The word teach comes from the word ‘tǣcan’, meaning to ‘show, present, point out’. In spite of the widely accepted conventional notion that only a person who teaches at an academic institution is a teacher, the case is not nearly close to reality. Actually, it is opined that one teacher is not suitable for all. Everyone has different tastes and needs when it comes to teachers. Based upon my rather short experience in life, I have come to the a judgement that a teacher is a person who has the ability to guide, that is to ‘show, present or point out’ the required things to a learner properly in the truest of senses, to actually teach. In my life, I have come up against many teachers in various academic institutions, who, despite being caring people, are not suited to be teachers. Again, I've seen some who have imparted pieces of knowledge which I hope to carry to my grave. My views are analogous to the poet Satyendranath Dutta, the world itself is my school, and I am the student of all. However, some of my teachers are really exceptional and they deserve full credit for carrying me to the position I am today.
As hackneyed as my beginning may seem, I will not stoop so low as not to admit that my very first teachers were my parents. They have, in my opinion, taught me to choose between right and wrong. They have been very frank with me and taught me the darker and painful sides of life, unlike most parents, and I appreciate that. They haven't confined me to a cage where one would believe that life is a bed of roses; but they have explained, with examples, how cruel the world we live in actually is. Apart from that, they are my foremost source of inspiration in life.
After joining school, I liked my teachers, but not particularly many. A few were good, but some were great. One teacher, who is actually my oldest and one of my most favourite teachers, used to teach me when I was at kindergarten. A funny fact is that, whenever I meet her, be it morning, afternoon, evening or even midnight, I mechanically greet her, "Good morning, Ma'am." And every time, she gets angry and reprimands me, saying, "What have I taught you all these years??" But I don't fail to make the mistake every day, and greet her with the same smile and the exact same words as I have since my early childhood. However, if my memory serves me right, I used to be very attentive to her, and I used to understand her lessons very well. To be honest, I partially owe my base in the basic subjects to her.
Another teacher who had first planted a seed of love for English in me was then Vice Principal of our school. She was Filipino, and excellent at English. The way she pronounced words, and the sheer quantity of words she knew were enough to bewitch me. And ever since, for a very long time, my favourite subject has been English.
The second teacher I must mention is my private mathematics teacher. One cannot do anything without mathematics. Until eighth grade, I used to shudder at the mention of the word 'math', and my results in maths were also not satisfactory. When I was in such a quandary, my math teacher agreed to teach me. With his care, I developed a positive attitude towards mathematics, and this is undoubtedly a major step in my life, as I secured highest marks in mathematics in the following exam under his custody. Apart from general mathematics, he has taught me some tricks, or as we mathematically call them, formulae, to improve one's general skills in algebraic and arithmetic calculations.
Another important person who has taught me some basic moral values was also a class teacher of mine. He taught History, he was an excellent teacher and very adept at what he did. Now, I appreciate him for a totally different reason. He has influenced my moral values to a considerable extent, and he had, not once, but several times established ‘paradigms’ of impartiality.
I have said before that one teacher is not for all. My favourite teachers and that of another are not the same, and it would be strange if they would. In my opinion, the pieces of knowledge which I deem most valuable in my life have been given by the teachers whom I revere above all. It's my personal philosophical idea that a teacher should realize how large a responsibility they have; very few stop to think that teachers are the architects who are building the towers which will once occupy the throne to earth. Therefore, my view is that teachers should at least teach some basics of life which must influence the students positively, so that the future of the world can take a turn for the better.