Teaching Is One of the Noblest Professions

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1. Tell us more about your experience as an educator.

I started as an educationist in 2008 and overall, it’s been a great learning experience for me. Each day has been an imperative part of my learning curve in its own unique way, and an inspiration that keeps me going even today.

I aim to learn persistently, adapt to change, and be able to contribute my best to the industry that has taught me so much. I feel the zeal to be responsible for a long-term perspective planning, directing towards leadership as a guiding force with my beneficence.

2. What is your opinion of the Indian education system and how would you like to change that?

Our Indian education system is changing and evolving each day. The Central and State governments are taking various steps to universalize the education system of the country. However, there is a lot of scope of privatization in the education sector.

If more flexible and suitable policies are being framed and implemented to support the private education industry, a huge impact can be made in the quality and standards of education that can bring uniformity in the education system of our country on the whole.

I aspire to work towards scheming an Educational Model that not only focuses on the quality of academics but also accentuates on the overall development of young budding individuals, by focusing on extracurricular, cultural, social, and value education, so that our future generations can be confident global citizens and proudly represent and reflect our country wherever they go.

3. What changes in the teaching methodologies have you seen in recent times?

In today’s world, Education imparted to children needs to be engaging. Students across all age groups are discovering the joys of learning and having fun while at it. There has been a noticeable shift in the perception of parents and teachers for digital learning.

Today, institutions are making efforts to shift the focus back on students to reinvent the way they learn right, and throughout their life. As much as I agree that text-based learning activities continue to play an important role in the teaching-learning process.

However, with the involvement of Technology in education, a teacher’s role has changed. They can now focus more on explanation, involve the students, and reinforce the concepts for a better learning experience. Today, even students have increased access to education-based multimedia.

This widens their horizons overall. Both synchronous and asynchronous forms of learning are being reinforced at a greater scale. A student might read a textbook and another might improvise on his/her knowledge by listening to an audiobook. Some students might access multimedia content through interactive e-books or an online interactive learning session.

Through the multimedia content, students can also interact with a peer or even a small group which surely builds upon their socio-emotional aspects of learning as well.

The Central Government has recently come up with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 which will bring about a very big change in the way teaching is perceived and executed in our Country. NEP is a drastic shift from the existing way to quite an advanced learning approach.

It will be interesting to see how the teachers involved in this process take up this challenge, especially in Aided and Government schools.

4. How does education help one do well in their career?

Education gives you the knowledge and tools you need to feel confident in the workplace. It prepares you to handle any situation that might come your way. It adds structure to your life. Attending class, completing assignments, and studying for exams requires a set routine.

It encourages you to make a schedule that works for you, manage your time, and prioritize. These habits can be carried over to the rest of your life, even after you complete your education. We spend one-third of our time in the first 16–18 years in school and college.

During this period, besides following a routine, one also listens, understands, and respond/follow others; experience relationships; interact with others; gain emotional intelligence and stability; experience competition, collaboration.

These are the "soft skills" that include strong abilities in areas like communication, teamwork, critical thinking, and problem-solving. Each of these talents can add value to you. And, such skills can give you the experience to be prepared and equipped to take that next step toward achieving your goals.

5. Do you think teaching as a profession is viewed at par with corporate jobs?

Teaching is one of the noblest professions. It is a career which not only helps a child gain knowledge about various subjects and domains but also helps a child recognize his strengths and weaknesses, helping him/her to become a better human being.

India has a deep-rooted history in education and the contribution, talent, and skills of our very own educators have been acknowledged globally.

6. How can we adopt technology to make teaching more effective?

Today’s education scenario has seen a significant shift from printed textbooks to digital teaching and learning tools in schools. The rise of the elective system is the turn of the twentieth century that has helped the students to concentrate on a subject of their choice.

New systems of learning based on technological advances in the last few decades are enabling customized learning at a different level altogether and also serving as an exposure platform to an infinitely larger number of areas of interest, which were otherwise not popular in the past.

The rapid increase in the number of platforms that enable instant and continuous learning has made education much more accessible from anywhere around the world.

However, Individualized learning with the support of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is yet to reach a level where it can be a support for teaching (as a tool) and could be provided to its best use by teachers who may not even possess great technical skills.

This will ensure that the students and teachers have the right communication level which will be bridged in a manner where there are no gaps and well understood by all levels of students.

Virtual classrooms and various online tools today help in the synchronous and asynchronous engagement between teachers and students as close to a real in-classroom experience as possible. Today’s Technology in education is resulting in teacher-centric education to student-centric education.

7. Why does India need more educators like you?

The ultimate goal of any educationist or an institution is to attain the pinnacle in the teaching-learning process. I am one of those believers who cognize that in achieving the highest level of accomplishment, the key ingredients are outstanding teachers, learning process assessment, and feedbacks.

I would want to see educators ensure to give the best teaching practices to their people, with the best learning processes in place, fair assessments, and ensure feedback is closely linked to a specific purpose and the best practices. I also aim to work towards policy in the field of education, which can make it more organized and fair for all the stakeholders equally.

An assortment of both these verticals is essential for each educator to build up a strong Education System of our country.