Why One Good Teacher Is Not Enough

Why One Good Teacher Is Not Enough 

One of the core beliefs many Civil Society Organisations hold is this: “One good teacher in a school will gradually expand his or her influence and positively impact other teachers.”

A teacher colleague who deeply engages with academic literature once shared with me “I may deeply influence students, but I have left hardly any impact on my colleagues. At most, colleagues acknowledge my academic depth, but at the same time, they readily point out a few shortcomings they notice in me. I think it is difficult to inspire someone who holds the same rank, given the deeply hierarchical nature of Indian society. Even among like-minded colleagues, a very subtle form of envy develops. Collaboration then becomes difficult. In many cases, colleagues quietly wish to see a performing colleague fail.”

Then how does the presence of a good teacher impact school culture? My impression is—it does not impact much on its own. What impacts the culture is the majority. If the majority of teachers are average, the school culture gradually adopts the majoritarian culture. For instance, if a school has fifty teachers, and one teacher does not believe in corporal punishment while the remaining forty-nine continue the practice without moral hesitation, the dominant culture remains unchanged. In fact, the one teacher is often labelled as “weak.”

Teachers can influence school culture only when they exist in significant numbers. Here, majority is the key.

On the contrary, a school principal alone can significantly direct the school culture. Since the principal carries institutional authority, most teachers—even when they disagree—eventually follow what the principal prioritises. However, this also creates the problem of unsustainable practice. The moment the principal leaves the school, the culture slowly returns to whatever the majority practices.

In this context, what does it require to support the work of an agentic teacher? I think validation is extremely important. It is important to create forums that listen to teachers, remain curious about their work, and appreciate it. 

Can schools create such forums where teachers find this kind of support? I doubt it. Schools generally run on auto-mode. They neither have the time nor the resources to support such activities. Above all, the bureaucracy does not see this as an important endeavour. In their imagination, teachers are meant to remain inside classrooms. If they have extra time, it should be utilised for administrative tasks. At most, the system arranges training for teachers.

In my opinion, teachers do not merely need training; they need forums where they can speak, demonstrate their work, and seek validation.

I think DIETs and SCERTs should consciously create and support initiatives that allow teachers to share their work. A significant part of the training budget should be redirected towards this mission. The moment teachers begin receiving the message that their work is valuable, they will start exercising greater agency. Of course, there will always be limitations in creating formal forums where every teacher can showcase their work. However, social media platforms can become powerful motivating factors. Systematically, this possibility can be leveraged. Teachers can make videos, write posts, and share classroom experiences, while the state bureaucracy can amplify meaningful work emerging from schools.

At the same time, it is important to remain cautious. Every teacher and every post cannot be amplified. I think the focus should be on achieving a critical number. If even 30–40 percent of the teachers in a school become agentic, the culture of the school itself will begin to change. Even that remains a monumental task.