“ALRIGHT folks,” said the International Relations teacher to his nervous students at the start of a major examination. “I want all of you to pen a summary of the book review you submitted to me as your term assignment. Write down only the main points. But do this summary before getting down to answering your exam questions.”
Most faces fell ... The reason why the announcement caused a stir among the students was that most of them had just not bothered reading any book. They had simply copied a review from one of the many available websites. Stuck in a difficult situation now, they didn’t have a clue about what to write as a summary. Clearly they were outsmarted by the teacher, who knew his students well.
Reading today has taken a back seat to computers, the Internet and satellite television. The problem is seen mostly among the student population, for whom the word ‘reading’ carries little or no meaning. For them it is equivalent to studying from textbooks.
But this sorry state of affairs can be remedied if teachers and educational institutions also take some interest in their students’ reading habits. In some cases, they are really trying — all primary school children have a library period dedicated to browsing through the school library followed by getting the books that they want to read issued for a week. Then book reviews or reports too are given as frequent assignments.
But as the aforementioned incident illustrates, the fact that many students just don’t want to read even if it is only one book which they have to read and review in six months.
Book reviews, available freely on innumerous websites, serve as a convenient shortcut for doing such assignments when the most impressive review is copied and pasted by the student to be submitted as his or her original work. Few teachers are even able to discern the devious minds of their tech-savvy students. With things like this going on, giving students assignments such as book reviews to brush up on their reading does, however, seem like a futile exercise. So what else can be done?
Firstly, teachers can ensure that whenever they set an assignment involving book reviews, it should be followed by a viva of sorts. This viva may be set from the entire book as well as the review that was submitted. If the kids know that they will be tested this way, it would set off warning bells among those who don’t read books. It would be unlikely that they will turn to the web and submit a book review without even reading through a book.
Second, instead of book reviews or reports, the teachers can also set other assignments regarding books. They can ask students to compare two books by the same author or two books written on the same topic by different authors. This is definitely going to introduce students to a wider variety of books as they launch their search for books to compare. Of course, with the easy availability of term papers online, it is likely that the Internet might again be sought to simplify matters. This again points towards a viva exercise to ensure that the students know what they read and submit.
Teachers routinely do come up with new ideas involving assignments related to books. A business communications teacher at a local university set his students an assignment of compiling an abridged version of a book of their choice. Interestingly, those who went for fiction had a miserable time, especially when they chose books by Dan Brown. However, this was one assignment which definitely required harder work and at the end of the day, it really got the students more involved in the book in order to produce the summarised version.
It is important to remember that in the aforementioned examples, teachers are (to put it rather crudely) shoving books down their students’ throats. Even though it may make them read, it will not really inculcate in them a love for reading. It is a rare pupil who will actually get into reading simply because he or she enjoyed doing it for an assignment and now wants to read further.
A love of reading is something which must be implanted at the primary school level since those are the most formative years of our lives and if the library periods are effectively utilised, they can serve the purpose well.
Unfortunately, even if students are found to be avid readers at that stage, they are discouraged by none other than their own parents, who want them to concentrate on their homework in order to achieve high marks in their school subjects. The obsession with over-achieving ensures that by the time the students get into secondary school, they only consider studying from textbooks as reading. And hence, teachers have to set them more and more assignments in order to get them back on the leisure reading track.
In a nutshell, teachers and educational institutions have to come up with innovative ideas if they really want their students to go beyond textbook reading. As hard as this task seems on the outset, it is not entirely impossible. But with the mushrooming of schools in every nook and cranny of our country, coupled with little or no teacher training system, it is quite unlikely that those at the helm of affairs are really going to be bothered by how much (or how little) their students are reading.
However, there are always some commendable exceptions amongst the majority — the teachers who are really trying to make a difference — and there is no reason why they cannot serve as role models for the rest in order to ensure that the coming generation is well-versed in the art of reading and will be reading books from cover to cover.
Showing posts with label Education. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Education. Show all posts
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Research? No, thank you
Come the final year at any university, and the thought which plagues the minds of students (apart from the fact that they now have just one year to brave through university) is whether they should opt for research. Research is optional in many instances. It is entirely up to the student to decide whether or not he or she feels up to the task. It is, after all, no easy feat. But the fact that research is optional at university level can become the very reason for the decline of the research culture in this country.
Why is that? The simple reason is that when research is something that one can opt for, then more often than not, many students choose not to opt for it at all. And when you have a whole generation of students who is disillusioned with the thought of doing research, then who will lead the next generation when they come at this stage?
Putting aside the question of the future, the present quest is to discover what exactly is it that makes students opt out of research? Why do they feel that research is not something which is worth undertaking? When approached, students explained the nature of research in their respective institutes and the general attitude of their peers towards it.
Summaiyah Ali has recently graduated from a business school. She explained that her institute has facilities for research at every level, but students are not willing to undertake it. The time factor plays a crucial role in this as instead of being spread over the entire year, the research work is too concentrated towards the end of the semester.
“The time schedule for the research project is usually not very carefully planned, and depends on the whims of the teachers,” she said. “As a result of this, students end up doing it as a pressure peeve in the last days of the semester, whilst studying for the exams too.”
She felt that the attitude of the teachers towards research was also questionable, and that students were not the only ones to be blamed. “Teachers usually don’t take an interest in the research itself,” she said emphatically. “Very few teachers actually read the research reports, and on the rare occasions that they do actually read them, they misuse them. For instance, one professor asked us for online copies of our reports, and then he erased the name of the student and put his own in, and sent the report to some international conference.”
Plagiarism of course is another story altogether, and an issue which has been much written about. However, it continues unabated by students and teachers alike, and hence definitely acts as a deterrent to those who are honestly looking to undertake something original.
Provision of facilities is also something which many universities lack. They allow students to do research but do not assist them properly by for instance, providing them access to international research journals and papers and providing them with the knowledge of modern and Internet-based research methods and statistical analysis. Hence, students feel they are left mostly on their own to fend for themselves.
“Our teachers help us to the best of their abilities,” said Farah Inam, who undertook social sciences research in her final year. “But they cannot give you what they don’t have. The university just provides you with guidance or what we say lip-service. Yes we need their guidance but this is not the only thing we need for research. We need facilities — things in concrete terms like Internet facility, proper record of periodicals, photocopier, printer, etc. The attitude of the non-teaching staff also gets to you. For instance, I found the library staff cooperative but sometimes they show rigidity and don’t realize your sincerity for work.”
The phenomena of being left on your own once you decide to undertake research is a very real fear amongst some students. Research already is something which is new, and something which has only been theoretically taught. Applying theory to actual research is definitely something which seems to be an overwhelming task. And once students have decided that they will not be getting any guidance, they seem to believe that there is no use undertaking any research project. Some students, however, feel that this no-guidance theory is rather overstated.
“It is tough to do research at any level and you definitely need to have interest as well as stamina,” emphasised Nida Khan, who also took up social science research in her final year. “But students too lack clear ideas and interest. They want quick results. They are not willing to put in their time and effort into something long-term, so they simply shy away from research.”
When it comes to IT research, the scenario is not too different from business and social sciences. Zenia Arshad, who is majoring in computer science, felt that many students in her institute were there simply to gain a degree and a job –- the general mindset which rules. Research does not feature in the picture at all.
“Research requires dedication, enthusiasm and interest. These three things are, unfortunately, what most of the students don’t have. The rewards of research are not very obvious,” she said. “But still there are some who do opt for it. I’ve a couple of classmates working on research projects as a part of MIC (Microsoft Innovation Center). They are the ones enthusiastic about their field of study. In the end, it’s a matter of interest.”
So what should be done about this? There are very real factors deterring students from research and surely they need to be dealt with. On the personal level, if the students themselves are lazy and not willing to invest their time in research, there is little any management can do, no matter how efficient. But surely some changes can be initiated for those who are really interested in pursuing a career in research and starting at university level.
Farah Inam felt that the idea of research being optional was very correct, as worthless researches were worse than no research at all. “Not every student should be given research projects; only those who are capable. The university should carefully evaluate every student before allowing him/her to do research projects. But once they decide upon the capability, they must then invent in those students as well and provide them with the proper facilities.”
Shireen Azfar, who taught as a cooperative teacher in Karachi University had the following suggestions. “The overall environment should be conducive and students from the very commencement of their professional degrees should be given assignments and projects which are research focused and require a lot of information digging. This nurtures their minds in the direction to find it interesting and challenging to do a research study.”
At the end of the day then, until some serious steps are taken, research will continue to be treated with a certain degree of wariness. Of course there will always be some students who choose to take the initiative in spite of the odds, but that is no reason why others cannot be motivated to do the same.
Why is that? The simple reason is that when research is something that one can opt for, then more often than not, many students choose not to opt for it at all. And when you have a whole generation of students who is disillusioned with the thought of doing research, then who will lead the next generation when they come at this stage?
Putting aside the question of the future, the present quest is to discover what exactly is it that makes students opt out of research? Why do they feel that research is not something which is worth undertaking? When approached, students explained the nature of research in their respective institutes and the general attitude of their peers towards it.
Summaiyah Ali has recently graduated from a business school. She explained that her institute has facilities for research at every level, but students are not willing to undertake it. The time factor plays a crucial role in this as instead of being spread over the entire year, the research work is too concentrated towards the end of the semester.
“The time schedule for the research project is usually not very carefully planned, and depends on the whims of the teachers,” she said. “As a result of this, students end up doing it as a pressure peeve in the last days of the semester, whilst studying for the exams too.”
She felt that the attitude of the teachers towards research was also questionable, and that students were not the only ones to be blamed. “Teachers usually don’t take an interest in the research itself,” she said emphatically. “Very few teachers actually read the research reports, and on the rare occasions that they do actually read them, they misuse them. For instance, one professor asked us for online copies of our reports, and then he erased the name of the student and put his own in, and sent the report to some international conference.”
Plagiarism of course is another story altogether, and an issue which has been much written about. However, it continues unabated by students and teachers alike, and hence definitely acts as a deterrent to those who are honestly looking to undertake something original.
