Changing lives

Aug. 23, 2016

- By Eva Manandhar 

During one of our training sessions we were asked to share something about ourselves that no one knew, we burst out laughing as Ranjit stood behind people and softly said, “I’m Batman.”

The ‘prodigious superhero’ Ranjit talking about his biggest achievement shares, “My biggest achievement is the relation that I built with my students and teachers.”

“The teachers had become so friendly that they used to even joke about finding a girl for me in Melamchi, and one of the teachers said, first show me the girl, I am his parent and I have to approve of this. I felt really happy when he said that,” he reminisces. Though he was the youngest among all the teachers his bond was th strongest with them as to how that happened he says, “I gave them a lot of respect.”

He also did not limit himself to being a good teacher only in the classroom, “My day used to start with my students coming to my room to wake me up,” he shares with a smile.

In the evenings he would go out and play table tennis and cricket with his students. Saturdays he made plans with his students visited places like Palchowk, Jyamirey, the mela and many more. Home visits were another thing that he enjoyed a lot.

“I feel that because of the bonding that I had with my children they felt very secure sharing their problems with me, they trusted me a lot and shared almost anything with me.” And adds, “Though I was so close with them, they always gave me respect.”

Though he had gone to the village to teach Maths, for Ranjit the fellowship was not only about exams and marks, he says, “For me my children scoring good marks in exams was not my prime concern, I wanted them to learn Maths in a practical way. When they go to the market I want my children to be able to do the sums without using a calculator, and I know that 90 % of my children can now do that.”


What he is proudest of is his regularity in the classroom during the fellowship and states, “I think when you are regular at your work or classroom it is a clear indication of the devotion and dedication you have towards your work. And your regularity directly impacts the efficiency in your classroom.”

As always he gives one of his witty examples to prove his point, “You cannot stuff yourself with rice for a week and not eat for the rest of the week, it doesn’t work that way. It is the same with teaching, you cannot squash all the information into a child’s head in one day and not be present in the classroom the rest of the week, they need to be taught on a daily basis.”

At TFN you are not just a teacher, but a leader as well. Talking about what leadership means to him he shares, “I think leadership is a relative concept, for some what I do might be a normal thing, for others it maybe leadership.”

“For example when my kids wanted to play football I went and got their team registered, for them I might have been a leader, for the people at that office, I might have just the most normal of jobs, so it is doing what needs to be done, not about how big or small the task is.”

“Another thing I have realized is that leadership does not mean you take a stubborn stand and your voice needs to be heard, if you are willing to listen to others and make a compromise, if it is for the betterment of everyone, then that is true leadership,” he explains beautifully.

The fellowships has its share of highs and lows, it is a very close knit circle of friends that got him through it. “I talked to Jigme, Babita, Samiksya and specially Shina when I was frustrated and that helped me.” “But I am also someone who needs time alone to sit and reflect which was also very necessary,” he adds.

 

Though he is from an engineering background even after the fellowship, Ranjit decided to continue his work in the field of education and is currently working as Development Officer at Helambu Education and Livelihood Partnership EQuIP.

As to why he made this decision he shares, “I really enjoyed the fellowship and felt like I was making a significant contribution through my work, so I decided to continue working in the field of education.” 

Besides teaching in the classroom and having a better understanding of the education system, he feels that he learnt many other lessons as well which has helped him in his current job. “I think I can compare it to a football game, previously I was a player, now I play the role of a manager,” he says.

“Planning is another very essential aspect that I learnt from TFN, which is really useful for me these days” he adds.

While, reflection is another quality he developed which has been extremely important and helpful for him. 

Whenever we had trainings or Milis, the moment Ranjit raised his hand, we knew the next words that would be uttered, we could have all sung in chorus, – ‘I have a problem.’ However, he states that he was not necessarily complaining, and explains, “Yes, there were times when I was not ok with everything at TFN and I have raised issues, but it wasn’t complaining, I put forth my views which I believed would be for the betterment of the movement.” That is what he values the most – that his opinions are valued at Teach for Nepal.

He cherishes being a part of the TFN family, as for what it means for him to be a part of the TFN family he shares, “For me we are related by a common movement, we may have different styles of working, but we share a common goal.”

 “Even now though I have completed my fellowship I visit TFN house whenever I feel like cause I still feel part of the family,” he adds.

Finally, he shares a quote written in a school in his village which was imprinted in his mind long time back -- ‘If one child changes, he can unite the world.’

 “I feel that even if I may not have changed the lives of all of my students, even if I changed the lives of 10 children, they will change the lives of 100 others, who will change the lives of 10,000, who will change the lives of 1 lakh others,” says Ranjit.

“Even if I changed the life of one child, for me that is my success,” he states.

“I can’t change everything, ma superhero ta hoina ni ta.”

 

(Ranjit Mahato (2014 Fellow) served at Indreshwari Higher Secondary School in Melamchi, Sindhupalchowk. Eva Manandhar  (2014 Fellow) served at Terse Secondary School in Talamarang, Sindhupalchowk)

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