Online Classes, Pandemic &Teachers: Stand with them, they are doing their best
Parenting is an art and no one can deny it but being possessive is a curse. With the onset of the pandemic, everything has changed. Even the nature of parenting. The offline classroom has transformed into online teaching. This has brought with it many challenges. Remote teaching too is a new concept in India and unless and until we do not collaborate, its effectiveness cannot be proved. But when you live in an over-possessive society, sometimes its adverse jolts are more than positive.
(It is not that easy)
Teachers are facing tough challenges. With minimum resources and immense pressure, online teaching is more than a ‘Big Boss’ to them. To cross this bridge, many teachers have jumped into this well and are producing magical results. But alas, when it comes to the other side, the trust is not the same that a classroom teaching gets. Now here the question arises, do the parents go and sit inside the classroom to see how the teacher teaches in the class? No, but now they have taken it as a matter of pride to adopt Helicopter Parenting.
They hover around their children and sometimes they push their child to ask questions or even interrupt themselves. How unnerving a teacher might feel? This spoils the decorum of the entire class. The children themselves become a laughing stock. When a teacher is watched, they tends to be more anxious, irrespective of the nature of his job.
According to Dr Robert Antony- a famous Bengaluru based Mathematics teacher, this kind of hovering has ruined the mental status of a teacher. They gets anxious and conscious which can be a bane while teaching. Not every teacher is born with all the talents. Some are good at Maths and others in the literature. A Math teacher might not be too comfortable with language and pronunciation but when parents sit and monitor their kids, it is a demeaning moment for the teacher. Imagine a parent taking their child for surgery, and then asking the doctor if they could accompany him in the operation theatre to see the surgery. Is it possible?
(They are trying their best)
Support each other, don’t pull down others
Similarly, when a teacher teaches, they are confident only when they go at their own pace. The ultimate goal of any tutor is ultimately a good result. This is because they are teachers, moreover, their careers depend more on these factors. In the schools, a teacher’s capability is analysed with the kind of appreciation they get from the parents as well as the results they gives. Isn’t it illogical to act as a cosseting parent?
Teach Compassion, Comfort & Kindness
I think instead of helicoptering our child, we should be strapping some parachutes on their backs made out of things like kindness, courage and common sense. If we cosset them, then how can we inculcate a sense of morality or respect in our kids? Instead of being a hovering parent, we need to collaborate and trust each other. The new phenomenon is on either side and both have to mutually come forward and make the situation better to make learning more effective. Today, teachers are suffering from a high level of anxiety and if we talk about mental health, the issue is more serious. At this point kindness, compassion and community engagement are the need of the hour says Dr Sangeetha Madhu, a clinical psychologist. Let us save our children and teachers from becoming a generation of entitled victims.
Disclaimer: Thoughts & views expressed in this article are of the writer. One World News believes in giving space to people to share their views & opinions on things that matter
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