Granting students to make their own choices is one of the greatest lesson we can impart as teachers, writes Rohit Kumar.
For a true humanist and the authentic revolutionary, the object of action is the reality to be transformed by them together with other people, not other men and women themselves. The oppressors are the ones who act upon the people to indoctrinate them and adjust them to a reality which must remain untouched – Paulo Freire in Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
Students from Akanksha Foundation on a rural retreat
I work with students in the age range of 15-20 years at The Akanksha Foundation*. Students in my class are from low income households, urban slums and other challenged communities in Mumbai. I facilitate a service learning program, through which we contextualize our world to education we receive. Most of my students are attending junior college (XI grade) in various streams of Art, Commerce and Science and attend the program over the weekend.
In the process of reflecting upon my teaching practices, I happened to read Freire quite closely and wondered how his thoughts can be brought into practice. One thing that I experienced, from my own schooling and as I continue to interact with teachers and students as part of my work, is that – choice, in most cases, rests with the teacher than the student. What the student does, learn, experience, create or how she/ he should live is mostly decided by the teacher (and parents). This, to me, somehow didn’t feel right and become a point of introspection as a teacher that I was soon going to put to test.
It was a classic case of a dilemma, where one wants to be at two places at the same time. It might look trivial, but I was jittery. What was her decision going to be? Would she choose the event over my class?
Pranali is in first year of the program, pursuing her junior college in Arts. She was selected for an educational conference that my organization was co-hosting, where she got the opportunity to introduce the speakers. But she also wanted to attend my class, in which she had a good attendance record.
I was asked to inform her that it was compulsory for her to attend both days of the event. For a moment, I felt content and confident. I was sure she wouldn’t miss the class. This class was a really important one, and all must attend. As a teacher, someone in authority, I could have taken a decision for her. And I am sure she would have stuck by that, as many of us have done as children. But somehow the teacher in me prompted, this is a wonderful ‘teaching moment’! Who decides what is ‘more important’ for someone? I realised, this was a situation where my student could actually bring in her decision making skills to practice.
I called to inform her about her getting selected. I explained to her the condition for attending the event and also made her aware of both the scenarios – what she had to lose and gain. She asked me, “Bhaiya, what should I do? I want to come for the class. But I also want to go for the event.” I told her, “You will have to decide for yourself.”
She got a little irritated, “What, Bhaiya! Some are telling me to go for the event, while others say that I should come for the class. I just don’t know what to do!!”. I explained to her that this was one chance for her to put into action what she has learnt in class. We emphasize on the value of being able to make your own choices. I had explained both the scenarios to her and now it is up to her to decide what she wanted to do. I added that her decision should not be affected by what I think or feel or anyone else for that matter. All that should matter to is what she wanted to do was was important to her based on the reasons she thinks is best.
In an hour’s time, I got a call from her. With a sheepish tone, she asked me, “Bhaiya, is it important to come for the class? Can I miss it this time?”
“Whether it is important or not, you should decide that”, I replied.
She took a moment before she replied… “Bhaiya, I would like to go for the event.”
“Sure. So you will go for both the days…” and I gave her further instructions on the next steps. When I got done with the call, I had to inform the event organisers. What do I tell them? That my student chose the event over my class? But then another thought crossed my mind – more than what she chose, it was important for me, as a teacher, that she did choose. Whether or not she missed my class this one day, to me she was now this young girl who could take her decisions without being pressured by “precious teachers’ suggestions”.
It’s really interesting how the person in us has to deal with the teacher in us, every moment of our life. I have to constantly remind myself that I am a good teacher not when my students become what I want them to become. Rather when they become what they want to become. And it appears even more imperative for students from underprivileged backgrounds. Our understanding of what a child is capable of deciding remains limited by our understanding of the world. We, then, further impose the notion of that limitation on a child’s world, and therefore, her/his decision making. This is where Paulo Friere’s ideas become so relevant.
For teachers, the object of action should not be the student herself/himself but the reality around us (and not just ‘them’) that we need to transform together. For this we will have to let them question, enquire, make informed choices and be responsible for them/own them.
Sometimes my students may not select the best for themselves. So what the heck? Even I have made my set of mistakes; In fact, I still do. I think it’s important for our children to go wrong at times and own up to it. That’s part of learning. As teachers (or parents) we, at times, become too cautious of things and start taking the decisions that our students should take for themselves. Funny thing is we are the same people who couldn’t take our own decisions (our teachers and parents did for us) and now we want to take someone else’s decisions! In such situations, we are actually disrespecting our children’s intellect.
I feel happy that my students are making their own choices, and they have their reasons for those choices, irrespective of what I may think of them. It is when they do so, then only I can hope to succeed in my purpose of a humanistic teaching.
*Akanksha is a non-profit organization that works in the field of education, initiating school reform through The School Project, and providing a supplemental education through the Akanksha centers. Service Learning Program (SLP) is a 1.5 years program for with a mission to help students develop into empowered individuals who are able to identify and understand social issues, embrace active citizenship, and are ‘happy’ doing it.
For more information, please visit – www.akanksha.org/centers-and-programs/service-learning-program.