In line with a ‘Day’ for this and a ‘Day’ for that, we also have a Teachers Day. Good for them. After all, what’s the harm in getting recognition for at least one day? The one-day limelight is perhaps good enough for making them drudge it out for the remaining 364. Having said that, there is no dearth of those who raise a simple question: recognition for what?
The age-old description of the role a teacher has in one’s life is no more relevant. Come on … let’s face it; times have changed. You can’t earn plaudits or win somebody’s heart and mind just because you happen to be a teacher. You have to earn it, buddy.
And when we talk of ‘plaudits’ and the ‘hearts’ and the ‘minds’, please exclude all those fancy text messages — and the odd greeting card — that you receive from your students on Teachers’ Day. They do give a nice massage to your ego and you may not like to concede, but they are mostly from people who are desperate to seek your help in crossing the final hurdle called exams. It is no wonder that at the university level — where the teacher rules supreme in a semester dispensation — the number of greetings go up dramatically; annoyingly for some.
It has been for long a matter of truthful description that in Pakistan, people who make no headway in other fields, land in the teaching profession. From going nowhere despite their best efforts, they suddenly find themselves to be master of all they survey. They get a captive audience in the shape of students, and it hugely adds to the fun that they can be whimsical to their heart’s content.
And this has been going on for far too long to be ignored as mere rubbish. The education system being what it is, there is no point expecting the output to be any better or different than the input. The teachers of today, naturally, are the students of yesterday. They are the product of a system that never encouraged them to think; especially think beyond any given parameters.
The majority of teachers had gone through the motion of studying in schools, colleges and universities and were then found to be good for nothing by the job market which tends to question the quality of graduates and blame them for exhibiting poor communication skills, poor reading habits, narrow vision and a limited world view. A teacher with such unenviable attributes can hardly be expected to produce scientists — more importantly, the social scientists — of tomorrow.
In administrative terms, environment at public-sector universities has two major hallmarks: internal inefficiency and lack of accountability. Even in private-sector institutions, there is a lot of ‘visible’ activity with respect to accountability of teachers and the content that are supposedly delivered in the class setting. But all that is only on paper. In practical terms, there is effectively very little change.
The system is geared more towards ensuring that the teacher spends the slotted time in the class, but what they do once the proforma has been filled remains between the teacher and the students. It is not much different from what goes on in state-run institutions. It is not without reason that a massive majority of students in the private sector happen to be those who don’t qualify for a seat in public-sector universities. Indeed, the exceptions are there, but exceptions don’t matter.
So, are the teachers all in the wrong? There are reasons that make one avoid a direct answer to the grave question. Instead, let’s put one more piece of the jigsaw in place. With every single component of society struggling to keep itself on track, it is basically illogical to expect that education — or, for that matter, any other single unit — will lift itself out of the morass on its own. It just can’t happen. The vision and commitment of the leadership are two vital ingredients for any turnaround, but that have been precisely the two factors missing from our equation.
On the philosophical plank, the blame cannot be put squarely on the teachers. But it does not absolve individuals of their duty to act responsibly in their respective professional domains, and teachers are no exception to this simple rule. Everyone knows that the system doesn’t work in both its specific and wider meanings. Going a step further, it is part of everyone’s belief that it is pointless to even expect the system to function with any semblance of professionalism.
However, despite all its ills, woes and maladies, the system does not forbid a teacher to teach properly. Does it? Teachers may not acknowledge what we are getting at, but the students will surely know!
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