Today, millions of students, girls as well as boys, are returning to their schools for a new scholastic year. It may sound as a routine matter of no great concern, something that happens every year and, hence, not worth any special mention. But it is not.
It is a major event that will determine the course of our children’s lives and, thus, our and our nation’s destiny. As such, it deserves our full attention
A few days ago, a friend told me that his sons were not happy at the prospect of returning to school after their long vacation. I told him that my son felt differently. He is very happy to return to school and is waiting for the first day impatiently.
This is one of the points that we should look into: What makes a child reluctant to return to school and another happy?
There are many reasons. However, the most important of them is the educational environment in the school which, as we all know, differs from one another. One makes the school a happy place for children while the other makes it hateful. The key factor in this is the teacher himself. It is he who makes the child love the school, or hate it. If we want our children to love their school, we must take the trouble of selecting good teachers.
But good teachers do not just “happen”. They are “made” by a nation that cares for its future. First of all, persons with a natural talent and taste for learning and teaching must be chosen, and then trained in the art of teaching and model behavior. Further, it should be understood that a good teacher who loves, and is loved by, his students is not one who is merely “loaded’ with information. He is one who is well-mannered, can set examples in good behavior and moral principles, and possesses teaching talent that will enable him to exercise a positive influence on them. So what we need are people who can be, at the same time, the “teacher” who imparts knowledge and the “nurse” who shapes character.
These are the individuals who make children love their school as against those who inspire hate, make them eager to return to their classes as against those who invent excuses to stay away.
The Ministry of Education’s idea of giving pre-school children a one-week orientation course is a thoughtful step. It will create warm sentiments between students and their school and teachers. It is commendable because it will help the children, who are in the beginning of their association with schooling, to get rid of nervousness or fear.
However, it is important that such steps for creating a healthy relationship between the student and the school has to be a long-term project. Otherwise, it would be a waste of time and effort. What I mean is that, it will traumatize the student if he, after getting smiles from his teacher during the orientation course, suddenly gets screams and shouts or even beating from the same person.
I call upon teachers to set good examples for our sons. Make them love education and be like fathers as well as educators to them. They must always remember that it is a great responsibility that is assigned to them.
