THIS IS TOO MUCH! Part 2: Bhaago! Bhaago!
THIS IS TOO MUCH!
Part 2 - Bhaago! Bhaago! Yeh Teacher Hamein Padha Raha Hai!
When Learning Became Too Much for the Learners
Background & Purpose
In Part 1 of "This Is Too Much!", we explored what happens when observation is separated from context.
This time, we enter a different world -
the world of teaching and learning.
We often assume that if a child is not learning, the child is:
- careless,
- lazy,
- mischievous,
- uninterested,
- or simply "not capable."
But is that always true?
Sometimes, perhaps, the problem is not with the learner.
Perhaps the learner is simply waiting for someone to discover the right door through which learning can enter.
This story is humorous.
But behind the humour lies a serious question:
Are we teaching the learner - or are we merely trying to teach the lesson?
Opening Thought
"A learner may resist a lesson, but that does not always mean the learner is resisting learning."
Sometimes the learner needs:
Connection before Correction.
Trust before Instruction.
Experience before Explanation.
And sometimes...
the best teacher is the one who knows when not to teach!
Case Study
The Two Learners Who Could Not Be Taught!
Once upon a time, there were two brothers.
They were intelligent, energetic...
and, according to everyone around them,
extremely mischievous, careless and lazy learners!
They had absolutely no interest in learning.
Classroom learning?
No, thank you!
Homework?
Absolutely not!
New concepts?
Why bother?
Even things they had already learned seemed to disappear mysteriously whenever a teacher asked them a question.
Their wealthy father became increasingly concerned.
Following the advice of well-wishers, he decided to arrange private tutors for them.
One tutor arrived.
Then another.
Then another.
Male tutors.
Female tutors.
Experienced tutors.
Patient tutors.
Strict tutors.
Friendly tutors.
Every tutor tried their best.
But none could stay for long.
In fact, the boys seemed to consider it a personal achievement to make every tutor leave!
They had developed an impressive collection of strategies.
Sometimes, when the tutor entered the house...
the boys disappeared.
Sometimes, they would lock the toilet door from outside while the tutor was inside!
Sometimes, one of them would announce:
"I am going to the toilet."
And never returned.
At least...
not until the lesson was over!
At other times, they would simply sit in front of the tutor.
Their bodies were present.
Their minds?
Somewhere in another universe!
The tutor would explain.
The boys would ignore.
The tutor would repeat.
The boys would become even more creative.
The tutor would try another method.
The boys would invent another escape route.
It had become a real challenge - not just for the teachers and tutors, but for everyone involved.
The father was frustrated.
The tutors were exhausted.
And the boys?
They were having the time of their lives!
Then Came a Different Kind of Teacher
Finally, the family found a specially trained educator.
The father explained everything.
The previous tutors.
The failures.
The tricks.
The mischief.
The resistance.
The educator listened carefully.
Then he did something unexpected.
On his first day, he taught them...
absolutely nothing!
No textbook.
No worksheet.
No lecture.
No homework.
No multiplication tables.
No addition.
Nothing.
Instead, he simply interacted with them.
He talked to them.
He listened.
He played.
He observed.
Slowly, the boys began to feel comfortable around him.
There was no pressure.
No constant command:
"Sit properly!"
"Pay attention!"
"Learn this!"
"Answer this!"
For the first time, perhaps, the boys did not feel that another adult had arrived to defeat them in the battle called Education.
The teacher was not fighting them.
He was trying to understand them.
And something slowly began to change.
The Garden Classroom
The next day, the teacher took the boys into the garden behind their home.
No classroom.
No blackboard.
No books.
Just...
a garden.
He started playing with them.
Throw and catch.
The boys loved it.
They ran.
They laughed.
They played.
They forgot that a "teacher" was standing before them.
After some time, the teacher looked up.
There was a mango tree nearby, full of small mangoes.
He turned to one of the boys.
"Can you climb the tree and pluck some mangoes?"
The boy happily climbed up.
The teacher asked the other brother to collect them.
Soon, the garden became a classroom without looking like one.
The teacher then gave the mischievous boy a new task.
"Put two mangoes in one pocket..."
The boy did so.
"...and three mangoes in the other."
The boy followed the instruction.
The teacher smiled.
Then came the question.
"Now tell me... how many mangoes do you have altogether?"
The boy paused.
He looked at his pockets.
He began thinking.
Two... and three...
The teacher waited.
The boy was just about to give the correct answer.
The teacher became excited.
Finally!
After all these years...
A mathematical breakthrough!
But suddenly...
the boy stopped.
His expression changed.
He looked at his brother.
Then he called him down from the tree.
The brother came closer.
The boy whispered something into his ear.
The teacher became curious.
What was he saying?
Was he discussing the answer?
