PRINCIPALS’ PERSPECTIVES

ON

EMERGING TRENDS IN EDUCATION

Gurugram Progressive Schools Council

&

CBSE Sahodaya School Complexes

(Gurugram Chapter)

PREFACE

“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those

who prepare for it today.” - Malcolm X, Social Activist

One of the greatest things about education is that it is reflective.

‘Principals’ Perspectives on Emerging Trends in Education’ reflects

upon the major trends that influence the transforming face of education

in the 21st century and conversely, the potential of education to influence

these trends. It is our first humble attempt at documenting our ideas and

thoughts on Emerging Trends in Education.

The articles compiled herein identify the factors affecting the desirable

future of formal education for creating self-directed lifelong learners.

The book examines the challenges posed by the ever-changing

paradigms of education and highlights the infinite possibilities to

overcome the hurdles.

We hope that the readers will find the articles stimulating and thought-

provoking.

Happy Reading!

The Editorial Team

Gurugram Progressive Schools Council

28th May 2016

INDEX

S. NO. CONTENT PAGE No.

Theme : Classroom Pedagogy 1-10

1 Thinking Classroom - Developing Critical Thinking by Ms. Yasmin Contractor 2-5

2 The Art of Effective Communication by Ms. Anjali Nagpal 6-8

3 The Importance of Vocational Education by Ms. Sangeeta Saxena 9-10

Theme : Life Skills 11-23

1 Skilled for Life by Ms. Rupa Chakravarty 12-14

2 Challenges for Schools in Skill Development Courses by Dr. (Mrs.) Indu Khetarpal 15-16

3 The Intangibles of Education - An Appraisal by Ms. Arti Chopra 17-18

4 Finding Social and Emotional Balance in Schools by Ms. Sandhya Awasthi 19-21

5 Motivation is the Key to Success by Ms. Sunita Budhwar 22-23

Theme : Value Education 24-31

1 Value Education - Worthy Investment by Ms. Aparna Erry 25-26

2 Creating Paradise by Ms. C. Dhawan 27

3 Infusing Moral Values Amongst Youngsters by Ms. Kanchan Malik 28

4 Value Education - Lifelong Learning by Ms. Sangita Sabarwal 29

5 Grooming Responsible Citizens by Ms. Manisha Singh 30-31

Theme : Inclusive Education 32-36

1 Inclusive Education : A Practitioner’s Perspective by Ms. Anita Makkar 33-34

2 Bridging the Achievement Gap by Ms. Shalini Bajaj 35-36

Theme : Technology In Education 37-43

1 Cloud Computing : The Inception of A New Era by Ms. Neelima Prakash 38-41

2 Digital Classrooms by Ms. Rani Rai 42-43

Theme : Parenting: The Art & Science of Nurturing 44-50

1 Understanding Adolescence by Ms. Nirmal Yadav 45-46

2 Parent School Partnership by Ms. Aditi Misra 47-48

3 Building Bridges : A Principal’s Perspective by Ms. Ujwal Malhotra 49-50

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Classroom Pedagogy

2

Thinking Classrooms: Developing Critical Thinking

Yasmin Contractor

Principal Summer Fields School, DLF, Gurgaon

“Virtually everyone would agree that a primary, yet insufficiently met, goal of schooling is to enable student to think critically”: - Daniel T. Willingham. The importance of developing critical thinking cannot be overemphasized. It is, and must remain, the foremost goal of teaching. Various studies indicate, that while almost 89% teachers claim that development of critical thinking in learners is their primary objective, only 8% teachers use critical thinking standards in their assessment techniques. Very few are able to define or conduct lessons based on developing critical thinking. According to a study based on core skills and competencies conducted by the British Council, Critical thinking is defined as “Self-directed thinking that produces new and innovative ideas to solve problems. Reflecting critically on learning experiences and processes and making effective decision by avoiding the common pitfalls such as seeing only one side of an issue, discounting new evidence that disconfirms your ideas, reasoning from passion rather than logic, failing to support statements with evidence and so on”. What is a Thinking Classroom? A Thinking Classroom is a place where creative and critical thinking is developed in students and they are able to enhance their understanding of the subjects. Not only does critical thinking lead to a deeper understanding across all subjects, it is the key to intelligent learning and problem solving. The important questions to ponder over are:

• Can critical thinking be taught? • Is it a skill? • Is it only for older students? • Can it be learnt? • Is it only specific to a few subjects?

These questions frequently come in the minds of teachers & leave them perplexed for want of specific answers. Critical thinking is not a skill – it cannot be taught but it can be developed through practice and is dependent on domain knowledge. Thinking classrooms have several critical compositions. Students should be empowered to ask questions rather than only answering them. A conducive environment has to be created in the classroom in which students freely raise doubts related to the subject matter. It has been found that students who ask more questions perform better academically. When students know how to ask questions, they take greater ownership of their learning, deepen comprehension and make connections and discoveries of their own. We can stimulate higher order thinking in a classroom, by asking the right questions – more of ‘why & how’ questions and fewer of ‘what and when’ questions. Critical thinking requires analytical questioning on areas like purpose, concepts and ideas, points of view, assumptions, information, inferences and conclusions.

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The following are the different categories of questioning: Clarity : Could you elaborate further? Accuracy : How could we verify or test that?

Precision : Could you be more specific? Relevance : How does that relate to the problem?

Depth : What are some of the difficulties we need to deal with? Breadth : Do we need to look at this from another perspective ?

Logic :Could you state reasons for your views? Significance: Is this the central idea to focus on?

Fairness : Am I representing the view point of others fairly ? J.T. Dillon in ‘Questioning and Teaching, a Manual of Practice’, has rightly emphasized on ‘sustaining the question by reinforcing and rewarding perplexity and the spirit of inquiry’. Critical thinking in the classroom can be enhanced if the teacher prepares the lessons thoughtfully by keeping the following in mind:

• Providing students a place for creating questions

• Periodically asking students to write down the questions they have, about the topic being studied

• Structuring a lecture, discussion, or assessment focusing on students questions

• Encouraging students to question the teacher or other students during discussions

• Teaching students to question texts and other instructional material

5-Step Model to Move Students towards Critical Thinking Step 1: Determine learning objectives

• Define behavior that students are expected to exhibit

• Target behaviour in working/focusing on developing higher order thinking skills. Step 2: Teach through questioning

• Develop appropriate questions

• Employ effective questioning techniques

• Encourage interactive discussion Step 3: Practice before you assess

• Choose activities that promote active learning

• Utilize all components of active learning Step 4: Review, refine and improve

• Monitor class activities

• Obtain feedback from students Step 5: Provide feedback and assessment of learning

• Create opportunities for self-assessment • Provide feedback to students • Utilize feedback to improve instruction

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The use of the 5-step framework may help students develop critical thinking skills and necessitate a fundamental change in instructional techniques from that of the traditional lecture-based format. Such efforts will most likely result in learning experiences which are both more enjoyable and valuable to students and teachers alike. Some of the reasons why both, students and the teacher, do not think critically are as follows:

• There are too many facts to be remembered, too little conceptualizing. • There is too much memorizing, too little thinking.

