Sharing path to learning

Teachers and students of Ramjas School,Pusa Road,discuss the teacher-student bond,and how it is strengthened by a combined passion for learning

M Sharda
Teaching is an art; so is learning. Both are difficult. Yet both can be learnt.

Painful,though it is,education today is so crassly commercialised that it is viewed more as an industry. Anyone who talks about service-mindedness is ridiculed. True,there also are a majority of students who are focussed. But before the mighty and powerful minority,they are reduced to nothing.

If this is the case with students,the plight of teachers is no better. Plenty of rhetoric is used to describe teachers: selfless,noble,honourable and respected. It feels good; but the euphoria stops there. Teachers today are a pressurised lot — Pressurised at school and pressurised at home. Balancing professional and personal commitments is no less than walking a tight rope. Society does say teaching is a noble profession but when it comes to reality,teachers are the least respected,both by the society and the state.

Resolving this conflict is not easy. The will to resolve must come from the administration,teachers and students.

To the first group,only an appeal can be made to be fair.

Coming to the teaching fraternity,all I can say is that the time has come for introspection. They must question themselves — do they have a strong passion for learning? Are they effective communicators? Are they aware of the problems faced by youngsters? Do they empathise with them? Finally how committed are they to the profession? I regret to say that the kind of commitment I saw in my teachers is missing today.

Without having the passion for learning within themselves,it would be foolhardy to believe teachers can instill passion in students. We have smarter students today. But how open-minded are we to accept change and adapt ourselves and update our skills? If the teaching community responds positively,I am sure the attitude of the most indifferent and arrogant learners could be changed.

Many of today’s students are talented,informed and focussed. With easy access to information,a student is almost on par with the teacher. I say almost,because,possession of information alone will not make one educated. What truly matters is application of available information. How well and beneficially are resources used? This is where a teacher’s role becomes crucial.

Teachers must build strong and successful teacher- student relationships based on their own personalities and teaching styles.
PGT-English

Abhay Singh
The Guru-Shishya parampara is the very soul of the oral tradition of India,and embodies the living and learning relationship between master and pupil.

The principle of this relationship is that knowledge,especially subtle or advanced knowledge,is best conveyed through a strong human relationship based on ideals of the student’s respect,commitment,devotion and obedience,and on personal instruction by which the student eventually masters the knowledge that the Guru embodies. Under this traditional method of a residential form of education,the Shishya remains with his Guru as a family member and gets education as a true learner.

The Guru and Shishya relationship is unique to India and has been cultivated over 2,500 years of Indian heritage. The Guru-Shishya relationship has evolved into a fundamental component of Hinduism from the oral traditions of the ‘Upanishads’. In this relationship,the Shishya considers the Guru to be God and has absolute faith in the teachings and guidance of the Guru. For his part,the Guru dedicates himself to the guidance of the Shishya. There is no competition in this relationship — just mutual respect. Nothing in this world is more satisfying to the Guru than the accomplishments of his Shishya. Such is the greatness of this relationship. However,for both the Guru and the Shishya,finding this relationship is as much about chance as it is about one’s own willingness to find knowledge wherever it may reside.

This ancient teaching method tells us to search for knowledge with an open mind. It encourages us to ‘know ourselves’ and others without prejudice. We are indebted to our great ‘Gurus’ for showing us the light of knowledge at the dawn of civilisation. Their legend will always act as an inspiration for moving ahead towards enlightenment. u
Class XI,Commerce

Jaya Kasan
Guru and Shishya are the two pillars on which a society is built. It is a society where one enjoys a feeling of wholeness of life. The parampara has indeed undergone a drastic change,with globalisation and commercialisation of education,the significance and worthiness of a Guru is undermined. In ancient times,the disciples looked up to their Gurus as there role models,while today a teacher is treated more as a friend. Earlier the youth stood high not only in friendliness but also in their tolerance,companionship,forbearance and benevolence. The credit of cleansing and purifying the mind of negativities went to the Gurus who devoted their all to the welfare and growth of their disciples.

Today we are surrounded by youngsters with aggressivetraits,haughty demeanour and misconduct. No one today wants to put the service ahead of the self because there are no gurus or institutions that motivates them to do so. The poise and dignity with which they conduct themselves are inculcated from their gurus — but where do we find such gurus today? Today’s youngsters are eveready to run down all attributes of others while being blind to their own negatives. Cushy jobs,high salaries,alluring corporate world offers are making the youth chase chimeras,unrealistic desires,resulting in depression and collapse of self-esteem.

If we need to build a happy and peaceful society we need to get back to the Guru-Shishya parampara and create more Dronacharyas. If the youth learn to revere their gurus and the gurus are the worthy of reverence,the society will become heaven itself.

Mere sermons,discipline and virtuous conduct cannot be installed in the youngsters simply through textbook lectures.
Senior English Teacher

Karan Saxena
Let me begin with a small story. Once a hare was lying under the tree in a jungle,lost in his thoughts. A thought occurred to him: what would happen if the Earth collapses? At that moment,an apple fell from the tree on his head. The hare got scared as he thought that the Earth is truly collapsing. He ran all over the forest telling all animals he met on the way about it. All the animals got worried and hid themselves inside their homes. When the King Lion heard about it,he called upon the hare to enquire. The hare told him about the incident. The King Lion laughed and said,“Don’t worry people,the Earth is not going to collapse. It was an apple that fell on the hare.”

In this world we are like the hare,confused,foolish,silly and blinded by our own fears. But a teacher is the King Lion. He knows everything and is always ready to give his words of advice to his students. A teacher always shows us the right path,and helps us overcome our fears.

A teacher-student relationship is very much like the relationship between the animals of the jungle and the Lion. Like the Lion,a teacher does not demand respect from his students,his sole purpose lies in the development of his student,but even then a student holds his teacher in high respect in his heart.

A teacher loves his students in the way a father loves his child. He bestows his love and support to his student all through his journey of development,and scolds him and sometimes gives harsh punishment,but that’s just because a teacher desperately wants his student to succeed in every stage of life. He wants them to never repeat the same mistake twice and therefore corrects them when they are wrong. But in hearts of hearts a student has a deep emotion of love for his students.
Class XII-B,Science