Taair Hussain Radhan
Education; a Teaching and Learning Process is a complex system that is composed of three main components: Teacher, student, and curriculum. Like the Solar system, education is Centre while Teacher, Student, and curriculum are three planets that revolve around education. With regard to the relationship of Teacher, student, and curriculum, Cunningham has given a comprehensive definition: “Curriculum is the tool in hands of an artist to mold his material according to his ideals in his studio.” Here the artist is Teacher, the material is student, ideals are educational objectives and the studio is an educational institute. Thus, the position of the Teacher is very important that’s why he is considered as a role model. Further, the Teacher is one who can make students as good or bad, moral or immoral, human or inhuman, decent or indecent, polite or impolite, sincere or insincere, honest or dishonest, benevolent a malevolent, kind or unkind citizen and so on. Hence, it is rightly said that “Fate of the nation is made in the classroom, to mold such a destination, the instrument is Teacher”. In order to be a role model and transform students with good characteristics teacher should fulfill some requisites. 1. Command over the subject: This is the most basic prerequisite for Teachers to be role models for students. Teachers must grasp over subject particularly along with having some concerned and general knowledge, generally. That’s why it is said that “A Teacher should know seventeen times more than what he is going to teach.” 2. Familiarity with different educational philosophies: Epistemology is the nature of knowledge that is imparted to students all over the world. In this regard, there are four philosophies. 1. Perennialism: This philosophy was developed by Robert Maynard and Mortimer Adler. This philosophy stresses that every instructional material should impart life-long lesson and morals to students apart from specific knowledge of the subject. 2. Essentialism: William Bagley is the chief exponent of this philosophy. This philosophy emphasize on most basic things of education: reading, writing, speaking, computing, discipline, obedience, respect to authority, and objectivity. 3. Progressivism: John dewy is the chief advocate of this philosophy. This philosophy stands for inculcation of liberal ideas and democratic principles in students. 4. Re-constructionism: Theodore Brameld is the founder of this philosophy. This philosophy stress that student should be enabled to bring evolutionary or revolutionary changes in society. So, while teaching in the classroom, our instructional material should be replete with the ideals of these philosophies. 3. Familiarity with various strategies for instruction: There are various strategies for instruction such as Lecture method, Discussion method, Project method, Educational field trips, Discovery learning, and Problem-solving approach. So, Teachers should be able to apply suitable and appropriate methods while teaching in the classroom. In spite of possessing all capabilities if the teacher is still unable to inspire the students and attain the position of becoming a role model than there can be the following reasons. 1. Learning process starts from the child’s birth and not from schooling: Jean Piaget a famous educational psychologist and writer of a number of books on child’s psychology has deeply conducted his observation on the mental growth of children. Accordingly, he has made four stages of a child’s mental growth. i. Sensorimotor stage (from birth to two years): In this stage child is endowed with the art f sucking and learns to look, reacting, crawling, talking, and walking. ii. Pre-operational stage (from 2 to 7 years): In this stage, the child starts thinking, but thinking is not logical or rational. For example, if A gives milk B’ gives milk, therefore, the child will think A is B. iii. Concrete operations (from 7 to 11 years): In this stage, the child performs some concrete operations and simple sums for example if we put ten sticks on one side and eight on another side, the child will tell from which side there are more sticks. iv. Formal operations (from 11 to 15 years): In this stage, the child performs formal operations. The difference between concrete and formal operation is that if we ask child, “A is fairer than B but A is darker than C. Who is darkest?” In concrete operations child will not be able to answer but a child belonging to formal operations will tell who is the darkest among three. Thus, students who are not mentally grown as per their age group, they cause problems in the teaching and learning process. They regard their inability to learn as Teachers’ inability to teach. They need spoon- feeding teaching which is not possible in classrooms. For such students, it is difficult for Teachers to be a role model. 2 Narcissistic personality disorder: It is defined as, “an over-inflated sense of self-importance typically caused by unbalanced parental valuation during childhood. Such children are stubborn and recalcitrant. So, for such children, it is difficult for a teacher to be a role model, for they conceive oneself as superior and any other person as nobody.3 Prevalent materialistic Aim of education: In our society, the aim of education is to be successful and wealthy even at the stake of humanity, honesty, and society. In such an atmosphere, the teacher is nothing but means to an end. In materialistic approach, students think that Teacher has taught a number of students but only a few are in a good position because of their own capability and they (successful student) are not taught by only one Teacher but by number of Teachers from Primary to higher education to prepare for competitive examinations in centers, therefore they are themselves role models for others. In last as in battlefield soldiers’ fight for their country despite being less in numbers and weapons as compared to their opponents, likewise, we teachers must have to play our role in whatever conditions and circumstances. That’s why Mao Tse Tung has said, “be resolute, surmount every difficulty and continue to struggle till victory.”
( -The writer is a Assistant Professor of Pakistan Studies, Cadet College Larkana.)
