I need freelance writers for the monthly magazine 'Modern Education Review'. Teachers, principals and students may also contribute on topics of educational relevance, campus humor, your own experience, favourite teacher/student, tools of effective teaching. Remuneration Indian Ruppees 500/- per page typed in twelve font single space. You may send photo also. Original writers may be commissioned for regular writing. Contributions are welcome from other parts of the world as well.You may mail your sample to onkar.shekhawat@gmail.com or editor.meri@gmail.com
Onkar Singh Shekhawat
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Is Indian Democracy Feudalistic?
(Against the Motion)
Respected chairman, learned teachers and awakened audience, I stand before you with a firm conviction to oppose the motion. I congratulate my good friend for his ‘unsuccessful’ effort to make a point that of Indian Democracy is feudalistic. I can see more pessimism and less of logic in the arguments.
I agree with the point that no man made system is divine perfect. Anyone can wean out sufficient arguments out of evolutionary failures of a system but that should not mean to devise a totally ridiculous definition such as calling a democracy feudalistic.
Chairman sir, democracy is a complex system of governance because as far as its application is concerned in a country of 115 crore population. There is a possibility of some people not getting their due in the process. Democracy evolves through people struggle and matures with time.
My friend jumped in haste to compare Indian democracy with that of US. Can you compare a 60 years man with a youth of 20 ? US the democracy is more than 200 years old. It has witnessed caste and colour discrimination of worse kind. There have been scandals and blunders. But it learned from the mistakes every time. The same is happening in India!
In past three decades, people have rejected politicians who try to weave political organizations built around families. The cases of Bihar, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Maharastra are self-evident. The principals of freedom and equality have enabled the so far marginalized castes to unite and claim their share in power. If still we notice some hereditary transfer of authority in politics, it is because of people’s support and not because of the nature of democracy.
Mr Chairman, two pillars on which the ability of democracy stands are equality and freedom. These two features are eminently present in our democracy. Some landmark decisions by the Supreme Court in public interest litigations where it directed govt. to take action are the praise of democracy. Few quotable example are - emancipation of child labour from carpet industry of Varanasi, removal of polluting industries from Delhi and Agra, cessation of mining activity in Aravali Hills and removal of diesel buses from the capital. The list is long.
On the side of law, numerous political magnets and influential people have been humbled and brought to book. Introduction of Right to Information Act has proved an effective antidote to corruption. Would that be possible in feudalistic democracy?
In democracy, electoral competition is bound to happen among political parties and winning the election is the most important criterion for candidature. This is why muscleman and big tycoons get party tickets. But be sure, democracy has the capacity to get rid of such weeds.
The fourth estate has played a major role in strengthening Indian democracy. What escapes the notice of the courts and the system of administration, media throws it open to public scrutiny, ultimately leading to justice and public awareness.
It is an established fact beyond doubt that Indian democracy is not at all feudalistic.
It is not by chance that India is being recognized as an emerging global power in just sixty years of independence. The successful operation of democracy for the past six decades is the testimony of an ever evolving and strengthening, true Indian democracy.
**********
Respected chairman, learned teachers and awakened audience, I stand before you with a firm conviction to oppose the motion. I congratulate my good friend for his ‘unsuccessful’ effort to make a point that of Indian Democracy is feudalistic. I can see more pessimism and less of logic in the arguments.
I agree with the point that no man made system is divine perfect. Anyone can wean out sufficient arguments out of evolutionary failures of a system but that should not mean to devise a totally ridiculous definition such as calling a democracy feudalistic.
Chairman sir, democracy is a complex system of governance because as far as its application is concerned in a country of 115 crore population. There is a possibility of some people not getting their due in the process. Democracy evolves through people struggle and matures with time.
My friend jumped in haste to compare Indian democracy with that of US. Can you compare a 60 years man with a youth of 20 ? US the democracy is more than 200 years old. It has witnessed caste and colour discrimination of worse kind. There have been scandals and blunders. But it learned from the mistakes every time. The same is happening in India!
In past three decades, people have rejected politicians who try to weave political organizations built around families. The cases of Bihar, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Maharastra are self-evident. The principals of freedom and equality have enabled the so far marginalized castes to unite and claim their share in power. If still we notice some hereditary transfer of authority in politics, it is because of people’s support and not because of the nature of democracy.
Mr Chairman, two pillars on which the ability of democracy stands are equality and freedom. These two features are eminently present in our democracy. Some landmark decisions by the Supreme Court in public interest litigations where it directed govt. to take action are the praise of democracy. Few quotable example are - emancipation of child labour from carpet industry of Varanasi, removal of polluting industries from Delhi and Agra, cessation of mining activity in Aravali Hills and removal of diesel buses from the capital. The list is long.
On the side of law, numerous political magnets and influential people have been humbled and brought to book. Introduction of Right to Information Act has proved an effective antidote to corruption. Would that be possible in feudalistic democracy?
In democracy, electoral competition is bound to happen among political parties and winning the election is the most important criterion for candidature. This is why muscleman and big tycoons get party tickets. But be sure, democracy has the capacity to get rid of such weeds.
The fourth estate has played a major role in strengthening Indian democracy. What escapes the notice of the courts and the system of administration, media throws it open to public scrutiny, ultimately leading to justice and public awareness.
It is an established fact beyond doubt that Indian democracy is not at all feudalistic.
It is not by chance that India is being recognized as an emerging global power in just sixty years of independence. The successful operation of democracy for the past six decades is the testimony of an ever evolving and strengthening, true Indian democracy.
**********
Mathematics Education
Meenakshi Gandotra
I am happy to know that CBSE is concerned about improvement of Maths education. I have been teaching mathematics since the beginning of my career and strongly feel that improvement in teaching Maths can be made only by framing the right type of curriculum. While main problem is with the curriculum, most of the children feel that the problem is with themselves.
The tradition of oral memorizing of tables helps throughout the life and must be revived. Our elder generation even had the tables of 1/2, 1 ¼ , 1 ½, 2 ½ , ¾ etc. on their finger tips. The curriculum should be closer to life. There is no point in teaching every student every concept at class X level which is of no relevance in practical life. The portion which is necessary for higher classes must start from class XI onwards.
It is good that the CBSE has not given any choice to opt out Maths till class X. Children at the age of 13-15 years cannot think precisely what is good for their future. Maths is not only a subject in itself but in fact it is a mind trainer for other subjects.
A geometry theorem throws up a challenge before the intellect of the child, subjects him to intense thinking and apply logic to arrive at a solution route. This is what we need to do with the challenges of life. There are no short cuts.
Chapters like trigonometry, factors of algebraic expressions, irrational numbers should be introduced after class X. However, area, volume, profit and loss, simple and compound interest, making bills, calculating income tax have utility value and can be taught at elementary level to class X .
Instead of teaching the numbers in the form of natural, integers, rational numbers they should be taught like negative, positive as children at this age do not grasp abstract things easily. The introduction of practicals in Mathematics is a welcome move but the way it is designed at present needs a lot of improvement . Instead of having the models in the lab it should be taught to find the area of the room verandah, basket ball court, walls, doors, volume of brick, milk, cylinder or finding practically the distance, cost, finding the cost, discount etc.
Besides, a manual should be produced to guide schools on how to set up the labs with the help of experienced teachers. Schools and teachers must receive guidance on how to use them and make certain models instead of buying them ready made from shops.
-The author is Principal, Jaswant Modern Sr. Sec. school, Dehra Dun.
I am happy to know that CBSE is concerned about improvement of Maths education. I have been teaching mathematics since the beginning of my career and strongly feel that improvement in teaching Maths can be made only by framing the right type of curriculum. While main problem is with the curriculum, most of the children feel that the problem is with themselves.
The tradition of oral memorizing of tables helps throughout the life and must be revived. Our elder generation even had the tables of 1/2, 1 ¼ , 1 ½, 2 ½ , ¾ etc. on their finger tips. The curriculum should be closer to life. There is no point in teaching every student every concept at class X level which is of no relevance in practical life. The portion which is necessary for higher classes must start from class XI onwards.
It is good that the CBSE has not given any choice to opt out Maths till class X. Children at the age of 13-15 years cannot think precisely what is good for their future. Maths is not only a subject in itself but in fact it is a mind trainer for other subjects.
A geometry theorem throws up a challenge before the intellect of the child, subjects him to intense thinking and apply logic to arrive at a solution route. This is what we need to do with the challenges of life. There are no short cuts.
Chapters like trigonometry, factors of algebraic expressions, irrational numbers should be introduced after class X. However, area, volume, profit and loss, simple and compound interest, making bills, calculating income tax have utility value and can be taught at elementary level to class X .
Instead of teaching the numbers in the form of natural, integers, rational numbers they should be taught like negative, positive as children at this age do not grasp abstract things easily. The introduction of practicals in Mathematics is a welcome move but the way it is designed at present needs a lot of improvement . Instead of having the models in the lab it should be taught to find the area of the room verandah, basket ball court, walls, doors, volume of brick, milk, cylinder or finding practically the distance, cost, finding the cost, discount etc.
Besides, a manual should be produced to guide schools on how to set up the labs with the help of experienced teachers. Schools and teachers must receive guidance on how to use them and make certain models instead of buying them ready made from shops.
-The author is Principal, Jaswant Modern Sr. Sec. school, Dehra Dun.
Career by Choice
Ravi Bhushan
In today’s competitive world, choosing a career is a difficult task. Over the last 10-15 years, the world has changed drastically. It does not seem too long ago when there existed a very distinct feeling among parents that their children should pursue either medicine or engineering as a career.
Today that outlook has begun to change and parents along with children are thinking about other options. Presently there are numerous choices available to young people, ranging from subject and streams in school to a variety of short-term and long-term courses.
Today’s youth is looking not for jobs but for careers. Not just for monetary rewards but for personal fulfillment – scope for self-improvement and growth.
Often a student has a little information and even less awareness of the alternatives available as who to turn to for guidance to make the all important decision of the career. There is a fog of confusion when student is at crossroads immediately after completing 10+2. Collecting information, being aware and planning for the future is of paramount importance.
Careers today come in three major streams.
· A career pattern in the government bureaucracy or corporate world consists of formal movement from jobs to job and is defined by logic of hierarchical advancement once initial entry is obtained.
· Then there is a professional career defined by craft and skill – specialized knowledge and reputation. Engineers and lawyers, doctors and teachers, media persons etc. are professionals who may keep the same title and the same job over a long period, if employed or make their skills available for fee-based assignments. They grow career-wise as their skills grow.
· The third pattern is the entrepreneurial one of creating a product of service of value. Small business ventures and services and so on fall in this category.
One should work out a career plan to become successful in the first place. Everybody cannot be successful but those who plan have a better chance. A job is not a career and this distinction must be kept in mind. Your job is a gateway to your career leading to your dream life. A career is an integrated life-long plan of life – not just a living. The job one may hold at a particular time is only a rung on the ladder. We need not consider jobs as entities in themselves but a stage to get ready to make adjustments for the right career goal.
Thus my question ‘does the word career exist ?’.... is something to ponder over so that we may look for various options for the betterment of your child. If you feel you do not wish to slot yourself in existing careers or are up against a wall in finding a job, never hesitate to seek advice of a career expert.
The author is Director, PEPES Educational Consultancy.Ravi Bhushan
In today’s competitive world, choosing a career is a difficult task. Over the last 10-15 years, the world has changed drastically. It does not seem too long ago when there existed a very distinct feeling among parents that their children should pursue either medicine or engineering as a career.
Today that outlook has begun to change and parents along with children are thinking about other options. Presently there are numerous choices available to young people, ranging from subject and streams in school to a variety of short-term and long-term courses.
Today’s youth is looking not for jobs but for careers. Not just for monetary rewards but for personal fulfillment – scope for self-improvement and growth.
