"If you were to tell a small boy to not play with fire, how would you tell him?" A guru asked his students.
One of the students replied, "I'll tell him that he might get burnt if he does."
"That is one good way of telling him. But if I were to tell him to not play with fire because I'll punish him if he does, do you think he'll listen?"
The students nodded no.
"Right you are. He might listen to you, but one day or the other, he might play with fire, when ever you might turn your back. Now, I once asked a school-going boy why he shouldn't talk while the teacher is teaching. What do you think he replied?"
"He must've replied so that I don't miss out on what the teacher is teaching." replied a student.
"No, he didn't say that."
"Then did he say, so that I can be a role model for other students?" replied a student with curiosity.
"No.... he didn't say that either."
"What did he say then?" asked another student.
"He said, so that I don't get punished."
The students giggled a bit.
"What a weird student!" exclaimed a student, while giggling.
"Not only him, I asked many students, they all said the same thing, so I don't get punished." the guru said.
The students were a bit surprised. How could so many students be so weird, they thought.
"What makes all of them think in such a way? I mean, if you had asked us the same question, we would have replied, so that we don't miss what your teaching us." one of the students asked.
"Because of the teachers. Whenever they spot someone in the class talking, instead of saying, Don't talk or else you'll miss what I'm teaching. they say, If you talk one more time, I will send you out of the class."
The students laughed at the guru's imitation of a school teacher.
"Should a student ever be afraid of his teacher?" asked the guru.
The students replied in a chorus answer, "No."
"If a student is afraid of his teacher," one student began to say, "He'll never learn properly. If he has a doubt to ask, his fear of the teacher might prevent him from asking the teacher at all."
"Right indeed. There are even many school-teachers who say, If you get bad marks and grades in exams, I will punish you. It's because of this 'or else I will punish you' attitude of the teachers, students become afraid of the teachers, thinking she's someone who punishes frequently."
"You mean school-students are afraid of their teachers?" a student asked a bit surprisingly.
"Yes," replied the guru.
"What are marks and grades? Well, I do have a fair idea about what it means, but could you please tell me its word-to-word meaning?"
"Marks are basically numbers and grades are basically letters."
"What are they used to count?" the student curiously asked.
"You could say they count knowledge."
"So you mean to say marks and grades are used to count knowledge?" interrogated the student.
"Yes my dear." the guru answered.
"But I thought 'knowledge' was something you can't count."
"You're right, indeed it is something you can't count, but these people have got it all wrong." verbalized the guru.
"I'd never want to go to school!" asserted a student.
"You'd be surprised, that's exactly what many school-going children think. Many of them don't like learning either, they say they find it boring."
"Boring! Learning is so fun! Especially when we have such a great guru to teach us!"
The guru smiled and blessed the student, "Bless you my child."
"Why do students find learning boring?" another student asked.
"It's either the teachers who make it that way or the students who just hate it so much."
"School is such a weird place to learn," a student said, thinking about the weird ways of school.
"Yes my dear student, I'm afraid it is." the guru declared and concluded the conversation
*a few guests came home, grandmother*
One of the students replied, "I'll tell him that he might get burnt if he does."
"That is one good way of telling him. But if I were to tell him to not play with fire because I'll punish him if he does, do you think he'll listen?"
The students nodded no.
"Right you are. He might listen to you, but one day or the other, he might play with fire, when ever you might turn your back. Now, I once asked a school-going boy why he shouldn't talk while the teacher is teaching. What do you think he replied?"
"He must've replied so that I don't miss out on what the teacher is teaching." replied a student.
"No, he didn't say that."
"Then did he say, so that I can be a role model for other students?" replied a student with curiosity.
"No.... he didn't say that either."
"What did he say then?" asked another student.
"He said, so that I don't get punished."
The students giggled a bit.
"What a weird student!" exclaimed a student, while giggling.
"Not only him, I asked many students, they all said the same thing, so I don't get punished." the guru said.
The students were a bit surprised. How could so many students be so weird, they thought.
"What makes all of them think in such a way? I mean, if you had asked us the same question, we would have replied, so that we don't miss what your teaching us." one of the students asked.
"Because of the teachers. Whenever they spot someone in the class talking, instead of saying, Don't talk or else you'll miss what I'm teaching. they say, If you talk one more time, I will send you out of the class."
The students laughed at the guru's imitation of a school teacher.
"Should a student ever be afraid of his teacher?" asked the guru.
The students replied in a chorus answer, "No."
"If a student is afraid of his teacher," one student began to say, "He'll never learn properly. If he has a doubt to ask, his fear of the teacher might prevent him from asking the teacher at all."
"Right indeed. There are even many school-teachers who say, If you get bad marks and grades in exams, I will punish you. It's because of this 'or else I will punish you' attitude of the teachers, students become afraid of the teachers, thinking she's someone who punishes frequently."
"You mean school-students are afraid of their teachers?" a student asked a bit surprisingly.
"Yes," replied the guru.
"What are marks and grades? Well, I do have a fair idea about what it means, but could you please tell me its word-to-word meaning?"
"Marks are basically numbers and grades are basically letters."
"What are they used to count?" the student curiously asked.
"You could say they count knowledge."
"So you mean to say marks and grades are used to count knowledge?" interrogated the student.
"Yes my dear." the guru answered.
"But I thought 'knowledge' was something you can't count."
"You're right, indeed it is something you can't count, but these people have got it all wrong." verbalized the guru.
"I'd never want to go to school!" asserted a student.
"You'd be surprised, that's exactly what many school-going children think. Many of them don't like learning either, they say they find it boring."
"Boring! Learning is so fun! Especially when we have such a great guru to teach us!"
The guru smiled and blessed the student, "Bless you my child."
"Why do students find learning boring?" another student asked.
"It's either the teachers who make it that way or the students who just hate it so much."
"School is such a weird place to learn," a student said, thinking about the weird ways of school.
"Yes my dear student, I'm afraid it is." the guru declared and concluded the conversation
*a few guests came home, grandmother*
