TEACHERS' VOICES

Inspire’s core belief that teachers have the greatest impact on the life of a child and that a motivated teacher is the greatest asset to society gives us a reason to celebrate this teacher’s day. We interviewed some teachers and asked three questions that drives them as teachers. While most feel that these were the questions often asked but the responses often unheard. We take this opportunity to share with you The Voice of Teachers.

Q1. What made you pursue teaching as a profession?

According to most teachers, teaching being a woman dominated profession, was an obvious choice as parents wanted their daughters to be safe, be able to tend to their families and certainly at one point of time it was the most convenient option. For few others, the reasons were simply that entering this profession is the easiest due to low entrance barriers except a B. Ed certification. Many say that because they idolized their teachers they long before had decided to be teachers whereas most felt that the passion kindled only after becoming teachers.

One of the most touching responses was from a teacher who did not want children today to be victims of system failure as she was. She set out to make a difference in every possible way.

Q2. How do you visualize your career path?

From the tete a tete with teachers who were beginners, to teachers whose careers spanned over several decades, we realized that the beginners were brimming with hope that they will inch forward and become better teachers as they gain more experience, while others aspired and hoped to grow in the school ladder. And there are some who plan to be children’s books author. There were few success stories too to share where the career shaped as planned and dreamt of. Alarmingly, majority felt discontent and stagnated as they continued to teach the same classes and subjects over many years. Some even accepted that they were comfortable and complacent.

Q3. What are the motivators and challenges of teaching profession?

Most teachers felt gratification through the joy and pleasure that children bring along. The fact that they have been able to impact many lives continues to motivate them to touch many more. The appreciation and respect from students, parents, school authorities and the society have been the greatest motivators. 

Challenges have been many, and the greatest being striking a balance between being a career woman and a homemaker. The demands of the job being emotionally, mentally and physically too high, teachers do acknowledge that at times they are not able to justify their jobs fully. Challenges are school specific and at various levels- they can be classroom bound, administrative and even policy level.   Inadequate teacher student ratios, heterogeneity in learning abilities, demands from parents are major challenges of the classroom. Most teachers find executing CCE (Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation) along with classroom transaction the most challenging part of their job.

We conclude that for majority teaching was not a chosen profession but an easy to walk in profession. The barriers for people aspiring to be teachers need to be raised as teachers are instrumental in shaping and preparing the upcoming generation. Teachers should be able to experience growth for which they should be trained time and again through a variety of teacher education programs and be granted performance based appraisals and promotions as any other organization.

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.” Henry Brooks Adams

A happy and a satisfied teacher only can influence her students in the positive way. Inspire wishes everyone a Happy Teachers day.

The Preschool Scenario - Scanned !

Any company or individual working in the area of preschool education is sure to have encountered these statistics. Clearly the preschool education market is booming and promises rapid growth and quick returns for investment.  After all currently only 1 out of 100 children in the age group are enrolled in preschools. Due to increase in income and awareness as well as challenges of nuclear family, parents in tier II and Tier III cities are increasingly enrolling their children in preschools.

This is indeed a welcome trend as research conducted in different countries as well as in India clearly establishes that pre primary education lays the foundation for lifelong learning and development. A 1996 study conducted under DEEP, NCERT states children with preschool experience showed higher numeracy and reading readiness scores in class 1.

Given that preschool education is essential for supporting children’s learning and development the trend of more and more entrepreneurs are venturing into this domain is a cause for celebration.

Or is it? While the number of preschools is increasing low entry barriers and low regulation means that anybody can walk into the domain.  Individuals with some capital to invest or with some space to spare can open a preschool. Mostly they have no understanding of how children develop and learn. For them a good preschool is described by its building and facilities only. So we have preschools that look like castles out of fairy tales, have glitzy interiors with granite flooring, walls with murals from Disney tales and AV rooms to recreate the movie theatre experience with recliners and soft drink glass holders in the arm rest.  However as any child development expert will tell you that swanky décor and luxurious facilities do not imply learning. It is the quality of the teachers and the curriculum that determines how well children learn and develop.

Unfortunately most promoters while willing to invest in the latest state-of art infrastructure seem clearly reluctant to spend of teachers’ salaries, their training or on curriculum.

Lack of good teachers is another challenge that the domain faces. It is strange that in our country anybody can walk into a preschool and become a teacher. But teachers in preschool need complex skills. They need to be a parent, a teacher and a manager all rolled in one. Think of a class where 10 children are completing a worksheet, two have already completed it and one child has still not begun because he is missing his mother.  This is a kind of situation that teachers encounter several times in a day. To assume that any graduate will be able to handle such situations without any kind of training is indeed a tall order. By accepting this premise we are compromising on children’s learning.

Additionally at the policy level there are no clearly defined standards or outcomes to measure the quality of learning provided in the preschools across the country. This has resulted in a chaotic situation where many preschools seem believe that more is better. So we have come across preschools where 5 year olds are made to memorise tables of 2 and 3.

In view of these challenges the draft National Early Childhood Care and Education Policy (NECCE) is a welcome initiative by the Ministry of Women and Child Development. If implemented well this policy should act as an institutional mechanism to define and ensure quality of preschool education.

We would then rightly celebrate the boom in the sector as it would quality education for our children within the parameters of business success.

Degrees for Success

Let us begin by sharing some recent experiences.

Just a few days ago we came across a flyer to introduce a new preschool in the locality. ‘A preschool managed by IIT and IIM alumni’ it said. 

A company that has developed curriculum for schools proudly claims on its website that the lesson plans are scripted by IIT graduates.

 As a part of our initiatives for social responsibility Inspire has been in conversation with senior officers in the state education department for piloting a program for enhancing children’s English language capabilities. We were informed that many similar interventions have already been conducted by IIT students.

This has set us thinking. We, at Inspire, believe that IIT’s and IIM’s are centers for academic excellence. They set benchmarks to assess the standards and practices in other educational institutions in our country. The qualification and commitment of the staff, the caliber and effort put in by students and opportunities for interaction with the real industry ensure that students who graduate are committed, socially aware professionals with zeal to excel in the field of their choice. 

However, the moot question here is that can an IIT degree guarantee that the individual will be a good teacher or administrator for a school or a preschool. If a person excels in math and science and has been able to ace the most competitive entrance exam, will s/he necessarily be an excellent teacher. Will s/he be able to automatically communicate the understanding and interest in the subjects to a class of forty students?

Teaching is a science and art. A teacher needs in-depth understanding and conceptual clarity in the subject s/he teaches. But at the same time teaching requires an understanding of children’s psyche and development. A  teacher needs to skilled in the art of coaxing and cajoling children, heightening interest in the subject by piquing  their curiosity, building up suspense by introducing an element of drama and planning for small successes to keep them motivated. A teacher has to be skilled at class room management and differentiated learning. S/he should be able to identify different learning styles, skills and interests in children and accommodate these differences in planning for learning and assessment.

The art of teaching is learnt through actual classroom experiences. Like any skill it is built up through practice and hands on learning. Merely having a certain degree does not guarantee success.

Let us think and reflect- by using the tags of these premier institutes are education companies not trying to build up their brand and use the reputation to piggy back to success.