Dr. Bidya Nath Koirala recently stated on social media that students today have become more knowledgeable than teachers. After reading his statement, many thoughts came to my mind—have students really reached the level he describes? Or is he referring to the condition of students from a particular school? Is this the situation in all schools across Nepal? If that were the case, how did it happen? The answer is quite clear—this is not the case.
Even today, most public schools face various challenges, including infrastructure, educational quality, curriculum understanding, human resource management, teacher training, budget allocation by local authorities, and the general perception of teachers in society. The triangular relationship between family, school, and society in education is still not well-balanced. These three key aspects are not as interconnected as they should be.
What kind of families are our children growing up in? What is the state of society? What is the condition of schools? If even one of these three pillars is weak, the rest will struggle.
It also depends on how much children can share what they have learned at school with their families and how attentively parents listen to them. In many cases, parents dismiss their children’s attempts to share, saying things like, “Enough, no need to tell me, I already know everything,” or “I just got home from work, I’m tired, don’t talk to me now.” When children are unable to express what they have learned, they develop a sense of negativity.
Therefore, it is essential to encourage children to speak and to listen to them. Parents should spend at least half an hour in the evening discussing what happened at school and their studies. This helps children build confidence, develop communication skills, and fosters creativity.
However, if parents assume that children learn everything at school and do not need to teach them anything at home, they will not learn effectively. Likewise, if schools believe that students already know everything, then the very purpose of schooling comes into question. Learning is a continuous process—whether in teaching or any other field, failing to stay updated means becoming irrelevant.
It is incorrect to assume that children only learn from teachers in school. In reality, they learn a lot from their peers. In a home setting, children interact with a limited number of people, whereas in school, they develop the ability to coexist with many. They first learn how to collaborate in groups, then how to make new friends, and even how to communicate effectively. Of course, they also learn from what teachers say and write.
Similarly, teachers also have the opportunity to learn many things from students. Today’s advancements in science and technology allow children to learn a lot from mobile phones and laptops rather than just from books. Teachers, in turn, can learn from students about these new tools.
Children tend to be more hopeful, selfless, kind, and cooperative compared to adults. These are qualities that teachers and adults can also learn from them. Additionally, children are often more proficient with mobile apps, and there is no shame in learning from them. Claiming to know something when one does not is nothing but foolishness. Hence, being open to learning new things, regardless of who is teaching, is beneficial for everyone.
Times have changed. The traditional one-sided learning process is disappearing. The habit of reading books is also gradually fading. Relying solely on videos as references will not necessarily lead to success, and it is important to recognize this. Continuous self-study is essential.
If students are only taught from textbooks, learning becomes monotonous. Therefore, setting aside at least one day a week for discussions on other literature, stories, or poems can increase students’ interest in learning and help develop reading habits. For this to happen, teachers themselves must read first.
A teacher who reads before entering the classroom can inspire students. If teachers do not read and only expect students to study, that is unfair. In some schools, teachers tell students not to consume tobacco or junk food but then go on to consume them themselves. In such cases, what lesson do students take from this behavior? Everyone understands the answer to this.
Before teaching children anything, we must first ask ourselves—what example am I setting? If we do this, some problems will start to resolve on their own.
