Experiences in Teaching

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In one of my Culture Studies class, I performed the ‘great-but-not-required’ task of teaching Marxist theory and cultural materialism. I was told by my colleagues that I could just teach the basics and fundamentals of Indian Culture. The classes got over. I had moved on from teaching to other projects. 5 years later, a student messaged me on Facebook, “I am in the States for a two-year degree program in film studies. Today was my first theory class, and it was all about cultural materialism. Thank you for not making me feel inadequate today.”
Bachelors of Mass Media


This, in my understanding, is the core function of a teacher. When a student remembers you after so many years for what you have taught, you have done well! Yes, a teacher gets applauded for doing new things in the class.

Research Methodology 
I was invited to take a course on Research Methodology in a design college, for two different classed. One class was very enthusiastic about it and we cumulatively researched on our personal and family histories (while it was my idea, they took to it and made it a success), developed analytical models for their choice of the subject out of the collected material, and created very insightful presentations. The other class could not grasp the idea. Now, since this was an all-girls class and most of them lived in a girls’ hostel, we did qualitative and quantitative research on the choice of their subject matter in the larger context of the girls’ hostel.

While the fundamentals have to be taught through the teaching method, a teacher must adapt to the needs and demands of a class. No two classes need be the same. This ability to customize teaching experience is another key function of a teacher.

Among the many communication skills classes, that I have taken, I have ensured that my students are able to speak in public about any issue/ topic that they have been given. Apart from using mime, mono-acting, and theater, I ask them to speak on the dais- on topics of their choice or researched- sometimes spontaneous or sometimes prepared. A girl was under-confident about the dark color of her skin. I asked her to speak about the beauty of the darker color, after some basic internet research. Not only did she begin to appreciate her own skin color, she talked about it with greater confidence during her presentation.

A teacher must be able to inculcate that confidence in every child in the class to face any situation in the world- be it self- deficiencies or dealing with the adversities in the outside world.


With the awareness that the above words might sound pompous, I could not just write an essay loaded with adjectives that just create a utopia. I believe that a teacher is a teacher all 24 hours, and being there for the younger generation is a full-time task, rather than just an 8-hour job (another thought based on personal experience). 

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