There was a scene from a recent tamil movie, in which a boy goes to class and gives chocolate to his class teacher. The teacher takes the chocolate and enquires the occasion for which he replies it was his birthday. She wishes him and asks who he is. The query raises sporadic giggles in the class and that stunned looking birthday boy, slowly tells the teacher that he belongs to her class.
I stopped watching the movie after that scene as it hit way too close home. I had the exact same scene happening to me in real life. During a PTA meeting, I accompanied my mom, who visited my class teacher and asked about me and my performance. She looked at me quizzically and asked are you in this section. I couldn’t quite fathom that question then as she quickly twisted it as a feedback, telling my mom that I am very quiet in the class. She then gave some very generic feedback on my studies and the discussion was closed. Till date I could never forget that incident and whenever I am reminded about it, blood rushes to my ears and I feel flushed. It’s the ultimate insult for a kid when his very own class teacher doesn’t recognize him. She was my history teacher who doubled up in her role.
I was school second in tamil in my tenth standard. I was walking along with my friends towards the lunch hall when our tamil teacher came towards us. She looked through me towards the other guys and asked them for suggestions to improve the way she can teach. I had the lowest overall total amongst that group and it was evident from the way she ignored me. Those guys felt embarrassed as they didn’t expect that question and were wondering why she was asking them and not me. She never appreciated or acknowledged my score and looked at me like some imbecile. Funnily, that was the attitude of the general public as well, for the marks you scored on languages and history were never considered worthy and people used to be only interested on our science and maths scores.
Every teacher’s day, I always remember these two, for they taught me a very valuable life lesson - Never to behave like them.
I stopped watching the movie after that scene as it hit way too close home. I had the exact same scene happening to me in real life. During a PTA meeting, I accompanied my mom, who visited my class teacher and asked about me and my performance. She looked at me quizzically and asked are you in this section. I couldn’t quite fathom that question then as she quickly twisted it as a feedback, telling my mom that I am very quiet in the class. She then gave some very generic feedback on my studies and the discussion was closed. Till date I could never forget that incident and whenever I am reminded about it, blood rushes to my ears and I feel flushed. It’s the ultimate insult for a kid when his very own class teacher doesn’t recognize him. She was my history teacher who doubled up in her role.
I was school second in tamil in my tenth standard. I was walking along with my friends towards the lunch hall when our tamil teacher came towards us. She looked through me towards the other guys and asked them for suggestions to improve the way she can teach. I had the lowest overall total amongst that group and it was evident from the way she ignored me. Those guys felt embarrassed as they didn’t expect that question and were wondering why she was asking them and not me. She never appreciated or acknowledged my score and looked at me like some imbecile. Funnily, that was the attitude of the general public as well, for the marks you scored on languages and history were never considered worthy and people used to be only interested on our science and maths scores.
Every teacher’s day, I always remember these two, for they taught me a very valuable life lesson - Never to behave like them.
Comments
Naanum appadi thaan irundhiruppen except for 1 traditional habit of mine :-( enna pathi yaaravadhu ketta Yaaru eppavum namatta kadichittirukkara andha ponnu dhaanaennu identify pannuvaanga. Till my 12th I had that trademark :-P