Saturday, 7th September 2013
Islamic Centre,
Mira Road
Of all the secular festivals celebrated throughout the world, it is perhaps ‘Teachers’ Day’ that attracts the lion’s share of reverence and celebration. Jamaate Islami Hind (Mira Road) in its own special way, observed Teachers’ Day tonight by organising a special lecture on ‘Role of Teachers in the Development of Society’ as part of its weekly programme.
At the onset, a few ayaat of the Holy Qur’an were recited from Surah Juma’a wherein Allah has enlisted the duties of the Holy Prophet PBUH which includes his role as a teacher of the Scripture and wisdom.
The guest speaker for the day, Prof. M.A. Hashmi, a retired principal who has served in various capacities in a number of colleges, possessed an authoritarian personality that commanded the respect that a principal ought to deserve and what his speech had to offer was a treasure of wisdom, acquired down the years.
Prof. Hashmi started by quoting a Hadees wherein the Prophet has said that he has been sent as a teacher. This implies that teaching is a prophetic job and will be rewarded by Allah in the hereafter if done with the right intention.
Highlighting their role in society, the professor explained that teachers are responsible for building the character of their pupils, and indeed that of the society as a whole. He cited many examples from the Prophet’s life and from his own experiences to elucidate his point. He went on to say that building one’s character is much more important an education than the formal prescribed syllabus taught in schools. This responsibility is more pronounced because the teacher is actually nurturing the nation builders of tomorrow.
A teacher should always strive to reform the society by encouraging his students to adopt good virtues and at the same time he should persevere against the evils and vices prevalent in the community with utmost determination.
While answering queries put forward by the audience, Prof. Hashmi reiterated that even while teaching a purely rational subject like science or geography, teachers should make it a point to also present before their students the various wonders of creation these subjects teach us; thus helping in the spiritual progress of their pupils. Likewise, wherever the prescribed subject under discussion seems to be unjustly prejudiced against facts, the teacher should acquaint them of the higher truths and not bind them to a flawed idea (e.g. Darwinism and the distorted history of Aurangzeb).
Also, in order to restore the dwindling respect for teachers amongst the new generation, it is imperative that the teacher should have a thorough knowledge of his subject and at the same time should be able to properly convey it across. He also expressed his regret over the rampant commercialization of education and urged parents to stop collaborating with such institutions.
The audience wanted to make the most of this beautiful opportunity but alas time constraints forced the compare to draw in the curtains for the day and the programme reached its conclusion with supplications to Allah seeking His grace and mercy.
