“A teacher’s job is to take a bunch of live wires and see that they are well-grounded.” –Darwin D. Martin
Reflect on your life to discern the individuals who have significantly influenced your beliefs and character; it is likely that your educators have been pivotal in this process. Teaching is a vocation, and consequently, most educators inspire their pupils and have a lasting impact on their lives. They not only instruct but also mentor and motivate. Their effect extends beyond the confines of the classroom as they impart ideals and cultivate lifelong learners. An exemplary educator imparts crucial life skills to youngsters, enabling them to adeptly manage life’s challenges and triumphs.
Let us look at the top reasons why teachers are builders of a better society:
Table of Contents
1. They nurture curiosity
More than simply imparting knowledge and telling students what to think, a great teacher piques the child’s curiosity. What it does, in turn, is to make the child a learner for life. Armed with this superpower, the child goes through life with a mindset of acquiring knowledge at every opportunity. In turn, this learner mindset allows him or her to, among other things, absorb information faster, adapt to their surroundings better, look at failure as an opportunity to learn, and more. A great teacher creates meaningful learning experiences for their learners. It is when the teacher puts in the effort to cater to different kinds of learners and creates learning experiences that they enjoy that learning does not remain a chore. Students do not then equate studying with rote learning and instead can apply their knowledge to real-world challenges. As has been rightfully said, “Everyone who remembers his education remembers teachers, not methods and techniques. The teacher is the heart of the educational system.”
2. Develop Critical Thinking skills
We increasingly live in a VUCA world where uncertainty is on the rise. A true teacher helps students develop critical thinking skills. These skills, in turn, help the child analyse the various options available in any given situation and make decisions accordingly.
A lot goes into helping students develop these skills. Designing lessons that encourage analytical thinking, asking open-ended questions, incorporating real-world problems, and more can all help the child think deeply.
3. Boost confidence
Teachers play a significant role in boosting students’ confidence so they can put their best foot forward. The confidence that teachers help develop by encouraging students can go a long way in assisting them to meet challenges, express their points of view clearly, and more. Teachers recognize the child’s true potential and help them believe in themselves. They view children as having unbounded potential, which they help reach by playing the role of scaffolding. A good teacher does not rush in to solve the problems students face; instead equips them with the necessary skills and tools so that they can confidently do the job themselves.
4. Instill Values
The importance of teachers in our lives also stems from the fact that a true teacher leads by example. When students see an actual role model in their teacher – in terms of values they hold, their approach to looking at life, tackling issues, and more, children aspire to become like them. In fact, it is through their own personality and character that teachers shape the lives of their students and, in turn, shape a better society.
5. Become good citizens
Teachers’ role in ensuring that today’s students become good citizens of the country and the world community cannot be overstated. They teach lessons of rights and responsibility, inclusion, empathy, the need to conserve the environment, and more in the foundational years. When sown early, these seeds go a long way in shaping the child’s worldviews. When these children become citizens of the world tomorrow, they live by these principles taught to them by a well-meaning teacher.
6. Offer Emotional support
Beyond their call of duty, teachers also offer the necessary emotional support to students. With students facing several pressures – peer pressure, pressure related to studies, pressure exerted by social media, and more- teachers often become their pillar of strength and help them easily navigate a particularly vulnerable age. When students are shown the right direction amidst all that may be happening in their lives, they set them up for success.
To Sum Up
Given the above, it isn’t any exaggeration to say that teachers are genuinely the builders of our future. It is the learning and value that they impart early that impacts the quality of the citizens that the nation produces. The bricks laid down by the teachers resulted in the nation’s foundation.
It is said that a good teacher is like a candle who consumes himself to light the way for others. Any amount of gratitude may not be enough for that.
At Pragyanam, one of the top CBSE schools in Gurgaon, we are blessed to have teachers who believe teaching isn’t just their profession but their calling. It is little surprise that they go beyond their call of duty to educate children not just in terms of academic knowledge but also the much-needed life skills.
