Challenges of being a 21st Century teacherIt is often said that teaching is the only profession that teaches all other professions. Not far away from the truth and close to reality is the understanding of the significance associated with this profession. Teaching being considered as a noble profession, has always been looked upon by the society as one in which people emulate those in this profession. Teachers down history have been role models to inspire common man and to dispel darkness in their ignorance ridden minds. As far as formal education in concerned, the role of a classroom teacher was confined only to the four walls of the classroom that adhered only to the teaching-learning process. The teacher-student relationship was more of a formal and dignified one where the teachers rebuke or reprimanding was looked upon as something for the pupil to improvise on for the betterment of their life. However, the scenario is not the same today. The purview of the educator is not confined to the four walls of the classroom as a classroom teacher but expands across multi variant horizons in being a class counsellor, friend-philosopher-guide, vocational and career counsellor, subject teacher, event manager, system administrator and so on. The demands and needs of the 21st century student are undergoing a metamorphosis. From acquiring education in a formal setup, parents as stakeholders also expect their wards to be groomed in a holistic environment catering to the all round development of the pupil. A school with its vision and mission driven by excellence in education would only be successful if the pursuit of excellence is clubbed with the betterment of the individual morally and spiritually. Hence, modern day educators, curriculum drafters and school policy makers must make evident changes in their institutional policies foreseeing the motive of the educand. The social setting in which the process of education is being set in, which includes the school and the society, in which the educand is moulded, has by far one of the most out reaching influence in the personality and upbringing of the pupil. School and societal norms must be updated from time to time to improvise on incorporating vital suggestions for the same. In this technology driven era, one of the biggest challenges is keeping adept with Information and Communication technologies (ICT) and incorporating its vital elements in methodologies of teaching. Today every child is born with a silver spoon where the use of any sophisticated gadget becomes their mastery. The indiscriminate use and exploitation of technology has even its far reaching affects. Modern tools of virtual technologies of synchronous and asynchronous nature makes teaching by far reach its global level of influence. Using tools of interactive smart boards and electronic beams in transacting curriculum enables the teacher to teach the smart way using virtual tools of learning for assimilation of concepts with clarity. Such instructional designed programmed learning can also help to meet the needs of heterogeneous groups of students and cater to ability grouping. However smart may be our method of teaching and learning, despite possessing adequate subject knowledge and content mastery, today no teacher can survive in the field of education. If we do not stay in touch with advancements in the discipline of our specialization, we become outdated in the same. As the curriculum in most countries today is revised once in three years, awareness of ongoing research and advancements in ones discipline of teaching is a must for successful transaction to students. Moreover, the explosion of knowledge today is so much that students sometimes are more adept and aware of the same than teachers. Hence, competing with their finesse must mar the complacency that sets us in the process. Last but never the least, a poignant area of challenge that keeps playing with the conscience of most teachers is a dangerous personal conflict- of being swayed away by non teaching careers. In such cases, the passion and loyalty to the profession dies within the individual and comes into play when tempted to take up other lucrative career opportunities hoping for sound financial security and future prospects. On the final note, however challenging and strenuous may teaching be today, the nobility and regard for the profession still stands the test of time. The mark of a teacher irrespective of their origin or nativity always remains etched in the lives of students. An ideal teacher will always be remembered for posterity and generations to come irrespective of centuries or millennia that pass by.