The whole area of teaching is the art of awakening natural curiosity in young minds,” said Anatole France. Had my grade VI science teacher realised the importance of the French maxim, perhaps, he wouldn’t have dismissed my query that day.

I had asked a simple question, and instead of his thoughtful reply, all I got from my teacher was “I don’t know”. She replied as if she was mocking me and the whole class burst out into peals of laughter at my supposedly stupid question. One of my friends later recommended that I shouldn’t ask such “awkward” questions. I could only hang my face in shame. This incident left an indelible impression on my memory.

We know that children have a heightened sense of curiosity. However, not everyone looks forward to answering their seemingly innocent and “unimportant” questions. As if indifference to their queries were not enough, children are often scolded for daring to speak out their mind. Hence, they learn to nip their curiosities in the bud. Patricia Alexander once noted, “Fear paralyses; curiosity empowers. Be more interested than afraid.”

Indeed, killing of curiosity in the young can severely undermine his/her creative abilities in later life. Strong interests can be enormously empowering. On the other hand, fear clips one’s wings. The Chinese rightly say: “He who asks a question is a fool for five minutes; he who doesn’t ask a question remains a fool forever.”

Myself a teacher for 13 years now, I have to ponder over umpteen questions my students throw at me. But I never try to parry “irrelevant” questions. I firmly believe that humans are in the process of becoming, and keep learning from the cradle to the grave. My five-year-old daughter seems to be intrigued about everything. For instance, she is highly bemused at supposedly common sight of ants marching in unison.

And a few days back, she asked something that completely bowled me over: “Where was I at your wedding?” I was not surprised for she had tried in vain to locate herself in early family photos. I was put in my place, all right. But I also realise that no question is wrong in itself and curiosity has its own place in the process of development of our cognitive abilities.