Teaching Through Poverty
When I was teaching English at a secondary school in a remote village of Bangladesh, I met a boy named Rahim. He was a student of class eight. Quiet, thin, and always sitting on the last bench, Rahim rarely participated in class activities. Most teachers considered him weak in English, but I noticed something different in his eyes — fear mixed with hopelessness. One day after class, I called him gently and asked, “Why do you stay silent during English lessons?” At first, he remained quiet. Then slowly he replied, “Sir, I cannot understand English. At home nobody can help me. My father is a rickshaw puller and my mother works in different houses. We do not even have enough money to buy guidebooks.” His words touched my heart deeply. I realized that his academic deficiency was not caused by lack of intelligence, but by an unfavourable family environment and lack of proper support. Many students suffer silently because poverty steals their confidence before it steals their opportu...