A teacher should keep a mirror for the self-development of the children

By: Priyanka Saurabh
There is a gradual development of knowledge, ideas, and values in the life of man right from birth, which makes him a human being by separating him from other animals. After family, teachers play the biggest role in this development. However, in Indian society, teachers are held in very high esteem, since ancient times they have been a major source of morality and importance of education in the society. The teachers used their knowledge to act as a philosopher-guide-friend to the entire society, many of them working against social evils. Even in the contemporary world, apart from academic genius, they stand for ethics, and in our highly rural and illiterate society, people look up to teachers as the future builders of their children. In the development of children, the ideal role of teachers should be that of promoters and motivators of the right values and qualities. Thus, instead of spoon-feeding knowledge directly to students, they should strive to develop a sense of inquiry, and rationality in children, so that they feel empowered to learn on their own, with passion. Also, teachers should try to inculcate good moral values like truthfulness, honesty, discipline, humility, religious tolerance, gender equality, etc. in children so that the foundation of good human beings can be laid.
In the contemporary world facing a deep value crisis, our teachers have a huge role to play if we are to grow and prosper. The value of the teacher is clearly defined by the beautiful shlokas of ancient India – Guru Brahma, Guru Vishnu, Guru Devo Maheshwara, Guru Sakshat Param Brahma, Tasmai Sri Guruve Namah. Which means “Guru is the creator (Brahma), Guru is the protector (Vishnu), Gurudev is the destroyer (Maheshwar). Guru himself is the perfect (singular) God, salutations to that Sri Guru” The teacher is not the one who teaches only for money, The passion for teaching goes a long way. It is the bitter truth of our society that some teachers don’t have the passion and knowledge to teach, there are many examples like what is happening in the schools of Bihar, if the teacher lacks the quality of teaching then what should we do to the students? As one can expect, the education system needs a change, the NCERT pattern is out of date and has not been revised since 2015. There should be literate teachers but there should also be educated teachers.
The first teacher of any child is the mother, through whom the child learns the fundamentals which have a fundamental impact on his personality. A teacher has the power to bring revolution to his students by nurturing knowledge. So the teacher plays the most important role in the life of the students, he guides the students right by motivating and also understands their needs and problems of the students and solves them by providing the best solutions. The friendly nature of the teacher is commendable. Thus a teacher has all those qualities by which he can change the fate of any student by providing and motivating him with the best. In Indian society, the place of the Guru was held in a high position. In the scriptures, the Guru is often equated with God. Even the socio-religious reformers commented on the quintessence of the gurus in their lives. A guru is seen not only as a guide, teacher, friend, and truth seeker but also as a person who enables one to realize one’s potential and place in the universe.
The role of the teacher was more important in shaping the future of the child and the human being. Presently society has lost the human touch – the essence of compassion, empathy, core purpose, and tolerance, now is the time to inculcate such values in children. Guru is important in this context. Social values, harmony, and the spirit of excellence are the need of the hour. Therefore the role of the teacher is not limited to curricular development, but to the holistic development of the human self – social, economic, political, and contextual – to achieve maximum potential. Guru-Shishya tradition has existed in India since time immemorial. The Guru used to be the single point of reference for all the issues of the disciples and at the same time he was the epitome of values and virtues and it was his duty to instil them in the students. To create a class of citizens with very high ideals of moral and ethical values, to propagate non-violence and sympathy, and to sensitize the students to poverty, pain, and needs of the society. These days all this is vanishing and schools are producing mechanical students with rote but lack intellectual side. Modern-day teachers are not themselves well equipped in value systems and are often the forerunners of political ideologies that replace teaching with propaganda and are dangerous for both the students and the nation.
The need of the hour is that teachers should be given proper training and strictly instructed not to indulge in propaganda, but to develop the minds of children on the principles of secularism and inclusiveness enshrined in the Constitution. In Indian society, the teacher has been given a place like God. The teacher, considered the second guardian of children, is often compared to the light of hope in the dark. The teacher is held at a very high position because of the very important role played by him in building the foundation of man. Not only knowledge but they are also the source of moral, and social values of the individual. India has inherited a great tradition of the guru-disciple relationship. Parents give birth Teachers give values and character respect to the student. We do not remember what the teacher has taught but how the teacher is, so the teacher develops the values of discipline and character at this age by becoming a role model, children repeat what they see. The teacher should not teach what to think but how to think so that individual traits are developed. The teacher should push the limits of the child and enable them to explore for themselves. The teacher should encourage the tendency to question. Confucians with out-of-the-box thinking did the same and Abdul Kalam always raised questions, in simple words a teacher should keep a mirror for the self-development of the children.
The writer is Research Scholar in Political Science, Poet, freelance journalist and columnist.