• Lecture method and conventional teaching techniques do not focus on critical thinking. • Students are not “trained” to think It is imperative for the teachers to understand that classroom teaching goes beyond simple engagements. An important component of a thinking classroom is providing stimulus to engage the students. A well-established brain research has confirmed certain facts about inter student variability in learning. Children do not learn in identical ways, an enriched environment for one student is not necessarily enriching for another. Students differ as learners in terms of backgrounds, experiences, cultures, languages and interests. These facts influence their learning behaviour, comprehension, problem solving and critical thinking. Understanding the learning styles of students helps a teacher in classroom teaching. The way a child learns, affects his/ her entire personality and development. This understanding helps teachers to differentiate instructions and hence helps the teachers and students to communicate better. What does a Thinking Classroom look like? In a Thinking Classroom students are questioning, reasoning, debating, seeking alternative solutions, looking beyond the obvious, exploring causes and explanations and seeing things from different perspectives. Hence, the students in a Thinking classroom are able to:- • give examples and evidences.

• produce reasons and arguments from multiple perspectives. • find new and effective ways to apply knowledge.

• anticipate potential consequences. • demand and provide proof.

• make plan, set goals and standards. • anticipate obstacles

• use diagrams, graph, and organizers to illustrate ideas and concepts The greatest sign of success for a teacher is to be able to say, in the words of Maria Montessori, “The children are now working as if I did not exist.” This is true in a Thinking Classroom. There are some pertinent questions that a teacher needs to ask herself and reflect upon to understand if critical thinking is taking place in the classroom.

• Is my classroom concept based? • Does my teaching allow the children to use their reflective and metacognitive skills? • Do I encourage students questions that are so critical for developing thinking? • Am I a facilitator who leads from behind? • Do the students discover the answer themselves and not struggle to remember what

they have learnt?

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• Are learners active and in continuous dialogue with the mentor? • Are the students curious and good observers? • Do students take ownership of old and new knowledge? • Do students have clear objectives?

Instructional design of a critical thinking classroom should be based on discovery and understanding, analysis and application, synthesis and evaluation, as suggested by B.S. Bloom. This will ensure that knowledge and understanding are not gained from memorization but constructed from critical thinking and linking critical thinking skills to content. To conclude, “If you teach children to think they will learn for a lifetime.” References for further reading: Mr. J.T Dillon (1988) Questioning and Teaching, a Manual of Practice http://www.isetl.org/ijtlhe www.britishcouncil.org.za

6

The Art of Effective Communication

Anjali Nagpal

Principal Blue Bells Public School, Sector 10, Gurgaon

Max Dee Price, in his book of ‘The Art of Leadership’ states ‘There may be no single thing more important in our efforts to achieve meaningful work and fulfilling relationships than to learn and practice the art of communication.”It is imperative for human beings to master this skill as it has been observed that 70% of our communication efforts are misunderstood, misinterpreted, rejected, distorted or not heard. We need to understand that most of the eminent leaders have been effective communicators and their exemplary power of speech has ushered in revolutions and changed the course of history. Men of letters exemplify The Power of Effective Communication. The speech of Alexander, the Great, made his resilient army rise to action when they were on the verge of accepting silent defeat. Who can forget the power of Mark Antony’s speech which changed the course of Roman history? Effective Communication is thus a powerful tool and is rightly considered the key to success. According to a survey conducted by the New York Times, top executives from Fortune 500 Companies rate communication skills as the most important quality for business leaders. It is unanimously accepted and believed that a savvy leader’s success is directly related to his or her ability to focus on the business fundamentals; but the one golden thread tying all the basic functions together and making him/ her emerge as a top notch leader is the art of clear and effective communication. Effective communication is not just a two-way process of giving and receiving information but is also a major tool for spreading awareness. It also helps in contributing and improving coordination by reducing logical gaps and encourages cooperation by bringing everyone in the mainstream. Effective communication, both verbal and non-verbal is further classified into the following types:

• Downwards Communication: Highly directive, from seniors to subordinates. • Upwards Communication: Non-directive in nature, instrumental in giving feedback. • Lateral or Horizontal Communication: Among colleagues, peers at the same level for

sharing information. In today’s competitive working conditions, we cannot deny the fact that we spend most of our time communicating and our overall success, whatever be our work profile, largely depends on our strong communication skills. To facilitate good communication we need to use the following two-way communication primers:

1. Preparation • Clarify the goal of communication. • Plan carefully before sending messages or meeting in person. • Anticipate the receiver’s viewpoint and feelings.

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2. Deliver the message • Express your thoughts with conviction. • Relate the message to your larger goals. • Identify the action to be taken. • Confirm that the other person understands the message.

• Receive the message • Keep an open mind. • Identify the key points in the message. • Value constructive feedback and use it effectively. • Confirm your understanding through follow-up.

In order to ensure the effectiveness of the communication the following corrective measures should be undertaken:-

• Determine the factors that lead to ineffective internal communications and identify the potential barriers.

• Once the barriers have been identified, one needs to understand the areas of improvement.

While drafting a letter, an e-mail or a policy statement, the following common barriers to clear communication, must be kept in mind:-

• lack of respect by either party for the other. • poorly defined purpose of communication. • failure to establish the best medium for communication (e-mail and cell phones are

NOT the best ways to communicate serious matter). • assumption that the receiver would comprehend the message. • ignored emotions or sensitivities. • failure to reach the receiver’s level of understanding. • intimidation by either party.

The Value of Listening

• Listening is an integral part of communication. • Listening to others with complete attention reflects courtesy and polished manners. • Paying attention to instructions of superiors improves competence and performance. • Poor listening skills could be disastrous in business, employment and social relations. • Good listening can eliminate a number of imaginary grievances of employees. • It is a positive activity and not a passive activity.

