Pritam Benjamin I grew up at a time when power was a synonym for energy and strength, not dominance. It had to do with having, giving, and taking strength; academic, mental, and moral from someone who had it in greater measure than oneself. I grew as a teacher in a time when the meaning of power took on the hues of authority, of control and of being in charge. Nothing wrong here, except that it brought complications into relationships and interaction. Semantics apart, power can be exercised, felt, used, misused, and over-used in every walk of life. Rewind to a time, in India, not so long ago, when almost every teacher was empowered by state, society, religion, parents and students to teach, to mould, to nurture, and dole out what wisdom she had accrued in her experience and education. Guru was next, after God. Submit, accept, and revere was the simple code which defined the teacher-student relationship. Fast forward to the present, where the students are in the classroom not only by privilege and duty, but also by right. The point I make here is that a learned teacher is still a valued teacher, but his job is to see that children or learners go from step to step up the school ladder, after which they are pushed out into the precarious business of living. Living in a world of greater complexity than ever before, how much more magnified is a teacher’s task and role! In the current scenario, children lead very complicated and complex lives. Too early, their problems at home and at school make children clamour for attention, in their need for recognition and reassurance that they matter. The teacher’s profile has changed too. She has more to cope with, to be responsible for, and to struggle with. This is not to deny that teaching can and must still be a vocation that is a noble process of giving children what she knows and what they need in terms of learning and living. She must stay focused on the outcomes of her teaching, demonstrating and handling situations that are complex and draining on her emotional energy. She must also keep learning! Classroom management has happily replaced the term “class discipline” in many progressive educational environments. Posing bigger challenges today than in the past, most experts agree it is a timely acceptance that it is not just status quo a teacher requires in her classroom, but a set of coping mechanisms that include her

Gita Krenek I’m going to begin this article with a little story. Long ago, in the days of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table, Sir Gawain was given a task: he had to break some kind of spell. In order to do this, he had to find out what it was that women wanted almost of all. He travelled throughout the country, asking every woman he met. All the usual answers – jewels, fine clothes, a handsome husband, love – did not do the trick. Then one day he came upon an old woman on the road. Her answer was: power. Needless to say, the spell was broken. The desire for power is of course not confined to women. We can witness little power struggles everywhere. Here is an example that you will see in any little roadside chai shop/restaurant. The customer wants a drink; without looking up, he rudely shouts “water”. He thus demonstrates his dominance over the lowly waiter. The waiter however has to regain some sort of self-esteem, which he does by attempting to assert himself in the only way available to him: he bangs down the glass of water with a scowl. We can see this kind of power play enacted between teacher and student in just about any classroom, any day. The student feels put down by the teacher – made to feel powerless, disempowered – and the only way to feel better about him/herself, to assert his/her own feeling of worth, is to put someone else down (either the teacher or another student). What kind of behaviour would we expect to see in someone who feels disempowered, and who is trying to assert themselves? Disrespect towards the teacher (shouting out answers, inappropriate behaviour, impertinent comments, showing off). Deliberate disobedience. There is an enormous feeling of power, a rush of adrenalin, in defying the teacher. For some children, stubbornness and disobedience can be a way to regain some feeling of their own power. Dominating behaviour in the playground, such as pushing and shoving, fighting, taunting, bullying. Constantly drawing attention to the misdemeanors or shortcomings of others, often with an accusingly pointed finger. Having to be the best/fastest/strongest, each person trying to outdo the other in an aggressive, pushy way. Showing off, gloating about success. Disharmony in the class as a whole. Switching off and feigning nonchalance when being spoken to. “I’m not going to take the slightest notice of what you say.” What kinds of attitudes and