Provision of facilities is also something which many universities lack. They allow students to do research but do not assist them properly by for instance, providing them access to international research journals and papers and providing them with the knowledge of modern and Internet-based research methods and statistical analysis. Hence, students feel they are left mostly on their own to fend for themselves.
“Our teachers help us to the best of their abilities,” said Farah Inam, who undertook social sciences research in her final year. “But they cannot give you what they don’t have. The university just provides you with guidance or what we say lip-service. Yes we need their guidance but this is not the only thing we need for research. We need facilities — things in concrete terms like Internet facility, proper record of periodicals, photocopier, printer, etc. The attitude of the non-teaching staff also gets to you. For instance, I found the library staff cooperative but sometimes they show rigidity and don’t realize your sincerity for work.”
The phenomena of being left on your own once you decide to undertake research is a very real fear amongst some students. Research already is something which is new, and something which has only been theoretically taught. Applying theory to actual research is definitely something which seems to be an overwhelming task. And once students have decided that they will not be getting any guidance, they seem to believe that there is no use undertaking any research project. Some students, however, feel that this no-guidance theory is rather overstated.
“It is tough to do research at any level and you definitely need to have interest as well as stamina,” emphasised Nida Khan, who also took up social science research in her final year. “But students too lack clear ideas and interest. They want quick results. They are not willing to put in their time and effort into something long-term, so they simply shy away from research.”
When it comes to IT research, the scenario is not too different from business and social sciences. Zenia Arshad, who is majoring in computer science, felt that many students in her institute were there simply to gain a degree and a job –- the general mindset which rules. Research does not feature in the picture at all.
“Research requires dedication, enthusiasm and interest. These three things are, unfortunately, what most of the students don’t have. The rewards of research are not very obvious,” she said. “But still there are some who do opt for it. I’ve a couple of classmates working on research projects as a part of MIC (Microsoft Innovation Center). They are the ones enthusiastic about their field of study. In the end, it’s a matter of interest.”
So what should be done about this? There are very real factors deterring students from research and surely they need to be dealt with. On the personal level, if the students themselves are lazy and not willing to invest their time in research, there is little any management can do, no matter how efficient. But surely some changes can be initiated for those who are really interested in pursuing a career in research and starting at university level.
Farah Inam felt that the idea of research being optional was very correct, as worthless researches were worse than no research at all. “Not every student should be given research projects; only those who are capable. The university should carefully evaluate every student before allowing him/her to do research projects. But once they decide upon the capability, they must then invent in those students as well and provide them with the proper facilities.”
Shireen Azfar, who taught as a cooperative teacher in Karachi University had the following suggestions. “The overall environment should be conducive and students from the very commencement of their professional degrees should be given assignments and projects which are research focused and require a lot of information digging. This nurtures their minds in the direction to find it interesting and challenging to do a research study.”
At the end of the day then, until some serious steps are taken, research will continue to be treated with a certain degree of wariness. Of course there will always be some students who choose to take the initiative in spite of the odds, but that is no reason why others cannot be motivated to do the same.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
It's all about attitude
All those of you who have watched the movie, Cheaper by the Dozen 2, will fondly remember this hilarious scene. Tom Baker and Jimmy Murtaugh are playing tennis and the latter is mercilessly slaughtering Tom. In the end, a frustrated Tom points to his broken shoe and says, “It’s these shoes.” To this, Jimmy tells Tom that it is only a poor workman who blames his tools.
Most of us wouldn’t have given this a second thought. But an in-depth insight into one aspect of the educational system will very well illustrate how true this statement was. The reference here, of course, is to teachers and students. Much has already been written regarding the student-teacher relationship and its many dimensions. Many a time when problems arise, it is hard to figure out who to point fingers at. Are the teachers at fault? Are students being impossible? Or is it the system in general which is breeding discord?An article published entitled “The good, the bad and the ugly” (Dawn, November 19, 2006) talked about the perception of students regarding their teachers. Many students had felt that they were given teachers ill-equipped to teach them the concerned subjects. They had many issues with the teaching methods, failure of their teachers to grade assignments on time and the inability to answer questions of their students effectively.
But the question is what are the teachers thinking? How do they make categories of students to determine who falls in the positive bracket and who is delegated the negative one? After all, if students can do it, why can’t the teachers? So how does one put students in categories?
The only answer to all these questions lies, of course, with those who are in the profession rather than the third-party observers. When interviewed, teachers also expressed their opinions regarding good and bad students.
“According to me, the best student is one who has a lot of potential and strong will to gain something from the class or teacher,” expressed Aazadi Fateh, who teaches undergraduate students. “If one wants to improve, learn and gain, then all other hurdles can be overcome. So, a best student is an excited, regular and obedient one.”
“A bad student is just opposite of that,” she added further. “A rigid student who has no will and shows no effort. Plus, you just cannot do anything about a student who is not bothered about his/her attendance, marks, position and class participation. It is in the face of students such as these that a teacher becomes totally helpless. Of course, I have faced complains like I am going too fast when delivering a lecture or not checking assignments on time. In such cases, I simply try and improve upon these things.”Ayesha Kalim, who teaches both junior and senior students at her own institute, also offered her perception of good and bad students. “I would say that all students have positive and negative points. It depends upon the teacher as to how she brings out the best in each student,” she said. “A good student can be one who is responsible about his/her work and does it carefully. Such a student can cope with all types of problems and overcome every weakness due to his/her positive attitude.
“A bad student is one who does not realise the importance of education and values. Because of this attitude, s/he will not be able to realise his/her hidden potential while studying,” she concluded. “I sometimes ask my students to tell me about my weaknesses. I think the wisest person is one who learns from his mistakes.”
It is quite interesting to note, that both teachers mentioned attitude as the main factor which demarcates a good student from a bad one. In the first case, it was the attitude towards studies and achievement and in the second, attitude towards education and values. If it is attitude which is negative and rigid, then a teacher can’t really rectify that in any way.
But what does one say about the attitude of students towards teachers themselves? Surprisingly, there are many students who are rightfully concerned about this attitude and they whole-heartedly agree that their peers can easily fall in the “bad student” category simply because of the way they treat their teachers.
The scenario in many educational institutes, especially the universities is something like this. The teacher is extremely qualified. S/he makes a really commendable effort to keep up with the developments in the subject assigned to him/her. Every day s/he logs onto the internet to take out new and interesting points to incorporate in the lecture. S/he gives a lot of leeway to students to ask questions and be critical. Still, the teacher comes under fire for one reason or another. Why do students still have a problem?
According to many students, the reasons are complex and varied, but under no circumstances are there any justifications for what mostly constitutes extremely shabby treatment. They cite examples from their own institutes to illustrate how students can make life difficult for teachers, instead of things being the other way around.
“It is sad. We have a wonderful teacher and she tries her best to clear our concepts and make us understand the subject. But some of my classmates are really rude to her and for apparently no reason at all, except to seem cool,” lamented Nadia Arshad, an engineering student. “They whistle and make cat calls while she is teaching. The poor teacher simply ignores them and proceeds to teach the front two rows where the more studious lot sits.”
Some male students are particularly venomous towards female teachers. “It’s simply male chauvinism,” declares Nayyar Khan, an undergraduate student. “These guys assume that just because a teacher is female, she is automatically disqualified to teach science or engineering subjects. They never take such teachers seriously and take on an air of superiority when they are around them. They never miss a chance to put them down in any way. Ask some of these students what they think of their teachers and they will always give you an extremely negative response.”
Then, there are students who never appreciate the intellect of their teachers. They love to discuss their personal problems and make snide comments. Instead of thinking of ways in which they can actually benefit from the expertise of teachers, these students are more concerned about their physical attributes and personal issues, which more often than not, feature as convenient fodder for gossip. But since it is the teachers under fire, who’s going to tell these students to mind their own business?
Another way in which students actually make their teachers feel derogatory and unworthy is when they are asked to fill in evaluation forms at the end of the semester. Instead of filling these forms accurately, some students search for reasons to write critical comments. Those institutes which take such forms seriously can make life very difficult for the teacher concerned.
“I was shocked to see the evaluation forms after a semester,” explained Dr Farah Salim, who teaches post-graduate students. “Some comments were so unbelievable I was stunned. For instance, one student had written that I simply take lectures from the internet when the reality was that my colleagues and I take hours to note down the latest facts and figures to keep our science students updated. I think students are never satisfied.”
At the end of the day then, it is all about attitude. Students who themselves are concerned about their education and achievement will have problems with teachers, but only with those who genuinely hamper their objective of proper learning. Those who aren’t concerned with their own education in the first place, will have problems not only with teachers but with anything and everything that makes up the educational system around them. And this, ultimately, determines how good or bad a student appears in the eyes of a teacher.
(Names of certain teachers and students have been changed to ensure their privacy)
Most of us wouldn’t have given this a second thought. But an in-depth insight into one aspect of the educational system will very well illustrate how true this statement was. The reference here, of course, is to teachers and students. Much has already been written regarding the student-teacher relationship and its many dimensions. Many a time when problems arise, it is hard to figure out who to point fingers at. Are the teachers at fault? Are students being impossible? Or is it the system in general which is breeding discord?An article published entitled “The good, the bad and the ugly” (Dawn, November 19, 2006) talked about the perception of students regarding their teachers. Many students had felt that they were given teachers ill-equipped to teach them the concerned subjects. They had many issues with the teaching methods, failure of their teachers to grade assignments on time and the inability to answer questions of their students effectively.
But the question is what are the teachers thinking? How do they make categories of students to determine who falls in the positive bracket and who is delegated the negative one? After all, if students can do it, why can’t the teachers? So how does one put students in categories?
The only answer to all these questions lies, of course, with those who are in the profession rather than the third-party observers. When interviewed, teachers also expressed their opinions regarding good and bad students.
“According to me, the best student is one who has a lot of potential and strong will to gain something from the class or teacher,” expressed Aazadi Fateh, who teaches undergraduate students. “If one wants to improve, learn and gain, then all other hurdles can be overcome. So, a best student is an excited, regular and obedient one.”
