They will remember you... A message to teachers

Teaching is a vocation that cannot be contained within books or academic studies; it is the foundation of everything in this world, and therefore their responsibility is greater and more significant.

Today, my message to my fellow teachers—both men and women—is specifically about how they interact with their students, especially in the age of artificial intelligence, where many believe that students possess sufficient knowledge to render teachers unnecessary.

There are many ideas and endless challenges, but above all, the core of this mission lies in principles and values, particularly Islamic ones. The foremost of these is being a good role model. If a teacher serves as an exemplary figure in both speech and action, prioritizing behavior over mere words, they lay the fundamental groundwork in the hearts of their students and establish a proper foundation for an entire generation.

This is because, alongside academic achievement, the teacher fosters moral, psychological, and behavioral development, along with self-confidence. They cultivate mercy and gentleness among students, encouraging them to apply these qualities in their daily lives. They uphold justice and kindness, ensuring no discrimination in treatment or attention, so that no student feels wronged or deprived.

Furthermore, teachers must maintain communication with parents to monitor students’ progress, even if a student excels academically. As bearers of a noble and purposeful mission, teachers must embody these qualities, adding warmth in meetings, offering greetings, and calling students by their most beloved names.

They must avoid harsh criticism, offer encouragement, and never belittle students, while respecting individual differences. Their minds do not all receive and understand information in the same way, and their social and psychological circumstances vary. Some are orphans, others are poor. Teachers must follow up on struggling students, support them, encourage them, provide constructive feedback, and make supplications for them in their private prayers and personal moments of devotion.

Every good deed you plant in them becomes a spiritual reserve for you in the Hereafter, before the Lord of all worlds. They will remember you throughout their lives—when they raise their own children, in their workplaces, and in their interactions. They will remember you with sincere prayers and good words. We still remember our teachers and pray for them, never forgetting the Prophet’s (peace and blessings be upon him) saying: “Each of you is a shepherd, and each of you is responsible for his flock.”

Also, his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): “There is no servant whom Allah appoints as a ruler over subjects who dies while he is deceitful toward them, except that Allah forbids him Paradise.”

The teacher is the foundation of society.

A Kuwaiti lawyer and writer