Why We Return to Teachers

 

Masterclass with Sandeep Dutt

To introduce the book The Courage to be Happy by Ishiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga, and its core themes.

Key Takeaways

• New Book Study: The group is starting The Courage to be Happy, the sequel to The Courage to be Disliked, to explore Alfred Adler’s psychology of happiness.

• Book’s Premise: The book opens with a teacher (Harshita) who, after three years, is disillusioned with Adler’s ideas, finding them impractical in the real world.

• Core Conflict: The teacher’s main struggle is with Adler’s “no praise, no rebuke” principle, which she feels led to an unruly class and forced her to revert to traditional discipline.

• Central Theme: The philosopher’s response is that the teacher’s problem stems from a misunderstanding of Adler’s concept of “love,” which is presented as the ultimate test of courage.

Topics

Book Introduction: The Courage to be Happy

• Context: The sequel to The Courage to be Disliked, this book continues the dialogue between a Philosopher (Sandeep Dutt) and a Youth (Harshita Dalawat).

• Goal: To find “true contentment” by exploring Adler’s psychology, which the book’s authors claim was 100 years ahead of its time.

• Key Adlerian Concepts from Book 1:

  • All problems are interpersonal.

  • Freedom is being disliked.

  • Happiness is a choice in the “here and now.”

The Teacher’s Dilemma

• The Youth (Harshita): Now a teacher, she is disillusioned with Adler’s ideas after three years of trying to apply them in a classroom.

• Core Problem: The “no praise, no rebuke” principle, which she followed faithfully, resulted in an “unruly class.”

• Result: She felt forced to abandon Adler’s methods and revert to traditional discipline (rebuke, punishment), viewing Adler’s philosophy as “quackery” and “empty idealism.”

The Philosopher’s Response

• Adler’s Ideas as a Prescription: The philosopher compares Adler’s ideas to “eyeglass lenses”—a tool that can broaden vision for some but may not be a universal fit.

• The “Stairway of Understanding”: The philosopher argues that the teacher has not yet found the correct path to understanding Adler.

• The “Biggest Choice in Life”: The philosopher identifies the teacher’s core issue as a failure to make this choice, which is defined as “love.”

  • Adler’s “Love”: Not a simple emotion, but “the harshest and most courage-testing task of all.”

  • Happiness as a Journey: It requires continuous effort, not a magical, one-time event.

Discussion: Why We Return to Teachers

• Initial Responses: Participants cited reasons like clearing doubts, seeking advice, or sharing success.

• Philosopher’s Correction: These are secondary reasons. The primary, unspoken motivation is “love.”

  • Rationale: Love is the pure, powerful bond that attracts students to a true teacher, distinguishing it from a transactional relationship with a tutor.

  • Connection to Adler: This bond of love is the fundamental principle of Adler’s philosophy.

Next Steps

• All Participants:

  • Read The Courage to be Happy for the next session.

  • Reflect on the concept of “love” in the teacher-student relationship.

• Diana L Kahmei:

  • Recruit a teacher to join the Masterclass.

• Minakshi Prasad:

  • Confirm Sunday meeting details with Vikram.

Conventional v. Contemporary School Management

 Learning Forward Saturday

To introduce the Staff Leadership Development Program and its core philosophy. Reading from the book Wanted Back-Bencher & Last-Ranker Teacher by Kavita Ghosh

Key Takeaways

• Program Core: The Staff Leadership Development Program (SLDP) uses the book Wanted Back Bencher, Last Ranker Teacher to shift the teacher paradigm from “perfect” to “relatable.”
• Monthly Cycle: Each month, teachers read a chapter, discuss its themes, and write a blog post for happyteacher.in applying the concepts to their own classroom experiences.
• Chapter 1 Theme: The first chapter, “Conventional v. Contemporary School Management,” argues that teachers with personal experience of struggle are better equipped to connect with and counsel students.
• Key Insight: Every teacher must act as an “ed counsellor”—providing immediate “first aid” for behavioural issues—because school counsellors are too few to handle the volume of daily incidents (e.g., 155/day in the book’s example).

Topics

Staff Leadership Development Program (SLDP)

• Goal: Shift the teacher paradigm from “perfect” to “relatable” to better connect with students.
• Recognition: The program is recognised by the World Bank Education Group as a global innovation in professional learning.
• Structure: A monthly cycle centred on the book Wanted Back Bencher, Last Ranker Teacher.
  • Read: One chapter per month.
  • Discuss: Apply chapter themes to real classroom scenarios.
  • Write: Create a blog post  happyteacher.in on a related personal experience.
• WhatsApp Group: A dedicated group will share links and updates.
  • Rule: No “good morning” messages or forwards; the group is for learning-focused content only.

Chapter 1: Conventional v. Contemporary School Management

• Premise: The chapter argues for a new teacher profile—one with personal experience of struggle—to effectively handle student behaviour.
• Story: A school CEO (Jacob) hires an unconventional teacher (Roma) to address a severe student discipline crisis.
  • Problem: A specific class is unmanageable; previous teachers quit after minutes.
  • Solution: Hire Roma, a “paragon of imperfection” (a former “back bencher” and “silent mischief maker”) who understands student struggles.
• Rationale: Teachers who have experienced failure or broken rules themselves can better understand and counsel students facing similar challenges.
• Outcome: The board approves the hire for a 6-month trial, with Uncle Patrick’s support.

Next Steps

• All Teachers:
  • Order a copy of Wanted Back Bencher, Last Ranker Teacher.
  • Join the Learning Forward Saturday WhatsApp group.
  • Review the program introduction video (link in WhatsApp).
  • Research “Scarlett O’Hara” and share findings in the group.
  • Observe student behaviour this week to identify underlying reasons.
• Learning Forward:
  • Share the “Happy Teachers” presentation in the WhatsApp group.