“A bad student is just opposite of that,” she added further. “A rigid student who has no will and shows no effort. Plus, you just cannot do anything about a student who is not bothered about his/her attendance, marks, position and class participation. It is in the face of students such as these that a teacher becomes totally helpless. Of course, I have faced complains like I am going too fast when delivering a lecture or not checking assignments on time. In such cases, I simply try and improve upon these things.”Ayesha Kalim, who teaches both junior and senior students at her own institute, also offered her perception of good and bad students. “I would say that all students have positive and negative points. It depends upon the teacher as to how she brings out the best in each student,” she said. “A good student can be one who is responsible about his/her work and does it carefully. Such a student can cope with all types of problems and overcome every weakness due to his/her positive attitude.
“A bad student is one who does not realise the importance of education and values. Because of this attitude, s/he will not be able to realise his/her hidden potential while studying,” she concluded. “I sometimes ask my students to tell me about my weaknesses. I think the wisest person is one who learns from his mistakes.”
It is quite interesting to note, that both teachers mentioned attitude as the main factor which demarcates a good student from a bad one. In the first case, it was the attitude towards studies and achievement and in the second, attitude towards education and values. If it is attitude which is negative and rigid, then a teacher can’t really rectify that in any way.
But what does one say about the attitude of students towards teachers themselves? Surprisingly, there are many students who are rightfully concerned about this attitude and they whole-heartedly agree that their peers can easily fall in the “bad student” category simply because of the way they treat their teachers.
The scenario in many educational institutes, especially the universities is something like this. The teacher is extremely qualified. S/he makes a really commendable effort to keep up with the developments in the subject assigned to him/her. Every day s/he logs onto the internet to take out new and interesting points to incorporate in the lecture. S/he gives a lot of leeway to students to ask questions and be critical. Still, the teacher comes under fire for one reason or another. Why do students still have a problem?
According to many students, the reasons are complex and varied, but under no circumstances are there any justifications for what mostly constitutes extremely shabby treatment. They cite examples from their own institutes to illustrate how students can make life difficult for teachers, instead of things being the other way around.
“It is sad. We have a wonderful teacher and she tries her best to clear our concepts and make us understand the subject. But some of my classmates are really rude to her and for apparently no reason at all, except to seem cool,” lamented Nadia Arshad, an engineering student. “They whistle and make cat calls while she is teaching. The poor teacher simply ignores them and proceeds to teach the front two rows where the more studious lot sits.”
Some male students are particularly venomous towards female teachers. “It’s simply male chauvinism,” declares Nayyar Khan, an undergraduate student. “These guys assume that just because a teacher is female, she is automatically disqualified to teach science or engineering subjects. They never take such teachers seriously and take on an air of superiority when they are around them. They never miss a chance to put them down in any way. Ask some of these students what they think of their teachers and they will always give you an extremely negative response.”
Then, there are students who never appreciate the intellect of their teachers. They love to discuss their personal problems and make snide comments. Instead of thinking of ways in which they can actually benefit from the expertise of teachers, these students are more concerned about their physical attributes and personal issues, which more often than not, feature as convenient fodder for gossip. But since it is the teachers under fire, who’s going to tell these students to mind their own business?
Another way in which students actually make their teachers feel derogatory and unworthy is when they are asked to fill in evaluation forms at the end of the semester. Instead of filling these forms accurately, some students search for reasons to write critical comments. Those institutes which take such forms seriously can make life very difficult for the teacher concerned.
“I was shocked to see the evaluation forms after a semester,” explained Dr Farah Salim, who teaches post-graduate students. “Some comments were so unbelievable I was stunned. For instance, one student had written that I simply take lectures from the internet when the reality was that my colleagues and I take hours to note down the latest facts and figures to keep our science students updated. I think students are never satisfied.”
At the end of the day then, it is all about attitude. Students who themselves are concerned about their education and achievement will have problems with teachers, but only with those who genuinely hamper their objective of proper learning. Those who aren’t concerned with their own education in the first place, will have problems not only with teachers but with anything and everything that makes up the educational system around them. And this, ultimately, determines how good or bad a student appears in the eyes of a teacher.
(Names of certain teachers and students have been changed to ensure their privacy)
Sunday, November 19, 2006
The good, bad and the ugly
IF YOU ever Google the phrase, “teacher quotes” you’ll get approximately 3,630,000 results. When you go through some of the websites which turn up only on the first page, you’ll come across some of the best words that could ever be used to pay tribute to a teacher. Consider the following examples, for instance: “What nobler employment, or more valuable to the state, than that of the man who instructs the rising generation” (Cicero) and “those who educate children well are more to be honored than parents, for these only gave life, those the art of living well” (Aristotle).
Of course, words can never really do justice to a teacher/educator who plays an important part in one’s life, be it a school, college or university. One may ask then, what motivates students to rebel against their teachers? Why do they like some teachers and despise others? There are many reasons for that and one of them is incompetence.
There was a time when students had a completely devoted to their teachers. They couldn’t even imagine replacing their teacher let alone complain about him/her to the school authorities. A teacher was assigned to their class and that was the end of the story.
Now, however, there is a marked difference. Students over time have learnt to evaluate their teachers, often with a very critical eye and the result is that a teacher, who falls short of their expectations, comes under fire.
The quality of teachers is a determining factor in this regard. Previously in Pakistan, and even now in other parts of the world, teachers are selected on the basis on a very strict criterion often after they have passed a specific examination and have the necessary degrees.
With the mushrooming of private schools and colleges in Pakistan, the demand for teachers has considerably increased. Consequently, anyone, who has some free time on his/her hands and wants to make quick money in the easiest way possible way, opts for teaching. Thus, people who do not have the required qualifications start teaching subjects like science and computing, with the result that students end up learning nothing at all.
So, students are reluctant to accept whoever is assigned to them as a teacher because they believe they have a right to receiving quality education which they feel they can only receive if they have a good teacher at their disposal. But what happens when students don’t like certain teachers? What makes one teacher more incompetent than the others?
“An incompetent teacher is someone who doesn’t deliver. For example, s/he is very particular that you should submit assignments on time but will take forever to check them and make mistakes in the process. An incompetent teacher is also someone who isn’t enthusiastic enough about his/her subject, doesn’t follow up on developments in the field, and is not in a position to answer your questions; someone who speaks more of his/her personal life and achievements rather than the subject matter at hand, who is lazy and doesn’t understand the psyche of students,” says Mariam Rehan, an MBA student.
Faria Hussain, on the other hand, feels that those who enter the teaching profession just to make some extra money rather than impart knowledge are probably the most incompetent as they fail to inspire students to excel. “Teachers should equip themselves with the necessary tools to teach students,” she stated. “For example, teachers need to be well-informed and updated and should not rely on delivering the same old stuff they learnt at college themselves.”
Knowledge of the subject was cited by many students as the major prerequisite for competence. “Someone who is inept at answering questions and does not have a thorough know-how of his/her subject is definitely incompetent,” says Maria Ejaz, another student. “Attitude problems also count,” she adds.
As can be seen from the above statements, students have very clear ideas about competency or its lack thereof. Unfortunately for them, they do end up with their share of teachers who fall short of their expectations. So what do they do in such cases?
“We once had a young teacher who was my benchmark of the worst a teacher can be,” says Sarah Hassan, an Honour’s student at a well-known university. “We have a teacher evaluation form at the end of the term. I gave a very honest account of my experiences with her but unfortunately, I don’t think it worked because now she has been made a permanent teacher.”
“We have had many teachers who didn’t know what they were teaching and didn’t give us space to express ourselves. Moreover, they imposed themselves and their authority,” says Saira Shafaat. “But since we were A-level students and had a time constraint, we couldn’t exactly complain. Some of my classmates opted for tuitions and others just decided to study on their own.”
“When I was in the primary section, we had a teacher who taught only the first two rows and those who were sitting at the back didn’t follow a single word. I got my mother to complain at the PTA meeting, but it didn’t help,” complains Hira Anwar, who is now in her O’Levels.
Of course, there are students who are extremely pessimistic about the whole situation. They feel it is better to let the teacher do whatever s/he wants for the simple reason that if a teacher discovers that a rebellion is stirring within her class, those at the forefront can suffer numerous consequences. The most serious consequence which deters most students is fear of failure. Hence, students often decide to learn a subject on their own.
Bina Arshad feels very strongly about this. “Teachers usually cannot accept the fact that they are wrong. They have an air of superiority about them. Every once in a while, a student could be right but no one accepts this. And if they do, it is probably because they hold a grudge against the teacher. The problem is no one really likes criticism. If you have the gall to point out a problem to someone, you’re likely to pay sooner or later.”
However, there are schools which do try and take action at the request of students. “We had a complaint against our senior teacher and we went to complain to the headmistress. She was very understanding. But at the same time she told us she would remove that teacher only if we managed to get another one,” elaborates Faria.
Kinza Salim, a student of BE, agrees. “One of our teachers just comes in class, writes stuff on the blackboard and then leaves. No explanations are given. But whenever we complain, we are told to find another teacher on our own.”
It all comes down to a lack of good teachers. Of course, all this is not say that all teachers are incompetent. There are teachers who have gone a long way in positively influencing the lives of those whom they have taught. One sees these teachers even today, dedicating their lives to making a difference.
However, there are those who bring a bad name to the profession and it’s about time action was taken against them. It would be best to hold training courses for teachers before they are assigned to a particular class along with some sort of an evaluation at the end of each term.
So it isn’t as easy as it looks. Still, schools can take the initiative to ensure that the teachers they hire are qualified enough and have undergone some form of training. Till that time, students will continue to suffer.
(Names of students have been changed to ensure their privacy)
Of course, words can never really do justice to a teacher/educator who plays an important part in one’s life, be it a school, college or university. One may ask then, what motivates students to rebel against their teachers? Why do they like some teachers and despise others? There are many reasons for that and one of them is incompetence.
There was a time when students had a completely devoted to their teachers. They couldn’t even imagine replacing their teacher let alone complain about him/her to the school authorities. A teacher was assigned to their class and that was the end of the story.
Now, however, there is a marked difference. Students over time have learnt to evaluate their teachers, often with a very critical eye and the result is that a teacher, who falls short of their expectations, comes under fire.
The quality of teachers is a determining factor in this regard. Previously in Pakistan, and even now in other parts of the world, teachers are selected on the basis on a very strict criterion often after they have passed a specific examination and have the necessary degrees.
