Teachers and Parents

Posted by Anamika (128.231.88.4) on November 08, 2006 at 10:53:13:

In Reply to: push from parents posted by Chitra on November 08, 2006 at 08:02:34:

We have heard a lot about bad teachers/musicians etc.It is agreed that there are SOME overpriced musiciansand greedy teachers. Now, let us look at the otherside of the coin - the infamous "impatient parents"who make the situation even worse.

First of all, we cannot generalize all the teachers inIndia/US and I am still trying to understand why someof the readers think that teachers in India cannotcharge more than what teachers charge in the US. Whatis so special about teachers in the US or anywhereoutside India? Charge should be directly proportionalto the quality of the teacher and his or her teaching.Of course, it is agreed that some teachers are greedybut to generalize everyone is a huge mistake. Thereare excellent teachers with good quality of teachingwho have produced many good Bharatanatyam artists, beit India or outside. It is worth every penny to takegood care of teachers who belong to this category.

Talking about summer classes in India. Most childrengo for a month, having little time on their hands andexpect the teachers to be there whenever they have thetime to learn. How is that possible? Isn't it askingfor too much? Good learning comes not only fromclasses but also from observing the teacher - how theguru dances, lectures, demonstrates. For that, oneneeds time, patience and dedication. Since none ofthose are available at this time and age, parentsshould be ready to spend money so that teachers cancancel some of their other appointments and be readyto attend to their children instead. How is that notjustified? After all, it is their bread and butter. Ifsomeone really wants to learn, it should be out ofsheer passion and not parental pressure.

If money is the issue, are parents willing to lettheir kids take time and learn in the Gurukulampattern of learning? But that is seen as tooold-fashioned and not possible since Bharatanatyam isviewed as yet another certificate of merit on thechild's life agenda and not exactly as an art formthat needs years and years of learning and practice.Unfortunately, the attitude these days is thateverything can be bought with money including theteacher. Where is the respect for the one who teaches?

Next, to talk about Arangetram. It is only the firstperformance in the dance career of the student. Thestudent has got so much more to learn from thenonwards and has to take the art form seriously andperform with passion. It was only meant for people whowere serious and passionate about this art form andwho would pursue it further. But now, unfortunately,it has become a fashion statement/business deal. Throwthe kid on stage whether he/she is ready for it ornot. Especially in the US, it looks like it is alwayscombined with high school graduation, the kid has toget his/her arangetram done by the time they graduatefrom high school. Whether or not the student is goodat dance or whether or not they will pursue it lateris not a matter of concern at all. Thousands ofrupees/dollars are spent on it - special guests flownfrom all over the country/world, lavish dinner,special party- it is almost a family affair, or shouldI say a mini-marriage. Most of the time all this isdone just for status in the society, or to show offchildren for whom Bharatanatyam is not that importantand will be forgotten as a distant past. What aninsult to this great art form. Whose mistake is this,parents or the teachers? Like someone had posted onthis forum, why can't it be done at the temple makingit an "All are welcome" event? Why should it berestricted to people with special invitations? Whyshould extravagant amounts of money be spent on it?Why can't it be restricted to only the deservingstudents who are really sincere, good dancers, and whorespect the art form and will bring good name to it inthe future? Let me ask, How many parents have the timeor interest to understand what is being taught in thedance class or to take their children to goodperformances to understand what it really takes todance on stage. It's gotten to the point whereultimately the child has to dance somehow – quantityof performances prevails over quality. If parents have no concern about quality and are so desperate about somehow making their children dance, it is not fair to complain about expenses. Don't we spend as much on graduation parties, why complain when it comes to Bharatanatyam?

So, it is better to see both sides of the coinrationally instead of general teacher-bashing. Pleasedo not insult those good teachers by generalizing.After all, we all have equal responsibility inpreserving this wonderful art form so that futuregenerations can benefit from it completely.