The Progressive Teacher Vol 03 Issue 05

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teaching Signs of a Good Teacher – Sukhwant Singh Thaper All teachers can stand in front of the class and deliver their lessons. Whether they are doing justice to their job or not is a different matter. A mediocre teacher will try to finish his syllabus in time. A good teacher loves to put across as much as he can in the stipulated time. The best teacher along with doing what a good teacher does will also keep in mind that he is building the nation and preparing citizens who would impact others globally. What are the signs of a good teacher? It is not very difficult to identify good teachers in a school. There are a few clear cut signs that can reveal the presence of a good teacher. Most good teachers carry a beautiful and comforting smile. Their bodies are not stiff. They acknowledge the greetings of students promptly irrespective of the fact whether they teach them or not. They are often seen followed by a couple of students after the class gets over. These children follow them to get their doubts cleared and then rush back to their classes when they see the next teacher approaching. Basically, I believe, a good teacher has the following three qualities:- (1) Good subject knowledge, (2) Good communication skills and (3) A good character. Normally it is not difficult to come across teachers who possess the first quality. Most of them, I believe, have good subject knowledge. Second and third qualities are becoming rare. Sukhwant Singh Thaper, Founder Principal of Delhi Public School, Nigahi (MP), has been in the educational field since 1987. He has been associated with the ELT Project since 1994 as CBSE’s Resource Person and has conducted various workshops. He received the coveted National Award for Best Teacher 2013 on 4th September 2014. He delivers discourses on Gita, Quran, Bible and Guru Granth Sahib regularly in his school. He is an alumnus of Ravenshaw College, Cuttack, Odisha and loves reading, travelling, photography and blogging. Nine teachers who had worked under him are now working as Principals. A shallow river makes more noise especially while it is flowing over rocks and stones. Similarly, a teacher with little knowledge is often seen losing his temper while handling students who are either too weak or who are brilliant. Weak students irritate such teachers and they dread the brilliant ones. A river that flows in abundance never makes a noise. It flows atop the rocks effortlessly and in doing so smoothens their sharp edges. With their buoyant energy and strength they help the boats and ships to sail well and reach their destination. Similarly, a teacher with his brilliant subject knowledge is able to help both weak and brilliant students to attain their goals. A mother and a child communicate with each other through not just language but also through signs and gestures. It is because they know each other well and love each other. Similarly, students are able to comprehend the signs and gestures of their favourite teachers. The first and foremost duty of a teacher should be to ensure that he is the best in his field. For this he needs to devote time towards sharpening his tools. For developing communication skills a person should read and, if possible, one should attempt to write. Importance of listening and spoken skills cannot be underestimated. In the present age of cell phones, I would advise teachers to listen to the BBC News podcast everyday on their cells. This would help them to remain updated and at the same time develop their listening skills. As they will be exposed to good English they themselves will feel comfortable in using better and new words while speaking. Very soon people around them will also note the difference and will appreciate them. The word ‘character’ should not be limited to the physical aspects of life like whether one takes bribes or not. Unfortunately, we have reduced this word to such things which is wrong. Besides these aspects, the word ‘character’ encompasses traits of a person which include punctuality, commitment towards a given task, love for the job, integrity, being proactive, planning, adhering to good principles in life, inclination towards spiritualism, human understanding and so on. A good teacher is capable of delivering lessons as per students’ level and not his. A good teacher doesn’t act as a know all. A good teacher uplifts weak students by asking them simple questions inside the class and not difficult ones in order to belittle him. A good teacher does not pretend to be a ‘sage’ on the ‘stage’ but loves to remain a ‘guide’ by the ‘side’. A good teacher does not shy away from, ‘I don’t know, I will let you know in my next class.’ A good teacher loves spending time with his students. A good teacher, like a parent, can never think ill of his students. A good teacher will always wish the best for his students, their progress and success. A good teacher feels elated to see his students doing better than him in their lives. It’s time that we as teachers sit and introspect and see where we stand as teachers. 54 The Progressive Teacher Nov/Dec 2016
