The
Power of Young India to Educate, and Make a Difference
In
a country where education is free and compulsory for kids, the problems of
rampant illiteracy and poor educational facilities are not just shameful, but also
tragic. The government has invested so much for designing new models of
education, building social and economic infrastructure to facilitate learning,
and hiring and training manpower to spread the wonderful and life-transforming gift
of knowledge. However, there is no doubt that we, as a nation, have failed in
this endeavour, and have therefore failed our children, and are still failing
them by depriving them of their birth right and their passport to success and
happiness in life: education.
One
visit to a government school or any under-resourced private school in any part
of the country will give you an idea about the kind of learning which takes
place in these institutes. Indifferent teachers spending the whole day in the
staff room gossiping or doing some manual paper work is a sight that you are
most likely to encounter. Children sitting idle in their classrooms, clueless
of what they should be doing, feeling completely left out and neglected is
another common sight.
It
is evident that the major impediment in the education system of our country is
the poor implementation of government policies and the violation of educational
standards at the grassroots level. The
greatest and the most noble service which the young generation of the country,
at this juncture, can offer is its ability to teach and inspire billions of
children so as to add colours and sparks into their lives, and promote their
healthy growth and development.
In
today’s fast-paced world, where most people just care about wealth, power and
fame, I feel glad that so many of the country’s brightest and most enthusiastic
young men and women are channelizing their energies and resources to fight
against educational inequity, which is highly endemic in our country, by
working as primary school teachers in the most under-resourced schools of the
country. The fact that the youth feels so much our country, and understands
that the key to economic development is educational equity deserves great
appreciation and respect. This highlights the passion, the motivation, and the
dedication of young India.
Till
some time back, I used to think that school teachers lead an uncomplicated and relatively
relaxed life. I was of this wrong notion that all they did in a day was go to
school in the morning, come back by the afternoon, and then enjoy in the
evening. However, now that I have become a teacher, and have committed to
transform the lives of the forty-five children in my classroom of an MCD school
in New Delhi, I have realised that teaching is one of the most challenging,
difficult, stressful, but at the same time, fulfilling and rewarding job in the
world.
Since
I teach in an under-resourced school which caters to the needs of poor and
under-privileged families, teaching such children is a much bigger challenge
than teaching kids in affluent public and private schools. Since the parents of
these children cannot afford to provide the best learning environment and
resources to their children, I have to take up that responsibility within the
classroom. Sometimes, I am also posed with unexpected and unpredictable
challenges like children getting beaten up by their parents before being sent
to study in the school. A lot of times my kids complain of not sickness and
hunger. Since most of the parents are uneducated, they often don’t realise the
value of investing in their children and it becomes quite a challenge to make
them understand why I am doing what I am doing.
I
strive hard to make my classroom a happy and safe place for the kids, where
they love reading, learning, calculating, playing and discovering. My classroom
has its own theme- ‘High flyers’, I teach using the most innovative and
interactive methods and techniques, and I constantly engage my kids by playing
games with them, thereby making learning fun for them. But doing that is just
not enough. I have to regularly invest in all the stakeholders that impact the
kids, including the parents, such as the school principal, other teachers in
school, community members and even their tuition teachers. All this requires a
lot of grit, diligence and patience.
As
leaders in the classroom, teachers have the great power to transform their
children’s lives and make them better and more successful human beings by
propagating the right knowledge, moral values and skills among the latter. And
if you also strongly believe in our mission to transform the country by
eliminating educational inequity, and have a genuine love for kids and want to
see them grow as responsible students, team-workers, managers and individuals,
this could be the right profession for you.
Submitted By :Pranav
Sukhija
MA (Economics) IGNOU, New Delhi
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