Every Student is Special!

A Note For Teachers

As an educator have you come across questions like, “Is this student the best in my class or is the other one better than him/her?” The answer to that is “Every child is a genius, every day.”

It is not just a healthy statement anymore but a major point of difference in itself. Every child is unique and every child is special in his or her own way. No parent or teacher should ever distinguish among them based on any moral or social grounds.

This should be a core belief for every facilitator when it comes to a student. When I say each child is a genius, I am inherently saying that I care deeply, about the growth of each & every child. It means that I understand, that each student is unique – that each child comes from a unique background and each child learns at their own pace.

It’s not only about me, but we all need to ensure that every child grows at their pace and we must care to cultivate the genius within each one of them.

Help Students Identify Their Strengths

When I repeatedly say that “Every child is a genius”, I aim at each and every potential that a child might have within him or her. A student can be good at Math because he loves to work with numbers. That same student may not be good at English as that is not a native language at his place. It doesn’t mean that we as educators need to keep pressurizing him to keep learning English, all we need to do is give him some time to grasp the language.

Similarly, there can be a child who is not good at any of the subjects, but can be a fantastic dancer! So be it, let him be the best of what he can be – encourage him, support and help him overcome his weakness by supporting his strength. No one knows that tomorrow he/she may launch his own dance academy or may start his own dance school.

Let Every Student Grow Their Interests

As an educator there can be a time when you come across students who are very fussy about learning and are hyperactive about all other activities like dancing, playing, and making fun all the time, what you need to do at this time is help them to channelize their energy in the right direction.

When I used to teach in the 8th grade, there were a group of 3 students who always remained glued to each other. They were very shy in class and managed to get satisfactory results in examinations. I had never seen them participate in any of the sports activities and wondered “what is it that they are really interested in?”

One day while passing by an empty classroom during lunch break, I heard some noise. It was the three musketeers beatboxing and singing! I listened to them for some time and then went inside. They were baffled to see me! I asked them why they didn’t consider taking part in the school band. They have such talent! To which they said, “Ma’am our parents want us to concentrate on our studies, not on this.”

The very next day I called their parents together and tried to talk to them about this. Luckily they understood and even encouraged them to enroll their names in the upcoming inter-school fest. While leaving I told them with great confidence “One day I’d like to see you all forming your own band!” It brought huge smiles to their faces.

If the energy of every child is channelized in the right direction, each child will be enthusiastic, and bring their enthusiasm and real-world experience into the classroom to benefit themselves.

Be More Than Just a Teacher

Every student needs a mentor, be a mentor, a guide, a friend and bring out the best in every child. Be an inspiration to them, as nurturing a spark of genius begins with inspiration.

Imagine if “Sachin Tendulkar “ was forced to learn music as a child, would we have the best cricketer?

There are few parents who have been the best students and have persuaded their ambitions and expect the same from their children, which leads to depression and loss of self-development and self-awareness in the children. So my message to the parents is,” Don’t put the pressure of your ambitions on your child’s shoulder.

Students who aren’t encouraged to change their fundamental beliefs about their own abilities may never progress in subject areas that they don’t already feel inclined toward.

Oftentimes, students are numbers defined not by their unique personalities and potential but by their current exam scores. Our students/ children deserve to be seen for their own potential to each one of them can grow into the genius he/she is.

Last but not the least, I strongly believe in the saying that “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”

About the Author

These thoughts were shared by our teacher Ms. Wahida Jamadar Ma’am from Orchids International School in Koparkhairne. Her passion is reading & making students feel that every child is special with the learning & the World around them.

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