.Twenty First Century
Teacher This story dates back to the pre-historic period, the
age
of *
Guru kulas , the temples of knowledge. Once a
renowned
guru was blessed with many intelligent disciples with
one
among them to be exceptionally talented. He
accomplished
all the skills assigned to him in a praiseworthy
manner,
but always failed to be praised by his Guru. Each time
he
approached his guru anticipating appreciation he was
taken
aback by his criticism. After many fruitless efforts,
being
de-motivated to no extent he fell prey to depression
and
then to vengeance. He wanted to avenge his guru for his
failure and after spending a few sleepless nights he
conspired to eradicate his guru. As he awaits for the
inevitable by pushing a heavy stone onto his guru’s
head
from the roof of the guru Kula he overheard a brief
conversation between his guru and wife. The wife was
blaming the husband for his callous remarks on his
shishya.
To his surprise Guru with a queer smile replied to his
wife
that he was proud to be the guru of such a noble
disciple
but he never wanted his blessed one to be carried away
by
the appreciations as they may result in his ruin due to
too
much pride in himself. The
shishya in hiding reprimands
and
in repentance decides to burn himself alive.
Disapproving
of his guru’s interventions to change his decision he
burns
himself in a pyre of husk. Awaiting the ultimate in the
middle of the pyre for seven days and nights he
completed
his masterpiece in Sanskrit literature, it is said.
As I heard this story in the early eighties as a
teenager
I was haunted by the tragedy ,but used to console
myself by
justifying guru. But today after 25 years I have
changed my
perceptions as I have evolved myself by confronting
with
experiences both bitter and sweet. I feel the tragedy
of
the shishya could have been avoided by a timely
appreciation by the guru.
today we have traversed far from the Guru Kula
tradition
and the guru shishya parampara. Twenty first century
teacher is more
competent and of course has to face
more
challenges due to various factors such as globalization
and
the changing face of the socio-cultural environment.
The
new teacher has to be more vulnerable and adaptable.
Our ancestors had the burden of analyzing a
student and
classifying him based more on only one aspect and that
was
the IQ Level. But the levels of analysis of the world
class
teacher is three folded. i.e from the IQ, SQ
Quotient –which determines the moral values of the
student.> and EQ level.
peers and the teachers.> As the topic is on student
teacher
relations it is very essential to analyze the child
from
his EQ level as it determines the character and
behavior of
a child in the classroom. Lower EQ levels de-motivates
a
child and results in learning disabilities as he faces
problems due to bullying.
This is a widely discussed topic even in the corporate
world so as to maintain healthy and competent workplace
habits
The introduction of the EQ in education adds to the
challenges of the 21st century teacher and demands her
to
be more confident in dealing with relationships as the
world class educational practices disapprove of dealing
with students as a hard task master does. The recent
strategic developments in classroom teaching do not
allow
teachers to be dominating ,but expect them to be more
understanding and realistic.
The students’ vices, follies and flaws should be
accepted
and channeled into various creative outlets.The
blooming
international schools, modifications in
curricula ,especially CBSE&ICSE emphasize the same.
Restricting the strength of students in classrooms is
an
outcome of parents’ cries for a betterpersonal
attention
for their wards as a child is the most priced
possession
for them in the present nuclear family culture.
Moulding the future generations will be a great
challenge
for teachers as the students of the present are exposed
to
a more competent, high-tech world with unheard of
luxuries.
The image of the teacher as a strict disciplinarian
will
be replaced in future by “ Pleasant,Patient and
Potential
Teacher”.
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