Getting a break, however small, from daily engagements is so exciting that many people devote most of their time to family. It is, however, mindboggling how many learners spend their holidays. We used to find comfort in school, despite the challenges that ranged from badly cooked food to seeking permission to use the bathroom, among other things, and home (which should have been a vacation compared to school) was considered a ‘soft prison’, it was a reminder of life after school. Today, the world harbours an alarming number of unemployed people. Blame is always apportioned to the quality of education and parenting, the latter being a highly neglected ground that is slowly declining in quality. During the holiday, cable TV subscription is paid, the latest video games are bought, as the house help drowns in chores. You’d think university students would be less enthusiastic about such, however, this applies to a good number of them too. What should teachers do? What is happening to today’s parents? There is a lot of deceitful confidence in their children that they believe everything is fine, until reality sets in. This makes me think; where are the goals we were always told to set as young men and women? I remember when my mum told me “Study hard, go to Makerere and buy many cows for yourself.” Well, maybe in her time, cows were the epitome of success — dreams so huge that I would have to stay on my toes just to achieve them. But, how can teachers help students reach the epitome of success, whatever that symbolises? Since arrows are always directed at teachers for poor results and performance, it is time to save our profession and bring sustainable goals to class discussions, show students the relevance of setting goals and sticking to them so as to define their future. Teachers need to demonstrate model behaviour, for instance, treating students fairly. Let’s join knowledge and creative thinking. Teachers must try to balance classroom activity and daily self-disciplines. In executing this, we must apply a language that is clear to be able to explain what one has done. It is under such circumstances that students make serious achievements, making the teacher more relevant to the needs of today’s labour force. In this regard, teachers must assume the role of parents, bear in mind that the failure of any country’s human resource is not entirely attributed to parenting, but the quality of education, which makes teachers the primary players. The writer is a PhD student at Beijing Normal University pontiankbr@outlook.com