With the mushrooming of private schools and colleges in Pakistan, the demand for teachers has considerably increased. Consequently, anyone, who has some free time on his/her hands and wants to make quick money in the easiest way possible way, opts for teaching. Thus, people who do not have the required qualifications start teaching subjects like science and computing, with the result that students end up learning nothing at all.
So, students are reluctant to accept whoever is assigned to them as a teacher because they believe they have a right to receiving quality education which they feel they can only receive if they have a good teacher at their disposal. But what happens when students don’t like certain teachers? What makes one teacher more incompetent than the others?
“An incompetent teacher is someone who doesn’t deliver. For example, s/he is very particular that you should submit assignments on time but will take forever to check them and make mistakes in the process. An incompetent teacher is also someone who isn’t enthusiastic enough about his/her subject, doesn’t follow up on developments in the field, and is not in a position to answer your questions; someone who speaks more of his/her personal life and achievements rather than the subject matter at hand, who is lazy and doesn’t understand the psyche of students,” says Mariam Rehan, an MBA student.
Faria Hussain, on the other hand, feels that those who enter the teaching profession just to make some extra money rather than impart knowledge are probably the most incompetent as they fail to inspire students to excel. “Teachers should equip themselves with the necessary tools to teach students,” she stated. “For example, teachers need to be well-informed and updated and should not rely on delivering the same old stuff they learnt at college themselves.”
Knowledge of the subject was cited by many students as the major prerequisite for competence. “Someone who is inept at answering questions and does not have a thorough know-how of his/her subject is definitely incompetent,” says Maria Ejaz, another student. “Attitude problems also count,” she adds.
As can be seen from the above statements, students have very clear ideas about competency or its lack thereof. Unfortunately for them, they do end up with their share of teachers who fall short of their expectations. So what do they do in such cases?
“We once had a young teacher who was my benchmark of the worst a teacher can be,” says Sarah Hassan, an Honour’s student at a well-known university. “We have a teacher evaluation form at the end of the term. I gave a very honest account of my experiences with her but unfortunately, I don’t think it worked because now she has been made a permanent teacher.”
“We have had many teachers who didn’t know what they were teaching and didn’t give us space to express ourselves. Moreover, they imposed themselves and their authority,” says Saira Shafaat. “But since we were A-level students and had a time constraint, we couldn’t exactly complain. Some of my classmates opted for tuitions and others just decided to study on their own.”
“When I was in the primary section, we had a teacher who taught only the first two rows and those who were sitting at the back didn’t follow a single word. I got my mother to complain at the PTA meeting, but it didn’t help,” complains Hira Anwar, who is now in her O’Levels.
Of course, there are students who are extremely pessimistic about the whole situation. They feel it is better to let the teacher do whatever s/he wants for the simple reason that if a teacher discovers that a rebellion is stirring within her class, those at the forefront can suffer numerous consequences. The most serious consequence which deters most students is fear of failure. Hence, students often decide to learn a subject on their own.
Bina Arshad feels very strongly about this. “Teachers usually cannot accept the fact that they are wrong. They have an air of superiority about them. Every once in a while, a student could be right but no one accepts this. And if they do, it is probably because they hold a grudge against the teacher. The problem is no one really likes criticism. If you have the gall to point out a problem to someone, you’re likely to pay sooner or later.”
However, there are schools which do try and take action at the request of students. “We had a complaint against our senior teacher and we went to complain to the headmistress. She was very understanding. But at the same time she told us she would remove that teacher only if we managed to get another one,” elaborates Faria.
Kinza Salim, a student of BE, agrees. “One of our teachers just comes in class, writes stuff on the blackboard and then leaves. No explanations are given. But whenever we complain, we are told to find another teacher on our own.”
It all comes down to a lack of good teachers. Of course, all this is not say that all teachers are incompetent. There are teachers who have gone a long way in positively influencing the lives of those whom they have taught. One sees these teachers even today, dedicating their lives to making a difference.
However, there are those who bring a bad name to the profession and it’s about time action was taken against them. It would be best to hold training courses for teachers before they are assigned to a particular class along with some sort of an evaluation at the end of each term.
So it isn’t as easy as it looks. Still, schools can take the initiative to ensure that the teachers they hire are qualified enough and have undergone some form of training. Till that time, students will continue to suffer.
(Names of students have been changed to ensure their privacy)
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Unions be gone!
IT was the second semester of the 2005 academic year at the University of Karachi. The semester examination was well under way. In the Department of Geology, however, the chaos prevailed during the exam when a student who was refused admission into the examination room, came with his gang and beat up a teacher.
This incident received widespread condemnation from both the students as well as the teaching staff all over the city. But it was only when the Karachi University Teachers’ Society (Kuts) sprang into action and demanded immediate disciplinary action that the student involved in this incident was rusticated.
This incident is one out of thousands where one appreciates the existence of unions and associations that are formed by teachers in educational institutes. In many cases, these unions are the sole respite of the teaching staff, a platform which is exclusively theirs, from which they can stand up on certain issues and take coordinated action. Simply put, a union gives teachers representation in any educational institute.
Unfortunately, it is these very unions that are now under attack thanks to the government of Sindh. On July 21, 2006, a notification issued by the Sindh education department effectively banned all forms of unions formed by its employees. These employees, unfortunately, include teachers as well, which means that unions for teachers of government-run educational institutes along with those which come under the district governments are now illegal (Dawn, July 22, 2006)
In the aftermath of this ban, many different associations formed by teachers have issued statements condemning this unjust clampdown. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), Pasban, All-Pakistan Professors and Lecturers’ Association and the Sindh Professors and Lecturers Association (SPLA) are some of the bodies which have termed this ban as unjust and a means of further weakening the position of teachers who are already working in deplorable conditions.
In the wake of such extreme action, one is forced to ask the obvious: what have the unions done to merit such severe laws against them? In the ‘80s, it was the student unions which bore the brunt of oppressive educational policies when they faced a complete ban. Now, it seems, the noose has tightened and teachers’ unions have come under attack.
In this regard, the notification issued by the Sindh education department has cited various reasons for banning teachers’ unions. According to this notification, these unions were being misused by teachers. For example, teachers often went on strikes as a reaction to the government’s inability to meet their demands. In fact, according to well-placed sources, they often employ this method of non-cooperation as a way of negotiating for higher salaries.
It appears their concerns are not entirely misplaced for sometimes, unions do stand up for rather strange causes. A case in point is that of a female student appearing for her LLB examination in Karachi University who was allegedly harassed by a few employees. When students intervened and beat up the culprit, the employees’ union staged a protest, left their duties and threatened dire action. It is bizarre cases like this that show that employees’ unions do have the ability to misuse the power given to them.
Of course, one can’t help but wonder if unions are really as bad as they are made out to be. Many believe that unions, even though they may stand up for the wrong cause at times, are an absolute necessity in any educational institution and so, this sudden ban is really uncalled for.
Among teachers, there is a consensus of sorts — maybe unions have been banned because they were the sole voice of dissent on some of the policies pursued by the Sindh education department to date. The process of recruitment of teachers in government-run educational institutions which began during the previous city government’s rule was abruptly ended by the present regime. Bribery, political appointments and personal contacts are playing an increasing role in getting people employment in the educational sector. Moreover, there is a huge imbalance in the strength of teachers across different schools. In some public schools, there are 20 teachers for 25 students. In others, there are no teachers at all.
Teachers’ unions constitutes one group that actively pursues these issues and is all for a massive reform in public sector education and a quick look at some of the major events in the past few months confirms this. For instance, on April 29, 2006, more than 7,000 college teachers across the province went on strike to protest vandalism in Karachi’s colleges and the inability of the Sindh education department to deal with the perpetrators (Dawn, April 30, 2006).
But apparently, this form of protest didn’t go too well with the higher authorities. Instead of paying heed to the root cause of the dissent and trying to eliminate them, they decided to attack the unions and silence them once and for all.
Another opinion which prevails is that unions and associations of teachers are really a non-issue. They exist, hold their meetings and give their statements to the press. It is best to leave them as they are. This school of thought believes that there are more important matters related to education in Sindh. There are other atrocious and widespread practices like cheating, for instance, which need to be banned first instead of unions.
Specifically, some teachers, when approached had the following to say:
“There shouldn’t be a ban on teacher unions because teachers have rights, too, and unions help enforce those rights,” stated Zareen Ahmed, a teacher at a private school. “Of course, when we talk practically, some unions are used for a political purpose. So you never know.”
According to Zainub Qaimkhani, a teacher at a religious school, this is “really a non-issue. Teacher unions don’t have any constructive role as such.”
Students, however, have mixed views on the subject.
“I haven’t really been following the news but in my opinion, of course, there shouldn’t be a ban on teacher unions. They get paid such a meagre salary. They have a right to form unions. I say it’s absurd to put a ban on such unions,” said Sarah Abdul Rehman, a medical student.
Bushra Anwar, a Bachelor’s student, voiced her thoughts on the subject: “It depends on the institution. In schools, unions might be troublesome because those are smaller and closely run set-ups. But in universities they are needed because that’s where the administration is ineffective.”
Mahwah Ajaz, a Master’s student is in favour of the ban. “I feel it is a good decision. Unions are being used for entirely the wrong reasons. It is a good thing to have a stronger hold on pressure groups’ activities,” she said.
Nayyara Rahman, a business student, concurs. “I don’t know when and why the ban was placed. But I do feel that it’s about time some checks and balances were imposed. Of course, the ban will squash the freedom of expression, but it will also prevent malpractice and exploitation of already-depleted resources. It will put the greedy teachers in their place and will make sincere and devoted people truly stand out.”
At this point in time, one is again reminded of student unions and the useful role they were playing, not only in channeling the energy of the youth towards a constructive activity, but also in producing future political leaders. Once the ban on them was put in place, the entire process went haywire.
Of course, political groups exist all the same but since there are no official union elections, there is no central authority to control them. The results are clashes between different groups, resulting in strikes in public sector educational institutes. More than a few students have been critically injured and a few innocent ones have even lost their lives.