Often a student has a little information and even less awareness of the alternatives available as who to turn to for guidance to make the all important decision of the career. There is a fog of confusion when student is at crossroads immediately after completing 10+2. Collecting information, being aware and planning for the future is of paramount importance.
Careers today come in three major streams.
· A career pattern in the government bureaucracy or corporate world consists of formal movement from jobs to job and is defined by logic of hierarchical advancement once initial entry is obtained.
· Then there is a professional career defined by craft and skill – specialized knowledge and reputation. Engineers and lawyers, doctors and teachers, media persons etc. are professionals who may keep the same title and the same job over a long period, if employed or make their skills available for fee-based assignments. They grow career-wise as their skills grow.
· The third pattern is the entrepreneurial one of creating a product of service of value. Small business ventures and services and so on fall in this category.
One should work out a career plan to become successful in the first place. Everybody cannot be successful but those who plan have a better chance. A job is not a career and this distinction must be kept in mind. Your job is a gateway to your career leading to your dream life. A career is an integrated life-long plan of life – not just a living. The job one may hold at a particular time is only a rung on the ladder. We need not consider jobs as entities in themselves but a stage to get ready to make adjustments for the right career goal.
Thus my question ‘does the word career exist ?’.... is something to ponder over so that we may look for various options for the betterment of your child. If you feel you do not wish to slot yourself in existing careers or are up against a wall in finding a job, never hesitate to seek advice of a career expert.
The author is Director, PEPES Educational Consultancy.
In today’s competitive world, choosing a career is a difficult task. Over the last 10-15 years, the world has changed drastically. It does not seem too long ago when there existed a very distinct feeling among parents that their children should pursue either medicine or engineering as a career.
Today that outlook has begun to change and parents along with children are thinking about other options. Presently there are numerous choices available to young people, ranging from subject and streams in school to a variety of short-term and long-term courses.
Today’s youth is looking not for jobs but for careers. Not just for monetary rewards but for personal fulfillment – scope for self-improvement and growth.
Often a student has a little information and even less awareness of the alternatives available as who to turn to for guidance to make the all important decision of the career. There is a fog of confusion when student is at crossroads immediately after completing 10+2. Collecting information, being aware and planning for the future is of paramount importance.
Careers today come in three major streams.
· A career pattern in the government bureaucracy or corporate world consists of formal movement from jobs to job and is defined by logic of hierarchical advancement once initial entry is obtained.
· Then there is a professional career defined by craft and skill – specialized knowledge and reputation. Engineers and lawyers, doctors and teachers, media persons etc. are professionals who may keep the same title and the same job over a long period, if employed or make their skills available for fee-based assignments. They grow career-wise as their skills grow.
· The third pattern is the entrepreneurial one of creating a product of service of value. Small business ventures and services and so on fall in this category.
One should work out a career plan to become successful in the first place. Everybody cannot be successful but those who plan have a better chance. A job is not a career and this distinction must be kept in mind. Your job is a gateway to your career leading to your dream life. A career is an integrated life-long plan of life – not just a living. The job one may hold at a particular time is only a rung on the ladder. We need not consider jobs as entities in themselves but a stage to get ready to make adjustments for the right career goal.
Thus my question ‘does the word career exist ?’.... is something to ponder over so that we may look for various options for the betterment of your child. If you feel you do not wish to slot yourself in existing careers or are up against a wall in finding a job, never hesitate to seek advice of a career expert.
The author is Director, PEPES Educational Consultancy.Ravi Bhushan
In today’s competitive world, choosing a career is a difficult task. Over the last 10-15 years, the world has changed drastically. It does not seem too long ago when there existed a very distinct feeling among parents that their children should pursue either medicine or engineering as a career.
Today that outlook has begun to change and parents along with children are thinking about other options. Presently there are numerous choices available to young people, ranging from subject and streams in school to a variety of short-term and long-term courses.
Today’s youth is looking not for jobs but for careers. Not just for monetary rewards but for personal fulfillment – scope for self-improvement and growth.
Often a student has a little information and even less awareness of the alternatives available as who to turn to for guidance to make the all important decision of the career. There is a fog of confusion when student is at crossroads immediately after completing 10+2. Collecting information, being aware and planning for the future is of paramount importance.
Careers today come in three major streams.
· A career pattern in the government bureaucracy or corporate world consists of formal movement from jobs to job and is defined by logic of hierarchical advancement once initial entry is obtained.
· Then there is a professional career defined by craft and skill – specialized knowledge and reputation. Engineers and lawyers, doctors and teachers, media persons etc. are professionals who may keep the same title and the same job over a long period, if employed or make their skills available for fee-based assignments. They grow career-wise as their skills grow.
· The third pattern is the entrepreneurial one of creating a product of service of value. Small business ventures and services and so on fall in this category.
One should work out a career plan to become successful in the first place. Everybody cannot be successful but those who plan have a better chance. A job is not a career and this distinction must be kept in mind. Your job is a gateway to your career leading to your dream life. A career is an integrated life-long plan of life – not just a living. The job one may hold at a particular time is only a rung on the ladder. We need not consider jobs as entities in themselves but a stage to get ready to make adjustments for the right career goal.
Thus my question ‘does the word career exist ?’.... is something to ponder over so that we may look for various options for the betterment of your child. If you feel you do not wish to slot yourself in existing careers or are up against a wall in finding a job, never hesitate to seek advice of a career expert.
The author is Director, PEPES Educational Consultancy.
The Power of Thought
James Allen
Here is an extract of James Allen’s book ‘As a Man Thinketh’ which has inspired thousands of people over hundred years. Mahatma Gandhi was so impressed by this that he translated the essay into Gujarati and published in the form of a booklet.}
Circumstances do not make the man; they reveal him to himself. Men are anxious to improve their circumstances but are unwilling to improve themselves.
Let a man radically alter his thoughts and he will be astonished at the rapid transformation it will effect in the material conditions of his life.Man imagines that thought can be kept secret but it cannot; it rapidly crystallizes into habit and habit solidifies into circumstance.
Man is made or unmade by himself, he fashions the tools with which he builds for himself heavenly masons of joy, strength and peace. Man is always the master even in his weakest and most abandoned state but in his weakness and degradation he is the foolish master who misgoverns his household.
A man’s mind may be linked to a garden which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild but whether cultivated or neglected, it must and will bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless weed seeds will fall therein and will continue to produce their kind.
Thought and character are one; as character can only manifest and discover itself through environment and circumstances, the outer conditions of a person’s life will always be harmoniously related to his inner state. This does not mean that a man’s circumstances at any given time are indications of his entire character but those circumstances are so intimately connected with some vital thought element within himself that, for the time being, they are indispensable to his development.
Every man is where he is by law of his being; the thoughts which has built into his character have brought him there, and in the arrangement of his life there is no element of chance but all is the result of law which cannot err.
Man is buffeted by circumstances so long as he believes himself to be the creature of outside conditions but when he realizes that he is a creative power and that he may command the hidden soil and seeds of being out of which circumstances grow, he then becomes the rightful master to himself.
Every thought seed sown or allowed to fall into the mind and to take root there produces its own blossoming sooner or later into act. The outer world of circumstances shapes itself to the inner world of thought and both pleasant and unpleasant conditions are factors which make for the ultimate good of the individual.
Circumstances however, are so complicated, thought is so deeply rooted and the conditions of happiness vary so vastly with individuals that a man’s entire soul-condition cannot be judged by another from the external aspects of his life alone.
A man may be honest in certain directions, yet suffer privations; a man may be dishonest is certain directions, yet acquire wealth but the conclusion usually formed that the man fails because of his particular honesty and the other prospers because of his certain dishonesty is the result of a superficial judgment which assumes that the dishonest man is almost totally corrupt, and the honest man almost entirely virtuous. In the right of a deeper knowledge and wider experience, such judgment is found to be erroneous.
Bestial thoughts crystallize into the habits of drunkenness and sensuality which solidify into circumstances of destitution and disease. Thoughts of fear, doubt, indecision crystallize into weak, unmanly and irresolute habits which solidify into circumstances of failure and indigence.
Thoughts of courage self-reliance and decisions crystallize into many habits which solidify into circumstances of success, plenty and freedom. Energetic thoughts crystallize into habits of cleanliness and industry which solidify into circumstances of pleasantness; protective and preservative circumstances.
A man cannot directly choose his circumstances but he can choose his thoughts and so indirectly, yet surely, shape his circumstances.
The body is the servant of the mind. It obeys the operations of the mind, whether they be deliberately chosen or automatically expressed. At the bidding of unlawful thoughts the body sinks rapidly into decay; at command of glad and beautiful thoughts it becomes clothed with youthfulness and beauty, strong pure and happy thoughts build up the body in vigor and grace. The body is a delicate and plastic instrument, which responds readily to the thoughts by which it is impressed. There is no physician like cheerful thought for dissipating the ills of the body. To live continually in the thoughts of ill-will, cynicism, suspicion and every is to be confined in a self made prison-hole.
As you cannot have a sweet and wholesome abode unless you admit the air and sunshine freely into your rooms, so a strong body and a bright, happy or serene countenance can only result from free admittance into the mind of thoughts of joy and goodwill.
Be not impatient in delay.
But wait as one who understands
When spirit rises and commands
The Gods are ready to obey.
************
Here is an extract of James Allen’s book ‘As a Man Thinketh’ which has inspired thousands of people over hundred years. Mahatma Gandhi was so impressed by this that he translated the essay into Gujarati and published in the form of a booklet.}
Circumstances do not make the man; they reveal him to himself. Men are anxious to improve their circumstances but are unwilling to improve themselves.
Let a man radically alter his thoughts and he will be astonished at the rapid transformation it will effect in the material conditions of his life.Man imagines that thought can be kept secret but it cannot; it rapidly crystallizes into habit and habit solidifies into circumstance.
Man is made or unmade by himself, he fashions the tools with which he builds for himself heavenly masons of joy, strength and peace. Man is always the master even in his weakest and most abandoned state but in his weakness and degradation he is the foolish master who misgoverns his household.
A man’s mind may be linked to a garden which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild but whether cultivated or neglected, it must and will bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless weed seeds will fall therein and will continue to produce their kind.
Thought and character are one; as character can only manifest and discover itself through environment and circumstances, the outer conditions of a person’s life will always be harmoniously related to his inner state. This does not mean that a man’s circumstances at any given time are indications of his entire character but those circumstances are so intimately connected with some vital thought element within himself that, for the time being, they are indispensable to his development.
Every man is where he is by law of his being; the thoughts which has built into his character have brought him there, and in the arrangement of his life there is no element of chance but all is the result of law which cannot err.
Man is buffeted by circumstances so long as he believes himself to be the creature of outside conditions but when he realizes that he is a creative power and that he may command the hidden soil and seeds of being out of which circumstances grow, he then becomes the rightful master to himself.
Every thought seed sown or allowed to fall into the mind and to take root there produces its own blossoming sooner or later into act. The outer world of circumstances shapes itself to the inner world of thought and both pleasant and unpleasant conditions are factors which make for the ultimate good of the individual.
Circumstances however, are so complicated, thought is so deeply rooted and the conditions of happiness vary so vastly with individuals that a man’s entire soul-condition cannot be judged by another from the external aspects of his life alone.
A man may be honest in certain directions, yet suffer privations; a man may be dishonest is certain directions, yet acquire wealth but the conclusion usually formed that the man fails because of his particular honesty and the other prospers because of his certain dishonesty is the result of a superficial judgment which assumes that the dishonest man is almost totally corrupt, and the honest man almost entirely virtuous. In the right of a deeper knowledge and wider experience, such judgment is found to be erroneous.
Bestial thoughts crystallize into the habits of drunkenness and sensuality which solidify into circumstances of destitution and disease. Thoughts of fear, doubt, indecision crystallize into weak, unmanly and irresolute habits which solidify into circumstances of failure and indigence.
