Teaching, in Pakistan, is a tough profession. Devoid of sufficient pay, facilities and social prestige coupled with a heavy workload. For the same reason, we observe teachers demonstrating and agitating on roads and streets regularly. Sometimes they are man-handled and ill-treated by the administration during such processions.
Teachers in schools and colleges are designers of destinies. They give vision, expression, and voice to young minds. They encourage curiosity and inspire exploration. For these reasons, teaching has remained the noblest profession in human history, much higher in status than soldiery or trade. In the subcontinent historically, sincere and dedicated teachers have remained the backbone of social and political progress, awareness, and tolerance. All nations pay special tribute to their teaching folks and take pride in the standard of education in their country. In Pakistan, teaching standards have remained high due to the personal dedication and commitment of most of our teachers. Only recently some downward trends in teacher-student relations have been witnessed largely due to the unbridled commercialism practised by some private educational institutions and the decline in monitoring and administration of Government schools.
All will agree that to become a vibrant progressive society we must honour and respect our teachers and afford them so much acknowledgement and encouragement that they can deliver the most bright and inquisitive minds of this era. This cannot happen without the support of the government. Lucrative incentives should be introduced to reduce financial burdens on teachers and make it the most respected profession in society. With higher stakes and better training, discipline and academic performance in schools is likely to improve. Ashfaq Ahmed (late) often narrated his personal experience while teaching in Rome. Once he had to appear before a lower court in Rome due to a parking ticket issued in his name. As soon as the judge came to know about his credentials he proclaimed loudly, “a teacher in the court”. On hearing this all present in court rose to their feet to honour a teacher. This shows the worth of a teacher in the Western World.
FARRUKH SHAHAB
LAHORE
