I always remain thankful to the many teachers in my life who were able to guide me to something new, mostly a new perspective without which I would not have been the person I am today. As a parent also, I remain eternally thankful to those teachers who were able to channel my children to the paths which they might not have discerned if not for them. I am talking about those dedicated teachers for whom teaching is not just a profession but a way of life. These are those special ones who do not work just for their income but for the outcome they will be able to bring about.
Though I started reading at a fairly young age, my interest in English literature began when Sister Hilda, my English teacher in high school, introduced us to a whole range of interesting books. I remember her reading to us in her beautiful voice and impeccable accent, Jean Webster’s Daddy Long Legs ! Needless to say, I chose to study English literature when I went to college.
Another exemplary teacher I was lucky enough to have was the great Tamil poet Nakulan. He wrote both in Tamil and English. He taught me American poetry during my postgraduate days. He was TKD sir for us. He was in no way the conventional teacher you would come across anywhere. He was the only dhoti-clad teacher in our English Department. I would say he inspired us to learn more and more by leaving things unsaid. He must have believed in the dictum “best is left unsaid”. While explaining an Emily Dickinson poem, instead of explaining the lines before us, he would ask us to conceive what is not there. I remember reading and re-reading her poems in a frantic effort to know more about her poetry. I think a great guru would always be like that, making you learn things on your own, and just prodding you towards it.
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Children in their initial stages of learning need teachers who can teach them with empathy. My son was lucky enough to have such a teacher in his kindergarten days at Ahmedabad. A shy child that he was, he would connect only with Ms. Banerjee who was his class teacher. I remember her coming to school even when she was running a fever because my son wouldn’t do his exam that day if she was not present! I am also greatly thankful to a mathematics teacher in Srirangam, Santhana Gopalan, who made my son get interested in that subject so much that maths remains his favourite subject to this day!
Teaching is more than a profession. Good teachers are to be given great credit, no doubt. In my opinion, primary teachers are to be paid better and also given great credit. Recruiting teachers also is to be done with a lot of diligence. We as a society just can’t afford to have people in the roles of teachers who are in no way fit for it. A primary teacher will have to take up the role of a parent as well when needed. As a student travels up in his or her years, a teacher would need to become his friend, philosopher and guide — a true guide who can show the right path.
A teacher should never be the one to break the spirit of a child in any way. As the clichéd saying goes for parents, “it is better not to be a parent than to be a bad parent”. It is indeed better not to be a teacher if you cannot be a good teacher. This is something more than a job; it needs a lot of empathy and all the good qualities under the sun to make a good teacher! Let us hope our children always get good teachers in their life.
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