Methods and techniques of teaching.

henry von dyke

The teacher is to dangle the carrot at an appetizing distance from the donkey’s nose……””

Is it a correct role of the teacher? What is the role of a teacher in the present century?

And what is teaching? AH! There you have the worst paid and the best rewarded of all vocations. Dare
not to enter it unless you love it. For the vast majority of men and women it has no promise of wealth
and fame, but they to whom it is dear for its own sake are among the nobility of mankind. I sing the
praise of the unknown teacher, King of himself and the leader of mankind.

Its riches are of another order, less tangible but more lasting—the satisfaction of personal fulfillment.
Teaching is thus not a cup of tea. It is not a soft option. It requires blood, sweat and tears. Teaching is
not a mechanical process. It is an intricate, exacting and a challenging job.

Teaching is not a monologue but a dialogue; a dialogue in which one partner is vocal, but the other
partner may, by simple expressions on the face, by some gesture of exclamation or by brief participation
in a form of a query.

One basic truths in education is that the quality of education depends largely upon the quality of the
teacher.

Teaching is considered to be an art. Children are the raw material with which the teacher has to deal.
Teaching is a sublime art. It is impossible to separate the teacher and teaching. The teacher, in fact,
mirrors himself into the child; he puts an indelible stamp on the young, growing plastic mind of the
child. The child generally takes after the teacher.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TEACHER AND THE ARTIST

The artist handles inanimate material and imparts life to it through his work. He gives any
shapes he likes to the material. He gives expressions to his own ideas. He imposes his will on the
material with which he works, and creates an object. Can the teacher do that? Certainly not! The
teacher cannot give any shape to the living material he comes in contact with. The child is a growing,
developing human being with a will of its own. He reacts to teaching. As a matter of fact, learning is
interaction. The teacher is not to make the children blind followers but intelligent leaders. He has no
hammers and no brushes. He cannot touch the child yet he is to make an impact felt, introducing
changes in the behavior pattern and ultimately the personality of the child. Not only that. His influence
should prevail even if he is not there