An interesting and knowledgeable class room

Great teachers are born  and not made  just like poets. 

This noblest of professions is actually an art. 

Still, we can learn the strategies from some of our great teachers and practice them.

Art is polished with ritualistic practices. Craftsmanship requires hard work, careful preparation and continuous practice.

Every leader/manager/administrator/mentor has to know his strengths and weaknesses to manage others. The teacher plays all these roles in the class room. 

There are many areas where the teacher should know his position.

1. Knowledge/Reading/updating

The wise man knows he knows only little; even all the knowledge the Mankind has acquired is still very little compared to the immense ignorance we are grappling with everyday.

Thiruvalluvar says in Chapter 85 'Pullari vannmai':  The arrogance of thinking we 'know' is the greatest stupidity.


We all would have had teachers who became extremely harsh with students to hide their lack of  scholarship. They hurt as a strategy to protect themselves.

2. Communication Skills

Chapter 65 in Thirukkural discusses communication skills. It is called 'Sol Vanmai'.

Chapter 20 discusses how to avoid unnecessary talks. It is called 'Payanila Sollamai.'

The teacher has to communicate his knowledge in an effective manner.

1. The key concepts have to be defined clearly. 
2. Then they have to be explained with suitable illustrations drawn from contemporary life. 
3. Finally the key concepts have to be explained once again. 
4. In the following classes whenever possible the teacher has to bring back this definition for a minute or two. 
5. This is a linear pattern. If there are 25 definitions they would be constantly touched by the teacher effectively that all the students become familiar with the concepts.
6. These repetitions can be made interesting if each time a definition is brought back, the teacher can use a different illustration from popular culture like the media.
7. Round about speaking, insinuations will confuse the listener.
8. Ordering points is a good pattern.
9. Illustrations must be chosen carefully. It can have extra meanings. Value based illustrations have to be discussed. 
10. Speech/talks should bind the listeners together. Eye contact and a friendly expression is a must for every teacher.
11. The teacher has to listen to every word he speaks; he should be aware of every expression that comes to his face; he should consciously observe his thoughts as he is teaching. A man who goes on talking without listening to his words will be a bore.
12. Effective introductions; effective key points; effective summaries; effective analyses are the pillars of a knowledgeable and interesting class room

3. Knowledge of the self

'Know thyself' said Socrates. It is the most difficult thing in life. 

Each person has a distinct configuration. It gets modified with experiences, how the mind is receiving these experiences and how it interacts with other people.

This process is life that is permanent on one side and flexible on the other side. This dual quality is the biggest challenge that blocks our understanding of our selves. Dwaita philosophy considers life as dualistic. Existentialism studies this dual nature of mankind. 

We often complain about others how they have changed. It is essential we become aware of the changes that keep happening on our personality.

One has to develop a sense of self-observation to emerge as an effective professional.

Of all the professions, teaching exposes the leader to a large number of students who watch him minutely and critique later. Every expression that slips from the teacher gives a message to the student. Most of the times, students might even misunderstand these messages coming to wrong conclusions. The teacher has to become aware of these messages given by his body, words etc. to have command over himself. 

An effective understanding of the Self gives the teacher more confidence and authority. 

4. Knowledge of the students' minds

Chapter 71 in Thirukkural discusses extensively how we can read minds from facial expressions, especially the eye. It is called 'Kurippu Arithal'.

1. One should learn to read silences
2. One should learn to read the heart
3. The eye must keep travelling to look at every face and understand its thoughts
4. The face is like a marble piece that reflects thoughts
5. The face has to be studied carefully
6. One should respond to sadness on faces instantly
7. The face will tell if the listener is a friend or enemy. Accordingly one should plan strategies.
8. The finest metric system to understand human mind is the eye.

The teacher has to keep assessing the students as he is teaching. If a student's eye shifts it is time for a humorous anecdote; if there is a yawn, it is time to bring in an interesting illustration; if there is murmur, it is time the students are given time to speak; if there is passivity, it is time to given an activity etc.

The primary school teacher in Matriculation schools

A third standard child's painting done on the computer

What is the social position of an Indian primary school teacher? 

Primary teaching  has become the most difficult and un-recognized work given to the progress of society which is thankless to its primary school teachers. These teachers do not even get 20% salary of a Professor working at a University. We think the primary teacher's job can be done by any graduate while the University 'contributes' to society. The foundation of our education itself needs to be looked at more closely. We have to understand the implications of government policies on  education. 

How have these teachers built a new generation of engineers, doctors, lawyers, charted accountants, scientists and so on and so on? 

What are the value systems, belief patterns, ethical standards that have been given by these teachers to the educated class of our country? 

Do we know the belief patterns put by these teachers in the minds of children probably can never be erased, and will direct them the rest of their lives?

Do we know children pick up language structures from teachers and  find it very difficult to change them later?

