The Progressive Teacher Vol 02 Issue 04

ights and feelings of others, and also possess
civic sense. How about the story of the young
man who used to put on loud music in his
house, disturbing all his neighbours in spite of
their gentle protests? He never cared about
others, but suddenly, one day, the music and
noise ceased. Did the young man realise his
folly? No. He had become completely deaf.
There are numerous real life stories inspiring
courage in the hour of peril. Once, a child
was sitting at the edge of the school ground
during the recess when a snake suddenly
climbed on his leg and coiled around it. The
child screamed for help. A crowd of teachers
and students gathered but nobody dared
come forward to help. His class teacher
heard the flashed news and rushed out to
the playground with the newspaper she was
reading. This lady teacher had presence of
mind. She grabbed the head of the snake
with the newspaper and freed the child. I also
tell the sad story of one of my senior college
mates who sacrificed his life in trying to save
his classmate who had accidentally slipped
and fallen into a fast-flowing river. Without
wasting a moment, he jumped into the water
and saved his classmate but was himself
swept away by the current. Such courage is
an important trait of a strong character.
History is a subject that is full of anecdotes
for one’s edification. There are many real
life stories in history based on the lives of
rulers and the common people that one can
learn from. An imaginative history teacher
can increase the pupils’ knowledge and
also contribute to the edifice of character
building. When talking of the evils of flattery
and sycophancy, I love to narrate the story
of Akbar’s Ghazi who was left in charge
of the capital at Agra when Akbar had
gone on a long campaign. On his return, the
Ghazi proudly reported that he had passed
the death sentence on a man (whom even
the emperor did not like) and had had him
executed. He expected Akbar to thank him
for getting rid of that troublesome man. But
Akbar became sad and said to the Ghazi:
‘You were the judge and final authority.
Could you not have found some extenuating
circumstances to save the life of that man
and forgiven him just once more.’
Why is it that the construction of the
Qutub Minar ( situated in Delhi ) started
by Qutubuddin Aibak was continued by
his successors, while another tower meant
to be twice the height of the Qutub Minar
started by Alauddin Khilji was abandoned?
No one wanted to contribute to the building
of a monument conceived in cruelty and
arrogance!
It requires great courage to forgive someone
who insults us. Yet, we know that forgiveness
is the only way to reform and win back the
foe. I tell children the story a military officer
who had become an alcoholic and for this
his superiors had issued severe warnings.
One night at a party, he drank excessively,
and then confronted his immediate superior,
who had a grudge against him, as he had
imagined. He went to him fully drunk and
abused him in front of other officers. The next
day, he arrived late to office, but now being
fully sober realised the enormity of his action
and expected dismissal from service. He
was summoned to his superior’s office. They
chatted over a cup of tea as if nothing had
happened. The offending officer then realised
the greatness of the man who had really
forgiven him. This act of forgiveness changed
the life of this young officer. He quit alcohol
and became a model of good behavior.
In these days of scams, dishonesty and
corruption, real life stories abound about
men of character. M’d Hussein, a taxi driver
in Chicago, noticed a bag that had been left
behind in his taxi. It contained expensive
jewelry. He realised it belonged to the two
men whom he had dropped off at a hotel.
M’d Hussein returned to their hotel with the
bag and gave it back to them. For his act of
honesty, he was awarded a handsome
cheque and a Citizen’s Award by the Mayor
of the city.
There are innumerable real life stories
of children who were obedient to their
teachers and elders, or had been able to
develop good habits when young, and later
achieved success. Here is an anecdote about
an interschool competition held for senior
secondary students. None of the senior
students were able to answer a tricky science
question put to them, although they came
from some of the most prestigious schools of
Delhi. Finally, from the audience, a child of
class V gave the correct answer. The assembly
was stunned. Being a witness to this incident,
I asked him how he knew the answer. He told
me that he was a voracious reader and had
read many science–fiction books written by
Isaac Asimov. In the bargain, he had also
read a book where mysterious science facts
had been explained.
The reading habit enhances the reader’s
personality, transforming it into one that’s
humane, benevolent and civilised. The reason
is that in books one comes across varied
ideas and situations: meet good, intelligent
and interesting characters. When I ask the
question, ‘What is a library’, the answer I get
is, ‘It is a store house of books.’ But I tell my
students that for me a library is ‘an assembly
of the greatest minds that have ever lived on
this earth.’ A reader, therefore, mingles with
these minds. ‘If we encounter a man of rare
intellect,’ said Emerson, ‘we should ask him
what books he reads.’
Reading enhances and ennobles one’s
character. Eminent writer and columnist,
Khushwant Singh reported an interesting
incident. Once, an acquaintance of his
phoned him to say that Khushwant Singh’s
best friend, Mr. X had been arrested for
corruption. Mr. Singh thought for a moment
and said, ‘It’s impossible. He can never be
corrupt.’ ‘Why so?’ asked his acquaintance.
Khushwant Singh replied with confidence,
‘Because he is a reader.’ Mr. Singh was
proved right, for soon it turned out that it
was a case of mistaken identity and the
corrupt person was another man having the
same name.
Stories culled from the media, biographies of
eminent persons, and every available source,
will stimulate a love for books in young
people and will help build character. No
doubt, real life stories are a powerful tool in
the classroom and beyond.
From the publisher’s desk...
What if you are a student in your own class?
As a teacher, have you ever wondered
what would happen if you are a
student in your own class? Well,
that needs a lot of retrospect…and you
have to be true in your assessment.
Imagine yourself as a student in your class.
Do you like your teacher? Do you like
his/her way of teaching? Do you
understand what is taught in the class?
Is the teacher ready to explain the
concepts again? Does he/she get irritated?
Is the teacher unbiased? Do you like what
is taught? Do you look forward to attend
the class the next day?
If the answer is yes to all these questions
above and you are happy to be a student
in your class, you are a perfect teacher.
But, if you feel intimidated or are not able
to understand the concepts, it is time to
think again.
Children come to school to learn and
enhance their knowledge. A teacher or the
guru imparts this knowledge and kids look
up to their teachers to enhance it…day
after day. After all, a good teacher can
inspire hope, ignite the imagination,
and instill a love of learning.
Let us aim to instill the love of learning
Sonal Khurana
sonal@progressiveteacher.in
and go through this litmus test time
and again!
54 The Progressive Teacher Sep/Oct 2015