As a language teacher, I am sometimes at difficult times for
I get blamed as of being unable to handle my classes properly. And many
colleagues of mine have to suffer the same fate. The regular interactions,
discussions, and drilling, which are the part and parcel of every language
class, are mistaken for unnecessary noise, and we are often advised by the
administrative authority to control the class and not to disturb the
neighboring classes. At times, even our efficiency is questioned. This largely
results from the inability of people in the administrative authorities and even
fellow teachers with traditional mind set to understand the true sprit of the
changing dynamics of teaching.
Starting from the hermitages of Gurukul and arriving at the IT classes of highly advanced modern
schools, the philosophy of teaching has gradually gained a new definition and
appreciation over the centuries. With the advent of new theories and
methodologies as the outcomes of years of pedagogical research and practices,
there has been a paradigm shift in both the theoretical as well as practical
aspects of teaching. Teaching, which was perceived solely as a teacher centered
approach traditionally, is no longer accepted as a downward path of imparting
knowledge these days. Instead, it is taken as facilitation, where a teacher is
expected to act not as the storehouse of knowledge but as a guide and
facilitator. Unlike a traditional teacher, who was every time hitting hard on
the head, a modern teacher encourages the learners to explore themselves so
that they can identify the potentials that lie within them. Today, knowledge is
not viewed as something which is imposed upon the learners from outside, but as
something which is fished out. As a result, modern day teaching is more learner-centered
and participatory. It is more interactive and practice based, and ensures the
involvement of every individual learner so that the learners of all levels and
capacities get a chance to expose themselves. Such practical approaches, on the
one hand, have lessened the burden of teachers, thus making their task much
easier whereas on the other hand, they have helped the learners open up and
share their ideas with each other in groups more comfortably and confidently.
However, a large number of teachers, both young and elderly,
still stick to the same age old patterns of teaching. They still view teaching
as an act of funneling knowledge into the supposedly empty brains of learners.
I have, at times, heard teachers say that teaching is not effective until they
nullify the authenticity of hitherto existing knowledge among the learners.
This is, however, an act of treating the learners merely as empty vessels.
Similarly there are some others, who are highly authoritarian and view teaching
as a one way traffic. Such teachers rely heavily on lecture methods. They tend
to take the learners merely as learning objects, and rarely entertain
interactions with them or any informal sessions, which are almost mandatory in
the modern day classrooms. They expect their students to be ready with their
books and exercise books turned at the right pages before they enter the
classroom. And when they enter, they seem to start off right at the entrance,
without even little concerns about the students’ well being, and whether or not
they are ready to learn. This kind of approach, however, is very much unlikely
to give the desired result these days, and even the highly competent teachers
are likely to turn as failures. Good teaching in fact comprises a careful
handling and effective execution of all the pre-teaching, while-teaching and
post-teaching activities.
With a changed scenario of the phenomenon of teaching and
learning, we live in a different academic era today. Because of people’s easy
access into fast growing information technology, modern day classrooms are not
merely the groups of passive listeners. Unlike those even a couple of decades
ago, today’s learners are much smarter and better possessed. They are equipped
with multiple resources, and don’t depend only on teachers for the acquisition
of knowledge. The modern day learners are not merely the educational morons
laden with complex theories, without even a little knowledge of their practical
implications. They are rather concerned about the pragmatic aspect of knowledge
they have gained through books or any other sources. They even question the
validity of their knowledge until they have found it useful in their real life
situations.
In order to fit to
this changed context, today’s teacher, therefore, has to be a multidimensional
personality. Unlike in the past, only being academically sound does not
attribute to being a good and successful teacher today. Teaching has gone
beyond the text books in terms of both form and content. Syllabus and the text
books are viewed simply as the means but not the ends. So, only the teachers
who can transcend this traditional boundary and teach their students the values
of life are likely to get better appreciation.
A modern teacher is, therefore, a teacher, friend, psychiatrist, actor,
joker at times, and above all a good human being.
Durga Gautam(Lunatic)
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