The essentials of effective communication are:-

• always think ahead about what you are going to say. • update yourself on all subjects you are required to speak. • speak clearly and audibly. • check with the listener whether you have been understood accurately or not • in case of an interruption, always do a little recap of what has been already said. • while listening, always make notes of important points. • always ask for clarification if you have failed to grasp other’s point of view.

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The art of communication can be honed by:-

• interacting with people who set high benchmarks for themselves. • listen carefully and think before you speak • working on body language and looking presentable and confident. • work on your language, pronunciation and voice modulation. • be a voracious reader • use simple vocabulary. • Practicing meditation and good thoughts.

Martin Luther has rightly said, “You are not only responsible for what you say, but also for what you do not say.” Thus, we need to remember that success in today’s global and diverse world requires excellent communication skills. The art of communicating effectively transcends all boundaries and unites the souls with a golden thread of love, compassion and warmth with utmost understanding of each other’s emotions.

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The Importance of Vocational Education

Sangeeta Saxena

Principal Chiranjiv Bharati School, PalamVihar

The greatest challenge for education is to meet the needs of the society. The need of the hour in the Indian Society is not simply acquiring the general foundation education but the thrust should be on increasing productivity. This function of education can be achieved by giving a strong vocational base to secondary education. Indian Education Commission has observed, “We visualize the future trend of school education to be towards a fruitful mingling of general and vocational education”. Vocational and general education should be amalgamated to make education more effective and grounded. Vocational Education aims at boosting the students’ enthusiasm to learn and do well in school and at the same time benefit the professional world. Vocational education provides an insight into possible career choice and grooms students for the real world by improving their employability skills. Let us take a closer look at some of the advantages of Vocational Education. Vocational Education would bridge the gap between the supply and demand for skilled manpower across various industries, thus reducing unemployment among the educated youth and hence solving the growing issues of unemployment. It is primarily non-academic in nature and offers practical training in skills required to pursue an occupation. It provides students with courses directly aligned to acquire a job in a chosen profession or a skilled trade. The end result of Vocational Education is to enable an individual to attain self-employment. It turns the dictum of ‘learning by doing’ into reality and instills among the youth a sense of security and usefulness which helps them to be better citizens. Vocational Education will entail many economic benefits leading to increased economic prosperity. It suits individual aptitude and therefore, ensures good results. Let us now examine certain paths that can help pave the way for vocational training in schools. We can provide great impetus to the teaching of languages by providing the know-how of Media Studies. Awareness about media is like a badge of honour as it would help students in learning the nuances of journalism. The commerce department can teach the intricacies of bookkeeping and accountancy and align students to the concept of entrepreneurship to enhance the employability quotient. Students have to be provided with international exposure to help them excel. Students with a scientific bent of mind can be given training in Robotics to veer them towards the field of Mecha-tronics. Likewise, the teaching of Space Science can be taken up with adequate infrastructural benefits such as a planetarium in the school. Another significant step can be taken by propelling the students towards Horticulture and Ornithology with the right infrastructural benefits. The nitty -gritties of food technology can also be offered in schools. Similarly, the basic tenets of tourism and hospitality can find inroads in schools. The basics of marketing and sales can also be taught to students, so that they are aware of the importance of revenue earning. The IT edge can be developed by helping students to make films on given themes and by training the computer enthusiasts to be perfect in the field of photography and sculpture. Art and aesthetics can also find suitable representation if students are made to opt for fashion designing, packaging & gift wrapping.

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The need of the hour is to expand Vocational Education at the secondary and higher secondary levels. Administration of Vocational Education by the state government, after ensuring a proper coordination between various state governments is much required. There is a need of diversified courses with the introduction of vocational guidance services in schools and colleges. The concept of Vocational Education is excellent and requires action, not contemplation and theorization. The pace of implementation at present is slow. Courses in computer programming and electronics have been introduced. There is a need for acceleration in the pace of progress in vocationalization of education. Proper arrangements should be made for ensuring training in a factory or a firm. We need an extensive network of various kinds of vocational schools. The best plan would be to attach training classes to various industrial organizations. Vocational education will certainly steer students on to the path towards a bright future.

Building Business Acumen

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Life Skills

12

Skilled For Life

Rupa Chakravaraty

Principal Suncity School, Gurgaon

Most Disciplined School:

Euphoria gripped everyone that Monday morning as the announcement for the Inter-School Awards for students was made in the school assembly. The prizes and awards they had won at various Inter- School competitions were being distributed. Among them was the award for ‘The Most Disciplined School’. My emotional intelligence came to the fore and I wondered about the implication and profundity of a query that often begins my life skills classes with grade VIII students. “Have you ever seen your parents walk around with their mark sheets or their bank balance?” The answer is invariably “NO”. I further question, “What have you seen them walk around with?” This question always elicits various answers……. And I sum it up by saying- “The only thing you can walk around with in life is your life skills, your values and your wisdom.” This generation students are extremely sharp. Hence they instantly understand the importance of the statement. If we expect our students to be prepared for the real world, the real life, when they leave school, we need to equip them with life skills which will always be needed to make the right decisions. They say information doubles every five years and technical information doubles every two years and the quantity of electronic information doubles every hour. In such a situation are we equipped to teach anything substantial in academics to our children except life skills and thinking skills, besides reinforcing that learning is a lifelong pursuit? David Conley finds that “habits of mind” are more important than specific subject knowledge in determining success. These habits of mind include:

• Analysis • Interpretation • Precision and Accuracy • Problem Solving and Reasoning.