Thoughts of courage self-reliance and decisions crystallize into many habits which solidify into circumstances of success, plenty and freedom. Energetic thoughts crystallize into habits of cleanliness and industry which solidify into circumstances of pleasantness; protective and preservative circumstances.
A man cannot directly choose his circumstances but he can choose his thoughts and so indirectly, yet surely, shape his circumstances.
The body is the servant of the mind. It obeys the operations of the mind, whether they be deliberately chosen or automatically expressed. At the bidding of unlawful thoughts the body sinks rapidly into decay; at command of glad and beautiful thoughts it becomes clothed with youthfulness and beauty, strong pure and happy thoughts build up the body in vigor and grace. The body is a delicate and plastic instrument, which responds readily to the thoughts by which it is impressed. There is no physician like cheerful thought for dissipating the ills of the body. To live continually in the thoughts of ill-will, cynicism, suspicion and every is to be confined in a self made prison-hole.
As you cannot have a sweet and wholesome abode unless you admit the air and sunshine freely into your rooms, so a strong body and a bright, happy or serene countenance can only result from free admittance into the mind of thoughts of joy and goodwill.
Be not impatient in delay.
But wait as one who understands
When spirit rises and commands
The Gods are ready to obey.
************
A Case for Children
Sivaram
“Your daughter wants to go to the washroom at least three to four times whenever I take Hindi class for them almost everyday” reported one of the teachers to the parents during a Parent Teacher meeting. The little girl was in class II. This was happening for almost a month and parents did not know about it. The first reaction of these urban parents was shock.
The parents straightaway concluded that this was a serious medical problem and decided to go to the doctor. The child however, said she would not go to the doctor. Child’s resistance and the teacher’s message both added to the stress of these parents. Believe me, for many parents attending PTMs itself is a stress factor. Perhaps better sense prevailed and the parents approached a counselor.
It took almost two hours of interaction for the counselor to develop a rapport with the child followed by the fact finding session. The outcome turned out to be amazing. The problem was that the child actually did not like to write Hindi and the teacher used to give a lot of writing work in the class. The child chose to find a way out to try and stay away! Perhaps these are the children who would decide to take sick leave or bunk classes as they grow up.
While the fact is that the child thought of such an excuse is - the smartness of today’s children, one needs to analyze this further. We might well be amused until we really empathize with those parents. Had they not met the counselor, they could have landed at the doctors clinic. Of course there are abundant medicines in the market waiting to be prescribed.
A lot of questions come up when we have a close look at this situation.
Was it because the child at that age was not yet prepared to take on that kind of writing pressures?
Was the teacher struggling to achieve targets because of other responsibilities on her?
Do we have any norms in place limiting the writing work for a child per day?
Ultimately these issues filter down to the PTMs where messages are conveyed to the parents that their child is a slow learner and they should do something about it.
It is a different matter that during the time and attention of the counselor, the child not only started writing but also developed a good handwriting, often getting smilies on the note book from the teacher
Kids who are unable to get attention to understand their side of the story; develop into restless, angry children with low self esteem. Perhaps few situations such as these are the beginning of low self esteem setting in. Constant suppression of feelings gets bottled up over a period of time. These feelings then show up by means of emotional outbursts. When they grow up physically stronger, they may protest vehemently and may become violent.
Such children could be identified and corrective measures taken, instead of straight away branding children as slow learners and dyslexic or children with attention deficit disorders.
There are certainly several excellent teachers, whose popularity among the children makes them visible in a group. But they have their own pressures both from their work place and family. The number of children in each class is well beyond the manageable norms. The demand and supply gap for schools does not allow us to reduce the number of children per class.
Every effort should be made to address such issues in totality by giving focused time and attention. While increasing the number of schools may not be in our hands, the quality issues could substantially be addressed by appropriate interventions.
Counseling is indeed a solution and a lot of attention needs to be given in this area. Some Possible steps:
Get a list of poor performers in terms of grades or marks e.g., on a scale of A B, C & D.
Each of these children could be studied separately by a Counselor to assess the reasons for poor performance
Give special time and attention over two to three months (just about 4 hours a week) and try to get these children on right track.
It would indeed be a great challenge but there has to be a beginning. Even an iota of success in bringing about such changes would mean a quantum leap in terms of quality. Debates, and discussion forums can go on – time of action is now .
The author is a renowned counselor.
Email: Siva61@indiatimes.com
“Your daughter wants to go to the washroom at least three to four times whenever I take Hindi class for them almost everyday” reported one of the teachers to the parents during a Parent Teacher meeting. The little girl was in class II. This was happening for almost a month and parents did not know about it. The first reaction of these urban parents was shock.
The parents straightaway concluded that this was a serious medical problem and decided to go to the doctor. The child however, said she would not go to the doctor. Child’s resistance and the teacher’s message both added to the stress of these parents. Believe me, for many parents attending PTMs itself is a stress factor. Perhaps better sense prevailed and the parents approached a counselor.
It took almost two hours of interaction for the counselor to develop a rapport with the child followed by the fact finding session. The outcome turned out to be amazing. The problem was that the child actually did not like to write Hindi and the teacher used to give a lot of writing work in the class. The child chose to find a way out to try and stay away! Perhaps these are the children who would decide to take sick leave or bunk classes as they grow up.
While the fact is that the child thought of such an excuse is - the smartness of today’s children, one needs to analyze this further. We might well be amused until we really empathize with those parents. Had they not met the counselor, they could have landed at the doctors clinic. Of course there are abundant medicines in the market waiting to be prescribed.
A lot of questions come up when we have a close look at this situation.
Was it because the child at that age was not yet prepared to take on that kind of writing pressures?
Was the teacher struggling to achieve targets because of other responsibilities on her?
Do we have any norms in place limiting the writing work for a child per day?
Ultimately these issues filter down to the PTMs where messages are conveyed to the parents that their child is a slow learner and they should do something about it.
It is a different matter that during the time and attention of the counselor, the child not only started writing but also developed a good handwriting, often getting smilies on the note book from the teacher
Kids who are unable to get attention to understand their side of the story; develop into restless, angry children with low self esteem. Perhaps few situations such as these are the beginning of low self esteem setting in. Constant suppression of feelings gets bottled up over a period of time. These feelings then show up by means of emotional outbursts. When they grow up physically stronger, they may protest vehemently and may become violent.
Such children could be identified and corrective measures taken, instead of straight away branding children as slow learners and dyslexic or children with attention deficit disorders.
There are certainly several excellent teachers, whose popularity among the children makes them visible in a group. But they have their own pressures both from their work place and family. The number of children in each class is well beyond the manageable norms. The demand and supply gap for schools does not allow us to reduce the number of children per class.
Every effort should be made to address such issues in totality by giving focused time and attention. While increasing the number of schools may not be in our hands, the quality issues could substantially be addressed by appropriate interventions.
Counseling is indeed a solution and a lot of attention needs to be given in this area. Some Possible steps:
Get a list of poor performers in terms of grades or marks e.g., on a scale of A B, C & D.
Each of these children could be studied separately by a Counselor to assess the reasons for poor performance
Give special time and attention over two to three months (just about 4 hours a week) and try to get these children on right track.
It would indeed be a great challenge but there has to be a beginning. Even an iota of success in bringing about such changes would mean a quantum leap in terms of quality. Debates, and discussion forums can go on – time of action is now .
The author is a renowned counselor.
Email: Siva61@indiatimes.com
Early Childhood Education
Ashok K Pandey
Early childhood is recognized as a distinct stage of learning which lays the foundation for future shaping up of the child. This is the age that determines the quality of life the child is going to lead. This is also the age that determines the experiences that the child will have as a citizen and role she will play in the society.
The vision of pre primary education, therefore, should clearly be based on the principles of developing those skills, competencies, values, and creativity that will give the child its identity, its unique personality and self esteem. It should ensure a rightful place for the child in the ever changing society with all its variations, demands, and challenges. Such lofty ideals of childhood education will also call for our ability as educators to arouse in them a craving for acquisition and exploration of new knowledge. The teachers, therefore, will have to create such an environment around the child as is conducive to achieving these goals.
The Philosophical Moorings
The early philosophers who developed childhood educational goals and contributed to insight into their world have advocated that we should allow children to be active authors of their own development. Swami Vivekanand reminded us that as teachers we have to help children manifest their innate talents lying within. Jean Piaget insisted that we should create surroundings for exploration and experimentation which make children little scientists of their own world. Rudolf Steiner, another thinker believed in the unity of spirit, soul, and body. The job of good education according to him is to restore a balance between thinking, willing, and feeling. Nursery and kindergarten children learn through imitation and doing. Fantasizing and playing is considered to be the most important work of young children. The educational focus therefore should be on bodily exploration, construction and creativity, through oral language, story, and song.
Theory and Curriculum
The principles of curriculum designing for early childhood education are based on the needs, interests, and modes of learning of young children. Early experimentations in the aftermath of world wars in this area were focused on creating a just and peaceful society. In today’s context, justice, peace, fair play, sharing, tolerance and overall development of the human being still hold to be the paramount universal values. It will be necessary for us to tune our curriculum and programs in such a way that these values are imbued in them from the early stages. As teachers, we should be prepared to devote time with them generously and develop love , compassion and respect for them and their individual differences. Our proficiency should allow us an in-depth presentation and review of our teaching-learning material and assessment programs for them.
The child’s natural intelligence (Maria Montessory), their relationship (Loris Malaguzzi) with others and the kind of environment that we construct around them plays an important role in learning. A teacher has to respond to these constructs by playing multiple roles in the classrooms and outside. In one scheme of things she has to be a performer (The Waldorf) of various roles seeking harmony. In another she has to play the role of an unobtrusive director (Maria Montessory) in the classroom ensuring a calm and productive atmosphere. In yet another role she has to be an artful balancing factor(Reggio) between engaging them and drawing the attention of the children.
School Community and Parents
We must not forget the role of a golden triangle supported by the child, the teacher and the parent at its three vertices. No early childhood education program can succeed without a successful partnership with the parents. The experiences of the children in the school ought to receive a ratification at home. If our goal is to achieve harmony and integration with the natural environment, the school community as a whole including parents have to work together to help our children work around their experiences for their intellectual, emotional and social development.
The Way Forward
My understanding is that any system of child education has to derive its strength from the latest researches in this important area. Every school of thought and particularly the pioneering researches of Piaget have emphasized the role of play in the life of a child. It is for this reason that one should strive to exploit the natural and innate interest in learning of a child by creating varied and stimulating environments. A long but enjoyable journey of self discovery begins with the role play in early years. The creative impulses, resolves to surmount the odds and maiden encounters with grit and adventure are experienced in the environs that we create for them in our play schools.
Our social and economic structures are changing rapidly. The need for a quality universalisation of early childhood education is felt more intensely than ever before. We are a diverse and multilingual society. Our family bonds and values are cherished. We have lacked inclusivity and gender sensitivity in our education for long. Fortunately both the national and the individual aspirations are on the rise. It is good news for our children and for all those engaged in this noble mission.
Email: ashokpdy@gmail.com The writer is Principal, Ahlcon International School, New Delhi
Early childhood is recognized as a distinct stage of learning which lays the foundation for future shaping up of the child. This is the age that determines the quality of life the child is going to lead. This is also the age that determines the experiences that the child will have as a citizen and role she will play in the society.
The vision of pre primary education, therefore, should clearly be based on the principles of developing those skills, competencies, values, and creativity that will give the child its identity, its unique personality and self esteem. It should ensure a rightful place for the child in the ever changing society with all its variations, demands, and challenges. Such lofty ideals of childhood education will also call for our ability as educators to arouse in them a craving for acquisition and exploration of new knowledge. The teachers, therefore, will have to create such an environment around the child as is conducive to achieving these goals.
