How to teach discipline?
"Your kids require you most of all to love them for who they are, not to spend your whole time trying to correct them."
-Bill Ayers
But the question is How to teach discipline? And this question is primarily for parents and teachers. If we talk about history, then at that time children used to go and reside in "Gurukuls" with their "Gurus". So if we think over this point then we can say that their "Gurus" also lived in those "Ashrams" and living the same life as their disciple.
It shows us that they taught discipline by giving their own example. They are the real ideal for their students. In this way, they gave a direct impression of their disciplined personality and living standard to their pupils. They were an alive example for their students at that time.
But as if we talk about this 21st century, if we say that our children are indisciplined, then the main reason behind this is the parents, teachers, and the surroundings.
For instance, we use mobile phones, again and again, many times in a day just to have a look at notifications and children watching this practice regularly, which creates a huge impression of this practice on them. Now they would think this is good practice that's why our parents are spending hours on cell phones. So, Now children also want a mobile phone and from here a real issue begins.
On the contrary, If parents wake up at 5 o'clock, they go for a walk, they have a proper timetable for everything, then since childhood, the child would get the impression of their parent's lifestyle on them. Then they would prefer to do the same practices as their parents perform. then Here is nothing to explain to them, that how to live a disciplined life, they automatically know the essence of discipline (a negative impact here).
This is not their drawback, this is our failure, then why we always criticism to them. They are actually innocent.
Now let us talk about teachers, the same thing will apply here also. Teachers give a considerable impression of their personality and behavior on pupils.
A great educationalist, also known as the father of progressive education, "John Dewey", says that child is like a small plant and teachers are like soil and fertilizer, which can provide a better as well as supportive environment for a plant to grow. Now here one thing is concluded that we as a teacher can give the basic comfort and atmosphere to the child but we can't expect them to be like what we want to make them as if we talk about that plant, soil can only give support to the plant, but it can't define the shape or direction of the plant. And surely, the plant would grow healthier if the soil is good.
So we as a teacher can provide them with a disciplined surrounding. we don't need to teach discipline they can automatically learn it by seeing others. Firstly we have to become what we want to make our children.
In this way, life would become so easy, then definitely we make a lesser complaint regarding discipline, to our children.
"Being a parent or a teacher,
Be an example for your younger ones. because they catch your behavior skillfully in comparison to your words."
Image courtesy - Ankita Singh
