Teacher's Day 2014

Teacher’s Day and Guru Pournima have similar significance in Indian society, even though there is a difference between a Guru and a Teacher. Over the years the significance is undergoing a change and that is obvious as both the teachers and the students have changed in this period. Is this change due to changing culture or changing socio-economic situation or is simply a change in attitude? Has technological advance impacted or augmented this change process? There can be multiple reasons and all these can be debated endlessly. Fact remains there is a remarkable change in both the teachers and the students. I am aware that being a teacher myself some of my colleagues may not like my views and some of my students may hate me for my frankness. Does this also not reflect the change?

The teachers like Dhondo Keshav Karve, Ravindranath Tagore and many more I studied in history books or teachers like Chitale master portrayed by PL Deshpande or writings of Sane Guruji that I read in Marathi literature have been a shade different from the teachers who taught me. So there was certainly a change in middle of last century when I attended school. After I got in to corporate world I lost touch with these pillars of the noble profession. Occasionally I could meet teachers of my children in the later part of last century and I could sense the change may be due to influence of ideology of the institution that they worked for.

Institutional ideologies took precedence. Imparting education has become a lucrative business and thus there is change in the attitude. In present times imparting education is a transaction between service provider and service taker. In such commercial transaction the zone of tolerance is bound to exist and that too a narrow one. Many of the educational institutions are run as a business by politicians. It is understandable if qualified businesspersons enter the politics, but implications can be catastrophic if  unqualified politicians enter business and that too business of education. Is this the reason why educational institutions have become a mass production unit to churn out graduates without any concern about the quality? This can be one of the reasons why students have lost respect for their teachers and teachers have least concern about the students.

These mass production units are on expansion spree. This year’s record vacancies in management and engineering colleges is a reflection of the unmindful expansion of intake capacity. The colleges that had capacity of sixty students have added few hundred additional seats. To get the approval, these colleges have to recruit teaching staff as per the norms of the regulatory authorities. But where do you get quality teachers? They are not the product of mass production. Good teachers are born not made. The teachers in the earlier era did not go in for M.Phil., Ph. D. or B.Ed or similar degrees, yet they were outstanding. They had the attitude to teach, to impart knowledge, and they were devoted. These teachers did not strike the work, boycott exams or valuation nor did they demand salaries as per recommendations of pay commission. These teachers never refused to teach for nonpayment of fees but at times they helped the needy students and that’s the difference. How can the teachers who have no attitude to teach or those who have a commercial attitude can ever command respect from the students? I feel there is a need for introspection. What is the difference between a politician who enters the politics for personal gains without concern for those who have reposed faith in them and a teacher who takes up teaching profession to earn money and without any love for teaching? In isolation there can be few teachers who love teaching. If such matters are fault of the system then measures need to be taken to rectify.

How about the students and their attitude? I feel the parents have to share the blame for attitude of their children. Parents of children of this era are from ‘Hum do hamare do’ philosophy. These children are brought up with over protectionism. Unfortunately these parents have shown intolerance to the disciplinary measures of the teachers. These children were spared from the reprimand for their mistakes and indiscipline. To add to this various so called crusaders in form of NGOs surfaced to encourage indiscipline in the name of right to liberty. Unfortunately none imagined the adverse impact of this pampering. Undue liberties were granted and the growing kids misused them. In the past it was a common site to see female students waiting outside the classroom till arrival of the teacher. Once these students see the teacher approaching, they will enter the class. Today it is common to see a boy and girl hugging each other and entering the class. I don’t want to debate on sexual liberties that one may demand or desire nor the gender inequalities,  but this is certainly a social degeneration. I have seen the era when students would rise when teachers enter the class. Today barring few, no respect is shown to the teachers when they enter the class. While the class is on, stretching legs and placing them on seat in front is common. Perhaps the habit students acquired in cinema hall is also practiced in the class. Many of the students find the AC classrooms a right place for the afternoon nap. Students come to class without notebooks and even a pen. In one of the reputed business school when I took surprise a test in the class at least 10% students had to borrow pen to write the answers. Even the management students are to be handled like immature middle school children. Sad realities.

Afternoon nap and high end mobile in the class

Technological advancement is yet another factor that makes these students think that they can do away with the teachers. Internet that provides huge learning opportunities is not a substitute for a Guru. Mobile phones are another distraction in the classrooms. Texting and social networking diverts the attention of the students. Cut, copy, paste in assignments gives superficial knowledge. This is really unfortunate. The legacy of not respecting teachers thus continues.

