Ravikant. (September- October, 2017) “Ek Adhyapak Shikshak ki Diary – V” (Diary of a Teacher Educator-V), “Acche Bacche kaise? –Aise” (What are good children like? – Like this.), Shiksha Vimarsh, 19(5): 41-45.
Table of Contents
Introduction
The paper begins by discussing the stressors and dilemmas faced by school teachers, particularly those in the government school system, on an everyday basis. Systemic difficulties created by large class sizes, expectations of curriculum, imposition and sometimes, threats, of higher authorities, and juxtaposed with the teacher’s own ideology of giving space for expression and meaning making in the classroom, can create dilemmas and discomfort for the teacher.
‘Good Children’, Quiet Children
The author describes a typical school scenario where a teacher asks students as a way of reminder of what good children are like. This meets a classic response- quiet children, finger-on-their-lips scenario- that works towards creating an absence of noise in the classroom. The cause of noise appears to be irrelevant to the use of this practice. Inherent in this practice is the assumption that ‘good’ children are those who remain quiet. However, the author shares his experience that teachers did not recognize the influence of talk as a tool for meaning making and learning.
Classroom Hierarchies and Classroom Management
Another scenario described is of a teacher engaged in story telling who frequently employs this strategy when the noise in the classroom exceeds permissible limits. This situation is used to explicate that the teachers appear to be in a hierarchically superior position by ‘holding the key’ to children’s voices.
A subsequent group description with teachers is used to develop insights about the administrative value of the practice. Teachers appeared to consent to the notion that this has no academic purpose. The practice builds the notion in children that good students are supposed to keep quiet and thus, as children grow up, they learn to remain quiet in the presence of teachers.
Problemtising the Practice
The author highlights that this practice is particularly a hindrance in language classes where speaking is key to developing expressing thoughts and feelings through language. Further, the practice is problematic in the portrayal of a ‘good child’. It can be deduced that only those thoughts need be expressed in a classroom that a teacher and the education system permits.
The author concludes by relating this to Kumar’s notion of a ‘meek dictator’ who contributes towards developing citizens who learn to unquestioningly accept the State. The practice thus seems to be in contrast to the key aims of education.
Read the complete article here.