Have we come past the days when going to school was about being happy-go-lucky and being around our favourite teachers? Well, for the whole wide world, going to school may never be the same, but the teachers will always be. Be it struggling with technology during their 50’s to being a student again to understand the art of online teaching, teachers have borne the maximum brunt of the pandemic madness, next to the doctors.
Celebrated annually in India on September 5th, Teachers Day honours the contribution of our revered teachers in shaping the future of the country’s future generation. The day also marks the birth anniversary of India’s 2nd President Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. While the world feels stuck in the middle of the pandemic, teachers and students are just as stressed as everyone else.
There is no better time to express gratitude to the teachers who even after countless odds are doing the best they can to help the students get through the difficult time. If schools were functioning the way they used to, there would be music, dance, role plays and a lot more by the students on Teacher’s Day.
Ciceroni got in conversation with students from different age groups to breakthrough the idea of Teacher’s Day celebration during the pandemic.
“Me and my classmates have decided to throw a surprise online party for our teachers that includes games, fun, music, dance and many other things. This party is mainly to thank our teachers for being so awesome and so kind to us all this time. They have helped us to make it so far to learn so many new things to make us better people in the world”, shared Riva Weir of Grade 4 of Riverside School on her plans to commemorate Teacher’s Day.
Adding to the celebration ideas, Hitarth Mandaliya, 4th Std, Divine Life English School shared “I am going to make greetings cards for my teachers, give them flowers and touch their feet and thank them for being a constant support in these difficult times.”
On the other hand, missing his school and teachers, Anantvijay Rathore of Grade 2 of Riverside School conveys his Teacher’s Day message saying “I want to thank all the teachers at Riverside who have encouraged me and supported me. When we were in school, they used to teach us so good and now even on online classes they make us feel like we are in school. So, thank you teachers for being very kind to us.”
Nita Menon, Regional Head – Higher Education, Aditya Birla Management Corporation Pvt. Ltd. and Former Principal – The Aditya Public School, Kumarapatnam on elaborating the pandemic’s challenges and benefits to teachers, shares “Battling technology has by far been the biggest challenge faced by the teachers. With most of them old and above 45 years with limited resources and experience in online teaching, the teachers have achieved a phenomenal benchmark in acing the digital teaching methods. While most of them have received half the salary and some have not received at all; some face brutal criticism from the parents, they have not compromised on the education of the students, instead they have been proactive in learning and upgrading themselves through technology and found an acceptance for virtual learning by stretching their work hours that most of the time eat up their personal time too. The boon of pandemic is that, the teachers have finally broken all barriers and have replaced independent learning with collaborative learning to become more resourceful.”
Wondering what to do for Teachers Day?
Ciceroni recommends 3 creative ways to celebrate the efforts of your teachers and express gratitude to them.
Appreciation Cards:
Say “Thank you Teacher” and mean them too. Browse through the beautiful handmade seed paper cards by Purple Leaf Greens and post your appreciation cards to your favourite Gurus and teachers while being mindful about the environment or break free the inner artist in you by creating a hand-painted illustration thank you card for your teacher.
Host an Online Party:
Get your teachers free of stress by indulging them in some music, poetry recitations, fun activities and dancing on zoom of google meet. Host a digital show like you would in school and create a memorabilia video of the best memories from school and send them across so they believe that everything is still the same and the school and children are right there with them.
Plants :
It’s important to give them something worthwhile. Send them plants for they will always remind them how they nurtured you like a seed all these years. You could pick from the variety of ceramic pots and plants offered by Green Gift India.
“It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.” Together let us celebrate the efforts of these unsung heroes this Teacher’s Day.
