The analogy of flowers perfectly fits when it comes to students. Flowers come in vivid shades with varieties of fragrances and there is a special season for each flower to blossom. Likewise, students too are born with diverse abilities, and it is difficult to figure out at what point of life, a child will exactly grow into a man. Colonel Sanders thrived at his 80s while Mark Zuckerberg flourished at his 20s. It’s just that we need to let children blossom, like flowers.
The technical aspects may vary, but elementally, every flower requires fertile soil and nutritive fertilizers for flourishing, which in the context of students are fertile forum and inspirational words. The indispensable, as well as the challenging role of the gardener here, is delivered by our teachers, who are our foremost inspirers.
Importance of Teachers
Ever since the inception of formal education, teachers have been holding paramount importance in molding student’s personalities. Their influential roles as mentors and motivators have helped fill numerous lives with happiness and with the world evolving into a new era; the aspirations on teachers for a better future are even greater. Today, it’s not only about showing students the path, but it is also more about inspiring them to design and pave their own paths.
Students have the desire and energy; knowledge is easily accessible, so all they need is a spark to untap the unlimited potential of their minds. That spark can be an inspiration and there is no one better than a teacher to ignite it. There are myriad of ways how students can be ignited, awakened and inspired to live their dreams and contribute something optimistic to this world.
Ways of Inspiring and Motivating Students
Promoting collaboration over competition
One of the most effective ways to inspire students is by promoting collaboration over competition. Competition is essential but there must be some room for collaboration too in order to ensure full-fledged development of students with diverse abilities and interests. Everyone is a winner but no one is a hindrance in somebody else’s pathway of success. Conducting weekly classes like “Everyone is a Genius” and “Diversity Rooms” aiming to provide every student with a platform to share his/her talent, with the vision of integrating entertainment, sports, and studies not only mitigates the idea of insecurity due to competition but also meticulously drives students to embark their voyages of self-discovery. Additionally, this provides students with a delightful opportunity to learn by sharing skills while accepting differences and serves as a catalyst to bolster their self-confidence.
Welcoming reasonable objections
Welcoming reasonable objections is another aspect that teachers need to comply in order to motivate students to learn. Any rational but different approach presented in the right way needs to be rewarded with applauses, and it would be commendable to replace criticisms with constructive suggestions. Teachers should help students feel that even the teacher is not omniscient and they too need to learn. This is perhaps the most pragmatic way to cultivate intrinsic motivation among students to learn. Moreover, it also profoundly inspires students to think outside the box, to put forward their ideas diligently and encourages them further to be ingenious. Once students embrace this art of learning, success will be at their doorsteps.
Assisting students in realizing their responsibilities
Assisting students in realizing their responsibilities is an incredible method to inspire students to inculcate resilience, self-discipline and to promote self-assessment, which all are the tools of self-improvement. Rather than pressurizing students, i.e. doing their homework assignments like writing explanatory essays, research papers or book summaries (for instance: A Man is Hard to Find, A Rose for Emily summary, The Chrysanthemums, etc.), teachers should work out to facilitate an environment where students themselves are triggered to reflect upon their actions. Social activities that challenge student’s cognitive abilities to brainstorm ideas, identify problems around them and make optimum utilization of available resources should be incorporated in learning plans. This gives students a holistic experience of liberty and responsibility simultaneously, enabling them to boost their problem-solving skills, accountability and rationality through a practical but adventurous approach, helping learning become pragmatic and fun at the same time.
To sum up, the treasures of skills and knowledge are scattered all around; it’s just that we need to motivate students to set out for the treasure hunt. Inspiring pupils to dream and to live their dreams is the best role a teacher plays to change the nation, the world and to make the journeys of numerous adroit youngsters extensively lively, blissful and meaningful.