Banning all unions, no matter what the reason, is extreme behaviour. Granted that unions often give people reason enough to pull their hair out in frustration but removing them from the scene altogether won’t really solve anything. At best, it is going to give those at the helm of affairs a false sense of security but the political climate in educational institutions will steadily deteriorate, just the way it has happened because of the so-called ban imposed on students’ unions.
Myron Lieberman, author of the book The Teacher Unions, once said: “Let us not forget that teacher unions were established to promote teacher welfare, not educational achievement.” With the ban on teachers’ unions, here in Pakistan, the well-being of educators is threatened.
This incident received widespread condemnation from both the students as well as the teaching staff all over the city. But it was only when the Karachi University Teachers’ Society (Kuts) sprang into action and demanded immediate disciplinary action that the student involved in this incident was rusticated.
This incident is one out of thousands where one appreciates the existence of unions and associations that are formed by teachers in educational institutes. In many cases, these unions are the sole respite of the teaching staff, a platform which is exclusively theirs, from which they can stand up on certain issues and take coordinated action. Simply put, a union gives teachers representation in any educational institute.
Unfortunately, it is these very unions that are now under attack thanks to the government of Sindh. On July 21, 2006, a notification issued by the Sindh education department effectively banned all forms of unions formed by its employees. These employees, unfortunately, include teachers as well, which means that unions for teachers of government-run educational institutes along with those which come under the district governments are now illegal (Dawn, July 22, 2006)
In the aftermath of this ban, many different associations formed by teachers have issued statements condemning this unjust clampdown. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), Pasban, All-Pakistan Professors and Lecturers’ Association and the Sindh Professors and Lecturers Association (SPLA) are some of the bodies which have termed this ban as unjust and a means of further weakening the position of teachers who are already working in deplorable conditions.
In the wake of such extreme action, one is forced to ask the obvious: what have the unions done to merit such severe laws against them? In the ‘80s, it was the student unions which bore the brunt of oppressive educational policies when they faced a complete ban. Now, it seems, the noose has tightened and teachers’ unions have come under attack.
In this regard, the notification issued by the Sindh education department has cited various reasons for banning teachers’ unions. According to this notification, these unions were being misused by teachers. For example, teachers often went on strikes as a reaction to the government’s inability to meet their demands. In fact, according to well-placed sources, they often employ this method of non-cooperation as a way of negotiating for higher salaries.
It appears their concerns are not entirely misplaced for sometimes, unions do stand up for rather strange causes. A case in point is that of a female student appearing for her LLB examination in Karachi University who was allegedly harassed by a few employees. When students intervened and beat up the culprit, the employees’ union staged a protest, left their duties and threatened dire action. It is bizarre cases like this that show that employees’ unions do have the ability to misuse the power given to them.
Of course, one can’t help but wonder if unions are really as bad as they are made out to be. Many believe that unions, even though they may stand up for the wrong cause at times, are an absolute necessity in any educational institution and so, this sudden ban is really uncalled for.
Among teachers, there is a consensus of sorts — maybe unions have been banned because they were the sole voice of dissent on some of the policies pursued by the Sindh education department to date. The process of recruitment of teachers in government-run educational institutions which began during the previous city government’s rule was abruptly ended by the present regime. Bribery, political appointments and personal contacts are playing an increasing role in getting people employment in the educational sector. Moreover, there is a huge imbalance in the strength of teachers across different schools. In some public schools, there are 20 teachers for 25 students. In others, there are no teachers at all.
Teachers’ unions constitutes one group that actively pursues these issues and is all for a massive reform in public sector education and a quick look at some of the major events in the past few months confirms this. For instance, on April 29, 2006, more than 7,000 college teachers across the province went on strike to protest vandalism in Karachi’s colleges and the inability of the Sindh education department to deal with the perpetrators (Dawn, April 30, 2006).
But apparently, this form of protest didn’t go too well with the higher authorities. Instead of paying heed to the root cause of the dissent and trying to eliminate them, they decided to attack the unions and silence them once and for all.
Another opinion which prevails is that unions and associations of teachers are really a non-issue. They exist, hold their meetings and give their statements to the press. It is best to leave them as they are. This school of thought believes that there are more important matters related to education in Sindh. There are other atrocious and widespread practices like cheating, for instance, which need to be banned first instead of unions.
Specifically, some teachers, when approached had the following to say:
“There shouldn’t be a ban on teacher unions because teachers have rights, too, and unions help enforce those rights,” stated Zareen Ahmed, a teacher at a private school. “Of course, when we talk practically, some unions are used for a political purpose. So you never know.”
According to Zainub Qaimkhani, a teacher at a religious school, this is “really a non-issue. Teacher unions don’t have any constructive role as such.”
Students, however, have mixed views on the subject.
“I haven’t really been following the news but in my opinion, of course, there shouldn’t be a ban on teacher unions. They get paid such a meagre salary. They have a right to form unions. I say it’s absurd to put a ban on such unions,” said Sarah Abdul Rehman, a medical student.
Bushra Anwar, a Bachelor’s student, voiced her thoughts on the subject: “It depends on the institution. In schools, unions might be troublesome because those are smaller and closely run set-ups. But in universities they are needed because that’s where the administration is ineffective.”
Mahwah Ajaz, a Master’s student is in favour of the ban. “I feel it is a good decision. Unions are being used for entirely the wrong reasons. It is a good thing to have a stronger hold on pressure groups’ activities,” she said.
Nayyara Rahman, a business student, concurs. “I don’t know when and why the ban was placed. But I do feel that it’s about time some checks and balances were imposed. Of course, the ban will squash the freedom of expression, but it will also prevent malpractice and exploitation of already-depleted resources. It will put the greedy teachers in their place and will make sincere and devoted people truly stand out.”
At this point in time, one is again reminded of student unions and the useful role they were playing, not only in channeling the energy of the youth towards a constructive activity, but also in producing future political leaders. Once the ban on them was put in place, the entire process went haywire.
Of course, political groups exist all the same but since there are no official union elections, there is no central authority to control them. The results are clashes between different groups, resulting in strikes in public sector educational institutes. More than a few students have been critically injured and a few innocent ones have even lost their lives.
Banning all unions, no matter what the reason, is extreme behaviour. Granted that unions often give people reason enough to pull their hair out in frustration but removing them from the scene altogether won’t really solve anything. At best, it is going to give those at the helm of affairs a false sense of security but the political climate in educational institutions will steadily deteriorate, just the way it has happened because of the so-called ban imposed on students’ unions.
Myron Lieberman, author of the book The Teacher Unions, once said: “Let us not forget that teacher unions were established to promote teacher welfare, not educational achievement.” With the ban on teachers’ unions, here in Pakistan, the well-being of educators is threatened.
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Every day is like Sunday
“PAKISTAN is a nation of holiday makers. Everyone here loves to take the day off, and students are no exception,” is the favourite refrain of a very popular teacher at a private school whose students, upon hearing these words, look at one another with guilty smiles playing at their lips. Try as they might, these students, and indeed students in most educational institutions, cannot deny the fact that they love holidays and they will never miss an opportunity to avail them whenever they can.
To this end, summer vacations have been the subject of much speculation and debate at most official education meetings. In fact, on January 3, 2006, the Sindh Education Department announced that starting this year, all schools would close down for summer vacations from July 1, and commence their academic activities from August 16. This meant a 15-day increase in summer vacations, since prior to this change, academic sessions commenced on August 1.
The decision was changed in an All-Private Schools Management Associations (APSMAS) meeting, Sindh, on June 11, 2006. The APSMAS decided that all private schools would resume their academic activities on August 1, 2006, as they had originally planned to do, the main reason for this being Independence Day celebrations and their preparations.
Not to be left behind, the Sindh Education Department swiftly reiterated that academic activities could not resume before August 16, 2006, and any school defying these orders would be penalised. To add to the confusion, the Federal Education Minister, Javed Ashraf Qazi, asked for the vacations to be extended till August 31 with all schools reopening on September 1, 2006.
But to date, the Sindh Education Department’s stance is that since they have not received any official directives from the Federal Education Ministry to extend vacations, it will stand by the original notification; that is, reopening educational institutions on August 16.
Previously, students would have been overjoyed at the prospect of having more holidays at their disposal. Now, however, it is a different story altogether: “I am not at all happy with the extra holidays and I sure hope the authorities don’t increase the vacations to three months. Two-and-a-half months are bad enough,” says Fatima Ahmed, an O-Level student.
One can’t help but wonder why students like Fatima would feel this way about more holidays. “Statistics has been made compulsory in our curriculum, and the Cambridge Board only offers that subject in the October-November session. There is no way we will be able to complete that course in time for the exam. Besides, my school year is still going to end around mid-March after which I will get study leave, so I am going to be left with a shorter academic session. We must also bear in mind that national elections are scheduled to be held in January 2007, so we can all expect a lot of unscheduled closures. Thus, even if the government does cut down on unnecessary holidays, there is no telling how many times educational institutions may have to be closed down due to our country’s law and order and political situations,” explains Fatima.
Asma Jabbar, a teacher at a private school, voices similar concerns: “All these extra holidays are a waste of time and are making the students lazy. Most students while away their time, watching television all day because their parents cannot afford to take them on a vacation out of town. So overall, students become more unproductive in their free time.”
Then, there are parents who feel that extensive summer vacations are only going to make matters worse. “Personally, I find this appalling. Schools have been made to close on the smallest of pretexts throughout the year anyway, whether it was to celebrate winning a cricket match or giving our government a winning hand in their games of politics,” laments Atefa Jamal, mother of school-going children. “Not only does lengthening the vacations make things inconvenient for the schools, but the kids have to then forfeit their Saturdays to go to school to make up for lost time, and parents must rush around to find out whether the schools are open or not.”
Atefa completely agrees with the fact that all these holidays will give rise to a lazy generation. “By constantly giving our kids days off, aren’t we breeding the next generation to be lazy? Can we hope that our future generations will bring a positive change to our country when we are programming them to become slobs?” These are pertinent questions but there are people who actually believe that some good can come out of an increase in vacations.
