The pandemic has led all of us to make imperative changes in our daily lives. Even the teachers have. Those teachers who had never thought of education without a physical classroom. It hasn't been easy for the teachers to adapt. Against all the odds, teachers are trying to deliver their best. But, the student community doesn't seem to appreciate the efforts. Teachers are a building block of everyone's life. Parents often look up to the teachers for the promising future of their children. Even after all their efforts, what they get in return during such time is just deplorable.
From the tales of Arjuna to the history classes about the legacy of Nalanda and Takshila, the millennials get a whole different nostalgia of 'school chale ham' jingle on Akashwani or on Doordarshan early in the morning. Well, the millennials have tons of memory to relate to when they go down the memory lane of their school days. But surprisingly, some Generation Z's have something that would surprise most of us, an act of proving dominance over the entire chat room by abusing the teacher. Astonishingly, they find this act amusing.
Trolling and bullying the teacher is the new common among Gen Z's. From adding their friends to making a fake profile and joining the class, there is nothing that they have not done to make the teachers feel uncomfortable.
The act involves abusing the teachers and leaving the classroom and many other impermissible deeds. Well, this just not arises questions around the online classes and their effectiveness but also that the teachers welcomed this decision of taking classes virtually but at what cost? Let's not forget the salary cuts also. Teachers evolved according to the need of the scenario, but in this process, few lost their jobs, while few were disheartened about the students' behaviour. Left disappointed that though they will evolve their teaching methodology but what they get in return is just daunting.
Asha Samuel, a Sports Lecturer from Madhya Pradesh, shared with Sakal Times, "My entire purpose of being a sports teacher just seems futile in during this lockdown, there are things apart from the books and beyond the classroom that you learn, something like morals, values, sense of wisdom... My colleagues shared their incident of class-bullying, it was humiliating. But the worst part was we didn't know what we are supposed to do. In a regular class, if a student commits a mistake or makes some mischief, we can punish him/her. By doing this, the student gradually understands their mistake and tries to improve. But in a scenario like this, the college will just block the student from further lectures. In the end, the entire purpose of you being a teacher just dissolves. Government has understood that at this moment, students need knowledge and understanding about subjects, but what about morals and wisdom? It is not something that can be taught by looking into a screen."
Teachers like Asha have stepped up to teach students during times of crisis. Along with COVID-warriors, teachers too, have taken the forefront during the current pandemic. And despite the shortcomings, they journeyed the extra mile for knowledge, taking it in their stride to bridge the gap between education and it's limitations.
