THE TRANSFORMATION








Right now, I am teaching a young man.


Sorry, I am ‘spoon-feeding’ him.


No, even worse than that: I am ‘baby-sitting’ him!



He comes from an affluent family. All these years – over ten years – he has studied in some Boarding school. Now, he is here, clueless about what he is doing… leave alone his future!


His father has a flourishing business… So, there ‘is’ future for the young man… 


Is there?


The Boarding school was supposed to make this young man independent, disciplined and self-motivated… tough. Instead, what I have in my hand is a young man who is miserably dependent, lost, bereft of any motivation. Just laid-back.


Now, I am supposed to ‘teach’ this young man his college subject - Accountancy. It is a strain for him to learn… and, equally a strain to me to teach. 

 

As a teacher, we always get a mixed basket of students. All do not have equal motivation… All do not have equal thirst and curiosity to learn. Some show tremendous amount of initiative… they go the extra-mile to do well in exams. They do not depend on their teachers and coaching classes for their success… do not use them as crutches. While, some do. 


It is apparent that this young man has been using his teachers as crutches. I see him completely crippled… with no initiative, no thirst and no motivation whatsoever.


So, here I am. With this ‘special’ apple in my basket!


How shall I go about bringing about a change, a transformation, in this young man?



The first thing: I should stop judging him, ‘categorizing’ him, comparing him… expecting him to perform the way others do. I should have a completely different approach towards him. I need to be patient… incredibly patient. I should not taunt him, criticize him… I need to have faith in his innate goodness, his dormant strengths… That, with a lot of persistent, well-meant care and guidance, he can be made to come around. 


Yes, I need to have, in the first place, such a confidence in myself – in my own abilities to help and change him.


A teacher is just a human being. Still, a teacher is trusted by parents – all through the ages – to make a difference in the lives of their children. My parents had given me in the hands of my teachers… with the hope of seeing me transform. I have done the same with my only son. He, too, will, when his time comes!


And, here are these affluent parents… they have handed over their son in my custody… with the hope that he would change, transform.


I suddenly felt the need to understand this sensitive factor of trust. Trust of a parent in a teacher. So, when that happened, I found also the need to drop my tendency to ‘categorize’ the student as spoon-fed, unmotivated and laid-back.


If that was so in the past, so be it. What now? What can I do with this young man, now?





I also felt, strongly, today that… 


God has sent this young man 


not for his transformation alone; 


for mine too. 


I need to change the way I see others… 


the way I approach them… 


the kind of mind and heart with which


 I reach out to them. 









Yes, it is possible to turn this young man around…


Because, it is also possible to turn myself around…


Sorry, I was wrong when I said… this boy has been spoon-fed all through, that he has been baby-sitted!


It is my initiative that is going to decide my student’s…


It is my motivation, my intention and my concern.



Love accommodates.



GERALD D’CUNHA


Pics.: Raj Dhage Wai


Comments

Aditi Chakraborty said…
very inspiring, the right attitude is very important, We start reading the blog feeling hopeless and at the end there is hope....cause our attitude has changed not the circumstances!!!! Very inspiring!!!
June 16, 2012 at 6:39 PM
Gerald D'Cunha said…
Thanks Aditi... This is the same old story... all of us think the problem lies 'outside'... till the silence descends!

I needed this young man, today, to turn the searchlight within.

Love,

GERRY
June 16, 2012 at 8:34 PM
Vivek said…
a very nice and true thought sir! we as students hate being categorized, we all need motivation rather than criticism..
June 16, 2012 at 10:19 PM
Gerald D'Cunha said…
Thanks Vivek... I am glad u liked the post. LOVE. Sir
June 17, 2012 at 10:16 AM
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