Who is an Ideal Teacher?

Nation building, customarily refers to the task of building a country after war, independence or economic fallout. But nation building does not mean just building skyscrapers or other physical infrastructural facilities. It is often said that in real sense, nation building implies transforming people, more importantly youth into citizens of high integrity and impeccable character and building a healthy society.

In this process of transformation, parents play  a very important role because they are child’s first teachers. It is often said that “Home is the First School and Mother is the First Teacher to a Child”. Parents can have deep impact on the children’s education, their conduct and character. But unfortunately, we find that these days, to a large extent, parents have utterly failed in their primary task of instilling values in their children, more so if both the parents are working.

This may be due to lack of strength / competence on the part of the parents to advise their children or may be children are pampered. This negative parental impact is very much reflected in the behavior of present day students. Many present day students do not know that it has been our tradition since time immemorial or it is our fundamental duty to respect parents, teachers and elders. Many times, children are not told about these basic attitudes which every child should possess. I am making this statement as an outcome of my observation and association with the student community for the past forty five years.

In my service of forty five years in the higher education sector, I have come across several cases of parents pleading with teachers and the principal to advise their children and put them on the right track as it is the teachers who occupy place next to parents in transforming the children. There are several instances where in transformation has been carried out successfully by the teachers.

Status of Teachers

It is an undeniable fact that both parents and teachers play significant role in building ethical society, economic development and nation building. A teacher contributes immensely towards proper development and growth of children thus producing worthy citizens of the country. Hence, it is aptly said that “A teacher is a nation builder”.

In our country, teaching profession is regarded as the noblest of all the professions. It is said that there are five noble professions – pastor / priest who looks after the spiritual aspects in the society, doctor who plays an important role in maintaining health of the society, soldier willing to sacrifice his/ her life for the sake of the motherland, a lawyer who takes care of legal aspects. But to produce these professionals, a teacher is indispensable. Hence, teaching profession is considered as the noblest of all the noble professions. A teacher enjoys an exalted and a respectable position in the society. In Taittriya Upanishad, it is remarked that a teacher is equivalent to God(“Acharya Devo Bhava”).Importance of education and the role of teachersin the process of educating the society is enunciated in the following quotes.

If you are planning for a year, you sow seeds

If you are planning for a decade, you plant trees

If you are planning for a century or more, you sow the seeds of education.

-Chinese proverb-

A plaque erected near the entrance of an African university has the following inscription on it “To destroy a nation, atom bomb or long range missiles are not required. Instead, lower the quality of education and allow the students to copy in the examinations”.

“Build one good school today and avoid hundred jails tomorrow”- Swami VeereshanandaSaraswathi, President, Ramakrishna Mutt, Tumkur.

“Destiny of a nation is shaped in the classrooms”

–Education Report of 1968-

Teachers are the backbone of an Educational Institution

Teachers are the backbone of any educational institution. The way the teachers teach has a seminal influence on students’ learning. The role of teachers and their competence in curriculum transaction in the classroom is very crucial for effective outcomesof learning. Even if an institution has an imposing building and state-of- the-art infrastructure,  it cannot flourish if there are no good, dedicated and competent teachers to support the educational system in the institution. Therefore, in the stupendous and noble task of building an institution, teachers play a very significant role. But the question is what type of teachers can really contribute to this astounding and challenging task of building an educational institution. We shall discuss about the qualities of an ideal teacher in the following paragraphs.

An Ideal Teacher

Basically, whoever wants to become a teacher he/she has ought to possess the following qualities/ traits.

The first and the foremost requirement is that a person should opt for the profession by choice not by chance.

• Should have intense passion for teaching.
• Should have deep if not adequate knowledge in the chosen discipline.
• Should have forbearance and mindset to treat students as his/her own children.
• Should be empathetic towards students’ problems.
• Should have the capacity to create curiosity amongst students.
• Should be innovative and creative.
• Should possess good communication and inter personal skills.
• Should have willingness to learn new things and be a lifelong learner.
• It is a known fact that learning abilities differ from student to student. Hence, a teacher should have the capacity to understand the diversity in learning abilities of students, and accordingly change his/her teaching style to suit the learning style of students.
• Should have impeccable conduct and character which are appreciated by the students and the society.
• Should be a role model for his/her students.
• Should not distinguish between professional conduct and personal conduct.
• Should recognize talents hidden in students, nurture them and create opportunities for enhancement of skills.
• Should maintain fairness while interacting with students.

A good teacher has to play multidimensional role.For instance, he/she is a sculptor, motivator, counselor, academic parent and academic leader. Teacher’s job is indeed a difficult, challenging and responsible job. A classroom comprises heterogeneous set of students having different learning abilities, hailing from different cultural and economic backgrounds with diverse interest as well. This heterogeneity poses a big challenge to teachers. It is the responsibility of the teacher to understand this multifariousness, guide each student as per the need and ensure that every student in the class become an achiever. A scholar and a virtuous person can only fit into the slot of an ideal teacher. It is often remarked that a bad teacher spoils generations of students.

A person has to aspire to become a teacher only if she/he really likes the profession and possesses all the qualities enumerated earlier. In case, a person becomes a teacher by chance, he/she has to develop the qualities of an ideal teacher in course of time so that he/she can participate effectively in the task of nation building. Education is the panacea for all ills in the society. Therefore, an ideal teacher plays a predominant  role in building a healthy, robust and ethical society.

Every teacher should aim to become an ideal teacher.

I conclude with a Sanskrit quote.“Swadeshe Poojyathe Raja, Vidhwan Sarvartha Poojyathe”.

Read in Kannada : ಆದರ್ಶ ಶಿಕ್ಷಕ ಹೇಗಿರಬೇಕು?