Your IQ can get you a job, THE Job; but it is the EQ which will sustain you to climb up the ladder of that job. So what are life skills? Life Skills Education is an important process to equip young people to negotiate and anticipate, challenges and risks in one’s life and to enable productive participation in society. WHO (World Health Organization) has determined ten life skills which are as follows: 1. Self-Awareness

2. Empathy 3. Effective Communication

4. Interpersonal Relationship 5. Creative Thinking

6. Critical Thinking

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7. Problem Solving 8. Decision Making

9. Dealing with Emotions 10. Dealing with Stress.

Role of parent in enhancing life skills I remember as I grew up, my mother would ensure that I came out and wished every guest who came to our house and after they left, I was advised on how to refine and polish my behaviour further. I did not understand it then, but today I realize it was definitely a great lesson in life skills to overcome my inhibitions and develop effective communication skills. My father started to teach me to drive when I was almost at the end of my teens. He just took me to the car and taught me the functioning of the engine and then put me behind the steering wheel, saying “Sit down next to me and drive.” He closely monitored the use of the clutch, the accelerator and the brake. All my life skills were generated and this helped me to learn the skill of precision. Role of a school in developing life skills I remember as a student at Loreto Convent I had learnt various skills. But did not realize that I had internalized them until I became a teacher myself. At school when I would be sliding down the long corridors, I would often hear a firm voice asking, “Rupa, are you supposed to be doing that?” Today, as I perform the role of a teacher, the profundity of those words and the prudence of the person reprimanding me resounds in my mind. This open-ended question made me reflect. It helped me make a decision and take the onus of that decision. I do not remember ever being told ‘Don’t do that………….’ This surely helped in developing my critical thinking, problem solving and decision making skills. There are many ways a school can build up the life skills and some of them are given below- For decision making a school can adopt simple steps. In our school there are numerous steps taken for enhancing the skill. One such step is the process of letting students choose their club themselves. From Class 1 we introduce club periods of one hour duration on Fridays. Before the students decide their clubs, a formal write- up of each club is sent to the parents which they are supposed to discuss with their child. Thereafter, the teacher asks him/her to choose TWO clubs and write it in the prescribed form, thus endorsing his/her choice of clubs. This ensures that he knows the responsibility that goes with decision making. The child cannot change his/her club until the next semester, that is, for almost five months. This helps them not only in decision making but in taking responsibility for their actions. For effective communication a school must hold QCT (Quality Circle Time) to teach students to learn to speak with classmates and shed their inhibition. This would enable them to use micro scenarios for effective communication. Further during class assemblies, all students should be assigned small roles in skits even if it is just a line. This would enable and enhance their macro level effectiveness in communication and this would keep growing with time.

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We make a living by what we get but we make a life by what we give. There are many ways for empathy to be developed. The students can be made to visit a blind school and as they drive to the blind school they can be asked to blindfold themselves so that they can empathize with the students of the blind school. When they visit an old-age home they can prepare themselves by listening to popular music that the elderly listened to during their era. By singing and playing music the elderly have grown up listening to, the students can take them back in time. Students can do research on games the elders played and play those games with them like Snakes and Ladders, Card games like Bridge, etc. How does one identify a school which is on the right path to teaching Life Skills? Often when we walk into a school, there are tell-tale signs to reflect upon the life skills the students of the school have imbibed:- 1. Everybody wishes each other i.e. the students, the teachers and the support staff. And

most important there is effective communication with the right eye contact with the head of the school.

2. There is certain calm as they are comfortable in coping with stress and it does not

manifest itself in the form of jerky or loud actions which in turn permeates the school environment in the form of good vibes.

3. When children are moving around from the class room to another, there seems to be a purpose to their movements. That is they are making choices; the right choice by going for their academics, their activities, their sports, thus giving them clarity of vision. This reflects good decision making.

4. Observe the Life Skills of the school during its dispersal or while they move from one

department to another for their various subjects, activities, practicals, etc.

5. Visit to a school during break time reflects on the dynamics among the students and thus highlights interpersonal relationship.

6. Observe the teachers and heads whether they walk their talk. The students should be able

to emulate them. By simply feeling the positive vibes, positive energy emanating from the students and the staff one can make out, whether the school is on the right path. The objective of education is simple and that is to make NOBLE and ABLE human beings. The rest will follow……

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Challenges for Schools In Skill Development Courses

Dr. (Mrs.) Indu Khetarpal Principal

Salwan Public School, Rajendra Nagar, New Delhi

Kothari Commission Report 1966 suggested- “We visualize the future trend of school education to be towards a fruitful mingling of general and vocational education containing some elements of prevocational, technical education and vocational education, in its turn, having all elements of general education. In the kind of society in which we will be living increasingly in the coming years a complete separation between the two will be not only undesirable but impossible” Today’s the 21st Century, Mantra is Seekho hunar bano honhaar

Swachha BharatAbhiyaan Spirituality at work Sabka saath sabka vikas Start ups

The world is evolving rapidly and the nations have to focus on aligning their education system to these global changes. There is a growing realization that school education in India is increasingly becoming academic-oriented and the main goal of the students is to secure “unachievable marks” for higher education in colleges. But these colleges underprepare students with ‘future ready skills’ when it comes to competing for jobs of the future. By bringing back skill training in schools, a strong foundation can be built for students for their all-round development. Skill development in educational programmes, can later be put to use for entrepreneurship and also to face the challenges in their everyday life. This strategy of integrating education with skill development will ensure universal access to basic education that is focused on improvement in skills to meet the demands of a growing economy.

FOCUS AREAS FOR EDUCATIONAL TRANSFORMATION IN SCHOOLS:

• Developing Critical Enquiry • Entrepreneurial Thinking • Academic Integrity • Multidisciplinary perspective in addressing ‘real world problems’ • National Campaigns at school/college level to enhance the quality of training. • Access to funding to pursue Vocational Training. • Explore ways to make Skill development an integral part of the curriculum.

The Road Map to address these challenges

• Policy Co-ordination amongst stakeholders. • Framing Accountability and Learning Outcome • Systems Planning to promote excellence. • High Inclusivity – Traditional v/s Contemporary work. • Public Private Partnership-Organized/Unorganized sector. • Better alignment of India’s Vocational Education and Training System, with market needs to

meet the pre-service training requirement of the workforce and the Industry. This should focus on honing various skill sets, such as physical training, handicrafts, painting, soap and candle manufacturing, cookery and many more.

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The following Vocational courses are offered at Salwan Public School:

• Fashion Technology • Multimedia Studies • Food Production

Activities are undertaken on a regular basis to enhance skill development.

• The School Uniform has been designed with the help of National Institute of Fashion Technology students.

• The Home Science Department helps in monitoring the canteen on a regular basis. Besides giving the students a hands-on management training it helps in developing their culinary skills by voluntarily engaging in the preparation of food.

• The multimedia students are budding journalists and Student Activists. They are the voice of the school and the local community. They discuss various issues of the school and the happenings in the community and voice their opinion and observations.

• To develop the aesthetic and observational skills, the young artists are engaged in projects life making environment friendly murals to enhance the beauty of the Metro Pillars in the vicinity of the school.

