The Joys and Challenges of Being a Teacher in Today's World

"Har khoobsurat cheez mushkil hoti hai"

(Every beautiful thing presents challenges)

- Anonymous

My journey as a teacher started when I used chalk and a blackboard to teach the invisible students sitting in the guest room of my house. The classroom in my imagination had sincere students and problems that could be easily resolved. In 2023, when I set my foot into a classroom (in reality) for the first time, as a part of my 2-years Teach For India fellowship, I realised that the joys and challenges that a teacher experiences are beyond his/her imagination and weave a beautiful story with a unique plot for each teacher.

Entering into the fellowship thinking that my duty would just be to teach a bunch of students in the classroom, I took almost no time to understand that the teachers fulfil the roles of a moral guide, friend, mentor, disciplinarian, role model, curriculum developer, motivator and facilitator of learning. Though during the initial months of the journey it seemed unjust to ask one person to be able to perform multiple roles efficiently, with time, one learns to surf the waves with ease. I motivated Shadab when he felt underconfident to speak English in front of the class, listened to Marziya when she told me how she lives away from her parents, taught social skills in a class in which the students were quick to remove their belts and shoes whenever they got into a fight and developed 5th-grade curriculum for a class that was at grade level 3.

A little context might help you paint a vivid picture. I taught at a low-income private school in a slum area in Mumbai. Picture this - leaking roof, cracked walls, students wearing shoes having holes. Yes, it was a school you might see in movies or hear grim stories about. The hygiene and sanitation inside the school were as poor as they were outside the school. However, there was something magical in all the classrooms, maybe in all the children. They brought joy. Their enthusiasm, curiosity, creativity, and zeal charged up the school environment. I felt an urge to prepare something new for my class each day just to pique their excitement.

Being eager about curriculum development, I made plans for my class before deadlines. I had a pool of resources to use and I felt that I had relatively less number of instructional days to utilise them. With every successful lesson plan, my students' confidence increased. Nevertheless, many challenges knocked on my door during this journey. From a mother telling me that she chained her child at home to stop him from flying kites to a student not reaching home after school, I had witnessed a lot of events. The students were bringing electronic vapes to school, bunking the school, and learning inappropriate behaviour from the people they saw in the community.

The maze of problems in front of me made me wonder which problem should be tackled first. I tried to deal with most of them by engaging other stakeholders - the headmistress and the parents. One-on-one conversations with students during after-school hours worked wonders. Having a solution-oriented mindset along with an attitude of 'listening first and then drawing conclusions' really go a long way in understanding a child and holding a conversation with him/her. The children rarely have filters and will tell anything if they are given that non-judgemental, safe space to speak. As teachers, if we are able to provide it and be their confidant, we will be able to support them in the best way.

Additionally, I initiated the 'Mom & Me project' that aimed to bring parents and students under one roof bi-weekly to engage in some discussions and activities for strengthening parent-child relationships. The rationale behind this project was that strong familial bonds create a secure base for children to develop holistically and gain a sense of identity and belonging. The parents were also informed about various parenting techniques and given homework to work on their relationship with their children consciously and mindfully.

The joy normally experienced in the classroom multiplied because of the project. The parents were happy to be in the classroom again because it reminded them of their school days. The students were glad to have their parents seated next to them and engage in activities with them. The parents got a chance to interact with other parents and make friends. Additionally, the teacher (me) was elated to see numerous people coming in with a positive attitude and making the classroom come alive.

This was a testimony to how challenges can lead to a beautiful journey and make a way for joy. I have realised that a journey may seem difficult because of the fog ahead, but once you start traversing the road, the fog starts disappearing. This blog is a reminder for me and you (the reader) that if you set your mind to take up an arduous journey, remember to choose to proceed with love and happiness because they make the journey more fun, worthwhile and interesting.

Gorvi Sajnani

SCERT