There are others, of course, who feel that an increase in vacations will be beneficial to them. “I am definitely glad that the vacations have been increased, simply because I am too busy with my tuitions, summer courses and sports practices throughout July. I am hoping I’ll get some time to relax in August and to stay at my grandmother’s place,” explained Fizza Hassan, student of a private school.
“I think in a country like ours where the weather conditions are at such an extreme, summer vacations must be extended,” opines Maryam Masood, an ex-student. This is a valid point, considering the fact that it is not only the blistering heat which goes on till August, but also the monsoon season which is in full swing, causing hassle to the students and parents alike.
Fatima Saleem, who has just taken her matriculation exams, pointed out the dilemma of class nine students and the importance of an extended summer break to them. “Extending summer vacations this year was what the students of class nine deserved. They had their exams in mid-June and now their practical exams await them. If the vacations hadn’t been extended, they would have had only around 25 days left to relax and enjoy.” Other reasons cited in favour of the extension include the travelling factor. Many students go out of the city or country during vacations and the two-and-a-half months allotted for vacations allows them more flexibility and convenience.
However, in spite of its advantages, increasing summer vacations at a time when schools already have suffered from unscheduled closures owing to the unstable political environment in the city shows lack of foresight and planning among the powers that be which control the system of education in Pakistan. Consider the current year, for example. Schools are still trying to cope with the damaged caused because of the reopening of schools after an extended winter vacation on January 9, 2006, which were closed immediately afterwards for Eid holidays along with holidays on strikes and after Pakistan team’s victory in cricket matches.
The fact of the matter is that teachers have their courses to complete and exam papers to set. When the course isn’t completed on time, students either have to finish it on their own or rely on the mushrooming substandard coaching centres. Sometimes, teachers shorten the courses themselves which means that students are learning less than they should in a given academic year.
With all this in mind, one is forced to wonder why education suffers during crises. Ours is a country with one of the most atrocious literacy rates in the world and it is about time there was some semblance of order where educational decisions are concerned. Unfortunately, the situation is only going downhill by the day. Today it is a question of summer vacations. Tomorrow, there will be another issue to deal with, one which will cause further misery to students, teachers and parents.
To this end, summer vacations have been the subject of much speculation and debate at most official education meetings. In fact, on January 3, 2006, the Sindh Education Department announced that starting this year, all schools would close down for summer vacations from July 1, and commence their academic activities from August 16. This meant a 15-day increase in summer vacations, since prior to this change, academic sessions commenced on August 1.
The decision was changed in an All-Private Schools Management Associations (APSMAS) meeting, Sindh, on June 11, 2006. The APSMAS decided that all private schools would resume their academic activities on August 1, 2006, as they had originally planned to do, the main reason for this being Independence Day celebrations and their preparations.
Not to be left behind, the Sindh Education Department swiftly reiterated that academic activities could not resume before August 16, 2006, and any school defying these orders would be penalised. To add to the confusion, the Federal Education Minister, Javed Ashraf Qazi, asked for the vacations to be extended till August 31 with all schools reopening on September 1, 2006.
But to date, the Sindh Education Department’s stance is that since they have not received any official directives from the Federal Education Ministry to extend vacations, it will stand by the original notification; that is, reopening educational institutions on August 16.
Previously, students would have been overjoyed at the prospect of having more holidays at their disposal. Now, however, it is a different story altogether: “I am not at all happy with the extra holidays and I sure hope the authorities don’t increase the vacations to three months. Two-and-a-half months are bad enough,” says Fatima Ahmed, an O-Level student.
One can’t help but wonder why students like Fatima would feel this way about more holidays. “Statistics has been made compulsory in our curriculum, and the Cambridge Board only offers that subject in the October-November session. There is no way we will be able to complete that course in time for the exam. Besides, my school year is still going to end around mid-March after which I will get study leave, so I am going to be left with a shorter academic session. We must also bear in mind that national elections are scheduled to be held in January 2007, so we can all expect a lot of unscheduled closures. Thus, even if the government does cut down on unnecessary holidays, there is no telling how many times educational institutions may have to be closed down due to our country’s law and order and political situations,” explains Fatima.
Asma Jabbar, a teacher at a private school, voices similar concerns: “All these extra holidays are a waste of time and are making the students lazy. Most students while away their time, watching television all day because their parents cannot afford to take them on a vacation out of town. So overall, students become more unproductive in their free time.”
Then, there are parents who feel that extensive summer vacations are only going to make matters worse. “Personally, I find this appalling. Schools have been made to close on the smallest of pretexts throughout the year anyway, whether it was to celebrate winning a cricket match or giving our government a winning hand in their games of politics,” laments Atefa Jamal, mother of school-going children. “Not only does lengthening the vacations make things inconvenient for the schools, but the kids have to then forfeit their Saturdays to go to school to make up for lost time, and parents must rush around to find out whether the schools are open or not.”
Atefa completely agrees with the fact that all these holidays will give rise to a lazy generation. “By constantly giving our kids days off, aren’t we breeding the next generation to be lazy? Can we hope that our future generations will bring a positive change to our country when we are programming them to become slobs?” These are pertinent questions but there are people who actually believe that some good can come out of an increase in vacations.
There are others, of course, who feel that an increase in vacations will be beneficial to them. “I am definitely glad that the vacations have been increased, simply because I am too busy with my tuitions, summer courses and sports practices throughout July. I am hoping I’ll get some time to relax in August and to stay at my grandmother’s place,” explained Fizza Hassan, student of a private school.
“I think in a country like ours where the weather conditions are at such an extreme, summer vacations must be extended,” opines Maryam Masood, an ex-student. This is a valid point, considering the fact that it is not only the blistering heat which goes on till August, but also the monsoon season which is in full swing, causing hassle to the students and parents alike.
Fatima Saleem, who has just taken her matriculation exams, pointed out the dilemma of class nine students and the importance of an extended summer break to them. “Extending summer vacations this year was what the students of class nine deserved. They had their exams in mid-June and now their practical exams await them. If the vacations hadn’t been extended, they would have had only around 25 days left to relax and enjoy.” Other reasons cited in favour of the extension include the travelling factor. Many students go out of the city or country during vacations and the two-and-a-half months allotted for vacations allows them more flexibility and convenience.
However, in spite of its advantages, increasing summer vacations at a time when schools already have suffered from unscheduled closures owing to the unstable political environment in the city shows lack of foresight and planning among the powers that be which control the system of education in Pakistan. Consider the current year, for example. Schools are still trying to cope with the damaged caused because of the reopening of schools after an extended winter vacation on January 9, 2006, which were closed immediately afterwards for Eid holidays along with holidays on strikes and after Pakistan team’s victory in cricket matches.
The fact of the matter is that teachers have their courses to complete and exam papers to set. When the course isn’t completed on time, students either have to finish it on their own or rely on the mushrooming substandard coaching centres. Sometimes, teachers shorten the courses themselves which means that students are learning less than they should in a given academic year.
With all this in mind, one is forced to wonder why education suffers during crises. Ours is a country with one of the most atrocious literacy rates in the world and it is about time there was some semblance of order where educational decisions are concerned. Unfortunately, the situation is only going downhill by the day. Today it is a question of summer vacations. Tomorrow, there will be another issue to deal with, one which will cause further misery to students, teachers and parents.
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Double-click
HERE’S a little something that teachers and students can indulge in while browsing the internet:
Knowledge is power
This is a multi-purpose website, catering to both students and teachers. Students can access revision guides for a variety of subjects, interact with other students and play educational games. Teachers can download audio and video clips for use in the classroom, read educational news and go through lesson plans on various subjects.
www.bbc.co.uk/schools
Pictures worth many words
If you thought there was no way history could ever be made interesting, here is a website which will dispel such myths. Whether it is about Egypt, Greece or the Vikings, be prepared to embark on an illustrative journey. You will have facts and figures thrown at you along the way but in an extremely fascinating and interactive way.
http://home.freeuk.net/elloughton13/index.htm
Advanced matters/b>
For the students and teachers of advanced chemistry, here is one website which will definitely prove to be helpful. It features external links to free chemistry software available around the internet. So whether you want to do chemical drawings or simulate experiments, look no further, for here is a website that will save the day.
www.sciencegeek.net/Chemistry/chemware/chemware.shtml
Street smart
Students are commonly told they must avoid slang when writing an essay or composition. Unfortunately, slang has permeated everyday language to such an extent that, at times, one is not even sure which words fall in this category. This website, featuring a dictionary of slang, should make things easier.
www.peevish.co.uk/slang/news.htm
Knowledge is power
This is a multi-purpose website, catering to both students and teachers. Students can access revision guides for a variety of subjects, interact with other students and play educational games. Teachers can download audio and video clips for use in the classroom, read educational news and go through lesson plans on various subjects.
www.bbc.co.uk/schools
Pictures worth many words
If you thought there was no way history could ever be made interesting, here is a website which will dispel such myths. Whether it is about Egypt, Greece or the Vikings, be prepared to embark on an illustrative journey. You will have facts and figures thrown at you along the way but in an extremely fascinating and interactive way.
http://home.freeuk.net/elloughton13/index.htm
Advanced matters/b>
For the students and teachers of advanced chemistry, here is one website which will definitely prove to be helpful. It features external links to free chemistry software available around the internet. So whether you want to do chemical drawings or simulate experiments, look no further, for here is a website that will save the day.
www.sciencegeek.net/Chemistry/chemware/chemware.shtml
Street smart
Students are commonly told they must avoid slang when writing an essay or composition. Unfortunately, slang has permeated everyday language to such an extent that, at times, one is not even sure which words fall in this category. This website, featuring a dictionary of slang, should make things easier.
www.peevish.co.uk/slang/news.htm
Sunday, July 2, 2006
Double-click
HERE’S a little something that teachers and students can indulge in while browsing the internet:
Word power
If your English grammar textbook is making your head spin with all the rules, here is one place where you can actually put some of them in practice. Not only that but you can also indulge in reading comprehensions, learn the meanings of several idioms and spruce up your spelling skills. There are sections for pronunciation and vocabulary too. The only catch is that some of the worksheets are available for a fee. But why not make the most of those that aren’t?
www.english-zone.com
Poetic justice
When it comes to poetry, there are some who are interested in finding out everything that there is to know, and others who start yawning at the mere mention of the word. This website is dedicated to poems and poets which are arranged in different categories. Literature teachers can find loads of
classroom activities to make poetry more interesting and meaningful for students. www.poetryarchive.org
Mapping homework
The chances of you leaving your geography homework for the eleventh hour, only to realise at the last minute that you need an atlas are quite high, especially if you don’t like the subject too much. Well, look no further. Map Quest is a purpose-built search engine for maps. All you need to do is to enter the name of the country or latitude/longitude, if you know it. The result will give you an enlarged map of the country in question.
www.mapquest.co.uk
Death by numbers? Not quite
There are some poor souls who can never understand mathematics. If you happen to be one of them, here is one website which can help you out. Given here are several math topics like algebra and geometry with subtopics. Each sub-topic has a detailed explanation as well as examples for you to grasp the basic concepts. There is a section on games and puzzles too just in case you get tired of theories.
www.cut-the-knot.org
‘Those who can’t teach...’