• Skill Development programme at the school involves the training of the future curators, skilled at the key concepts of museology.

• The Robotic, Quiz and the Photography Club aims to help children develop across all subjects their basic skills, such as thinking, questioning and communicating, which can be used later in life in work and further education. Public Private Partnership creates a unique space for the students and the staff to implement projects based on collaboration. It has been possible to make all this possible is due to the involvement, collaboration and goodwill of the Parents, an important stakeholder of the school. Skill formation has to be mainstreamed in the formal education system right from Class X onwards. In my own humble way, I have involved the parents (stakeholders) of the school to help in collaboration with the industry in these programmes. On a regular basis the school and the students interact with the public and private institutions for internship so that along with the theoretical knowledge provided in the school, skill development is also enhanced. Twice a year, the science students interact with Director, Scientists and Hospitals on a regular basis. The commerce students interact with the Chartered accountants, Corporate Sector and the school’s accounts department. The humanities group interacts with colleges and institutes regularly. The School has developed the systems for tracking pupils’ progress in developing skills (thinking, communication, ICT, literary and numeracy skills) with feeder primary schools which ensures ‘continuity and progression’ in the development of skills.

To conclude, a strong will and initiative to take the lead can make the challenges of skill development in school an attainable objective. As rightly said Be Skilled Be Independent !!

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The Intangibles of Education-An Appraisal

Arti Chopra

Principal Amity International School, Sector-46, Gurgoan

The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence and character - that is the goal of true education.

Martin Luther King, Jr Education is a process by which society transmits its accumulated knowledge, skills and values from one generation to another. In order to educate in the 21st century and make students lifelong learners, administrators and teachers need to foster their interest by connecting classrooms to real life through the integration of culture and heritage with education. Providing rich content and the best possible curriculum are critical, but still, there are several important, intangible and often overlooked factors of equal or greater importance that contribute towards learning and teach the timeless skills. Visibly, the progress card elaborates at length, the measurable benefits of education like progress in subjects such as Mathematics, Science, Languages, Humanities and acquisition of Life Skills. With the changing times, there is a need to identify those factors that may be neglected, undervalued or laid aside in pursuit of imparting holistic education. Some of the intangibles that an educational system should plan to incorporate could be social consciousness, responsibility towards self and society, compassion and care, creative and critical thinking, ability to differentiate between good and bad, respect global perspective, career preparedness and life skills development. We must acknowledge that there is more to education than data and scores, and that ultimately, the intangibles of education like ‘life skills’ not generally thought of as something to be ‘taught’ or ‘learned’, are integral to success in life and may not be easily measured. Involvement in extracurricular activities teach not only the specific skills- for example, how to play an instrument; but also the so-called intangibles, for example, how to be part of a team, how to be a gracious winner and loser and importance of persistence and hard work to achieve success. Involvement in sports correlates with higher levels of self-confidence and academic performance. The social, psychological and educational benefits of extracurricular activities and sports leads to sustainable development. Some important issues that need to be addressed are as follows:-

1. Most benefits of education are ambiguous except transfer of information such as data, facts, concepts or their applications. This cannot be termed as a ‘unique benefit’. These components are visible and pertinent on the personal profile of an individual and help to attain success in life but to sustain oneself on the vocational and professional front, what is important is good habits and strong value system which is an outcome of positivity and resilience.

2. The intangible benefits of higher education can be broadly classified under three categories:

• Level one: ‘Micro Skills’ that one acquires as a result of information transfer i.e. making spreadsheets and profile making.

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• Level two: Higher Education’s ‘Macro Skills’ are intangible benefits, such as the ability to solve problems, think critically, communicate both orally and in writing, to work in teams and to accept personal responsibility for one’s actions.

• Level three: Higher Education’s ‘Meta’ intangible benefits emerge from assuming the responsibility for one’s personal outcomes that includes of character building and life skills.

What is the difference between school and life? “In school, you’re taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you’re given a test that teaches you a lesson.”- Tom Bodett It is imperative that we reduce the gap between the two by embracing the “Intangibles”. To embrace the intangibles, the first step is to embrace the child in totality. Acceptance of differential ability, shift of focus from IQ towards SQ and EQ, recognizing all the eight multiple intelligences advocated by Howard Gardener, shifting of pedagogy from teaching to learning, incorporation of HOTS (Higher Order Thinking Skills) and emphasis on knowledge creation and synthesis rather than knowledge transmission are some of the steps in this direction. Carl Jung, a psychologist stresses on the essence of rapport building aptly when he says that one looks back with appreciation upon brilliant teachers, but with gratitude for those who touch one’s feelings. The curriculum is significant, but warmth is a vital element for emotional development of the child. The schools of today need to embrace the teacher as well and work upon them by providing them windows to grow emotionally and intellectually. The educational leaders too need to revampthe systems periodically by involving stakeholders such as Board of Governors, school promoters, parents, government departments, local community etc. and encourage them to participate in their vision and mission through meetings, workshops, seminars and conferences. There could be some limiting factors like time constraints, insensitive policy makers at micro level, mutual discord amongst stakeholders, inadequate recognition of competencies and ambiguities in the existing set up, that may obstruct the integration of the intangible dimensions of work. It is important to align the vision of all stakeholders in the same direction. The educational institutions should identify and validate the ‘Intangibles’ and make them an integral part of school’s collective vision and policy. The same could also be reflected in its student behaviour policy, discipline policy and teacher’s code of conduct. It must be communicated to all stakeholders in the education process namely parents, teachers, students and community and reiterated from time to time by adopting practical methods to sustain the ethos within the institution. Some creative ways in which these intangibles could be fostered in the students both within and outside classroom are morning assemblies, value week celebrations, value driven lesson plans etc. Through their involvement in activities demonstrating balance in life, parents could set a positive example and further encourage their wards by becoming their ‘role models’ as their behaviour is emulated by their wards. Family celebration of festivals, gestures of respect for the country, helpers to elderly and needy in society and community outreach initiatives could help in character building. Character is formed at home, at work, at play and in the community. Educational institutions today should focus their energies on grooming responsible citizens. It’s time to embrace the ‘Intangibles of Education’.

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Finding Social and Emotional Balance in Schools

Sandhya Awasthi

Principal Salwan Public School, Gurgaon

“People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Maya Angelou Schools should be an anchorage for children both physically and emotionally. Building social and emotional competency among children is the most important aspect of school responsibility. Different components of social and emotional development in young children

• Children’s relationships and interactions with their families and communities contribute significantly to their sense of social and emotional well-being.

