Some people think that teachers should be responsible for teaching students to judge what is right and wrong so that they can behave well. Others say that teachers should only teach students academic subjects. Discuss both views and give your opinion.

A well known adage from India says "Acharya devo bhava, " which means teachers are next to God. Right from the ancient times, teachers are put on the highest position. It is a highly debatable topic whether teachers should be concerned with only academics or also teach manners and etiquettes to children. In this essay I intend to discuss both sides of the argument. Teacher is like a potter who moulds the earthen vessels in whichever form he wants. A child's mind is like raw clay and is very much ready to be moulded in the shape it is guided to. A good teacher always feels responsible to develop a child's conscience. He has the potential to become a friend, philosopher and guide for his students. With this special position in students' life, he often acts as their role model. His words highly influence the minds of the students. Students always try to imitate his actions or implement his teachings, so he has to be much careful of his behaviour. So, in that respect a teacher has a much more role than just teaching academic subjects. Furthermore, teachers convey many good things to parents and society through students in many parts of the world. For example, in Nepal, where illiteracy rate is very high, teachers convey many valuable messages such as of personal hygiene through students. When a student goes home and tells his parents that my teacher says we should wash hands before meals, then parents listen. In such set-ups teachers are playing a much greater role than academicians. On the other hand, those who say that teachers should only concentrate on teaching course material, argue that competition is stiff and if children lag behind in curriculum, they will never be able to catch up with their counterparts in other parts of today’s global village. They opine that rules of behaviour can be taught by parents at home. In conclusion, I believe that teachers have a much bigger role than just covering the syllabus.