The Philosophical Moorings
The early philosophers who developed childhood educational goals and contributed to insight into their world have advocated that we should allow children to be active authors of their own development. Swami Vivekanand reminded us that as teachers we have to help children manifest their innate talents lying within. Jean Piaget insisted that we should create surroundings for exploration and experimentation which make children little scientists of their own world. Rudolf Steiner, another thinker believed in the unity of spirit, soul, and body. The job of good education according to him is to restore a balance between thinking, willing, and feeling. Nursery and kindergarten children learn through imitation and doing. Fantasizing and playing is considered to be the most important work of young children. The educational focus therefore should be on bodily exploration, construction and creativity, through oral language, story, and song.
Theory and Curriculum
The principles of curriculum designing for early childhood education are based on the needs, interests, and modes of learning of young children. Early experimentations in the aftermath of world wars in this area were focused on creating a just and peaceful society. In today’s context, justice, peace, fair play, sharing, tolerance and overall development of the human being still hold to be the paramount universal values. It will be necessary for us to tune our curriculum and programs in such a way that these values are imbued in them from the early stages. As teachers, we should be prepared to devote time with them generously and develop love , compassion and respect for them and their individual differences. Our proficiency should allow us an in-depth presentation and review of our teaching-learning material and assessment programs for them.
The child’s natural intelligence (Maria Montessory), their relationship (Loris Malaguzzi) with others and the kind of environment that we construct around them plays an important role in learning. A teacher has to respond to these constructs by playing multiple roles in the classrooms and outside. In one scheme of things she has to be a performer (The Waldorf) of various roles seeking harmony. In another she has to play the role of an unobtrusive director (Maria Montessory) in the classroom ensuring a calm and productive atmosphere. In yet another role she has to be an artful balancing factor(Reggio) between engaging them and drawing the attention of the children.
School Community and Parents
We must not forget the role of a golden triangle supported by the child, the teacher and the parent at its three vertices. No early childhood education program can succeed without a successful partnership with the parents. The experiences of the children in the school ought to receive a ratification at home. If our goal is to achieve harmony and integration with the natural environment, the school community as a whole including parents have to work together to help our children work around their experiences for their intellectual, emotional and social development.
The Way Forward
My understanding is that any system of child education has to derive its strength from the latest researches in this important area. Every school of thought and particularly the pioneering researches of Piaget have emphasized the role of play in the life of a child. It is for this reason that one should strive to exploit the natural and innate interest in learning of a child by creating varied and stimulating environments. A long but enjoyable journey of self discovery begins with the role play in early years. The creative impulses, resolves to surmount the odds and maiden encounters with grit and adventure are experienced in the environs that we create for them in our play schools.
Our social and economic structures are changing rapidly. The need for a quality universalisation of early childhood education is felt more intensely than ever before. We are a diverse and multilingual society. Our family bonds and values are cherished. We have lacked inclusivity and gender sensitivity in our education for long. Fortunately both the national and the individual aspirations are on the rise. It is good news for our children and for all those engaged in this noble mission.
Email: ashokpdy@gmail.com The writer is Principal, Ahlcon International School, New Delhi
Leaps of Logic
Amritanshu
The author shares his first hand experience of having studied in IB as well as CBSE system and their implications in his higher studies, spotlighting certain points which may help educational policy makers.
I have had the special and somewhat unique pleasure of experiencing both Indian as well as Canadian systems of education. I passed out of 10th grade through the C.B.S.E. system but my 11th and 12th grades were completed under the International Baccalaureate (I.B.) . Under the I.B., I was not asked to choose a stream like science, commerce or arts. It was often an annoying experience having to explain to people my subjects (English, Hindi, Physics, Economics, Maths, Computer Science) when all they expected to hear was something like the usual combination of “PCM.”
This came as a relief to me as personally I wanted to study history while most of my family and friends were advising me to pick science. The I.B. gives students six core groups of subjects, out of which they must choose one each. The first two groups are language groups. Out of the two languages English at a certain level is compulsory and the second language is of the student’s choice. One group is the Humanities group- History, Economics, Geography, Psychology, etc. while another group is the Science group- Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. Mathematics is compulsory as the fifth group while the student is free to pick any subject (out of those offered) for the sixth group.
Apart from these six groups, the I.B. also required that I complete, in the course of two years, an intensive research essay on a topic of my choice of about four thousand words. I was also given weekly courses in ‘Theory of Knowledge’ which dealt with how humans acquired knowledge and perceived facts or phenomena. Where I.B. outweighed C.B.S.E., to me was its steadfast refusal to ask students to make a choice of streams right after their tenth grade. Not having to make that choice and the freedom to study a wide variety of courses was the best thing for all of us who came to I.B. from C.B.S.E. and I.C.S.E. backgrounds.
Another feature of I.B. has now been so often quoted that it has almost become an overused cliché but the fact remains that I.B. was never rote-based. People are surprised to hear this but in the calculation based papers of I.B., like math or physics, we were given formulae sheets carrying all the important formulae during our examinations. Many wonder that if we were given the formulae sheet then how did we not score a hundred percent every time. This to me is an illustration of C.B.S.E. conditioning where questions never tested one’s application of understanding, simply the talent of memorization. We were even allowed to use calculators, and not the simple ones but complex graphing calculators. Enter seven values of ‘x’ into these calculators and they would spit out the mean, median, mode, standard deviation, variance, etc. in a matter of seconds.
But the calculator point brings me the first of the cons of the I.B. as I saw it. The foreign students in my class, especially those from U.S.A. or Canada were highly dependent on their calculators. We on the other hand were used to calculations both mental and written. For even simple calculations like 15 + 21 they would use the calculators while we could do them mentally. Our C.B.S.E. (or I.C.S.E.) education had developed a reasonable calculation skill within us which gave us an upper hand in terms of speed of problem solving as well as the confidence with which we approached the problems.
Another con was the fact the freedom of I.B. spoiled many of us. By the time we passed out of 12th standard, my friends who had done 12th under C.B.S.E. or I.C.S.E. were more or less certain of what they were to do in life and what courses lay ahead of them. I, on the other hand, had no clue. I knew what my interests were and could wax eloquently about the freedom I had experienced by not having to choose a stream. But I was woefully ignorant when it came to career opportunities and Bachelors’ options. I went off to Canada with the intention of doing a B.B.A., shifted halfway to a B.Sc. in astrophysics and returned soon after to India to pursue a B.A. Honors in economics. A friend of mine from my I.B. days went off to Germany intending to learn Biotechnology but around the time I shifted to Astrophysics he shifted to Geophysics. He is now completing his degree in environmental Economics !
This brings me to the second phase of my experience with Indian and Western education. After completing 12th grade I succeeded in gaining admission into one of the well known universities in Canada. This experience was a different one altogether. For one, attendance in classes was not compulsory. There was no daily ritual of calling out names followed by “present sir!” The theory was that since you were paying the university fees by not attending classes you were wasting your own money. However, the university had a complex and well maintained academic network. Each professor put up his or her class notes onto the network after every class. The weekly or monthly tests were often held online, albeit with a time limit and we could take them from our own bedrooms. The university’s library facilities were equally ‘21st century.’ All students were given ‘One-card’ that were the university’s own debit cards. We could charge the one-cards with the amount of money of our choice and this was stored in the magnetic strip of the one-card. The libraries possessed a number of all-in-one printer-scanner-photocopiers that were connected to the computer network. Sit on a computer, find something you want to print, send the command, swipe your one-card, and get it printed; the printing charge would be deducted from your one-card. I must admit it was not as much fun actually studying the notes as it was going to the library and getting them printed out.
In my current university, here in Delhi, on the other hand, there are four photocopy booths spread across the campus. All of them are subject to the availability of electricity. From 12:30 to 2:30 they are all closed because the men manning them are off to lunch and they close by 5:30. If you want something photocopied, you must be ready to stand there with other students (there is never a queue) and nag them till it is done, for if you leave it to them and trust that in four or five hours it will be done, you are quite mistaken. The computer network is often down for some reason or the other, and there are only two computers on which you can search whether the library possesses the book you want or not. Assuming that it does hold that particular book, if you do find it, it will very likely be coated with a layer of dust that gets into your nose and soils your hands and bag. In the University of Alberta, the professors were available almost 24X7 through email, and they had fixed office hours during which we could approach them. Here there are no office hours; it depends on pure chance and timing. The scholarly and intellectual vibes that you would unmistakably feel in the University of Alberta are conspicuous here only by their absence.
I could talk about other things as well, like the fact that how well I score in my exams depends on how many sheets I can fill within three hours or that how there is no board or union where the students can address their problems or the sorry and smelly state of the washrooms; or the hygiene, or lack of it, in the canteens but these are minor issues and I do not mean to disrepute the entire Indian university system on the basis of my experience with two universities, one Canadian and one Indian. What I do notice here is the absence of that ‘x-factor’. The x-factor contains that atmosphere and spirit that enables students to get down and concentrate on their academics rather than being caught up in various grievances and complaints about “the system.” The x-factor contains the enabling of those services and facilities that aid the student in furthering his understanding of the subject of study. It contains the easy availability of the knowledge-imparters to follow up the doubts of the students. In most Indian universities, unfortunately, the x-factor is absent.
So then is it safe to say that the Western system is better than the Indian system? Does the later have nothing to take home? This I cannot say yes to. The answer lies, as it often does in a steady balance of both. The Indian system prepares the student for the essential requirements of hard-work, concentration and dedicated approach. The Western system contains perhaps equally essential requirements of atmosphere enabling and intellectual freedom that are so required in the holistic development of an individual. In my school where I studied under the I.B. curriculum, I knew more about heat and energy than my foreign classmates but they knew more about the working of cars or the dispute between Israel and Palestine, etc. Somewhere between these two extremes is a balance that must be struck. It is as Anurag Mathur, the novelist, writes in his novel- The Inscrutable Americans. The novel explores the experiences of Gopal, a student from a small town in India who goes to an American university:
“For the first time he began to learn the joy of analysis rather than retention. Based upon the core of fundamentals that had been hammered into him- quite often literally- he experimented with leaps of logic. Often he paused uncertainly as though in mid-air, waiting for someone to admonish him and demand that he return to thinking by the book. For the first time in his life he gloried in studying.”
**********
The author shares his first hand experience of having studied in IB as well as CBSE system and their implications in his higher studies, spotlighting certain points which may help educational policy makers.
I have had the special and somewhat unique pleasure of experiencing both Indian as well as Canadian systems of education. I passed out of 10th grade through the C.B.S.E. system but my 11th and 12th grades were completed under the International Baccalaureate (I.B.) . Under the I.B., I was not asked to choose a stream like science, commerce or arts. It was often an annoying experience having to explain to people my subjects (English, Hindi, Physics, Economics, Maths, Computer Science) when all they expected to hear was something like the usual combination of “PCM.”
This came as a relief to me as personally I wanted to study history while most of my family and friends were advising me to pick science. The I.B. gives students six core groups of subjects, out of which they must choose one each. The first two groups are language groups. Out of the two languages English at a certain level is compulsory and the second language is of the student’s choice. One group is the Humanities group- History, Economics, Geography, Psychology, etc. while another group is the Science group- Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. Mathematics is compulsory as the fifth group while the student is free to pick any subject (out of those offered) for the sixth group.
Apart from these six groups, the I.B. also required that I complete, in the course of two years, an intensive research essay on a topic of my choice of about four thousand words. I was also given weekly courses in ‘Theory of Knowledge’ which dealt with how humans acquired knowledge and perceived facts or phenomena. Where I.B. outweighed C.B.S.E., to me was its steadfast refusal to ask students to make a choice of streams right after their tenth grade. Not having to make that choice and the freedom to study a wide variety of courses was the best thing for all of us who came to I.B. from C.B.S.E. and I.C.S.E. backgrounds.
