Ever wondered how Ishaan Awasthi, a boy initially perceived as dull and inefficient by his teachers and his own parents, of Taare Zameen Par, later on performed tremendously well in painting? It didn’t happen suddenly, rather it took a series of actions to pave the way for his excellency. And for making it happen, Ram Shankar, the mentor of Ishaan, had to apply a very different technique to teach him.
The first step he took was to make him comfortable in learning. Initially, Ishaan seemed not to be paying attention to his regular studies and the core reason behind this was his interest level. His interests included painting, flying kites and living an uninterrupted life. His considerably low marks in exams and complaints from his school leads his parents to take him to a boarding school where he has to reside on his own with other students. Among his previous teachers and parents, no one truly understands child psychology the way Ram Shankar does.
Shankar not only makes him comfortable by sitting with him besides the school time, but also acts like a friendly and kind teacher. He sees something unique in Ishaan, which grabs his attention and that is Ishaan’s magnanimously crafted art. Ishaan, though, is not as attentive as the other students in the class are, his curiosity towards art in the form of painting makes Shankar realize that Ishaan is different. He is having dyslexia, rather he is more efficient than the other students. And it is proved at the end of the movie through the painting competition where his extraordinary painting remarkably conquers the hearts and the event.
This proves that every student is different. If a learner is not yielding results in a certain way, it doesn’t mean that he is unintelligent, rather an alternative technique can be applied for producing better outcomes. Thus, learning child psychology is initial for every teacher. Teachers should be trained properly to act in a differently yet effective way with certain students who need special attention. Treating all the students equally is a conventional solution to bringing transparency and equality in education; however, a subtle and prominent way to gloriously bring a change in the education system needs special attention to certain students who do not perform well.
It must be understood that every student is different, so equal participation and a similar outcome is almost impossible to attain. Thus, instead of criticizing them, it must be the utmost responsibility of the parents and teachers to learn the psyche of the student and search for an alternative way to make him learn what they want accompanied by making learning enjoyable and attractive.