Created by a teacher-educator, this website features almost everything teachers will need, irrespective of his/her subject. Apart from teaching ideas and reviews of books for teachers, there is a whole section on activity worksheets which are free to download. The worksheets pertain to a wide range of subjects.
http://home.att.net/~teaching
Live in colour
Whether you are new to the internet or are trying to explain it to a student, here is one website which will definitely help you out. Each section delves into the details of history, design, use and security. Yes, it is possible to relive the internet experience through this website.
www.livinginternet.com
Word power
If your English grammar textbook is making your head spin with all the rules, here is one place where you can actually put some of them in practice. Not only that but you can also indulge in reading comprehensions, learn the meanings of several idioms and spruce up your spelling skills. There are sections for pronunciation and vocabulary too. The only catch is that some of the worksheets are available for a fee. But why not make the most of those that aren’t?
www.english-zone.com
Poetic justice
When it comes to poetry, there are some who are interested in finding out everything that there is to know, and others who start yawning at the mere mention of the word. This website is dedicated to poems and poets which are arranged in different categories. Literature teachers can find loads of
classroom activities to make poetry more interesting and meaningful for students. www.poetryarchive.org
Mapping homework
The chances of you leaving your geography homework for the eleventh hour, only to realise at the last minute that you need an atlas are quite high, especially if you don’t like the subject too much. Well, look no further. Map Quest is a purpose-built search engine for maps. All you need to do is to enter the name of the country or latitude/longitude, if you know it. The result will give you an enlarged map of the country in question.
www.mapquest.co.uk
Death by numbers? Not quite
There are some poor souls who can never understand mathematics. If you happen to be one of them, here is one website which can help you out. Given here are several math topics like algebra and geometry with subtopics. Each sub-topic has a detailed explanation as well as examples for you to grasp the basic concepts. There is a section on games and puzzles too just in case you get tired of theories.
www.cut-the-knot.org
‘Those who can’t teach...’
Created by a teacher-educator, this website features almost everything teachers will need, irrespective of his/her subject. Apart from teaching ideas and reviews of books for teachers, there is a whole section on activity worksheets which are free to download. The worksheets pertain to a wide range of subjects.
http://home.att.net/~teaching
Live in colour
Whether you are new to the internet or are trying to explain it to a student, here is one website which will definitely help you out. Each section delves into the details of history, design, use and security. Yes, it is possible to relive the internet experience through this website.
www.livinginternet.com
Saturday, April 3, 2004
Teachers and the Impact they have on Students
"Teachers, I believe, are the most responsible and important members of society because their professional efforts affect the fate of the earth."
- Helen Caldicott
“If a teacher expects a student to fail, he will definitely never pass,” droned the voice of my Sociology teacher, which served to immediately wake me up from my slumber.
“How come?” I asked, finally interested in this topic: Sociology of Education. In reply, I got a typical haven’t-you-been-listening-for-the-past-half-an-hour look, and this phrase, “Self-fulfilling prophecy.”
If you’re raising your eyebrows at this, don’t worry. I did the same. But going into the depth of the whole theory behind this simple phrase reveals that the attitude of a teacher towards the student exerts a very strong influence on that student’s degree of academic achievement.
But, first things first, what actually is self-fulfilling prophecy? The phrase refers to a phenomenon whereby the predictions of a teacher about the ability of the student to attain educational achievements always prove to be true.
The entire process is much more complicated than this simple definition suggests. The teacher firstly, defines the pupil in a certain way, for example, as bright, or intelligent, or dumb. Based on this definition, that teacher makes predictions about that student: whether he/she will get top grades, average grades or below average grades. The interaction of the teacher with that student is then based on this definition. For instance, two students get the same marks in a test. The teacher considers one of them to be an above average student, and the other to be below average. So while handing out the papers, she might remark to the outstanding student, “What happened to you? I was expecting you to do much, much better.” And to the other student, he/she might say, “Well, I wasn’t expecting much out of you anyway. I was surprised you even appeared in the test” or probably just give a sigh of resignation. As a result of this kind of interaction, the student comes to see himself/herself in the same light as the teacher. Their academic result then also begins to complement the original predictions made by the teacher. Since the below average students never see themselves in a positive light, or as being able to achieve anything, they naturally consider any effort to succeed on their part to be futile.
Some major questions arise from this whole process. Firstly, how does a teacher define a pupil? And this definition assumes the most important role here since it affects the interaction of the teacher towards the student. The answer to this question was researched by a group of sociologists, David Hargreaves, Stephen Hester and Frank Mellor in their study “Deviance in Classroom.” In this study they distinguished three different stages through which a teacher comes to know the student. The first stage is “speculation” where the teacher guesses some basic characteristics of the students based on their appearance, personality, relationship with other children, degree of conformism to school rules etc. These guesses can be changed after a more prolonged interaction. The second stage is “elaboration.” In this stage, the teacher has had time to interact with the student more closely and thus, becomes more confident in her predictions. He/she might even decide that her first working hypothesis was wrong and may modify it accordingly. However, by the third stage, which is “stabilization” the teacher is totally confident about her evaluation of the ability of the student. He/she will now analyse the behaviour of the student in the light of this judgement. So, if a student has been labelled as “careless about studies” after this process, he/she will definitely have problems making the teacher believe otherwise.
Social class of the student may also affect the definition of a teacher. Sociologist Howard Becker interviewed sixty teachers of a high school in Chicago, and discovered that all of them gauged the behaviour of the student by comparing it to that of a “standard ideal pupil.” In their opinion, the ideal pupil was supposed to do exemplary work, be very well-mannered, and have a suitable appearance. Also, according to those teachers, middle class students were closer to their image of the ideal pupil than the working class pupils who were seen as lacking the motivation to work, and having behavioural problems. Hence, the perception of the teachers can be based on the social class of the students. Similarly, the race and ethnicity of the student can also play a vital role in the teacher’s perceptions about his/her ability to achieve academically.
The second major question is how does this definition then lead to a specific attitude? Robert Rosenthal and Leonora Jacobson illustrate this relationship in their study. They selected a sample of students, tested their IQ level, and informed their teachers that these students will show rapid intellectual growth. When they re-tested the IQ at the end of the year, all of the students in the sample showed significant increase. Moreover, the teachers had given positive remarks in all of their report books as well. Rosenthal and Jacobson concluded that the teachers communicated to the students that they had intellectual potential through their facial expressions, posture, degree of friendliness and encouragement. Thus, positive expression produced the self-fulfilling prophecy.
The basis of self-fulfilling prophecy is the prediction and expectation of a teacher, which in turn reflects on the attitude of the teacher towards that student. The question is, even if the teacher believes the prediction to be accurate, does it have to reflect on the attitude? Or is it that if the teacher expects every student to have a potential and communicates his/her optimism to the rest of the class, all the students bring him/her the laurels? In the end, it all does comes down to the attitude of a teacher. For the former question, the answer is negative. The teacher’s attitude can be positive at all times even if she believes that a student will not achieve academically. Her prediction can turn out to be wrong as a result of that positive attitude. And, as for the latter question, his/her students will definitely excel in something or the other, if he/she makes them believe in themselves enough.
Views expressed by some teachers also reinforce the same conclusion. In an educational conference which I attended, the principal of a school narrated this story, “I was on my routine round of the school. When I passed one classroom, the teacher called me inside, and showed me the copy of one of her students. She was totally exasperated with the work of that student and wanted me to admonish her severely. I looked at the copy and then told her in front of the class, that she is an intelligent pupil and from today onwards, she will have to compete with the class prefect, who was known to be an outstanding student. By the end of the month, there was a remarkable change in that student. She improved considerably, and her teacher was very surprised.”
Another teacher, who teaches Mathematics and Science in a private school narrated this incident, “In one of my classes, I had written some questions on the blackboard and asked the students come in front of the class and solve them. Students were coming one by one and doing so. However, one student was not taking any interest in the class. She even asked some funny questions and disturbed the whole class. Since I was in a very serious mood, discussing an important topic, I got very angry and asked that student to leave my class. She refused, point-blank. Now I went and sat on the last bench of the class and told the students that if this student is not going to leave the class, I will not take your class at all. The student still refused. After five minutes I realized that I was only wasting the time of the whole class, because of just one student. So I stood up, apologized to the students for wasting their time and proceeded to take the rest of the class. After the class was over, that student came up and apologized for her behaviour. After that day she has been a very active participant in the class, and secures really good grades as well.”
Having a positive attitude is by no means an easy task. Being encouraging to all students at all times, trying to interact with each student on the same footing, and acting as if every student has a major potential to succeed is a monumental task. But the important thing to remember is, that each student does have a potential. Just because Student A is not good in English, doesn’t mean he is a below average student in every subject taught in English. That student may be excellent in designing science projects, or brilliant in Mathematics. A constant encouragement may do wonders to improve the English, while a “I give up on you” or “You will never learn” attitude may stump that student in both science and maths as well. According to one teacher, “Even though each child comes from a different background, has a different learning capacity, and has a different means of expression, each is a unique and precious individual, capable of learning. These young lives have been entrusted into their teacher’s care and the job should not be taken lightly.”