Another feature of I.B. has now been so often quoted that it has almost become an overused cliché but the fact remains that I.B. was never rote-based. People are surprised to hear this but in the calculation based papers of I.B., like math or physics, we were given formulae sheets carrying all the important formulae during our examinations. Many wonder that if we were given the formulae sheet then how did we not score a hundred percent every time. This to me is an illustration of C.B.S.E. conditioning where questions never tested one’s application of understanding, simply the talent of memorization. We were even allowed to use calculators, and not the simple ones but complex graphing calculators. Enter seven values of ‘x’ into these calculators and they would spit out the mean, median, mode, standard deviation, variance, etc. in a matter of seconds.
But the calculator point brings me the first of the cons of the I.B. as I saw it. The foreign students in my class, especially those from U.S.A. or Canada were highly dependent on their calculators. We on the other hand were used to calculations both mental and written. For even simple calculations like 15 + 21 they would use the calculators while we could do them mentally. Our C.B.S.E. (or I.C.S.E.) education had developed a reasonable calculation skill within us which gave us an upper hand in terms of speed of problem solving as well as the confidence with which we approached the problems.
Another con was the fact the freedom of I.B. spoiled many of us. By the time we passed out of 12th standard, my friends who had done 12th under C.B.S.E. or I.C.S.E. were more or less certain of what they were to do in life and what courses lay ahead of them. I, on the other hand, had no clue. I knew what my interests were and could wax eloquently about the freedom I had experienced by not having to choose a stream. But I was woefully ignorant when it came to career opportunities and Bachelors’ options. I went off to Canada with the intention of doing a B.B.A., shifted halfway to a B.Sc. in astrophysics and returned soon after to India to pursue a B.A. Honors in economics. A friend of mine from my I.B. days went off to Germany intending to learn Biotechnology but around the time I shifted to Astrophysics he shifted to Geophysics. He is now completing his degree in environmental Economics !
This brings me to the second phase of my experience with Indian and Western education. After completing 12th grade I succeeded in gaining admission into one of the well known universities in Canada. This experience was a different one altogether. For one, attendance in classes was not compulsory. There was no daily ritual of calling out names followed by “present sir!” The theory was that since you were paying the university fees by not attending classes you were wasting your own money. However, the university had a complex and well maintained academic network. Each professor put up his or her class notes onto the network after every class. The weekly or monthly tests were often held online, albeit with a time limit and we could take them from our own bedrooms. The university’s library facilities were equally ‘21st century.’ All students were given ‘One-card’ that were the university’s own debit cards. We could charge the one-cards with the amount of money of our choice and this was stored in the magnetic strip of the one-card. The libraries possessed a number of all-in-one printer-scanner-photocopiers that were connected to the computer network. Sit on a computer, find something you want to print, send the command, swipe your one-card, and get it printed; the printing charge would be deducted from your one-card. I must admit it was not as much fun actually studying the notes as it was going to the library and getting them printed out.
In my current university, here in Delhi, on the other hand, there are four photocopy booths spread across the campus. All of them are subject to the availability of electricity. From 12:30 to 2:30 they are all closed because the men manning them are off to lunch and they close by 5:30. If you want something photocopied, you must be ready to stand there with other students (there is never a queue) and nag them till it is done, for if you leave it to them and trust that in four or five hours it will be done, you are quite mistaken. The computer network is often down for some reason or the other, and there are only two computers on which you can search whether the library possesses the book you want or not. Assuming that it does hold that particular book, if you do find it, it will very likely be coated with a layer of dust that gets into your nose and soils your hands and bag. In the University of Alberta, the professors were available almost 24X7 through email, and they had fixed office hours during which we could approach them. Here there are no office hours; it depends on pure chance and timing. The scholarly and intellectual vibes that you would unmistakably feel in the University of Alberta are conspicuous here only by their absence.
I could talk about other things as well, like the fact that how well I score in my exams depends on how many sheets I can fill within three hours or that how there is no board or union where the students can address their problems or the sorry and smelly state of the washrooms; or the hygiene, or lack of it, in the canteens but these are minor issues and I do not mean to disrepute the entire Indian university system on the basis of my experience with two universities, one Canadian and one Indian. What I do notice here is the absence of that ‘x-factor’. The x-factor contains that atmosphere and spirit that enables students to get down and concentrate on their academics rather than being caught up in various grievances and complaints about “the system.” The x-factor contains the enabling of those services and facilities that aid the student in furthering his understanding of the subject of study. It contains the easy availability of the knowledge-imparters to follow up the doubts of the students. In most Indian universities, unfortunately, the x-factor is absent.
So then is it safe to say that the Western system is better than the Indian system? Does the later have nothing to take home? This I cannot say yes to. The answer lies, as it often does in a steady balance of both. The Indian system prepares the student for the essential requirements of hard-work, concentration and dedicated approach. The Western system contains perhaps equally essential requirements of atmosphere enabling and intellectual freedom that are so required in the holistic development of an individual. In my school where I studied under the I.B. curriculum, I knew more about heat and energy than my foreign classmates but they knew more about the working of cars or the dispute between Israel and Palestine, etc. Somewhere between these two extremes is a balance that must be struck. It is as Anurag Mathur, the novelist, writes in his novel- The Inscrutable Americans. The novel explores the experiences of Gopal, a student from a small town in India who goes to an American university:
“For the first time he began to learn the joy of analysis rather than retention. Based upon the core of fundamentals that had been hammered into him- quite often literally- he experimented with leaps of logic. Often he paused uncertainly as though in mid-air, waiting for someone to admonish him and demand that he return to thinking by the book. For the first time in his life he gloried in studying.”
**********
Monday, May 26, 2008
The Business of Education
Shantha Sinha
Poor parents see education as an indispensable asset and are willing to make enormous sacrifices to educate their children. But the government has let down the poor in spite of the constitutional guarantee of right to education.
It must be considered that sending their children to private schools is not the first option for poor parents as they have to make immense sacrifices to pay the school fees and other charges.
A large variety of private schools have emerged to respond to the parental demand for education. Thus, on the one hand there are the inefficient and wasteful government schools struggling for resources, and on the other are the fee-charging one-room English medium private schools with untrained schoolteachers. And at the other end of the spectrum are the air-conditioned corporate schools. Private schools, guided by the logic of the market, have begun to sell their wares "to each according to one’s ability."
This mushrooming of private schools has a profound impact on society as it produces class inequality, fractured society, freezes upward mobility thus causing divisiveness and disharmony.
Most private schools in the country today have emerged as commercial ventures, small or big, successful or limping. This scenario is vastly different from the private schools which had earlier emerged to serve the educational needs of children and were non-profit organisations and charitable trusts that depended on state aid.
Now, in a market framework, services are offered to those children who can buy education. Like any other product, it is now packaged, and comes with children in proper school uniform, English medium education, competition and home-work, discipline of learning, and if better endowed, with picnics, computers and state of the art technology. In their urge to acquire the "brand," clients begin to spend more than what they can afford, just as consumers of any other commodity.
Parallels are drawn from the telecom and airlines industries to show how efficiency was infused in these public sector institutions once they were threatened by the opening up of the sector to more competent players. It has been argued that government schools too have to face the jolt from private players, to make them accountable.
Encouraging private schools as commercial enterprises compromises the principle of universality, for it offers services only to those who can pay. Thus the deprived and the marginalised are automatically out of its net. If left unregulated, the higher end suppliers would foster further exclusion and reinforce class differentiation
Education being a public good must nurture and enhance the principles of inclusion, non-discrimination, equity and justice. It cannot be a commodity for sale to those who can afford it. It must be an entitlement and a right that is guaranteed by the state.
Prof. Shantha Sinha is the chairperson, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights
Courtesy: The Asian Age
Poor parents see education as an indispensable asset and are willing to make enormous sacrifices to educate their children. But the government has let down the poor in spite of the constitutional guarantee of right to education.
It must be considered that sending their children to private schools is not the first option for poor parents as they have to make immense sacrifices to pay the school fees and other charges.
A large variety of private schools have emerged to respond to the parental demand for education. Thus, on the one hand there are the inefficient and wasteful government schools struggling for resources, and on the other are the fee-charging one-room English medium private schools with untrained schoolteachers. And at the other end of the spectrum are the air-conditioned corporate schools. Private schools, guided by the logic of the market, have begun to sell their wares "to each according to one’s ability."
This mushrooming of private schools has a profound impact on society as it produces class inequality, fractured society, freezes upward mobility thus causing divisiveness and disharmony.
Most private schools in the country today have emerged as commercial ventures, small or big, successful or limping. This scenario is vastly different from the private schools which had earlier emerged to serve the educational needs of children and were non-profit organisations and charitable trusts that depended on state aid.
Now, in a market framework, services are offered to those children who can buy education. Like any other product, it is now packaged, and comes with children in proper school uniform, English medium education, competition and home-work, discipline of learning, and if better endowed, with picnics, computers and state of the art technology. In their urge to acquire the "brand," clients begin to spend more than what they can afford, just as consumers of any other commodity.
Parallels are drawn from the telecom and airlines industries to show how efficiency was infused in these public sector institutions once they were threatened by the opening up of the sector to more competent players. It has been argued that government schools too have to face the jolt from private players, to make them accountable.
Encouraging private schools as commercial enterprises compromises the principle of universality, for it offers services only to those who can pay. Thus the deprived and the marginalised are automatically out of its net. If left unregulated, the higher end suppliers would foster further exclusion and reinforce class differentiation
Education being a public good must nurture and enhance the principles of inclusion, non-discrimination, equity and justice. It cannot be a commodity for sale to those who can afford it. It must be an entitlement and a right that is guaranteed by the state.
Prof. Shantha Sinha is the chairperson, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights
Courtesy: The Asian Age
Friday, April 4, 2008
Letter to Parents: Beigining of the Session
[ For prospective principals.Here is a sample letter written to parents who have got their wards new admission to school. It can be modified to meet individual school requirements. I would like to know your response on the idea so that more sample letters may be published for your convenience.]
April 10, 2008
Parents of Students
Class VI
Maxwell Park Secondary School
Dear Parents
As the new school session gets underway it is timely to send you the guidelines and procedures that will be followed this year at Maxwell Park School with respect to homework and unplanned absences.
Uncompleted Class Work
If your child does not complete his/her school work in class, I may require that it be completed at home. In such cases I will send you a special "Classwork at Home" note that will explain what work was not completed in class, and why. I ask you to please sign the bottom portion of that form where indicated, and have your child return it to me when they hand-in the completed work. This will help distinguish incomplete seatwork from regular homework.
Uncompleted Homework
Repeated failure to complete homework may result in the issuance of an Academic Notice. In accordance with school policy, Academic Notices always require a meeting with the parent and administration. If I send such a notice to you, it will request that you telephone me as soon as possible so that we can set up a meeting involving you the parents, me, and the vice-principal.
Missed Homework Due to Absence
Excused absences: Students who are absent due to illness have three days for each full day missed to make up school work that was missed (after he/she returns to school). Students are responsible for completion of all missed schoolwork or they will receive a grade of zero ("0") on assignments missed. If your child is absent more than two days and you would like to pick up any missed homework assignments, please telephone the school office to make arrangements.
Unexcused Absences: Classwork and homework missed due to planned or voluntary absence must be completed and handed-in on the day of return to school. Parents and students must secure assignments in advance of such absences and should inform me in writing at least one week in advance of the planned absence.
Illness At School
Students who appear to become ill during the school day will be sent to the office and a determination will be made by the school nurse whether or not a child should be sent home. If deemed necessary to send the child home, parents will be telephoned at home or at work to make arrangements for pick-up.
I would ask you to please review and take note of the above guidelines and procedures so that we may work together in providing the best possible educational experience for your child this year.
If you have any questions or comments please feel free to call the office at 2457645 and leave a message for me and I will contact you as soon as possible to discuss your concerns.
Yours truly,
Gursharan Singh
Headmaster
April 10, 2008
Parents of Students
Class VI
Maxwell Park Secondary School
Dear Parents
As the new school session gets underway it is timely to send you the guidelines and procedures that will be followed this year at Maxwell Park School with respect to homework and unplanned absences.
Uncompleted Class Work
If your child does not complete his/her school work in class, I may require that it be completed at home. In such cases I will send you a special "Classwork at Home" note that will explain what work was not completed in class, and why. I ask you to please sign the bottom portion of that form where indicated, and have your child return it to me when they hand-in the completed work. This will help distinguish incomplete seatwork from regular homework.
Uncompleted Homework
Repeated failure to complete homework may result in the issuance of an Academic Notice. In accordance with school policy, Academic Notices always require a meeting with the parent and administration. If I send such a notice to you, it will request that you telephone me as soon as possible so that we can set up a meeting involving you the parents, me, and the vice-principal.
Missed Homework Due to Absence
Excused absences: Students who are absent due to illness have three days for each full day missed to make up school work that was missed (after he/she returns to school). Students are responsible for completion of all missed schoolwork or they will receive a grade of zero ("0") on assignments missed. If your child is absent more than two days and you would like to pick up any missed homework assignments, please telephone the school office to make arrangements.
Unexcused Absences: Classwork and homework missed due to planned or voluntary absence must be completed and handed-in on the day of return to school. Parents and students must secure assignments in advance of such absences and should inform me in writing at least one week in advance of the planned absence.
Illness At School
Students who appear to become ill during the school day will be sent to the office and a determination will be made by the school nurse whether or not a child should be sent home. If deemed necessary to send the child home, parents will be telephoned at home or at work to make arrangements for pick-up.
I would ask you to please review and take note of the above guidelines and procedures so that we may work together in providing the best possible educational experience for your child this year.
If you have any questions or comments please feel free to call the office at 2457645 and leave a message for me and I will contact you as soon as possible to discuss your concerns.
Yours truly,
Gursharan Singh
Headmaster
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Teacher Resources
Here is a list of important teacher resource sites where useful information is available.
Education World http://www.education-world.com/ A comprehensive resource which includes a search engine for thousands of educational resources
Education Index http://www.educationindex.com/ An annotated guide to the best education-related sites on the Web. They're sorted by subject and life stage.
Learner Online - http://www.learner.org/ Explore educational resources and activities for teaching and learning on the Annenberg/CPB Project's Learner Online.
TeachNet.com - http://www.teachnet.com/ Daily tips and creative ideas for busy teachers. Website includes lesson plans, teacher-to-teacher resources and education mailing lists.
Education Planet - http://www.educationplanet.com/ Helps teachers, students and parents find a wide variety of the educational resources available on the web.
The Virtual Schoolhouse - www.ibiblio.org/cisco/schoolhouseResources for teachers and administrators.
Education India http://www.education-india.net/
Teacher Pathfinder http://www.teacherpathfinder.org/This is an excellent site for a variety of subject matter. There is a list of the typical subjects and links to different sites on the subjects. This site is a good reference site for teachers to find information on subjects.
Enchanted Learning www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.html
Lesson Planz http://www.lessonplanz.com/
http://arvindguptatoys.balasainet.com/website with entire books on “How to make science teaching interesting” and other education related books uploaded. A must visit for any teacher who wants to know more about progressive work done in the field of education.
http://magazine.crimsonfeet.org/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=17A collection of rare and thought provoking articles on education.
http://www.coreknowledge.org/As you explore this site, you will find lesson plans, articles, and many other resources to help you use them in your classroom and school.
Education World http://www.education-world.com/ A comprehensive resource which includes a search engine for thousands of educational resources
Education Index http://www.educationindex.com/ An annotated guide to the best education-related sites on the Web. They're sorted by subject and life stage.
Learner Online - http://www.learner.org/ Explore educational resources and activities for teaching and learning on the Annenberg/CPB Project's Learner Online.
TeachNet.com - http://www.teachnet.com/ Daily tips and creative ideas for busy teachers. Website includes lesson plans, teacher-to-teacher resources and education mailing lists.
Education Planet - http://www.educationplanet.com/ Helps teachers, students and parents find a wide variety of the educational resources available on the web.
The Virtual Schoolhouse - www.ibiblio.org/cisco/schoolhouseResources for teachers and administrators.
Education India http://www.education-india.net/
Teacher Pathfinder http://www.teacherpathfinder.org/This is an excellent site for a variety of subject matter. There is a list of the typical subjects and links to different sites on the subjects. This site is a good reference site for teachers to find information on subjects.
Enchanted Learning www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.html
Lesson Planz http://www.lessonplanz.com/
http://arvindguptatoys.balasainet.com/website with entire books on “How to make science teaching interesting” and other education related books uploaded. A must visit for any teacher who wants to know more about progressive work done in the field of education.
http://magazine.crimsonfeet.org/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=17A collection of rare and thought provoking articles on education.
http://www.coreknowledge.org/As you explore this site, you will find lesson plans, articles, and many other resources to help you use them in your classroom and school.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Legal Side of Corporal Punishment
The discipline is not taught, it is learnt. The text books give information. The communication through teaching is imparting education. To attain wisdom, an abundant amount of common sense has to be added to education, which then includes discipline. Discipline is an attitude, character, responsibility or commitment. The discipline is basically internal, while the attempt to impose it would be an external process. One has to internalize the process of education and discipline. Discipline and education go together in letter and spirit.
Detailed article by M Shridhar
http://www.legalservicesindia.com/articles/punish.htm
Detailed article by M Shridhar
http://www.legalservicesindia.com/articles/punish.htm
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Children Club in Schools
"The child's mind is in its purest form and has no divisive tendencies. We should let it blossom to the fullest."
- Dr. A.P.J.Kalam, Former President of India.
National Innovation Foundation announces the launch of NIF Creativity and Innovation clubs in schools across the country.
The Objective To have a network of innovation clubs in schools, which will be proactive in supporting and nurturing creative initiatives of children, making them more receptive to the surrounding nature and people around. To imbue in the students, the Honey Bee philosophy, that is to spread knowledge around without harming the interests of the knowledge holder, just like the Honey bee that flies from flower to flower, sucking nectar, pollinating flowers, without harming the flowers in any way
The Plan These school clubs will have two nominated teacher incharges and one student representative of each standard from 7th to 11th. Thus, the club will be managed by five student representatives and two teacher representatives. The other members would comprise of students who have a) submitted interesting ideas/innovations of themselves b) scouted innovations/ideas of others and c) done both. Competitions will be organised in different zones and winners will move on to the next interzonal level and then to the state/national level. After crossing each hurdle (zone/region/state), the student/school will rise in the club hierarchy.
The winners will by default be a part of NIF’s Biennial National Competition. Various engaging activities have been planned for the students like excursions, workshops, walks in rural and urban areas like slums to sensitise them and invoke in them the seven Es propounded by Honey Bee Network and SRISTI (Ethics, Efficiency, Equity, Excellence, Empathy, Education, Environment).
During the summer vacations, schools will nominate students to attend an educational excursion (7 days) wherein they would be exposed to/will undertake the following activities.
.
1) Orientation about scouting & documentation
2) Methods of data collection (plant samples, building case studies etc)
3) Mentored pilot field visit
4) Field visit for data collection
5) Compilation of collected data
6) Presentation and award/certificate distribution
- Dr. A.P.J.Kalam, Former President of India.
National Innovation Foundation announces the launch of NIF Creativity and Innovation clubs in schools across the country.
The Objective To have a network of innovation clubs in schools, which will be proactive in supporting and nurturing creative initiatives of children, making them more receptive to the surrounding nature and people around. To imbue in the students, the Honey Bee philosophy, that is to spread knowledge around without harming the interests of the knowledge holder, just like the Honey bee that flies from flower to flower, sucking nectar, pollinating flowers, without harming the flowers in any way
The Plan These school clubs will have two nominated teacher incharges and one student representative of each standard from 7th to 11th. Thus, the club will be managed by five student representatives and two teacher representatives. The other members would comprise of students who have a) submitted interesting ideas/innovations of themselves b) scouted innovations/ideas of others and c) done both. Competitions will be organised in different zones and winners will move on to the next interzonal level and then to the state/national level. After crossing each hurdle (zone/region/state), the student/school will rise in the club hierarchy.
The winners will by default be a part of NIF’s Biennial National Competition. Various engaging activities have been planned for the students like excursions, workshops, walks in rural and urban areas like slums to sensitise them and invoke in them the seven Es propounded by Honey Bee Network and SRISTI (Ethics, Efficiency, Equity, Excellence, Empathy, Education, Environment).
During the summer vacations, schools will nominate students to attend an educational excursion (7 days) wherein they would be exposed to/will undertake the following activities.
.
1) Orientation about scouting & documentation
2) Methods of data collection (plant samples, building case studies etc)
3) Mentored pilot field visit
4) Field visit for data collection
5) Compilation of collected data
6) Presentation and award/certificate distribution
Making a school a place of peace is an achievement of a co-operative effort and the commitment of the whole staff under the supportive leadership of a competent school principal. The degree of the success depends upon the extent of support given by the staff. However, this is not to deny the strength of the individual teachers as change agents. There are illustrious instances where a single teacher has been able to change the whole school. Even such an effort involves winning the staff support.
Suppose you are a principal who wants to improve the quality of education through peace education. How are you going to win the staff support? Naturally it has to be achieved gradually through a process of staff development. Usually when the hierarchy tries to introduce a change the subordinates tend to resist. It is simply because people are reluctant to move away from their status quo or their established positions of present mindset and behaviour. Therefore the change has to be introduced with care, gentleness and tact in a way that nobody feels threatened.
1. Start it with yourself
Only a changed person can change others. The inward change flows naturally outward. The genuineness of it affects the social climate and permeates throughout the organization. The principal needs to be a role model of the innovation he intends to introduce to his school. Here he has to develop the qualities of peaceful behaviour such as being positive, genuine, compassionate, co-operative, empathetic and assertive when necessary. He has to create a sense of belongingness and appreciation through building teachers' self-esteem and confidence. As a leader he behaves in such a manner so as to bring out the best in people whom he comes into contact. Through providing positive reinforcement by praising, encouraging and developing trust. When such a principal shows interest in a certain change the staff tends to support him.
2. Provide literature, handbooks and guides on peace education to the staff.
Every innovation has a knowledge base. To effect the innovation the knowledge pertaining to it needs to be imparted to the actors. For this effect the school needs to collect some good books, guides and other reading materials for the study of the teachers. Sometimes mere availability of the books in the school library will not draw teachers' attention. Introducing good books to the staff can encourage such selected reading.
3. Organize staff seminars on peace education
It would be very useful to provide good training to the staff or at least to a group of the staff. The school can organize in-house programmes to provide training by inviting suitable resource persons from outside. Sometimes the school can rely on those teachers who are interested in the innovation and gain experience by applying the available knowledge.4. Appoint an interest group
The school needs to have a committed group to work for the innovation. Fortunately many schools have teachers who love peace and want to do something about it. Such groups need to be developed and strengthened. If they could be formed as a committee they can serve the school better by taking the lead under the principal's guidance.
5. Decide activities
For instance, the committee can undertake to plan, organize and implement staff development activities in peace education. The activities should be based on the felt needs of the staff in the area of innovation.Examples for staff development activities:* Develop a school policy for peace education in collaboration with the staff, which will provide a guideline for action.* Conduct school research and development work for the school.* Design and conduct pilot projects in peace education. * Organize in-house teacher development activities such as seminars, experience-sharing meetings, and lectures on relevant issues (e.g. ways of eliminating bullying in the college campus, identifying the school's hidden curriculum, ways of developing discipline, new methods of building students' self-esteem, new strategies the school can adopt to build peace culture, ways of identifying peace concepts in the curriculum)* Organize model lessons regularly.* Develop teaching aids for peace education.* Encourage and facilitate teachers to write and produce peace drama.* Organize film and video shows for the staff on peace education.