• Children need to feel valued, respected, empowered, cared for and engaged. They also

need to respect not just themselves but others and their environment, too. When adults value them for who they are and promote warm and supportive relationships with them, the children develop self-esteem about themselves and their learning. Expressing themselves creatively and experiencing a spiritual dimension in life enhances children’s sense of well-being.

The traits of holistic development in children

• Socially and emotionally developed children have a positive self-image

• Children are able to accept their personal weaknesses with greater equanimity if they have been nurtured in an emotionally safe environment

• They exhibit fewer inhibitions and have greater self-confidence

• Life is full of challenges and struggles. Therefore, being flexible and having a positive

outlook towards learning and life is crucial. All these experiences help children to become resilient and resourceful and enable them to cope with challenging situations

Cognitive, Motor and Language Development affecting a young child’s social-emotional development Milestones could be just inanimate and expressionless if cast in stone and applied to children indiscriminately and haphazardly. In early childhood, we as educators should not be carried away by early cognitive, motor and language development nor be discouraged by their delay. Knowing about milestones is of a great advantage to a child. However, damage begins if there is lack of patience that causes frustration in parents and educators. We transfer our anxiety to the children, thus making them feel inadequate. Most of life’s problems are solved with patience, planning and monitoring. Schools and Educators have a great role to play in it. Teachers’ role is central in helping positive social-emotional development in children,

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especially in areas such as emotional literacy, empathy, confidence, competence and strong relationships with other children and adults. In partnership with the teachers, children will:

• Make strong attachments and develop warm and supportive relationships with family, peers and adults in out-of-home settings and in their community

• Awareness of their own feelings and understand that others may have different feelings

• handle transitions well

• be confident and self-reliant

• respect themselves, others and the environment

• make decisions and choices about their own learning and development

To be able to do so, a teacher has to accept the child as he is a warm, patient and loving relationship with the teacher could be the strongest bond. The teacher has to win the affection of the child, thereafter it is a battle easily won. She must make herself a worthy role-model to be emulated. Importance of recreation in social and emotional development: Recreation or playing is an integral part of learning and development for a child. When children play, they use their body, mind, feelings and senses. They should be given adequate opportunities to develop their playing skills. When they play among themselves with other children, they learn co-operation, conflict management and are also sensitized to how others think and feel. They should be encouraged to use all the material in the environment regardless of one’s gender or ability. Toys and other material promote social competence and regulate their emotions. During play they practice verbal and non-verbal communication, body language and release of emotions that helps build self-confidence. Children can be trained to recognize and handle their emotions in social situations Parents and educators can set up a good role model for the young children by following the given tips.

• Having a positive attitude themselves. The attitude as a teacher or a parent impacts children’s ability to bounce back from some of the difficulties they may face. ‘Make sure that you can do it’ attitude is modeled for the child when he/she meets some of life’s curve balls.

• Learning opportunities are more often than not disguised as problems. These opportunities should be utilised to the maximum so that kids can grow and learn from some of the challenges they face.

• Kids should be made active participants in the family. Active participation in a family develops self-help, problem- solving and independent thinking skills that are necessary for resilience.

• Kids’ coping skills should be honed through various strategies that can help them to cope with situations when things don’t go their way, including acceptance, getting away for a while and normalisation.

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• The rules and regulations being set should be abided by all. It is not a good idea to allow a tantrum to put parent/ educator on the backfoot.

• Do not react or try to reprimand or correct when a child is throwing a tantrum. Allow it to subside and then handle the situation wisely.

• Promoting an ability to handle emotional upheavals in kids is not a single event but a continuous process that requires adults to be supportive and empathetic when things do not go their way.

Some of the challenges that can impede social-emotional development in children Negative experiences such as being bullied, feeling socially isolated, dealing with academic failure, abusing substances, engaging in high risk behaviours, as well as suffering from chronic stress, anxiety and depression. To conclude, acceptance, safety and security and strong family bond are all essential elements of a happy childhood. A safe and secure child grows up to be a caring, empathetic, stable and responsive individual-providing a strong citizenry to any nation.

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Motivation Is The Key To Success

SunitaBudhwar

Principal Gyan Devi Public School, Dlf, Gurgaon

William Shakespeare succinctly expressed, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players, who enter the stage of life when they are born and exit when they die.” Throughout their lives, they play various roles, one being that of a ‘whining school boy creeping unwillingly to school’. It is this stage in the life of an individual that we, as educators, are directly involved with. It is indeed humbling to realise that we have the power to change the ‘whining schoolboy’ into an eager, energetic and a willing student who loves going to school and who enjoys playing an active role in the entire teaching-learning process. Yes, we have the power to mould these youngsters into upright, fearless and responsible young adults who can take correct decisions and contribute significantly to the society at large. It can, thus, rightly be said that the way an individual’s entire life shapes up is dependent- to a large extent-on his school, his teachers and the teaching practices followed by the school. To influence students positively in schools, we can take recourse to a number of ways and means, the most powerful of which is ‘motivation’. It is the greatest tool which we have at our disposal, as it can drive a student to aim high, set realistic goals and do his utmost to achieve those goals. In fact motivation can truly be referred to as the key to success as it can open closed doors and lead one away from the path of mediocrity,onto the path of achievement and distinction. This path may be difficult and long-winding for students, but with the correct motivation, they are sure to succeed. Why only students, motivation plays a pivotal role in every individual’s life. It fills us with zeal, enthusiasm and drive. It energizes us to do our best in any endeavour that we undertake and allows us to experience the joy and satisfaction of accomplishment. As far as a student is concerned, motivation starts at home itself, with parents playing a vital role. This is then carried forward by teachers at every level of the child’s school-going years. Motivation can be in the form of simple body language or gestures, such as a slight nod of appreciation, a pat on the back or a pleasant smile. These reinforcements do wonders, especially for students suffering from low self-esteem, uncertainty or apprehension about the task at hand. Their eyes light up, their posture becomes erect and the glow of confidence fills their faces. Needless to say, the satisfaction which a teacher gets on seeing these positive changes is incomparable. The invaluable role which motivation plays in the field of education was best summed up by the great scientist, Albert Einstein, in his famous address at Albany, New York on October 15, 1936 on the three hundredth anniversary of Higher Education in America. He said, “The most important method of teaching is the one in which a pupil is urged towards practical performance. This could apply to the first attempt at writingof the primary student, or the simple act of memorizing a poem, the writing of a composition or something as complex as the doctoral thesis on graduation.” It is a fact, that motivation is present behind every achievement and this motivation gets further strengthened by the accomplishment of a task. When there is motivation, students show initiative and direction, courage, energy and the persistence to follow their goals. They have a vision of what they want to achieve and this awakens the strength and power to move forward and make their vision a reality. So goal-setting is the strongest guiding force for motivation. Swami Vivekanand alsosaid, “Take up

