India, my country, your country, a nation we live in and live for!
India, our motherland- our Supreme Deity- the Most Immortal!
Celebrating Our Independence is nothing less than celebrating our own life!
We, with the youth power-young minds have come significantly far ahead of the narrow patriotism.
There is a new definition of being an Indian!
There is Pride!
There is Happiness!
There is Responsibility!
There is Courage!
There is Concern!
There is an India in Us!
Independence is not just a day that we celebrate as a holiday. It is not just a play of words on thousands of stages all over the country. It is not about making the school children stand and perform cultural events. What is Independence then?
Independence- Freedom-Liberty-Happiness...have their own connotations, and we seldom define them the way millions of others feel it is. We cage it sometimes, we kill it sometimes by forgetting that it was not a neighbourhood fight that our Angels had with the Colonial Rulers. It is a mindset, a sense of duty towards the home, called India!
Independence is a lifestyle which is our way of breathing in and out. It is our way of making friends, representations and relations. It is our way to eat-dance-play-think. It is our realisation that we are not slaves to outsiders; we can protest against and reject our government. We, the youth, know that patriotism means a lot to us. It is about the flow of emotions in our veins when we see our National Flag- Tiranga- high in the sky. These three layers with the Chakra have been able to captivate us. If you want to tell someone how to feel 'Being Indian', just make them look at India, in the tri-colour- Our Flag.
India needs to live in you, and you need to live in India. Without even one single citizen, India remains incomplete. It is like our family chemistry, we need all together; India demands togetherness from all.
We, as Teachers, need to remember that we are in one of the most significant positions with the power to influence not just the academic rules, but life! Life of our Nation! We need to keep the courage to stand up and speak against the wrong that we feel we can not control or correct. Teachers must facilitate the feeling of Pride in Protest. Rather, we need 'Responsibility' when we question anyone, be it the system or individuals. When this is being asked, we mean that firmness must be there, but with dignity. Youth need a path, and we have stopped standing in their way. This bewilderment will turn bad if we, the agents of change, do not dare to make a difference. Do not try to instil in them a sense of dejection about India; we know that we are fortunate enough to be in a country like this. It is not just about being US or UK, it is about the feeling that people have for us. Certifications, passports, and visas can not make us Un-Indian. We know what 'origin' is. So we need to remember that we represent India, wherever we go, settle, study or work.
As teachers, we can make our students believe that they are not the clients of this country, and of course, India is not a firm selling you burgers. As learners, students, and teachers, we can not question a 'system' which is made of us. But yes, we can correct it. We have been wasting more time cursing the 'system' rather than adding corrections to it. As teachers, we have lost the credibility that we used to enjoy. It is easy to regain this, and by becoming 'competent', we can become the decision makers again.
Make your Students believe that Education is in a transition mode; it remains so as always, and protesting against it is putting hurdles in the way of learning. Better we become an active, sincere and responsible part of the reform of education.
We need to tell them that they are paying for what they are to learn; it is not money but their time, so engaging themselves in learning will not be a loss.
Career remains important, but as citizens, students are required to be moulded as Indians. Even if we need to create an obsession in them for India, that won't be as dangerous as the feeling of 'Disappointed with India' is. Make our country a part of our teaching.
Impart Skills, the skill of making sense, the skill of understanding people, the skill of adding more skills, the skill of learning cultures and languages of the country and the world, the skill of employability and entrepreneurship, the skill to innovate and improvise, the skill of being honest and true to work!
Last but not least, keep your own self active. Being exhausted by the corporate structure of modern education, devise the extra-steps, that you need to take for self-improvement, in fact, self-enhancement. Being the guide-Mentor-Guru, you need to be on the perfect path of learning. Keep learning the trends of education, be one step ahead of them in observations and adaptability. Teach yourself technology and then integrate it into teaching-learning.
Be the Indian who knows that being Indian matters to India.
Happy Independence Day!