motivation –Pallishree Rath In the teaching-learning process, teachers often ask how to motivate children to learn. Sometimes words of praise fail to motivate an underachiever. In his eyes, he is inferior. Anyone who tells him ‘You are smart, you are intelligent. You can do well’ ceases to be an agent of help. The child’s logic is: ‘Only someone stupid or dishonest would say that I am bright’. Children can be lured into learning but cannot be shamed into it. When forced to study, children use their ingenuity to get through school without learning. They know very well how to snow teachers. Here is an example: Once a principal stopped a tenth grade boy on his way home and asked a question, ‘What did you do in school today?’ The boy was tempted to tell him the truth that: ‘I apple-polished the English teacher. I read comic books during mathematics. I drew the cartoon of my teacher in social studies. I wrote notes to my girlfriend during French.’ Rather he replied, ‘It was a busy day’. The principal left with a smile in satisfaction. The answer of the abovementioned question is ‘Make it safe for them to risk failure’. The major obstacle to learning is fear: fear of failure, fear of criticism, fear of appearing stupid. An effective teacher makes it possible for each child to err with impunity. To remove fear is to invite attempt. To welcome mistakes is to encourage learning. MOTIVATING MOTTOS To motivate learning, the teacher has to discuss the meaning of failure in their lives. The failures of great persons are to be discussed. The children also talk about their fear of failure and the pain of humiliation. A set of motivating mottos can be displayed in the class room prominently. 1. In this class making mistakes is permissible. 2. An error is not a terror. 3. Goofs are lessons. 4. Mistakes are for correcting. 5. Value your correction, not your error. REDUCE FEAR To free children from fear of incorrect spelling, the teacher can encourage him by saying: ‘It’s difficult to spell unfamiliar words. It would be helpful for me if you’d write the first consonant of the word with a dash after it. Nov/Dec 2016 In the teaching-learning process, teachers often ask how to motivate children to learn. Sometimes words of praise fail to motivate an underachiever. In his eyes, he is inferior. Anyone who tells him ‘You are smart, you are intelligent. You can do well’ ceases to be an agent of help. The child’s logic is: ‘Only someone stupid or dishonest would say that I am bright’. From that clue and the context of your sentence, I’ll know which word you need.’ This works like magic and children respond to it and do not hesitate to write stories, poems, letters, etc. NOT A GENIUS Parents and teachers sometimes diminish a child’s motivation by seemingly benign words. They tell the failing child: We know you are not genius, and we don’t expect miracles from you. All we want you to do is to work to your capacity. We’ll be satisfied if you pass your grade. These words make it impossible for the child to exert any academic effort. Even if he does his best, he can look forward to nothing but a humiliating ‘pass’. If he fails, it will constitute a public admission of stupidity. The child wisely concludes that there is less risk in not trying. A mere motivating stance signals to children a clear message: We expect scholarship. Learning is not an accident but a long process; it requires effort and determination. We expect it from you. Pallishree Rath has been in this profession for more than fifteen years and has had the opportunity to work in various schools around India. Though teaching was not her first preference in life, she just ventured in by chance and eventually fell in love with it. She loves to experiment with various methods of teaching in the class rather than using the conventional way. She loves to organize language-based activities such as spell-bee, quiz, pictionary, drama, etc. You can contact her at: pallishreerath@gmail.com. READING ALOUD When asked to read, some children read softly and are barely audible. They stumble over many words and finally stop reading. Instead of ridiculing the child the teacher can say: ‘Reading English aloud is not easy. There is fear of making mistakes and of being laughed at. It takes courage to stand up and read. Thank you for trying’. The teacher shows understanding of his inner reality, deliberately avoiding unhelpful praise and empty encouragement. MOTIVATE WRITING Children often show apathy towards writing. They avoid writing or write too short. Instead of criticising and admonishing, the teacher says: ‘I found your writing very interesting, tight and concise. However when I finished it, I wished there was more to read’. My views on motivation can be best summed up with the following tale: A fire broke out in a house. The firemen who rushed to the rescue found a man heavily asleep. They tried to carry him down the stairs but could not. Then the chief arrived and said: ‘Wake him up and he’ll save himself’. The moral of the story is clear. Children bored and asleep will not be affected by a wellintentioned rescuer. They need to be awakened to their potential, and they will save themselves. www.progressiveteacher.in 55
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