Teaching in modern times is a remarkably intricate, multifaceted skill, and there is never a sense of having “mastered” it. It’s a process of learning throughout. While this could be an intimidating idea, it’s actually one of the most energizing and exciting things about the profession. It is also a thankless and a sleepless job. It is all about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence.
This is a fact that cannot be brushed aside. A majority of the change- a positive change in society comes from schools. A school sets the vision and teachers have the knowledge and the necessary tools along with a will to innovate inside a school. Teachers put ideas into practice and exercise a hidden power to influence children.
The school is the medium through which teachers can bring about a monumental change in the social fabric of the young in our society. Also consider the current problems caused by Double-Income-Parents, nuclear families, apartment living, doling out to children leading them to think they are entitled etc. These complex issues change the role of a teacher from just “knowledge giver” to a “character builder”.
Role of a multifaceted modern day school teacher:
Today’s teacher is someone who plays multiple roles in the lives of children at school.
- She guides children to learn “How to Learn” – not just deliver her knowledge
- Invokes the spirit of learning, to question and to have belief in oneself.
- She extends a helping hand to help children navigate difficult situations at home, with friends etc;
- Lends a shoulder to cry on and be the hand that applies the healing touch.
- Be the guiding force to propel children to raise the bar when it matters and come up with a stupendous performance.
- Be the parent who helps the social and emotional development in a child.
Current day teachers generally complain about the time they have to invest in this process. Not all managements are helpful in realizing the challenges and making curriculums which can address these issues. Management and parents also can be too focused on ranks and grades. I believe a good school will invest in the teachers and also in systems that include
- Annual plans and Lesson Plans that make the classes more structured
- Use different media to express like bulletin boards, charts etc
- Time for notebook and paper corrections and the analysis that follows
- Devise various club and extra-curricular activities that help children be team players
- Provide for bus facilities to teachers which increases interaction with children during the bus trips
- Teacher training and development – teachers should invest personal time and managements will invest money.
The objective is to ensure that the teacher is always engaged with children. Almost to a point that he/she has no time to breathe (pun intended). These are all opportunities for a teaching process, intertwined with each other. Teaching becomes a wholesome process, guiding students at every step and ensuring that they are cared for in all aspects when in school or even when outside school.
Teachers should have a vision on how they would like to see their ideas and aims take shape as a final product. They may not be sure of the path to take to reach the goal but should be very sure about what they would like to achieve as their final objective.
Modern day teaching can make a huge difference to society as students carry with them the torch for our future based on the overall development at school. These students can then influence more than one life at the same time. And this can be a harbinger of the new society that would emerge from all this churning.
As someone rightly said “I’m not a teacher, but an awakener”. A teacher affects eternity, the impact of which lasts for posterity. Finally I would like to conclude with Albert Einstein’s words. “It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.”
Pavani Dokka
English -HOD
TATVA Global School
Great very good article
Well, written, should have covered little more on team building, missing contribution by parents, augmented learning at school, learning initiative as projects outside curriculum.
Teachers contribute effectively in psychological build of a student, ignites the thinking and transforms a mere mortal to an ambassador for future.
We’ll put, Pavani. Keep it up….
Very nice one Pavani… ?
Good one Akka.
A teacher is a guide to a child right from his kinder garden stage to post graduation. How ever, a Parent（Mother/ Father） is an open dictionary for to identify, build and reflect their individual character through the child, as had a greater role to play and is highly dominating factor in the overall character building of the child, apart from school/college environment..and this to carry in their entire journey. More over, In real time basis, a teacher in a school is also a Mother/ Father to a child, and this makes a difference.
Very well written Pavani. Can’t agree more that good teaching is a wholesome process., Very inteicate and intertwined with a child’s learning needs and as well personality development needs . Individual attention to each student is a blessing and transforms the child from a caterpillar to a butterfly. It is overwhelming for me to think how a teacher repeats this process with innovation and customization, to all the students, she teaches.
These are in fact enormous ideas in about blogging. You have touched some fastidious points here.
Any way keep up wrinting.