teachers who continue to update their skills, as regularly a
possible – men and women who aim to develop learners instead of teaching them;
who help their pupils to become independent and motivate them not only to learn
and think for themselves, but to apply the knowledge they have garnered in real
life situations as well.
Besides knowing how
to teach reading, writing, mathematics and science, today’s teachers must know
how to manage a classroom, differentiate between the high achievers and slow
learners, as well as be able to develop curriculum that is rich and challenging
in content.
A teacher today must
know how to use tests to assess learning and be able to teach pupils to learn
collaterally. Their job also entails counseling students as they grow and
mature – helping them to integrate their social, intellectual and emotional
growth. They must give students the tools to make better decisions and use their
knowledge to better contribute to society and the world around them. Rather
than seeing themselves as masters of a particular subject they must aspire to
be inspirational role models who are able to develop a bond with their pupils.
The age old adage of
the teacher being the king /queen of the classroom should have been thrown out
with the dish-water ages ago. Today a teacher is a guide, a facilitator and a
co-learner. Rather than demand silence a teacher must encourage conversation
and make learning a participatory, educational adventure. In order for students
to really understand what they are learning, the curriculum must relate to
their lives; learning activities must engage pupils and make them curious while
assessments must measure real accomplishment and be an integral part of
learning.
Effective teaching
has to be fluid and adaptive to the current culture. The effective teacher is
one who embraces the evolving technological culture and adapts to the student’s
needs of today. In doing so, the teacher
will thrive, students will flourish and the goal of education to create men and
women who are capable of doing new things, not simply repeating what past
generations have done, will be achieved.
