Role Model

 

Role model

The teacher asked, “Who is your role model?”

Pat came the reply from students…

“Abdul Kalam”

“Mahatma Gandhi”

“Subhash Chandra Bose”

“Chandrababu Naidu”

“Priyanka Chopra”

“Sundar Pichai”

“M S Dhoni”

“My Mom”

“My Dad”

“It’s you”

There came the second question, “Why?”

The shortest questions always have the longest answers. The answer will probably be the same from students who have the celebrities and politicians as role models. So, the teacher made them into groups and asked them to have a discussion. Students were taking turns and discussing the much-acclaimed success stories of their role models, their strong personalities, their special qualities and some anecdotes from their lives.

The teacher stopped in her tacks at a table where one of the students was sharing why her mom is her role model. She said, “My mom is so strong, both mentally and emotionally. She works so hard as she is the sole bread-winner of the family. She is so determined that all her kids get proper education. She keeps on telling us that it’s the only thing that earns us reputation in the society. I always turn to my mother when I am in a dilemma.”

The teacher gave an appreciative gesture to her and moved to the next table. One of the boys rose his hand to speak; his eyes shining with anticipation. Taking the cue from his teammates, he started to talk.

“As I said earlier, my dad is my role model. He makes sure that I lead a luxurious life. He pampers me a lot. Never once did he confront me, though he does it to my sister. If not for him, I wouldn’t have been here, because he managed to pull some strings to get me admitted in this college.”

The teacher cut him short and asked him to share the inspiring best qualities of his dad. He said, “Once I was going triples with my friends. My dad is a police constable. He saw us from afar and….”

The teacher got curious. She expected that his dad would have threatened them or done something similar, being a sincere policeman.

The boy continued. “He saw us from afar and asked us to pull over. We stopped at the shoulder of the road. He made a gesture while his senior officer was approaching us. I took the cue and fled from there. He not only saved me, but was also generous to my friends. He didn’t book a case against them. And look! I now own this expensive watch, which my friend’s dad had gifted him on his birthday. The entire experience was so thrilling, needless to add, with benefits. I wish to become like him when I grow up. I always wonder at his efficiency in dealing situations.”

The teacher’s jaw dropped at the talk. She was unable to come to terms with the student’s thought process. She was too scared to think what happens if children get inspired from the negative traits of their parents. Questions swarmed her mind like bumble bees. How can someone get inspired by the mean and disgusting behaviour? How can one give utmost importance to the vested benefits? How can people not know what is right and wrong? How can one sing praises for an unjust act? Can people inspire others with their amoral behaviour too?

As the bell rang, she made a mental note on the points to be mentioned in the next day’s class. She wants to make it clear that a person’s ethical behaviour makes him a role model.  She wants to draw a line between the positive and negative traits; ethical and unethical behaviour; inspiring and ruining personalities—a broad and vivid line.