Wisdom From a casual Interaction

The other day I had a conversation with a teacher who takes tuition in  Maths and science ( CBSC syllabus) for students of class 9th and 10th. As she wishes to remain anonymous, let us call her Ms Y. The teacher related an anecdote about one of her students. During the tuition class, the student gave an impression of  knowing all the answers to problems/questions asked orally, as she answered in unison with other children . However, in formal tests during tuition or at school , she fared badly. Ms Y said that she advised her student to ask questions and clear doubts. "I am not interested in knowing what you know well. I am interested to find out what are the areas in which you are weak or not clear so that you can be made strong.'  I felt that this was some very sound advice. I asked Ms Y  as to what prompted her to give such advice.

Ms Y is an Msc B Ed  qualified person who had quit teaching after couple of years of working in late eighties, to cater to the challenges of motherhood. However, years later when her son was in 9th class, she started teaching him. A few more students requested to join and thus began a revival of her journey as a teacher. she particularly loved Maths and enjoyed imparting it to students. Ms Y said that the seed of the advice that she gives to students  came from an experience from those early days. In a tuition class as in any class, you get a mix of students who are sharp and others who are weak. Yet success depends on the approach and mental make up of the students.

In that initial class Ms Y  had two weak students, a boy and a girl. The key difference between the nature of the two was that the girl would keep on asking questions about things that she did not understand. At times, it seemed repetitive but  she was getting her doubts cleared and  was not afraid of being thought of as 'ignorant ' or 'slow' before other students. The boy on the other hand remained silent and was reluctant to ask questions. Gradually, the girl began to do better and better as she became sound in the basics. The boy could not make appreciable progress.

As Ms Y related these stories, I was thinking of how important the approach of the teacher is to the success of a student. They can be a source of encouragement and reassurance or one of  discouragement and demotivation. I was reminded of my own Maths teacher in middle school. we had just moved from class V to VI and were scared having to cope with a new teacher and new concepts like sets, algebra etc. The teacher was not thorough in his subject. He used to simply copy down steps on the black board, expect us to copy it down and perhaps by heart them. To cover up his limitation, he used to always dress 'Tip Top' and put on an air of an intellectual. We used to call him "Tippan". At the end of the class, he would ask "Any doubts?. Ask any question". If no one did, he would persuade them- "Go on ask a question".Finally if a child took courage and asked a question, his response would be " you coconut pith holder ( Brainless) you don't know the answer even to this! ".  His strategy was to ensure that in his class, in the long run no one ever said, that they did not understand his teaching.

I was happy to listen to the approach of Ms Y- urging students to come out with all things they have not understood or have difficulty with, so that they can be addressed. Teachers in general, whether at school or in  tuition classes would do well to follow this tip.They need to reassure, and ensure that the children do not have the fear of ridicule so that they may speak up and  freely ask even "silly" questions.The approach and effectiveness of teachers affect not just one project or assignment but the future and success of generations of students!