Contributed by: Rehana Taranum
HTC Teacher Contributor
Every Place Is a Learning Place. Every Moment Is a Teaching Moment.
During my journey across three states, I have had the opportunity to meet and interact with many students, teachers, and school management teams.
I have met experienced educators who have dedicated decades to teaching. I have also met young teachers who are just beginning their journey.
And I have observed something interesting.
People enter the teaching profession for different reasons.
Some choose teaching because it is their passion.
Some choose it for financial stability.
Some enter because other opportunities are limited.
Some find that teaching offers a better balance between their professional and personal responsibilities.
The reason may be different for every teacher.
But once we enter a school, our responsibility becomes the same.
We stand before children who trust us.
We stand before parents who have entrusted a precious part of their lives to us.
And that is why I believe:
Teaching is not just a profession. It is a blessing—and a responsibility to honour the trust placed in us.
🌱 The Moment You Enter School, Teaching Begins
There is something I would like every teacher to remember.
The moment you enter the school campus, you become a celebrity in the eyes of your students.
Children notice you.
They observe you.
They listen to you.
Sometimes, they even imitate you.
To them, you are not simply the person who teaches Mathematics, Science, English, or Social Studies.
You are a role model.
A mentor.
A guide.
And sometimes, an inspiration.
This is why I believe that teaching does not begin when we open the textbook.
It begins much earlier.
It begins when a child sees us at the morning assembly.
It continues when we meet them in the corridor.
It happens when we see them on the playground.
It happens during lunch breaks.
And, of course, it happens inside the classroom.
Every interaction can become an opportunity to teach something.
Not necessarily a chapter.
Perhaps respect.
Kindness.
Discipline.
Confidence.
Responsibility.
Or simply how one human being should treat another.
Every place in a school is a learning place for a child. Therefore, every place can become a teaching place for a teacher.
Teaching should never be confined to four classroom walls.
🌿 Children Are Always Watching
Sometimes, we may feel:
“My teaching responsibility begins when my period starts and ends when the bell rings.”
But a child does not see us only as a teacher during those forty minutes.
The child sees the teacher everywhere.
When we walk past a student in the corridor without noticing them, they observe us.
When we smile and greet them, they observe us.
When we patiently listen to them, they observe us.
When we speak respectfully to another person, they observe us.
Our behaviour is also a lesson.
Perhaps some of the most important lessons we teach are never written on the blackboard.
🌟 What Are We Bringing Into the Classroom?
Over the years, I have learned one simple lesson:
My work of engaging students becomes much easier when I enter the classroom with a big smile and positive energy.
Because very often, what we give is what we receive.
When I give enthusiasm, I receive enthusiasm.
When I give confidence, I see confidence growing.
When I give respect, I receive respect.
And when I enter with a smile…
I often receive countless smiles in return.
A teacher’s energy can quietly become the energy of the entire classroom.
Before asking,
“Why are my students not interested?”
Perhaps we can sometimes ask ourselves,
“What energy did I bring into the classroom today?”
📚 Let Children Experience Learning
Our responsibility is not simply to complete chapters.
Yes, the syllabus is important.
Textbooks are important.
Direct instruction also has its place.
But education should not stop there.
Let us gradually move beyond classrooms where the teacher speaks and children only listen, copy, memorise, and reproduce.
Let us create classrooms where children participate.
Where they ask questions.
Where they discuss.
Where they collaborate.
Where they create.
Where they make mistakes without fear.
Where they experience the joy of discovering something themselves.
Learning should not be something that is simply delivered to children.
It should be something they experience.
Four Questions for Every Teacher
At the end of a class, perhaps we can pause for a moment and ask ourselves:
1. Did I smile and encourage my students today?
2. Did every child get an opportunity to participate?
3. Did my students feel confident enough to speak and ask questions?
4. Did they experience learning—or did they only listen and write?
These are simple questions.
But if we ask them sincerely every day, they can gradually transform the way we teach.
🌱 Whatever Brought You Here, Honour the Role
Today, people may enter teaching for many different reasons.
The reality of education is also changing. Schools face their own challenges, and recruitment decisions may sometimes be influenced by budgets and other practical limitations.
But whatever brought us into this profession…
And however long we remain in it…
Let us justify the responsibility we have accepted.
A child sitting before us does not know why we became teachers.
The child only knows:
“This is my teacher.”
And in those words lies enormous trust.
Whether we teach for one year or thirty years, let us give our best during the time we have been given this responsibility.
Because for us, it may be another working day.
For a child, it is part of their childhood.
Let Us Be Remembered for More Than the Syllabus
Let us complete the syllabus.
But let us not stop there.
Let us create classrooms where children feel:
Happy.
Safe.
Respected.
Confident.
Curious.
Excited to learn.
Years later, our students may not remember every definition we taught.
They may forget the homework we assigned.
They may even forget many of the marks they scored.
But they may still remember…
The teacher who smiled at them.
The teacher who listened.
The teacher who believed in them.
The teacher who made school feel like a place where they belonged.
That is why I believe teaching is more than a profession.
It is a blessing.
Let us honour it.
Let us remember that every place is a learning place.
And let us strive to become the teachers our students will proudly remember for a lifetime.
✍️ Contributed by
Rehana Taranum
Principal
Samskruthi School, Chevella
Published as a teacher leadership contribution to Happy Teachers Community.