The young teachers, usually just out of college of higher secondary schools  working in Matriculation schools  find it very difficult to tackle the city bred children.These children are computer savvy, are comfortable with English and the internet and in some families are exposed to news analysis too. They have a highly individualistic approach to life, treated as equals by educated parents. They have a well developed mind of their own, and refuse to believe things if they are not convinced.

Are the teachers equipped enough to cater to the needs of these next generation students?

The issues faced by teachers:

1. Pressure from the Management to produce 'high marks', 'neat class work notes', 'neat home work notes, 'neat test notes' and now 'neat assignments or projects'. Every work of the child should be 'neat'. It has to be 'perfect'. Every day hundreds of notes have to be 'corrected'. Can they be actually 'corrected'?

2.  Pressure from parents, especially  young mothers. These mothers meet the class teachers regularly and  interrogate the class teachers why their wards have not scored 100 marks in all subjects. Class work notes have to 'corrected' and should be without mistakes.

3. There are no hours allotted to value education in classes.

4. There are no hours allotted to play, as either the school has no grounds, or because it has not appointed no games teacher.

5. There are no handicrafts or arts class; no music classes; no painting classes within the official time-table. Both the Management ans the parents do not want them. The pent up energy of children get frustrated and the class teacher bears the bent of these emotions everyday. 

6. The mixed group of children- some brilliant and over-informative, some normal, some slow

7. Medium of instruction is English. This is a problem for most of the teachers. 

Higher Education has to build a negotiation with Primary education. We have to call primary teachers to discuss policies.

Classroom management 3. Knowledge empowerment - at the urban level

In today's  world of information where city  students are dumped with information day  in and out, they expect a teacher in the class to help them use the information and customize it and relate it to syllabus/subject. The urban students at the Higher education sector and Secondary level are obsessed with abundant information which distracts them in class when the same is delivered by the teacher without analysis. The teacher has to empower himself or herself to handle this issue. Knowledge empowerment is the key to handle the distraction in this millennium students.

How do teachers  empower themselves with knowledge?

Thirukkural handles this issue in chapter 72 called 'Avai Anjaamai'.  The poet says 'to associate with people who are more knowledgeable to learn from them'.

As  Thiruvalluvar says we can stay connected with scholars and that will help build  knowledge as at a point it  might  clear doubts  and thus increase learning opportunities. The suggestion here is that one should have a thirst for continuous learning and thus empower and help assimilate existing knowledge resources. It might help them with more illustration and more scope for practical application of concepts.This will make teaching interesting in the classroom for the  students as now empowered teacher brings in rare insights into the subject which the students would not be able to understand on his own. Thus the teacher becomes an academic leader helping the students understand the fine aspects of information. The teacher guides the student into the pleasure of self learning. Ultimately the teacher helps students convert information into knowledge.

How does the teacher practice knowledge empowerment in an easy way?

Teachers can cultivate professional relationship with their colleagues and create a knowledge atmosphere in their departments to discuss the latest updates quite naturally.  Knowledge sharing has become easy than ever before with the help of technology. Social networking platforms like Facebook,twitter, blogs, Linked-in etc can be used effectively for knowledge sharing.

Class room management - 1. The Class Room as a social space

What is the structure of a class room?

What is its significance in the life of a student?

How does it shape the individual in a student?

What is the role played by the teacher in using this space to 'create' and 'shape' the qualities of a student?


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The arrangement of furniture offers a faithful image of the familial and social structures of a period

- Jean Baudrillard in 'The System of Objects'

The Fixed Furniture

The class room is arranged in rows of chairs /desks where the students are seated in two/three/four  columns or divisions. Some schools have allotted names to these segments. Colleges generally do not go by these small groups in the class room. The students are seated in their places from nine in the morning till three or four in the evening in schools. In colleges it may be from eight/nine in the morning to one/two in the afternoon. The teacher stands in front of the class room and teaches/lectures/explains/demonstrates. Some teachers keep walking and enter the Columns and go to the last rows. Most of the teachers in colleges do not do this as they have to stand and explain in detail. Some school teachers also never move out of their center position. 

Teacher as an Administrator

In general this is the class room arrangement that reflects a hierarchic model of class room administration. The teacher becomes the boss/manager/administrator/leader/guide/supervisor/patriarch/mentor/counsellor. Within this authoritarian structure the student's personality is shaped for 14 years in schools and minimum 3 years in college. This physical and mini-social structure in the class room has defined the type of teaching done and the type of learning done in the class rooms in the last 50 years. 

The Noisy class room of nature - painting - oil on canvas - Mr. S. Chellaiah

Route learning where the student sits and learns his learning materials thoroughly is the end this has resulted in. It has helped students learn vast amount of texts by heart as the sitting position has created the atmosphere for the student to memorise facts. 

Universities sanction 70 students per class in an Arts college as they are catering to the needs of the existing class room method. 

Complex Syllabi

Educators have been preparing their lessons addressing this facility provided and every year the syllabi for the schools have increased their complexity, as the students have shown enormous ability to learn any text given to them by heart and reproduce it in papers in the similarly arranged class room where they take their examinations. 

