There are no bad students, only bad teachers.

I have been contemplating putting down my thoughts for a long time. But really didn’t know what to write. Today, I couldn’t stop myself from penning down the continuous flow of thoughts in my mind. The movie “Hichki” has triggered a volley of emotions in my heart. What kind of a teacher have I been? Have I been able to add any value to my lessons?

I vividly remember my first day in class XII. It was the year 2000, I was 23, and a bunch of 18-year-old students were in front of me. They were ready to test me and my knowledge, and here I was standing confident to face them. My first lesson was Tenses in a Paragraph. I was explaining to them the forms of the auxiliary “be” and I said it was – is; was; were; been; has been, etc. Vivek got up and said that I was wrong and they had always learnt that only ‘been’ was a form of ‘be’. “If you have always learnt wrong, then today learn what is correct”, I said and continued with my lesson.

Another incident that I recall is of teaching ‘Great Expectations’. Every day, I had two consecutive English periods of 45 minutes each. Now, this meant 1 1/2 hours of continuous teaching of the novel. I noticed that a group of 6 boys always occupied the last benches during my period and showed no interest whatsoever in Pip and Estella. Gradually, they began to disturb the class. Finding it difficult to teach, I was left with no option but to give them an option that either they stayed in the class and pay attention, or they were free to leave the class and go to the playground or library. I assured them that I would not complain to the Principal against them, and if they were caught, they could freely take my name. The first day, as soon as I opened the option, one student got up to leave, then another, and another. Finally, all 6 left the class, and I continued to teach the others without any disturbance. This continued for 3 days – four left on the second day, two on the third, and finally on the fourth, all six stayed in the class rapt with attention.

The movie “Hichki” and the class IX-F reminded me of many such incidents in Dabble College. It has been five years since I left teaching in school, and I run my own tuition classes. I miss that atmosphere of classroom teaching. Teaching at home and teaching in school are very different. The movie also made me ponder if I have ever been able to make a mark on any student’s life. Only my students can tell. But yes, I agree that a teacher can mould the student and guide them in the right direction. A teacher is not only expected to impart the bookish knowledge but also to equip them with life survival skills. How many teachers do that? How many teachers have been able to be role models for students? How many students want to grow up to be teachers and shape the future of tomorrow? Our education system is faulty because it evaluates students according to the marks obtained and thus brands them as GOOD and BAD students. Does scoring less make a student BAD? No students are BAD; it is teachers whose way of teaching may be faulty. A GOOD teacher can transform the life of the students, and a BAD one may ruin his/her life.

I sincerely strive to be that GOOD teacher for my students so that I can add some value to their lives.