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one idea, make that one idea your life. Think of it, dream of it, live on that idea.” If one is motivated enough to follow this advice, success will surely follow. However, as Albert Einstein stressed in his address, “school administrators as well as teachers must guard against using coercive measures to get any task accomplished by students. Fear, compulsion or ambitious desire for authority and fame, should not be the motivating factors for getting a work done. One must be aware of the fine line blurring the distinction between positive motivation on one hand and egoistic ambition on the other. Though it is human nature to crave for recognition and appreciation and it is considered a healthy motive, but the desire to be considered better or more intelligent than a fellow classmate or schoolmate gives rise to unhealthy competition and can lead to the usage of unfair means. This should be avoided at all costs. In order to get students to work, the easy method of creating individual ambition should not be employed. This can only lead to psychological maladjustment of students and can prove injurious to them as well as to the society at large. The most important motivation for work in school and in life should primarily be pleasure in the work and its result” It is thus clear that the positive and constructive aspects of motivation play a very important role in a student’s life. Teenagers especially, benefit a great deal during their crucial years of adolescence, if they are given correct guidance and motivation. It helps them to do well not only in academics, but also in the over- all development of their personalities. At a time when they undergo great physical and emotional changes, it helps to stabilize them by channelizing their energies in the correct direction. School becomes a life-line for them and teachers-their saviours. In addition, as Einstein said in his address, “The role of schools as the most important means of motivating students by transferring the wealth of tradition from one generation to the next cannot be understated, especially in the modern day scenario, when the institution of family- as the bearer of tradition and education-has been weakened.” Joint families are breaking up and children remain bereft of their grandparents’ motivation. Hence, schools have a major role to play in motivating students and urging themonto actual performance. To conclude, we educators and teachers should make it our priority to motivate our students to become good human beings, as it is the need of the hour to instill the core values of love and humanity in every child. Only a teacher can motivate young minds and bring about an evident change in a nation. Every day is a learning experience for us too, as we not only motivate and impart knowledge to our students, but also learn a lot from them. So let us stay motivated to bring about the change that we want to see in our students, our school and our nation at large.

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Value Education

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Value Education – Worthy Investment Aparna Erry

Principal DAV Public School, Sector-14, Gurgaon

"Values are priceless, while valuables are priced." Values are those principles or standards which help to better the quality of life. Values codify the dos and don'ts of behaviour. They are the foundation of character formation and personality development. The values that spring from within or from the core of the heart like love, compassion, sympathy, empathy, tolerance, etc. lay the foundation for the external practised values like honesty, discipline, punctuality and loyalty. Values regulate and guide human behaviour and action in our day- to -day life. They are embedded in every word we select and speak, what we wear, ways in which we interact, our perceptions and interpretation of others’ reactions and so on. Our interests, choices, needs, desires and preferences comprise the nuclei of value formation. When preferences acquire certain definiteness, intensity and stability, these become the criteria for judgment, choices, actions and grounds for decision-making in behaviour. Value thus is considered to be an enduring belief upon which human beings act by preferences. In today's fast paced competitive world, man seems to have compromised on his values, integrity and character, in a bid to earn, use and possess more and more material wealth. Consequently, there is rampant corruption, unlawful activities, inhuman behaviour and immoral consumption, which is slowly breaking the very structure of our society, nation and the world. There is an urgent need to re-introduce value based education dealing specifically with human values to redesign the fabric of our educational system. Educational institutions play a significant role in the promotion and inculcation of values amongst students who are the foundation of future societies. Need For Value Based Education A child's mind is very malleable and can be moulded to any desired shape. The school is the right platform for imparting value education so that the right impressions formed in the child's mind guide him throughout his life. School is the common pedestal for all children coming from various backgrounds. In an interactive learning environment of the school, where a child spends a maximum of eight hours of time, the human values can be easily evoked in him by making him "experience" and "live" the values. The impressionable years of youth in schools are crucial. Whatever is learnt and imbibed will determine how students live their future lives. Children and youth need to be educated to practice the commonly held values of harmony and peace with self and others. Children are the future of any nation. As per the population projection, India will have one of the youngest populations in the world by 2020. This vast human resource will shape the nation and the world. From the ecological perspective, a child is educated by the entire environment in which he/she grows and that environment is determined equally by the parents, teachers and society around. The ultimate good of human society is the good of all. The idea has been beautifully expressed in one of our ancient prayers- "Let all be happy, free from diseases, let men see well of one-another, let there be no sorrow or unhappiness in this world". Value education is rooted in Indian philosophy and culture. The central task of value based education is to develop men of goodwill who do not cheat, steal or kill; universal individuals who value both self and mankind as one. The kind of individuals we produce in turn determines the kind of society we live in. If we produce individuals who are self-centered, aggressive, competitive and greedy, we cannot

