PRITI KHAREL
“A Kindergarten teacher is equivalent to a mother. She nurtures the child like that of her own, directs the child to the correct path, teaches him social etiquette and works on the overall development the child,” says Pawitra Limbu, the founder of National Montessori Training Institute, Bijulibazaar, Kathmandu. And specially, with the increasing trend of nuclear families, where mostly both the parents are working in offices, the significance of a kindergarten teacher has increased many folds.

Apparently, there are many kindergarten schools fostering in the valley, with each one having their own criteria for recruiting a teacher. However, in general, kindergarten teachers should posses certain qualities and testimonials for being qualified for guiding the young minds.

Perhaps the most important quality that a kindergarten teacher should posses is the ability to handle children. All of us know how notorious the little kids can be, and it can be difficult to take care of them. Therefore, a good teacher is evaluated on the basis of whether or not she is capable of disciplining the child, without any display of intimidation or physical torture. Moreover, a kindergarten teacher should be affable and grasping in context of child’s psychology.

Likewise, a person should be familiar with the techniques of teaching the children. Unlike in the past, when rote learning was a stereotype in the educational sector of Nepal, kindergartens now have special emphasis on practical knowledge. As such technical skills are not available with many aspiring kindergarten teachers, most of them choose to take formal trainings. In Nepal, many institutions have been providing training on this subject and have proved to be very promising.

“I always wanted to be a kindergarten teacher, but had no idea about the practical teaching as my foundation was based on rote learning. However, after joining a kindergarten teacher training course in Kathmandu, I am now confident about my skills as a teacher,” said Aashma Dhungel, 23, who recently completed a Montessori training course.

To be specific, for many Montessori schools in Kathmandu, the candidate’s application is more preferred if s/he has undergone a Montessori training course. On contrary, schools that do not run under Montessori philosophy, have their own criteria.

Euro Kids, one of the leading kindergarten schools in Nepal, basically does not seek Montessori training as it does not execute on Montessori philosophy. However, after recruiting the candidates on the basis of the most basic abilities of a teacher, it provides special training to the employees.

Likewise, many kindergarten schools look for English proficiency in the candidate. As English language has been vital for competing in the global market, almost all the kindergartens seek to strengthen the foundation of the children in this language. Therefore, kindergarten schools seek to hire teachers who have excellent English language skills, so that the students can be familiar with the language at an early age, and thus, grasp it easily.

Similarly, academic qualification is also essential for being a kindergarten teacher. However, high degree of academic qualification is not demanded. In many schools, the qualification equivalent to SLC or above is considered.

Despite having so much influence on a child’s life, the occupation of a kindergarten teacher is considered to be that of a lower rank in many Nepali mindsets. Many people still assume that a kindergarten teacher is equivalent to babysitter, as they also look at other aspects of a child, other than the academic aspect.

Speaking about this misconception, Limbu says, “As I mentioned earlier, a kindergarten teacher is a mother. No one ever realizes that even when the teacher undergoes physical pain on carrying the child, she makes no complain about it. Despite contributing so much for the child, I wonder why people despise the job of a kindergarten teacher.”

She says that the false notion prevails amongst the parents as well. “It can be acceptable if an outsider has such false opinion. But it is shocking to know that the parents themselves look at the kindergarten teacher as a babysitter. At least, they should be praising the dedication of the teacher in the development of their child,” she states.

However, things are definitely changing, and with so many schools adopting Montessori philosophy in their teaching methodology, kindergarten teachers do have a reason to be positive.

source:Kharel, Priti (2013),"Being a Kindergarten teacher in Nepal ", republica,29 July 2013