Bismihi Ta’ala
Teaching little children in a maktab is a great blessing of Allah Ta’ala. Allah Ta’ala has favoured us by sending these children to us to learn Deen. Teaching them is an Amaanat regarding which we will be questioned about on the Day of Qiyaamah.
Many a times, as teachers we fall into the sin of favouring pupils we like, or victimising pupils we dislike. Favouritism means giving unfair preferential treatment to one child over another and victimisation is where we single out a student and be cruel or unjust to him for no valid reason.
Allah Ta’ala has commanded us in the Qur-aan Shareef to be fair and kind. Every pupil deserves our fair attention. If we end up favouring or victimising a child because of a problem we had with their parent, no one in the classroom may realise it nor will anyone in the Madrasah know about it. But remember, Allah Ta’ala who is closer to us than our jugular veins, knows what is deep in our hearts;
يَعْلَمُ خَُائِنَةَ اُلْاَعْيُنِ وَمَا تُخْفُِ اُلصُّدوْرُْ
He knows what is deep in your hearts
At times, we award better marks to a child not because of merit but as a favour to him, or we deprive a child of some awards because we dislike them. Is this fair?
On the day of Qiyaamah when we stand before Allah Ta’ala we will have to answer as to why we favoured a particular child or why we mistreated and victimised him. That will take place on the day of Qiyaamah, but many a times in this world also, we will have to face the consequences of our behaviour. Remember, what goes around, comes around. We also have children and grandchildren who may have to suffer at the hands of some teacher because of our doings.
In the Qur-aan Shareef Allah Ta’ala says;
يَسْتَخْفوْنَ مِنَ النَّاسِ وَلاَ يَسْتَخْفُوْنَ من الله
“They can hide from people, but they can’t hide from Allah.”
Therefore, as a teacher, as an Apa and as a Moulana, we have to be fair to every pupil in our class. We will be rewarded for this by Allah Ta’ala.
Every Sahaabi who learnt under Nabi (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) felt as if he was the favourite of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). This was because of how fair and just Nabi (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) was towards them.
As a maktab teacher, let us be fair to all our students.
One easy, practical way to save ourselves from these kinds of sins is to review our intentions daily and review ourselves on a weekly basis.
Check the following aspects in your life as a teacher. My attitude towards every student;
- Am I polite and nice towards my pupils or am I nasty and bad towards them?
- Am I fair to all the pupils in my class or do I have a few favourites?
- Do all the pupils in my class feel special or there are some who wish they were never in my class?
Give yourself a rating for the above: