Moulding minds

Every generation has its task cut out in bequeathing the land’s time-honoured wealth comprising mainly the principles of live ‘n’ let live for enduring orderly life, far different from its contemporary features marked by countrywide unrest due to gross neglect of its duty to mould minds of the succeeding generation. Given the thirty-year span that separates one generation from the next, it shouldn’t be a tall order to accept that responsibility and carry it out as a duty. Mother is universally associated with that duty, considered as the child’s first teacher, if not as also the first friend, philosopher and guide. Mother herself having been a child before, the canvas on which she draws the path for her child is vast and mind-boggling in its details. Her own background dotted by early experiences in life, education, ambience in which she grew, economic health of her family, her place in society, company she keeps, outlook to life and so on do impact the way she manages the child amidst the domestic chores. The urban-based mother forced to work for livelihood cannot spare time for her child to the extent required to fulfil her duty to the child.

The voluminous literature in the land’s various languages, including Kannada, in the form of proverbs, idioms, verses, words of wisdom (Subhashitha), fables, epics and others is a veritable cornucopia as a source of the ground rules of the game of moulding not only minds but also the manner of conducting oneself in different situations both at home and in the open.

Life of the child in the toddler stages and that after entering the portals of school are different kettles of fish and tends to become complicated due to a multitude of factors, with both credit and discredit showered on the teacher fraternity. Given the large presence of the land’s well-marked sections creating unrest, committing fraudulent acts, crime, defying the laws, speaking in the open to hurt sentiments of fellow-citizens and so on, one cannot be faulted to remark that the past few generations have let down the society. Only issues of unmanageable garbage and plastic proliferation are hogging column space of dailies, masking a plethora of other issues threatening the nation’s socio-economic health and integrity.

The air is abuzz with prescription attributed to well-meaning member of society for starting actions at the school stage to raise future generations with refined conduct on lines of guidelines originating in the country’s aforementioned sources. Teachers being the agents for moulding minds, it is appropriate to raise the question: Do we have teachers in adequate numbers to shoulder that duty?