As the above list shows a variety of interesting activities are available for staff development. It is more effective when teachers themselves take the responsibility and initiative in organizing such activities for themselves. In fact teachers themselves should take the ownership of staff development. Another important principle in staff development is that it should be a continuous process. Staff development is crucially important to the school because it directly contributes to the quality improvement of teaching and learning.
6. Implement the plan
The committee has to implement the plan regularly. One of the constraints for school-based staff development is the time available. In certain countries arrangements for staff development have been made by making the staff stay after school hours. In many schools the staff can be motivated to stay willingly after school for a short period of time for the sake of their own professional development. If they find the sessions useful they tend to participate. However, there are staff development activities, which can be done in the form of on the job iruining. Examples: model lessons, understudy, quality circle discussions, research and development activities, peer support, etc.
7. Evaluate
The effectiveness of the programme has to be evaluated to develop it further. They need not be so formal in many instances. What is necessary is .;o get teachers' feedback and suggestions for improvement.Concluding Thoughts
An innovation in a school should begin with staff development. Teachers need to understand the goals, concepts, and methods of peace education. The need can be fulfilled through in-service training by the authorities. Schools themselves can do this through school-based staff development mode.Things To Do1. Do an informal attitude survey of your colleagues about the need of peace education. Do a critical analysis of their attitudes.2. What are the criticisms they have on peace educations, as they know it now?3. What types of staff development are most suitable, correct and improve their attitudes?
Courtesy http://www.ncte-in.org/pub/unesco/ch7.htm
Suppose you are a principal who wants to improve the quality of education through peace education. How are you going to win the staff support? Naturally it has to be achieved gradually through a process of staff development. Usually when the hierarchy tries to introduce a change the subordinates tend to resist. It is simply because people are reluctant to move away from their status quo or their established positions of present mindset and behaviour. Therefore the change has to be introduced with care, gentleness and tact in a way that nobody feels threatened.
1. Start it with yourself
Only a changed person can change others. The inward change flows naturally outward. The genuineness of it affects the social climate and permeates throughout the organization. The principal needs to be a role model of the innovation he intends to introduce to his school. Here he has to develop the qualities of peaceful behaviour such as being positive, genuine, compassionate, co-operative, empathetic and assertive when necessary. He has to create a sense of belongingness and appreciation through building teachers' self-esteem and confidence. As a leader he behaves in such a manner so as to bring out the best in people whom he comes into contact. Through providing positive reinforcement by praising, encouraging and developing trust. When such a principal shows interest in a certain change the staff tends to support him.
2. Provide literature, handbooks and guides on peace education to the staff.
Every innovation has a knowledge base. To effect the innovation the knowledge pertaining to it needs to be imparted to the actors. For this effect the school needs to collect some good books, guides and other reading materials for the study of the teachers. Sometimes mere availability of the books in the school library will not draw teachers' attention. Introducing good books to the staff can encourage such selected reading.
3. Organize staff seminars on peace education
It would be very useful to provide good training to the staff or at least to a group of the staff. The school can organize in-house programmes to provide training by inviting suitable resource persons from outside. Sometimes the school can rely on those teachers who are interested in the innovation and gain experience by applying the available knowledge.4. Appoint an interest group
The school needs to have a committed group to work for the innovation. Fortunately many schools have teachers who love peace and want to do something about it. Such groups need to be developed and strengthened. If they could be formed as a committee they can serve the school better by taking the lead under the principal's guidance.
5. Decide activities
For instance, the committee can undertake to plan, organize and implement staff development activities in peace education. The activities should be based on the felt needs of the staff in the area of innovation.Examples for staff development activities:* Develop a school policy for peace education in collaboration with the staff, which will provide a guideline for action.* Conduct school research and development work for the school.* Design and conduct pilot projects in peace education. * Organize in-house teacher development activities such as seminars, experience-sharing meetings, and lectures on relevant issues (e.g. ways of eliminating bullying in the college campus, identifying the school's hidden curriculum, ways of developing discipline, new methods of building students' self-esteem, new strategies the school can adopt to build peace culture, ways of identifying peace concepts in the curriculum)* Organize model lessons regularly.* Develop teaching aids for peace education.* Encourage and facilitate teachers to write and produce peace drama.* Organize film and video shows for the staff on peace education.
As the above list shows a variety of interesting activities are available for staff development. It is more effective when teachers themselves take the responsibility and initiative in organizing such activities for themselves. In fact teachers themselves should take the ownership of staff development. Another important principle in staff development is that it should be a continuous process. Staff development is crucially important to the school because it directly contributes to the quality improvement of teaching and learning.
6. Implement the plan
The committee has to implement the plan regularly. One of the constraints for school-based staff development is the time available. In certain countries arrangements for staff development have been made by making the staff stay after school hours. In many schools the staff can be motivated to stay willingly after school for a short period of time for the sake of their own professional development. If they find the sessions useful they tend to participate. However, there are staff development activities, which can be done in the form of on the job iruining. Examples: model lessons, understudy, quality circle discussions, research and development activities, peer support, etc.
7. Evaluate
The effectiveness of the programme has to be evaluated to develop it further. They need not be so formal in many instances. What is necessary is .;o get teachers' feedback and suggestions for improvement.Concluding Thoughts
An innovation in a school should begin with staff development. Teachers need to understand the goals, concepts, and methods of peace education. The need can be fulfilled through in-service training by the authorities. Schools themselves can do this through school-based staff development mode.Things To Do1. Do an informal attitude survey of your colleagues about the need of peace education. Do a critical analysis of their attitudes.2. What are the criticisms they have on peace educations, as they know it now?3. What types of staff development are most suitable, correct and improve their attitudes?
Courtesy http://www.ncte-in.org/pub/unesco/ch7.htm
AIDS Education in Schools-1
Although the AIDS epidemic is well into its third decade, basic AIDS education remains fundamental to the global effort to prevent HIV transmission. AIDS education is also vitally important for young people, however, and the school offers a crucial point-of-contact for their receiving this education. Giving AIDS education in schools, however, is sometimes a contentious issue but as vital as controversial.
Many young people lack basic information about HIV and AIDS, and are unaware of the ways in which HIV infection can occur, and of the ways in which HIV infection can be prevented. Schools are an excellent point of contact for young people – almost all young people attend school for some part of their childhood, and while they are there, they expect to learn new information, and are more receptive to it than they might be in another environment.
Most young people become sexually active in their teens, and by the time this occurs then need to know how to prevent themselves becoming infected with HIV
Traditionally, the responsibility of teaching a young person about ‘the birds and the bees’ has been seen as being a parental one. In these days of HIV, however, this type of basic information about reproduction is insufficient and will not give young people the information they need to be able to protect themselves. Parents may not provide even this limited information, even, because they are too embarrassed, or because their beliefs oppose it. Young people, too, may be embarrassed discussing sexual matters in a situation where their parents are present – at school, they are in a situation where they are independent, and not subject to parental disapproval.
The principal reason that AIDS education in schools is so important is that all over the world, a huge amount of young people still become infected with HIV.
The main obstacle to effective AIDS education for young people in schools is the adults who determine the curriculum. These adults – parents, curriculum planners, teachers or legislators – often consider the subject to be too ‘adult’ for young people – they have an idea of ‘protecting the innocence’ of young people.
There is also obstruction to adequate AIDS education from adults who are concerned that teaching young people about sex, about sexually transmitted infections, HIV and pregnancy – that providing them with this information will somehow encourage young people to begin having sex when they otherwise might not have done.
It is within the context of these attitudes and beliefs that teachers and educators must work to provide the most effective information and education they are able to.
AIDS education should start at about seven or eight years of age. When working with very young people, this type of education does not necessarily need to involve learning about sexual activities or drugs, but should at least teach children that 'AIDS' is not a pejorative term of abuse. Playground name-calling, to some extent, reflects attitudes in general society, but it can also grow up to become discrimination.
Planning a good curriculum
In an academic situation, especially with younger learners, some subjects fail to impart information to the students simply because the students are not interested, and do not pay attention. This is unlikely to be the case with AIDS education; the simple fact that AIDS education involves the discussion of sex – a topic of fascination for young people who are discovering their own sexualities – is likely
Active learning
It is not enough to simply give students information about HIV and AIDS for them to learn. The learning-by-rote approach common in traditional academic settings provides students with information but does not allow them to absorb the social and practical aspects of how this information might be put to use. AIDS education should never involve pupils sitting silently, writing and memorising facts.
Active learning offers an opportunity to make AIDS education lessons fun
‘Active learning’ approaches are now seen as the most effective way that young people can learn health-related and social-skills. Group-work and role-play are particularly important methods in which students might discover the practical aspects of the information they are given.Active learning, furthermore, offers an opportunity to make AIDS education lessons fun. AIDS education classes can be constructed to involve quizzes, games, or drama, for example – and can still be very effective learning sessions.
Involving parents and guardians
Many schools already have a good deal of input from parents and families of their pupils, and this input may go as far as being allowed to determine the content of the curriculum. If possible, it is usually advantageous to involve the parents and guardians in the planning process, before an AIDS education curriculum is decided – parents who have already agreed the content that their children will study are unlikely to complain about it’s being unsuitable.
Outside agencies or organisations may also be able to make a positive contribution to an AIDS education curriculum in a way that the school’s internal resources will not. Some local health agencies will offer talks within a school, as will some local HIV organisations. Check out what is available. This has the additional advantage of building a bridge between the pupils and an external source of help or advice.
Considering cultures
Planning an AIDS education syllabus should involve some consideration of the culture in which the learners live. Many cultures have a specific and well-defined set of views on human sexuality, and even at an early age, young learners will have been influenced by them. The culture of the learners is an ever-present factor in the classroom, and this culture provides the context in which AIDS education must take place.
Making it cross-curricular
HIV and AIDS education is often provided that deals only with medical and biological facts, and not with the real-life situations that young people find themselves in AIDS should also not be looked at from an entirely social perspective, either – effective AIDS education needs to take into account the fact that both scientific and social knowledge are vital to providing a pupil with adequate AIDS awareness. There is much more to HIV prevention than simply imparting the basic facts. Knowing how the virus reproduces, for example, won’t help someone to negotiate condom use. AIDS education must be a balance of scientific knowledge and social skills.
The process of educating young people about AIDS can be a challenging one. Even if all the factors mentioned above are considered, a lesson can be unsuccessful if the teachers is inadequately prepared, uncomfortable or uncommitted. Anyone who has experienced the education system is aware that the atmosphere within a lesson is key to students retention of the course information.
Teaching the teachers
AIDS education necessarily involves some detailed discussion of sexual matters. If teachers are uncomfortable with this, they will convey this discomfort to the class – and the message that ‘sex is not nice to talk about ’ is the precise opposite of what AIDS education aims to convey. Before taking an AIDS education class, teachers need to be clear on their own feelings and beliefs as they relate to sex, death, illness and drug use.
Teachers also need to feel that they are entirely clear on the information that they will be passing on – they need to feel confident that they are able to answer any questions that might be asked. In India, for example, where estimates suggest that more than 2 million people are living with HIV, 70% of teachers have been given no training or information at all 2.
Listening to the learners
It is also important to recognise that the young people who make up the class may be uncomfortable with the subject – for cultural or personal reasons. Learners cannot be compelled to feel comfortable, but can be induced. Some basic tips that can help to decrease discomfort are :
In spite of all the efforts that the past two decades have seen in AIDS prevention, the epidemic still presents a serious challenge to societies around the world. Every year, increasing numbers of people globally are infected with HIV, and people continue to die. AIDS education for young people is a crucial weapon in the HIV-prevention arsenal, young people are one of the main groups who must be targeted, and the school is the most important means of reaching them.
Many young people lack basic information about HIV and AIDS, and are unaware of the ways in which HIV infection can occur, and of the ways in which HIV infection can be prevented. Schools are an excellent point of contact for young people – almost all young people attend school for some part of their childhood, and while they are there, they expect to learn new information, and are more receptive to it than they might be in another environment.
