Back to school, back to basics

The sight of bustling students, in their crisp uniforms going to school is energizing for all of us. It is a sight we all missed for almost two years. With schools gradually opening for in-person classes across India, it is indeed heart-warming and fills us up with the positivity that finally we are having an upper hand over the pandemic.

We have now realized that the online mode of education for school students is a temporary, gap-filling arrangement and not a replacement for actual in-person learning that happens in the classroom. Everyone is keeping their fingers crossed with prayers that in-person schools should now continue without any obstructions from the pandemic in the days and years to come. Students’ education has suffered tremendously during this pandemic; their learning loss across the world is unimaginable; a loss I believe will affect our human race for years to come – because learning is at the core of human development and dominance on the planet.

Nothing can match the effectiveness of teaching-learning that happens in a real classroom between a real teacher and real students. These days most parents and friends start a conversation with me with the complaint that their kids have become very undisciplined (‘out-of-control ho gaye hai) staying at home and remaining drowned in phones under the pretext of online classes. ‘Discipline to bacche school me hi sikhte hai’ is a comment from parents that gladdens any teacher’s heart!

As the classrooms start bustling with students (with all safety precautions), their teachers are realizing that most students are way behind in their expected position on their learning curves. Many students are academically far behind what they were when the schools were shut two years back. A good teacher is perplexed at this status quo because she wonders where to start; whether to rush with completing the syllabus (which is already behind schedule) or to spend time brushing up her student’s basic skills of lower classes.

I am offering a few pointers on how to effectively restart our in-person, in-class teaching-learning process. These are simple ways to move ahead in the current scenario for teachers, parents and even students.

I am a firm believer in going back to basics and concepts whenever I find things getting complicated. Whether it is solving a complex maths problem or understanding financial management or simply clearing a misunderstanding with someone, going back to basics, and clearing my concepts has always helped me arrive at the solutions. Teachers should undertake a two-month mission of ‘back to basics to ensure that every child’s minimum learning requirements as per his/her class (standard) are achieved. The first step in this direction will be to find out the actual status of every child and then start the teaching-learning process from thereon.

Teachers in primary classes may find that they will have to focus on brushing up the reading skills of their students and while a maths teacher of std. 9th may find that he will have to teach the basics of HCF and LCM which he had taught them in 5th and 6th grades. This is where the teacher’s temperament will be tested. Teachers should empathise with the students instead of being frustrated. The gap in learning is something that is to be naturally expected in the circumstances of the last two years.

I know that catering to every student individually will not be practically possible for the teacher but she can categorize her students into three to four groups based on their current learning levels and start teaching them from their current level upwards. The teaching process, class practice, assignments (homework) will all be as per the group’s requirement. The speed and quantum (content – quantity) of teaching-learning should be fine-tuned to match the grasping capacities of the groups. After a few days, a good teacher may identify some students who need to be shifted to an above or a below group and place them accordingly.

I agree that this ‘back to basics’ business does not sound as interesting as teaching new topics every day and completing the syllabus. But then, what is the point of completing our syllabus when more than half of the class hasn’t grasped more than half of the syllabus you taught?

Believe me, students will not take much time to catch up because you’ve taught them these basics before and they are learning it for the second time. It’s just that they’ve forgotten things that need to be re-called with your support and motivation. Your current dis-enchantment with teaching will be converted into deeply satisfying returns as your students start progressing faster and faster on their learning curve. The winning smile on the faces of your students as they accomplish little achievable challenges that you give them will be deeply satisfying to you than rushing ahead with explaining topics that they are not able to grasp.

All this is possible for teachers only if they have the complete support of their school management and students’ parents. Most importantly, teachers should be given the liberty to skip or postpone teaching some portions of the syllabus.

The school management should speak to parents and take them into confidence by explaining the current situation and the need to create a strong foundation of concepts in their children rather than just completing the syllabus. I am sure parents will understand the logic if explained empathetically.

Students should never harbour inferiority feelings if they are lagging in studies. There should be no hesitation in admitting to ourselves and our teachers that we need to go back to basics and re-learn, re-fresh our old knowledge. A smart student will always accept his current level, identify where he/she is lacking and start working (studying) from thereon. There is no point in trying to learn something of a higher level when your basic concepts related to it are still not clear. So, always go back to basics, make your foundation extremely strong, don’t hesitate to open your two years old textbooks and start reading from thereon. The single biggest and most common trait of students getting selected for IITs and premium colleges is that they are very strong in fundamentals and concepts and know-how to apply them. The second trait is, of course, continuous efforts. There is no other alternative for persistent efforts. Welcome back once again to school my dearest students! Let’s have an enriching and effective teaching-learning experience together.