Conflict of interest between the teachers and the students

In the globalised scenario, higher education is a costly commodity, teachers are the service providers, and the students are the consumers. Naturally the high paying consumers expect high quality service.

Recently I happened to see a talk show in one of the Tamil channels, in which the teachers and the students were positioned as opposite groups. Through out the talk show, the students were very articulate in pin pointing the causes of their disappointment over the teacher’s performance.  In comparison to their arguments, the teacher’s reply to their remarks on their performance was repetitive and vague and not convincing. This talk show threw some light on the basic reasons for indiscipline in the class rooms, frequent absenteeism and the lack of connectivity between the students and the teachers. It was very surprising to know that the teachers didn’t understand what the students meant by vibrant class room discussion or interactive session. They understood it as questioning and answering sessions and one student had to explain to them what they mean by the academic discussion after the lecture is over. The students even listed the reasons for boredom in the class room and found fault with the teacher’s habit of dumping on them the course materials directly lifted from the prescribed text book.  They even seemed to know the tricks of the teachers who come unprepared to the class room.

The present day students are very worried about un employability than actual unemployment. They know about the skills the corporate sector expects from them and they are disappointed when the college teachers do not help them in acquiring those skills such as deep knowledge in the basic concepts of the chosen subjects, analytical skills, logical reasoning and communication skill. The past generation students didn’t face a tough competitive   job market as the current age students do. Hence there is a huge mismatch between what is expected of the teachers and what they are providing to the students. Hence there are growing complaints about quality of teaching. Their disappointment over the teacher’s performance has resulted in spoiling the beautiful relationship that existed all along between the teachers and the taught. .  

In the past, the teachers were held in high esteem. The students considered them as friends, philosophers and guides. Even the parents considered them as the second parents and fully trusted the teachers in shaping the personality and character of their children. But somehow, in course of time, the respect the teachers commanded among the students and the society has disappeared. Is it not true that, we have fond memories of yester year’s teachers, hold them in high esteem and owe our expertise in our respective professions to the foundation they have laid during our knowledge seeking process? Don’t we rush to greet our teachers wherever we meet them, what ever position we hold in life today and introduce them as “my teacher” with pride to others? Why such respectability and nobility attached to the teaching profession has disappeared now?

It is due to few reasons. Firstly, majority of the teachers have no real aptitude for teaching and teaching is the last resort in the job ladder. Hence there is no attempt on the part of the teachers to enhance their quality after taking up the job. They still follow outdated pedagogic methods; they stick to the prescribed text books and do not encourage the students to do extra reference by not recognising original contribution made by a student during examination and thereby encourage rote learning. The students look forward to vibrant class room discussions in which the lectures are related to real life situations i.e., they expect a practical oriented teaching, but what they get is only a theory based knowledge. They expect participative learning, but what they get is only teacher centric knowledge. They do not want to waste time in notes taking. They can zerox them if one copy of the course material is given to them. They want a post lecture discussion where they can clear their doubts, give their opinion and thereby improve their communication skill. They believe such a participative learning will encourage them to do more reference work, kindle their thinking process, analytical skill and logical reasoning power. How many of the teachers provide such opportunities to the students?

Let not the teachers put the blame on large sized classes, heavy syllabus and the need to satisfy Academic Performance Indictors (API) that is going to evaluate the teacher’s performance, for the lack of time for post lecture interaction. Let the teachers engage in soul searching and self analysis to get an answer to the poor image they have in the students mind as illustrated through the above mentioned talk show.

Teaching profession can gain back the lost glory only when the teacher’s recruitment methods become scientific.  The born teacher concept is outdated. Teaching is an art and can be perfected with dedicated service. It is true that in the globalised scenario higher education is a costly commodity, teachers are the service providers and the students are consumers. Naturally the high paying consumers expect high quality service and it has to be provided at all costs. The globalised atmosphere has turned upside down many values. Hence the teachers can not expect blind obedience and demand respect. Thay have to command them by the quality of the service.  If the teachers do not satisfy the needs of the students, they have to deal with students who find the classes boring and choose to cut such classes or attend them for attendance sake and indulge in indiscipline or decide to be physically present and mentally absent in the class rooms. or fly away to foreign universities.  Teachers today are dealing with thinking generation and hence many chllenges are thrown on them 

API alone can not succeed in measuring the performnane of the teachers. It is the student’s opinion of their performnane which is relevant. Let not the teachers “work to rule”with a clerical menrtality and underestimate the knowledge level of the present day youth. Let them remember that they are dealing with vibirant youth who are more bothered about unemployability than unemployment per se. The rote learning methods, rhetoric lectures, cut and pasted course materials irritate the students. These are the sources of conflict of interests between the teacher and the taught. Let the teachers accept the reality of disconnect between them and the students and take suitable measures to gain back the respect attached to the teaching profession.