Most young people become sexually active in their teens, and by the time this occurs then need to know how to prevent themselves becoming infected with HIV
Traditionally, the responsibility of teaching a young person about ‘the birds and the bees’ has been seen as being a parental one. In these days of HIV, however, this type of basic information about reproduction is insufficient and will not give young people the information they need to be able to protect themselves. Parents may not provide even this limited information, even, because they are too embarrassed, or because their beliefs oppose it. Young people, too, may be embarrassed discussing sexual matters in a situation where their parents are present – at school, they are in a situation where they are independent, and not subject to parental disapproval.
The principal reason that AIDS education in schools is so important is that all over the world, a huge amount of young people still become infected with HIV.
The main obstacle to effective AIDS education for young people in schools is the adults who determine the curriculum. These adults – parents, curriculum planners, teachers or legislators – often consider the subject to be too ‘adult’ for young people – they have an idea of ‘protecting the innocence’ of young people.
There is also obstruction to adequate AIDS education from adults who are concerned that teaching young people about sex, about sexually transmitted infections, HIV and pregnancy – that providing them with this information will somehow encourage young people to begin having sex when they otherwise might not have done.
It is within the context of these attitudes and beliefs that teachers and educators must work to provide the most effective information and education they are able to.
AIDS education should start at about seven or eight years of age. When working with very young people, this type of education does not necessarily need to involve learning about sexual activities or drugs, but should at least teach children that 'AIDS' is not a pejorative term of abuse. Playground name-calling, to some extent, reflects attitudes in general society, but it can also grow up to become discrimination.
Planning a good curriculum
In an academic situation, especially with younger learners, some subjects fail to impart information to the students simply because the students are not interested, and do not pay attention. This is unlikely to be the case with AIDS education; the simple fact that AIDS education involves the discussion of sex – a topic of fascination for young people who are discovering their own sexualities – is likely
Active learning
It is not enough to simply give students information about HIV and AIDS for them to learn. The learning-by-rote approach common in traditional academic settings provides students with information but does not allow them to absorb the social and practical aspects of how this information might be put to use. AIDS education should never involve pupils sitting silently, writing and memorising facts.
Active learning offers an opportunity to make AIDS education lessons fun
‘Active learning’ approaches are now seen as the most effective way that young people can learn health-related and social-skills. Group-work and role-play are particularly important methods in which students might discover the practical aspects of the information they are given.Active learning, furthermore, offers an opportunity to make AIDS education lessons fun. AIDS education classes can be constructed to involve quizzes, games, or drama, for example – and can still be very effective learning sessions.
Involving parents and guardians
Many schools already have a good deal of input from parents and families of their pupils, and this input may go as far as being allowed to determine the content of the curriculum. If possible, it is usually advantageous to involve the parents and guardians in the planning process, before an AIDS education curriculum is decided – parents who have already agreed the content that their children will study are unlikely to complain about it’s being unsuitable.
Outside agencies or organisations may also be able to make a positive contribution to an AIDS education curriculum in a way that the school’s internal resources will not. Some local health agencies will offer talks within a school, as will some local HIV organisations. Check out what is available. This has the additional advantage of building a bridge between the pupils and an external source of help or advice.
Considering cultures
Planning an AIDS education syllabus should involve some consideration of the culture in which the learners live. Many cultures have a specific and well-defined set of views on human sexuality, and even at an early age, young learners will have been influenced by them. The culture of the learners is an ever-present factor in the classroom, and this culture provides the context in which AIDS education must take place.
Making it cross-curricular
HIV and AIDS education is often provided that deals only with medical and biological facts, and not with the real-life situations that young people find themselves in AIDS should also not be looked at from an entirely social perspective, either – effective AIDS education needs to take into account the fact that both scientific and social knowledge are vital to providing a pupil with adequate AIDS awareness. There is much more to HIV prevention than simply imparting the basic facts. Knowing how the virus reproduces, for example, won’t help someone to negotiate condom use. AIDS education must be a balance of scientific knowledge and social skills.
The process of educating young people about AIDS can be a challenging one. Even if all the factors mentioned above are considered, a lesson can be unsuccessful if the teachers is inadequately prepared, uncomfortable or uncommitted. Anyone who has experienced the education system is aware that the atmosphere within a lesson is key to students retention of the course information.
Teaching the teachers
AIDS education necessarily involves some detailed discussion of sexual matters. If teachers are uncomfortable with this, they will convey this discomfort to the class – and the message that ‘sex is not nice to talk about ’ is the precise opposite of what AIDS education aims to convey. Before taking an AIDS education class, teachers need to be clear on their own feelings and beliefs as they relate to sex, death, illness and drug use.
Teachers also need to feel that they are entirely clear on the information that they will be passing on – they need to feel confident that they are able to answer any questions that might be asked. In India, for example, where estimates suggest that more than 2 million people are living with HIV, 70% of teachers have been given no training or information at all 2.
Listening to the learners
It is also important to recognise that the young people who make up the class may be uncomfortable with the subject – for cultural or personal reasons. Learners cannot be compelled to feel comfortable, but can be induced. Some basic tips that can help to decrease discomfort are :
In spite of all the efforts that the past two decades have seen in AIDS prevention, the epidemic still presents a serious challenge to societies around the world. Every year, increasing numbers of people globally are infected with HIV, and people continue to die. AIDS education for young people is a crucial weapon in the HIV-prevention arsenal, young people are one of the main groups who must be targeted, and the school is the most important means of reaching them.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Importance of Sports in School
The importance of sports in the life of a young student is invaluable and goes much further than the basic answer that "it keeps kids off the streets." It does in fact keep kids off the streets, but it also instills lessons that are essential in the life of a student athlete. Sports play a pivotal role in the makeup of a young athlete, especially in the middle school to high school years where student-athletes are much more mature and mentally developed. Where else can a young, impressionable youth learn values like discipline, responsibility, self-confidence, sacrifice, and accountability?
Television, which may be the most influential tool in the lives of young adults, does not show enough of these qualities,nor is it on the Internet, or radio. Rather it is up to the parents, teachers, sports teams, clubs, and after school programs to help mold, develop, and instill these qualities into the lives of student athletes. I believe in order for this to happen, school sports programs must have a few components in place. The first thing they need is a good core of coaches that understand the great responsibility that is placed upon their shoulders to help shape and prepare these student-athletes not only in sports, but in their everyday lives. Yes, I did say coaches, because it is a responsibility that lies on the shoulders of more than one person and it is going to take more than one person to help lead these student-athletes to success. The second component also involves the coach
By Lisa Dunning, MA, MFT
High school is a time to make friends, get good grades, participate in activities and prepare for the future. Unfortunately, due to budget cuts, some schools have opted out of high school sports, believing that money would be better spent on academics. I understand that academics come first, but sacrificing high school sports lessens every child's high school experience, their ability to perform at optimum academic levels and develop into a well-rounded adult.
The Importance of High School Sports Can Be Found in Elementary School During a child's elementary school years, children typically lose their recess privileges as a consequence to poor behavior. This consequence can have the opposite of the desired effect. Recess is the place where kids let out their aggression and release frustration and anger, allowing the children to better cope with the aspects of school they do not enjoy.
High School Sports Promote Bonding and Encouragement
What many administrators, teachers and parents fail to realize is that high school sports offer teenagers the same outlet. Participating in high school sports is important for motor skill development, maintaining a healthy exercise program and provides for a release of anger when the academic stressors become overwhelming. When youth participate in high school sports they release endorphins which helps decrease depression and increases energy. Most high schools, if not all, require at least a C average to participate in these sports, which provides the child with accountability. High school sports increase bonding between children and their parents when parents help with skills and come to games to cheer their child on.
High School Sports Boost Overall Morale And Support
High school sports offer a release that is needed for every student. High School Sports enables the entire school to come together, whether playing, or observing, to cheer for their school. If your child is having difficulty making friends encourage them to join a high school activity or to go to a game and cheer for their school. It boosts school morale when students meet to cheer for their team. While offering an enjoyable distraction from the stressors of school, teenager's negative perception of school as a place akin to a prison is replaced with increased school pride. This increased interest in school generally results in increased enjoyment in academics, resulting in better overall test scores and grades.
Adults Look Back on High School Sports Fondly
When adults look back on their time in school many do not remember their teachers, classes or grades but they do remember the high school sports they participated in or observed. They often look back on these memories fondly and look forward to their children having similar experiences. Encourage your teenager's high school to keep high school sports around so every teenager can have a better overall high school experience.
Lisa Dunning is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Specializing in Parent/Child Relationship issues, the author of "Good Parents Bad Parenting: How To Parent Together When Your Parenting Styles Are Worlds Apart" and the host of her own radio show, "Life Support". She provides marriage, divorce and parenting phone sessions to clientele across the United States and Canada and provides expert parenting advice to newspaper & magazine columnists. To learn more about Lisa Dunning visit her website at http://www.lisadunningmft.com/.
Television, which may be the most influential tool in the lives of young adults, does not show enough of these qualities,nor is it on the Internet, or radio. Rather it is up to the parents, teachers, sports teams, clubs, and after school programs to help mold, develop, and instill these qualities into the lives of student athletes. I believe in order for this to happen, school sports programs must have a few components in place. The first thing they need is a good core of coaches that understand the great responsibility that is placed upon their shoulders to help shape and prepare these student-athletes not only in sports, but in their everyday lives. Yes, I did say coaches, because it is a responsibility that lies on the shoulders of more than one person and it is going to take more than one person to help lead these student-athletes to success. The second component also involves the coach
By Lisa Dunning, MA, MFT
High school is a time to make friends, get good grades, participate in activities and prepare for the future. Unfortunately, due to budget cuts, some schools have opted out of high school sports, believing that money would be better spent on academics. I understand that academics come first, but sacrificing high school sports lessens every child's high school experience, their ability to perform at optimum academic levels and develop into a well-rounded adult.
The Importance of High School Sports Can Be Found in Elementary School During a child's elementary school years, children typically lose their recess privileges as a consequence to poor behavior. This consequence can have the opposite of the desired effect. Recess is the place where kids let out their aggression and release frustration and anger, allowing the children to better cope with the aspects of school they do not enjoy.
High School Sports Promote Bonding and Encouragement
What many administrators, teachers and parents fail to realize is that high school sports offer teenagers the same outlet. Participating in high school sports is important for motor skill development, maintaining a healthy exercise program and provides for a release of anger when the academic stressors become overwhelming. When youth participate in high school sports they release endorphins which helps decrease depression and increases energy. Most high schools, if not all, require at least a C average to participate in these sports, which provides the child with accountability. High school sports increase bonding between children and their parents when parents help with skills and come to games to cheer their child on.
High School Sports Boost Overall Morale And Support
High school sports offer a release that is needed for every student. High School Sports enables the entire school to come together, whether playing, or observing, to cheer for their school. If your child is having difficulty making friends encourage them to join a high school activity or to go to a game and cheer for their school. It boosts school morale when students meet to cheer for their team. While offering an enjoyable distraction from the stressors of school, teenager's negative perception of school as a place akin to a prison is replaced with increased school pride. This increased interest in school generally results in increased enjoyment in academics, resulting in better overall test scores and grades.
Adults Look Back on High School Sports Fondly
When adults look back on their time in school many do not remember their teachers, classes or grades but they do remember the high school sports they participated in or observed. They often look back on these memories fondly and look forward to their children having similar experiences. Encourage your teenager's high school to keep high school sports around so every teenager can have a better overall high school experience.
Lisa Dunning is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Specializing in Parent/Child Relationship issues, the author of "Good Parents Bad Parenting: How To Parent Together When Your Parenting Styles Are Worlds Apart" and the host of her own radio show, "Life Support". She provides marriage, divorce and parenting phone sessions to clientele across the United States and Canada and provides expert parenting advice to newspaper & magazine columnists. To learn more about Lisa Dunning visit her website at http://www.lisadunningmft.com/.
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