A teacher has to be a friend, guide and philosopher for the students and the students have to reciprocate by respecting the teachers. The cultural degeneration should come to an end. Respecting teachers is not a retrograde step but depicts an advanced culture of the society that values education and knowledge. It’s not late to take corrective measures on all fronts. Happy teacher’s day.

This article is not to hurt anyone's feelings or to degrade anyone. This is more for introspection to see what best can be done for the young students, who are the future of India. 

Teacher's Day

This blog is dedicated to all my students for their love and affection.

Tweeter           @ManoharPandit

Facebook        Prof.Pandit

Linkedin           Dr.ManoharPandit

It was just a chance that after I delivered my speech as the chief guest for a pharmacy week function at a local college, I was requested to tutor the management students. I was never a teacher in my life and wasn’t sure to accept the offer. Back home my wife was excited at the offer and the director of the institute was very persistent. I gave a serious thought and finally gave my consent for various reasons; one of them was the inspiration that I derived from my father’s action.

It was way back in year 2000. That evening after giving my consent I rushed to nearest book store, we just had one in Vashi in those days. Went through couple of books and wondered is this what I would like to read and teach? The crumpled copy of the university syllabus that I had said ‘yes’ but my heart said ‘no’. I thought I would rather share my experiences of over three decades of corporate world with the students rather than teaching theory from the books. I returned home empty handed but with lots of thoughts in my mind. That evening I sat down with a notebook and pen, and started writing my experiences that would explain management theory to the students. I had a dial up connection for internet that made me struggle to get some latest information from the net at a miserably slow speed. Over next two or three days I was ready with my first lecture. I went to the only stationary shop in Nerul bought few acetate sheets and marker pens to make my first OHP slides. I don’t think I had ever made such slides in the past, my secretarial team and co-workers managed this for me. Where to start and how to start was a question. Few sheets got wasted, yet I kept trying till I was satisfied. Finally the day of first lecture arrived, I was standing in front of nearly fifty students of MMS third semester. OHP, black board and, few chalks were in place. It was a different experience. The audience or participants were so different than what I used to have in the corporate world. I started carefully keeping a watchful eye on the audience. I could notice a flicker of interest in the eyes of the students and that was what I was looking forward to. I kept on going, at time using the chalk to explain on the board. I enjoyed the first session. During the break few students gathered around and we had some chat. This enforced my observation that the students are interested in my lecture. And if that is so then it is my responsibility to meet their expectations. I was in a different world when I drove back home.

I started enjoying my sessions. It was fun and very interesting. The interaction with young aspiring students kept me charged. The semester ended after twelve sessions. After the last lecture we had a photo session, some students made me write some message for them on their note books and I returned home with heavy heart and bouquet of roses.

In due course of time the next semester started, then the next year and then another year and then another institute and it goes on. OHP is a history, LCDs came in, ppt was the order of the day was replaced by pptx. PCs were replaced by laptops, that got replaced by netbooks and now tablets. I was enjoying. I got more and more involved. I had a different sense of satisfaction each day when I retired for the day. All these years I learnt that to be a good teacher, I need to be a good learner. I was learning each day and that made me a good teacher (if I can say so). Today with over 10,000 students from different institutes, over a decade, I have a great sense of accomplishment, the one that I was looking forward to, knowingly or unknowingly, over the years.

I still remember all my teachers, all those who taught me. Being a good learner I learnt even when the person I was interacting was not my teacher. One such incidence gave me inspiration and that made me a teacher. It’s old story that is still fresh in my mind. One day I was to travel to Pune as a young executive, when my father desired that he would like to accompany me. He was old and a trip to Pune was not as comfortable as it is today. He told me that he was keen to meet someone by name Mr. Watchmaker. I took him to Pune. We searched for Mr. Watchmakers’s place and reached there without giving any intimation (telephone was a luxury in those days). It was a typical Parsi home and someone answered the bell. We announced the purpose of our visit. The person led us to a spacious well-kept drawing hall. In one corner an old frail figure was sitting in a wheel chair that was Mr. Watchmker. He was over ninety at that time. I looked at my father who was over seventy five, his eyes sparkled. He sprinted towards Mr. Watchmaker took his hand fondly in his own, shook gently and bent down to touch his feet. Mr. Watchmaker stared at my father and before he would ask any questions my father said, B M Pandit, Sir, your BA final year student in 1918 at Robertson College. For a moment Mr. Watchmaker looked blank, soon his eyes glittered, became moist. He held my father’s hands as firmly as he could. I too bent down to pay respects to teacher of my first teacher, that’s my father.  The reunion took place after over fifty five years. My father always cherished the teachings that he had from his teacher. That incidence gave me an inspiration to be a teacher sometime in life and that is what I am today. I may not reach that height but let me try.

God bless you and best luck. Do well in life.