Had he finally understood addition?
Was this the moment the teacher had been waiting for?
Suddenly, both boys looked at the teacher.
And shouted:
"BHAAGO! BHAAGO!"
The teacher froze.
The boys continued:
"YEH TEACHER HAMEIN PADHAA RAHAA HAI!"
"RUN! RUN! THIS TEACHER IS TEACHING US!"
And they ran away!
The teacher stood there...
Speechless.
He had finally succeeded.
He had found a way to teach them.
But unfortunately...
they had discovered it too!
THIS IS TOO MUCH!
Reflections
This story makes us laugh.
But it also makes us think.
The teacher succeeded because he did something that the others had perhaps overlooked.
He first built a relationship.
He entered the learners' world before trying to bring them into his.
He did not begin with:
"You must learn addition."
He began with:
"Let us play."
And suddenly...
learning happened naturally.
The boys were not necessarily incapable of learning.
They were resisting the experience of being taught.
The moment learning became disguised as play, their natural curiosity emerged.
And there lies a powerful pedagogical principle:
Connection → Engagement → Experience → Learning
The teacher did not force the mathematics into the child.
He created a situation in which the mathematics appeared naturally.
Two mangoes.
Three mangoes.
One simple question.
And suddenly...
Addition was no longer a chapter in a textbook.
It was sitting inside two pockets!
The Mathivation Connection
The mathematics was simple:
2 mangoes + 3 mangoes = 5 mangoes
But the pedagogy behind it was profound.
The teacher transformed:
Abstract → Concrete
Instruction → Experience
Resistance → Engagement
Classroom → Garden
Lesson → Play
The equation was not merely written.
It was experienced.
This gives us a beautiful Mathivation equation:
Learning = Connection + Experience + Meaning
Or perhaps:
Resistance to Learning ∝ Distance Between Learner and Learning
The greater the emotional and experiential distance between the learner and the subject, the greater the resistance may become.
Reduce the distance...
and sometimes...
learning begins to walk towards the learner.
Try This in Your Class / Life
Choose a simple mathematical concept.
Instead of explaining it first, ask:
"Where can we find this mathematics in the learner's own world?"
Addition could be:
Apples in a basket
Mangoes in pockets
Coins in a purse
Passengers in a train
Goals in a match
The mathematics remains the same.
But the entry point changes.
And sometimes, changing the entry point changes everything.
Takeaways
● Before teaching the subject, understand the learner.
● Connection often comes before correction.
● Learning does not always need to begin with a textbook.
● Play can be a powerful gateway to serious learning.
● Concrete experiences can make abstract ideas meaningful.
● A resistant learner may need a different pathway—not a stronger push.
● The best teacher does not merely deliver knowledge.
The best teacher discovers how the learner is ready to receive it.
Mathivation Note
Every learner has a door.
The challenge is that...
not every door has the same key.
One learner may open through curiosity.
Another through competition.
Another through storytelling.
Another through movement.
Another through humour.
Another through real-life experience.
Our job as educators is not simply to keep knocking harder.
Sometimes...
we need to find another door.
And perhaps that is the real mathematics of teaching:
Same Destination ≠ Same Route
The goal may be the same.
But the path to reach it may be beautifully different.
And if a child finally learns addition through two pockets of mangoes...
perhaps we should not complain that the classroom was missing.
Perhaps we should celebrate that...
the whole world became the classroom.
Disclaimer
This story is presented as a humorous educational anecdote and is intended to highlight principles of learner engagement, relationship-building and experiential learning. It should not be interpreted as a universal prescription for teaching every learner. Effective educational approaches vary according to individual needs, abilities, context and learning profiles. Professional educators should use appropriate, evidence-informed strategies and individualised support where required.
Closing Note
The teacher wanted to teach the boys 2 + 3.
He succeeded.
But the boys learned something else too.
They learned that...
this teacher was different.
Unfortunately for the teacher...
they also realised that he was secretly teaching them!
So they ran.
"Bhaago! Bhaago!"
And perhaps the teacher smiled.
Because sometimes, the greatest victory for a teacher is not when a learner says:
"I know the answer."
It is when the learner finally says:
"I want to know."
And sometimes...
before that happens...
we may have to play a little.
Listen a little.
Wait a little.
And understand a little.
Because...
A learner may run away from a lesson.
But if we reach the learner's heart first...
the lesson may eventually find its way in.
Until then...
THIS IS TOO MUCH!
Curious Question
If a child is running away from the teacher, is the child really running away from learning - or simply running away from the way we are trying to teach?
Can you teach a child something without making the child feel that they are being taught?
With Mathivation, Humour & Human Understanding,
Rakesh Kushwaha
Founder, Mathivation Research Lab
A Mathivation Research Lab Initiative
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