“Each student will not have the same potential. Each will be challenged in some way. It is up to me, as a teacher, to find the "key" that unlocks each child’s ability to maximize his full potential and inspires him to learn. Every child can be a success at something. As a lower elementary teacher, I hope to instil a feeling of self-worth in each child at a very early age. If I can help each child build successes one at a time, I will provide the basis for a positive self-attitude throughout life. The child will then be able to accept challenges and find ways to work through these challenges independently in the future,” the same teacher elaborated.
“Teacher has to be warm and caring, capable of perceiving unrealised potential in every child, and ready to appreciate every improvement a child makes,” writes Zrinjka Stancic in “Teacher’s Attitudes Toward Teaching as a Determinant of their Readiness for Additional Professional Special Education”
“If schools are to be places that promote academic, social, and personal development for students, everything hinges on the presence of intelligent, passionate, caring teachers working day after day in our nation’s classrooms. Teachers have a colossal influence on what happens in our schools, because day after day, they are the ultimate decision makers and tone setters.” Sam M. Intrator writes in his book “Honouring the Teacher’s Heart”
A positive attitude can also be verbal. In “It’s Not What You Say … It’s How You Say It!” Linda Starr shares her favourite phrases from the Teachers’ Dictionary of Educational Euphemisms. Consider the following statements and how they can be more tactfully said:
Instead of “She never stops talking” a teacher can say, “Sarah exhibits exceptional verbal skills and an obvious propensity for social interaction.”
Instead of “He’s a bully” a teacher can say, “Paul’s leadership qualities need to be more democratically directed.”
In our educational system, since students accompany their parents to the parent-teacher meetings, the revised statements can definitely lead to a more positive self-fulfilling prophecy.
Prophesising should definitely be the result of close interaction and not the other way round. It is only through a close and unbiased interaction that the teacher will come to realize the hidden potential of every student, and make him/her achieve what he/she is capable of.
- Helen Caldicott
“If a teacher expects a student to fail, he will definitely never pass,” droned the voice of my Sociology teacher, which served to immediately wake me up from my slumber.
“How come?” I asked, finally interested in this topic: Sociology of Education. In reply, I got a typical haven’t-you-been-listening-for-the-past-half-an-hour look, and this phrase, “Self-fulfilling prophecy.”
If you’re raising your eyebrows at this, don’t worry. I did the same. But going into the depth of the whole theory behind this simple phrase reveals that the attitude of a teacher towards the student exerts a very strong influence on that student’s degree of academic achievement.
But, first things first, what actually is self-fulfilling prophecy? The phrase refers to a phenomenon whereby the predictions of a teacher about the ability of the student to attain educational achievements always prove to be true.
The entire process is much more complicated than this simple definition suggests. The teacher firstly, defines the pupil in a certain way, for example, as bright, or intelligent, or dumb. Based on this definition, that teacher makes predictions about that student: whether he/she will get top grades, average grades or below average grades. The interaction of the teacher with that student is then based on this definition. For instance, two students get the same marks in a test. The teacher considers one of them to be an above average student, and the other to be below average. So while handing out the papers, she might remark to the outstanding student, “What happened to you? I was expecting you to do much, much better.” And to the other student, he/she might say, “Well, I wasn’t expecting much out of you anyway. I was surprised you even appeared in the test” or probably just give a sigh of resignation. As a result of this kind of interaction, the student comes to see himself/herself in the same light as the teacher. Their academic result then also begins to complement the original predictions made by the teacher. Since the below average students never see themselves in a positive light, or as being able to achieve anything, they naturally consider any effort to succeed on their part to be futile.
Some major questions arise from this whole process. Firstly, how does a teacher define a pupil? And this definition assumes the most important role here since it affects the interaction of the teacher towards the student. The answer to this question was researched by a group of sociologists, David Hargreaves, Stephen Hester and Frank Mellor in their study “Deviance in Classroom.” In this study they distinguished three different stages through which a teacher comes to know the student. The first stage is “speculation” where the teacher guesses some basic characteristics of the students based on their appearance, personality, relationship with other children, degree of conformism to school rules etc. These guesses can be changed after a more prolonged interaction. The second stage is “elaboration.” In this stage, the teacher has had time to interact with the student more closely and thus, becomes more confident in her predictions. He/she might even decide that her first working hypothesis was wrong and may modify it accordingly. However, by the third stage, which is “stabilization” the teacher is totally confident about her evaluation of the ability of the student. He/she will now analyse the behaviour of the student in the light of this judgement. So, if a student has been labelled as “careless about studies” after this process, he/she will definitely have problems making the teacher believe otherwise.
Social class of the student may also affect the definition of a teacher. Sociologist Howard Becker interviewed sixty teachers of a high school in Chicago, and discovered that all of them gauged the behaviour of the student by comparing it to that of a “standard ideal pupil.” In their opinion, the ideal pupil was supposed to do exemplary work, be very well-mannered, and have a suitable appearance. Also, according to those teachers, middle class students were closer to their image of the ideal pupil than the working class pupils who were seen as lacking the motivation to work, and having behavioural problems. Hence, the perception of the teachers can be based on the social class of the students. Similarly, the race and ethnicity of the student can also play a vital role in the teacher’s perceptions about his/her ability to achieve academically.
The second major question is how does this definition then lead to a specific attitude? Robert Rosenthal and Leonora Jacobson illustrate this relationship in their study. They selected a sample of students, tested their IQ level, and informed their teachers that these students will show rapid intellectual growth. When they re-tested the IQ at the end of the year, all of the students in the sample showed significant increase. Moreover, the teachers had given positive remarks in all of their report books as well. Rosenthal and Jacobson concluded that the teachers communicated to the students that they had intellectual potential through their facial expressions, posture, degree of friendliness and encouragement. Thus, positive expression produced the self-fulfilling prophecy.
The basis of self-fulfilling prophecy is the prediction and expectation of a teacher, which in turn reflects on the attitude of the teacher towards that student. The question is, even if the teacher believes the prediction to be accurate, does it have to reflect on the attitude? Or is it that if the teacher expects every student to have a potential and communicates his/her optimism to the rest of the class, all the students bring him/her the laurels? In the end, it all does comes down to the attitude of a teacher. For the former question, the answer is negative. The teacher’s attitude can be positive at all times even if she believes that a student will not achieve academically. Her prediction can turn out to be wrong as a result of that positive attitude. And, as for the latter question, his/her students will definitely excel in something or the other, if he/she makes them believe in themselves enough.
Views expressed by some teachers also reinforce the same conclusion. In an educational conference which I attended, the principal of a school narrated this story, “I was on my routine round of the school. When I passed one classroom, the teacher called me inside, and showed me the copy of one of her students. She was totally exasperated with the work of that student and wanted me to admonish her severely. I looked at the copy and then told her in front of the class, that she is an intelligent pupil and from today onwards, she will have to compete with the class prefect, who was known to be an outstanding student. By the end of the month, there was a remarkable change in that student. She improved considerably, and her teacher was very surprised.”
Another teacher, who teaches Mathematics and Science in a private school narrated this incident, “In one of my classes, I had written some questions on the blackboard and asked the students come in front of the class and solve them. Students were coming one by one and doing so. However, one student was not taking any interest in the class. She even asked some funny questions and disturbed the whole class. Since I was in a very serious mood, discussing an important topic, I got very angry and asked that student to leave my class. She refused, point-blank. Now I went and sat on the last bench of the class and told the students that if this student is not going to leave the class, I will not take your class at all. The student still refused. After five minutes I realized that I was only wasting the time of the whole class, because of just one student. So I stood up, apologized to the students for wasting their time and proceeded to take the rest of the class. After the class was over, that student came up and apologized for her behaviour. After that day she has been a very active participant in the class, and secures really good grades as well.”
Having a positive attitude is by no means an easy task. Being encouraging to all students at all times, trying to interact with each student on the same footing, and acting as if every student has a major potential to succeed is a monumental task. But the important thing to remember is, that each student does have a potential. Just because Student A is not good in English, doesn’t mean he is a below average student in every subject taught in English. That student may be excellent in designing science projects, or brilliant in Mathematics. A constant encouragement may do wonders to improve the English, while a “I give up on you” or “You will never learn” attitude may stump that student in both science and maths as well. According to one teacher, “Even though each child comes from a different background, has a different learning capacity, and has a different means of expression, each is a unique and precious individual, capable of learning. These young lives have been entrusted into their teacher’s care and the job should not be taken lightly.”
“Each student will not have the same potential. Each will be challenged in some way. It is up to me, as a teacher, to find the "key" that unlocks each child’s ability to maximize his full potential and inspires him to learn. Every child can be a success at something. As a lower elementary teacher, I hope to instil a feeling of self-worth in each child at a very early age. If I can help each child build successes one at a time, I will provide the basis for a positive self-attitude throughout life. The child will then be able to accept challenges and find ways to work through these challenges independently in the future,” the same teacher elaborated.
“Teacher has to be warm and caring, capable of perceiving unrealised potential in every child, and ready to appreciate every improvement a child makes,” writes Zrinjka Stancic in “Teacher’s Attitudes Toward Teaching as a Determinant of their Readiness for Additional Professional Special Education”
“If schools are to be places that promote academic, social, and personal development for students, everything hinges on the presence of intelligent, passionate, caring teachers working day after day in our nation’s classrooms. Teachers have a colossal influence on what happens in our schools, because day after day, they are the ultimate decision makers and tone setters.” Sam M. Intrator writes in his book “Honouring the Teacher’s Heart”
A positive attitude can also be verbal. In “It’s Not What You Say … It’s How You Say It!” Linda Starr shares her favourite phrases from the Teachers’ Dictionary of Educational Euphemisms. Consider the following statements and how they can be more tactfully said:
Instead of “She never stops talking” a teacher can say, “Sarah exhibits exceptional verbal skills and an obvious propensity for social interaction.”
Instead of “He’s a bully” a teacher can say, “Paul’s leadership qualities need to be more democratically directed.”
In our educational system, since students accompany their parents to the parent-teacher meetings, the revised statements can definitely lead to a more positive self-fulfilling prophecy.
Prophesising should definitely be the result of close interaction and not the other way round. It is only through a close and unbiased interaction that the teacher will come to realize the hidden potential of every student, and make him/her achieve what he/she is capable of.
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