Engineering colleges also follow the same style in  preparation of the curricula and put students through maximum theories. Arts  colleges have diluted considerably that they give asylum to the students who cannot tackle complex curricula.

Student unrest

Engineering/Arts/school students come under the same frame work of learning materials sitting in a class room, listening to a teacher or just learning them by heart. It is a teacher centred education system, and if teachers do not do their lecturing in class rooms it creates student unrest. Colleges where teachers have not been ritualistic in class room teaching have seen great student unrest and these students also create civic problems. Excepting probably 5% of students who are self-learners, the rest of Indian student community is dependent on the teacher at the school/college levels. 

The Teacher as a Speaker

The teacher continues to rule standing as a public speaker, away from his audience. This is the hierarchical system and education has to be understood keeping this important fact in mind. The arrangement of the class room furniture is an unchanging factor that  describes the Indian mental structure. It is shaped by traditions and authority. Inter-personal relationships between the teacher and the student are formed within this structure. Every physical space is created by even thousands of years' practices, thought patterns and culture. 

The Teacher is next to God

The class room of today is only an extension of the ancient Indian system where the teacher was kept in the highest social order. Today in a capitalistic society the student knows that he is paying for his education and tends to show disrespect to the teacher, but only if the teacher does not deliver his profound knowledge resources well. The student in private education sphere has two expectations: the teacher should know the subject thoroughly; he should deliver it well. Even privatization of education has not changed the ancient Indian order of society that put great teachers at the top of the social order. The best teachers are celebrated everywhere in spite of globalised views and the exposure to the knowledge of the internet resources.  

This happens because the class room still gives space to the teacher who knows his subject thoroughly to stand and deliver to his student audience every day. This recognition given to the Indian teacher has to be utilized by the teaching community. The Indian class room does not have the space or ambience to convert the teacher into the facilitator. The teacher continues to be an authoritarian model, highly ethical, impartial, objective and updating himself every day. 

Innovation in the Class Room

To combine western methodologies with Indian methods every school/college has to allot one or two  larger class rooms with movable furniture/closed windows and doors/ internet enabled computers with a projector etc.  to enable the teacher mover around freely and facilitate the students into learning in an active mode. Teachers may not know how to use this larger room. They still might continue to stand, as they would feel sensitive of their 'loss' of position in the front of the class room. They need to be exposed to training as to 'use' of the larger space in the class room. 

The class room has emerged as a modern concept using chairs, tables, a platform etc. and customizing these to a traditional learning atmosphere. It has not replaced old values, belief systems or attitudes. To exploit the intellectual space it gives to the authority figure of the teacher, he/she has to understand its values and emerge as an individual fulfilling its expectations. 

Training for teachers for effective class room management

To day teaching has lost its formal glory. The teacher has become just  a facilitator in the urban class room. The teacher has become an under performer in semi-urban and rural class rooms. Very rarely students talk about inspiring teachers in both the scenarios.

Government has not allotted enough funds for the  education sector, and hence it has gone to private players. Today's students studying in private schools/colleges think: 'Why should I give special respect to the teacher, when he is paid by me?'  We are reminded of tuition teachers who visited rich men's houses those days, and who were some times not respected enough by the parents as well as students. 

The number of schools and colleges has increased ten times. There are many types of backgrounds from which students come from now-a-days. Teachers become frustrated when they are not able to identify themselves with these students. 

Either the students are too smart and don't have respect for the under-performing  teacher, or the students are so lethargic and passive that the teacher also becomes lethargic in the class room. 

Most of the teachers going through these circumstances gradually become under-performers. 

The question is:  'where are the mature, scholarly, commanding teachers?'

Are they working for the Corporates?

Are they in the media?

Are they in public service?

Why is it teaching does not attract brilliant people any longer in spite of the good pay?

How do we empower the teachers to teach in a globalised society?

• Somewhere in the line brilliant minds have lost interest in teaching. Why? What are the reasons? 
• Internet and pouring knowledge resources that the teacher has lost his authority? 
• Knowledge has become the independent pursuit of the individual where the teacher is unnecessary?
• Private players in education that it has become a capitalistic business? 
• No scope for personal growth in schools and colleges? 
• Too much of inter-personal problems in educational institutions?

What can be done to tackle this situation?

1. Teacher education programmes at the school level and collegiate level have to prepare the teachers in motivation skills,  counselling skills, goal setting skills, ICT Tools making, rapport making with students skills, mind mapping skills to assist reading texts, summing up skills etc. 
2. Add-on courses on leadership skills and managerial skills can help teachers in class room management. 
3. The teacher today meets a student who is exposed to the internet, TV, cinema and the Television. Hence the teacher has to be in touch with these media to understand the minds of students.

The teacher-student relationship has taken a set back now-a-days. With an empowered teacher the class room will become more significant and more vibrant.