Teachers are the awe-inspiring rock stars of education. They work tirelessly to enrich the lives of the next generation. Their devotion, hard work, and eternal positivity never goes unnoticed. "Everyone who remembers his own education remembers teachers, not methods and techniques. The teacher is the heart of the educational system." said Sidney Hook.
Right from when I was a toddler attending preschool at Roots Montessori & Pruthvi Uncle was the ‘world’ to me, I always wanted to teach! If any one asked me what I wanted to be when I was older (isn’t that a standard question in the Indian scenario?), my answer even at the grand old age of 3 years was always - Teacher! When my little brother was born, 3.5 years after me, I became his self- appointed ‘Mommy 2’ & took every opportunity to teach (boss) him :D.
I took up French as my 3rd language when I was 8 years old (in 4th grade) & realised I had a flair for being multilingual. I took it up seriously in 6th grade as my 2nd language & studied further. In 9th grade, I took up the official exams conducted by the French Government through Alliance Français & passed my A1 & A2 exams with more than 90%. These exams are quite detailed & demanding- Writing, Reading, Listening & Speaking. The examiners are native French speakers & their French is in a totally different league to the French we are taught in Indian schools.
Since I was just 5 yrs older than her, she opened up to me & connected well with me. Then she enrolled her best friend to join my classes too. Now I had 2 pre-teen girls to mentor & I was a 15 year old teenager myself!
We would begin every class with a 5 minute meditation, followed by breathing exercises. This was meant to increase their focus and also help them relax. In some classes, I even incorporated physical exercises and games to keep them engaged and active. We sang songs, danced, played games and overall, had a very different approach to learning. However, this did not mean that they didn’t study. Being a student in high school myself, I had learnt great ways of holding their interest. I learnt on the job, the best methods to hold a students' attention and the ones that did not make them zone out completely!
My passion for organising and planning was super useful in putting together a study plan. I made spreadsheets for each student, made lesson plans, worksheets and tests. I gave them fun activities - colouring, playing games, role play etc.
Whatever I have learnt so far is from the teachers I have had over the years! I've been fortunate enough to have some of the greatest teachers for myself…My 1st teachers were my parents, who to this day are my most favourite people & continue to be the centre of my universe.
My most favourite teacher, Anuja Didi - a teacher that I Idolise & consider my closest friend, is a perfectionist! She lives by the adage "The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires." ― William Arthur Ward. Her syllabus planning & spreadsheets are legendary. She is my go-to person for a lot of life’s challenges!
My 1st ever French teacher - Uma Ma'am, took me to Paris in my imagination & to this day, we both continue to make plans to visit the 'City of Light' (La Ville Lumière) together!
Another of my favourite teachers, Sudarshan Sir, takes us on trips, has open ended discussions & lets us lead the class. He believes that “The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education” – Martin Luther King.
My Physics teacher, Mahesh Sir, is ready to clear my doubts & listen to my ideas, even at 5am or 11pm. He has come home a couple of times too, when he thought I needed the support! Through him, I've become confident in a subject that I completely dreaded to begin with! These are just a few... the list of the teachers who have given me the wings to fly is a long one...
I learnt this most powerful business lesson from the most successful man on planet Earth for myself when 2 other children in my apartment heard about the great feedback from my current students & decided to take French lessons with me!
Along with juggling my own 12th grade board preparations, I had taken this mighty task on! I was suddenly responsible for 4 tweens! 2 boys & 2 girls in the 8-11 age bracket. Not just for their academics, but also for their emotional and mental health. Sometimes, they leaned on me for help with everyday problems they were facing. They would open up to me as they saw someone in the same boat as them! Sometimes I just listened to them talk as they took a load off. Sometimes I would make a gentle suggestion & get them to see the situation from a different perspective. I took this responsibility very seriously.
Since, I was neck deep into filling out college applications for myself, I decided to add life-skills, discussions about current affairs, gender equality, bullying, time management, reducing stress & other topics of relevance to our generation in these classes to inspire & motivate the students! Through teaching them, I learned so much more about these topics myself! New avenues & dimensions opened for me! I always make sure to keep their parents in the loop & update them regularly with their ward’s progress. I always take their help in reaching through to a child when they look like they need some extra attention. The parents were highly encouraging & supportive of my efforts. Almost all of them commented positively on my courage & maturity to take on this responsibility.
