The first episode of newskarnataka.com’s Namaste Teacher series which showcases teachers and the influence they have had on students through teacher-student interaction was broadcast live on Youtube on youtube.com/newskarnataka on September 5.
The event was hosted by Spearhead Media Group Mentor and Advisor CA Valerian Dalmaida, and co-hosted by Rajesh Sequeira.
The special guests of the first programme were Iris Grace Menezes, the teacher and her students Dr. Vivian D’Almeida MBBS, MS Ortho, Capt. Kabir Vasnaik, Marine Pilot, Mukund Yallambalse, Business Development professional, Jason Rodrigues, Mechanical Engineer, Zeeshan Ramlan, Head HR and Vivek Pinto, Senior Brand Manager.
Recalling her experience as a teacher, Iris Grace said, “I was elated when I was given the opportunity to teach class 4 students towards the end of my career, as I had started my profession by teaching class 4 students. These little children are livewires, enthusiastic, affectionate and have no malice in them.”
“On the November 30, 2019, the last day of my service, I was feeling very low. I was trying to hold back my tears as I was standing on the podium,” she said. She spoke about the wonderful tribute that her old students had given her on Facebook.
As an advice to the present generation, Iris Grace said, “remember the values taught and be more humane, respect your parents, remember that what goes around, comes back around tenfold. Failure is only a part of your success story so do well in all you do.”
The students took the opportunity to share some wonderful memories about their time with their teacher.
“Even in Social Sciences, Grace ma’am would always put out a clear picture in the mind of the students about the topic that she is teaching. She used to give us lot of examples,” said Jason. He recalled the fond memories of the picnics and the excursions that he took part along with his teacher.
Mukund expressed that his experience with Grace ma’am was a warm and happy one and said, “she was always very kind and had a strong personality and I always believed that her parents gave her a very wonderful name Grace as she is always graceful!”
“She taught me to use a pen for the first time,” said Kabir, “She was always very welcoming and made us all feel very comfortable.” He recalled how his mother used to say that teaching is the most noble profession. “The right teacher can be incredibly influential on a student. Grace ma’am was always very disciplined and that extended to me and helped me to strive in a place of strict regime,” he said.
Vivian said that it was indeed an honour for him to speak about Grace ma’am. “I recall she was deputed to teach our class when one of our teachers had to take a long leave. She was always eloquent and excellent when it came to knowledge and the way in which she would pass on the message to the class. It was always crisp and crystal clear.”
“One thing that we admired in her was her great sense of patience and she was also very encouraging but at the same time she was extremely disciplined and she made sure that we were always on the right path,” remembered Vivek. He said that Grace ma’am always encouraged them to participate in various clubs and take part in extra curricular activities. He said that teachers change generations through their empathy and by helping us understand various ethnic identities.
Sharing his memories, Zeeshan said that he found a safe space in Grace ma’am and that she always showed empathy towards the students when they shared their problems. He thanked ma’am for helping all her students to reach where they are today.
Responding to the messages by the students, Iris grace said that it makes her proud to see all of them reach good heights. She thanked NewsKarnataka for organising such a programme which was indeed a tribute to teachers all around. “This unique gesture made this day memorable for me and gave the boys an opportunity to reminiscence the days from school,” she said. She ended the conversation with a quote by Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan which says, True teachers are those who help us think for ourselves!