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build a society that is non-violent, peaceful, cooperative and harmonious. Education is the main agency for individual transformation and social change. It is not possible to bring about fundamental transformation in society unless the individuals are transformed. The kind of education we provide to them will have a bearing on the foundation of the society. There is an increasing moral complexity in the contemporary world and students are expected to face more complicated decision-making situations about issues involving values. They should be helped in developing the ability to make proper choices in such situations. Schools cannot remain neutral so far as value education is concerned. The school atmosphere, the personality and behaviour of the teachers and the facilities provided in the school, have a great influence on inculcating values in pupils. The need for a consciously planned value education programme, therefore is obvious. It is not only the teachers in charge of moral instructions who are responsible for building the character of students but every teacher, irrespective of the subject he teaches, must necessarily accept this responsibility. He must ensure that in the teaching of his particular subject and in his dealings with his pupils, fundamental values such as integrity and social responsibility are brought out. All religions lay stress on certain fundamental qualities of character, such as honesty and truthfulness, consideration for others, reverence for old age, kindness to animals and compassion for the needy and the suffering. The narration of value based stories by the teachers at the opportune time in the programme of moral education would be most effective, particularly in junior classes. If education is to cater to the holistic development of the student as an individual, a member of society and a citizen of the world community, we need to lay emphasis on the moral and cultural dimensions of education. It is apparent that even widely shared values as respect, responsibility, honesty and love will not necessarily emerge by themselves in the individual or society and they cannot be imposed from outside. Values or ethics must be seen not only as the intended outcome, but also as the means towards attaining it. The way to peace is through peace, not through war. Thus, if the objective of education is to produce respectful, peaceful, honest and responsible people, then the way to achieve the same is through an ethos, a culture, an environment within the school, where respect, peace, honesty and responsibility are the hallmarks of the school community. This underlines the importance that must be paid to the relationship between teacher and student – and indeed other relationships within the school community – and what characterizes these relationships. Values must be seen to lie not only at the heart of the educational content but also at the heart of the educational process. Value education should not only be viewed as just another subject within the curriculum but also as the guiding principle of education. It has to be an attitude within the whole teaching practice, involving the entire staff of the school, parents and the surrounding community in a shared endeavour. Thus, value education has to be integrated in every aspect of the curriculum, pedagogy and activities, involving all the teachers as a team as well as the organizational and decision-making structure of the educational institution. Our values are a reflection of our spirituality; our character. According to a Chinese Proverb, "If there is righteousness in the heart, there will be beauty in character,

1. if there is beauty in character, there will be harmony in the home 2. when there is harmony in the home, there will be order in the nation, 3. when there is order in the nation there will be peace in the world".

A person with the high values will not be afraid to face problems; will expect and accept them as part of life. Such a person will be an example for the others to emulate. Last but not the least, we must have our own values in life, to build a strong character. It will help us to lead our life as it should be lead. It is very necessary for the fulfillment of the purpose of life.

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Creating Paradise

C Dhawan Principal

Blue Bells Model School, Sector-4, Gurgaon

“Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value.” ----- Albert Einstein

If I am asked the shortest route to global peace, I would say that it is to make our children tranquil human beings with their value systems in place. Looking at the tremendous shift that human race has undergone in the last few decades, it has become very clear that if our roots are not anchored very strongly, we would be blown away by the strong tides of change. It is no surprise that at such times society looks up to schools as they are the places where dreams are sown on the fertile land of a child's psyche. These very dreams shape our future. Therefore, it becomes crucial for us to provide such education that inculcates values to equip the learner to lead a life which celebrates the ideals of the society. Education, however pivotal it is, will lose its heart and soul if it is devoid of these values. In the modern era, the root cause of all issues across the globe is restlessness and intolerance. People are becoming intrinsically greedy be it greed for money, natural resources or fame. They are becoming more selfish and narcissistic than ever and this self-centeredness and greed is turning them blind towards the concerns of fellow human beings. This turmoil happens when we lose sight of our very foundation, the age old values which are essential for any society to function smoothly. When we are groping desperately in the dark, it is the light within; the unwavering light of values, that will show us the way. Enforcing values at the right age will make the children realize how the happiness of their fellow beings makes them happy. They will realize how their joys and sorrows are intertwined with that of other people. It will also make them understand the need to take care of ecology for a safe and healthy future. A world where human beings will live in harmony with nature would certainly be an idyllic place to live. This great onus to weave value education in the curriculum whole-heartedly and that too, in a pragmatic way lies with the educational institutions. At Blue Bells, along with adopting a progressive approach in everything that we do, we try to create a strong bond with our splendid culture and values. This beautiful blend of the modern and traditional has become our hallmark over the years. We must never compromise our Value Education and Life Skills enhancement teaching for anything. The students must be able to relate to Value Education provided in schools so strongly that it becomes a part of their being. Teachers should foster these values in the students by exemplifying them. If a student has teachers who have strong values in them and who never compromise on their integrity, he will certainly grow up to be a person of strong character. We need not be a Warren Buffet or Azim Premji to do our bit. We are fortunate to have in our hands world’s most valuable resources, the children. Let us awaken the divinity in them by keeping the flame of values lit so that this planet stays illuminated forever.

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Infusing Moral Values Amongst Youngsters

Kanchan Malik Principal

Sherwood Convent School DLF, Gurgaon

Much has been talked in recent times about eroding moral values among teenagers. What exactly are moral values? Is it about obeying your elders, come what may, blindly or is it following western culture? As an educationist, I feel the whole purpose of education is to give our youngsters the ability to distinguish between right and wrong and having the courage to take the right path even in the face of obstacles. Such moral values are not affected by wearing western clothes or listening to western songs. It has more to do with our thoughts and beliefs. And these thoughts and beliefs start taking roots in a child’s mind at a very early stage. It has been rightly said “mother is the first teacher of a child”. So it’s not the responsibility of the education sector alone to put our youth on the right track. Parents, teachers and society share the responsibility of shaping young minds. There is an urgent need today to introduce our children to a set of moral principles and values to make them better and responsible citizen. This is easier said than done. Teaching ethics and morals to a generation which is exposed to so much information and knowledge at such a tender age is a Herculean task but still not something unachievable. It is imperative that parents and teachers as well as the government must work together in shaping and moulding young minds. The children are growing in the same society of which we are a part. It is the same society where we bribe the policeman and then call the system corrupt. These youngsters, who are already reeling under peer pressure which defines what are the “cool things to do”, are like lost sheep and need a shepherd to steer them on the right path. They are in a desperate need of a role model, and who else can be a better role model than their mentors? Thus it is important that we as educators expose our children to the importance of values so that they can tread on the right path. We should also remember that the only constant in this world is change. No matter how hard we try, the moral values of society are going to change with time. It is our duty to give that change the right direction so that what defines a good deed today, remains a good deed tomorrow.

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Value Education: Lifelong Learning

Sangita Sabarwal

Principal Sh. S. N. Sidheshwar Sr. Sec. Public School

Theodore Roosevelt has rightly remarked, ‘To educate a mind without morals is to create a menace to society”. In today’s fast-paced competitive world, people seem to have compromised on their values, integrity and character, in a bid to earn, use and possess more and more of material wealth. As a result, we see rampant corruption, unlawful activities and changes in human behavior that are slowly breaking the very structure of our society, nation and the world. Therefore, there is an urgent need to reinforce value-based education dealing specifically with human values to redesign the fabric of the educational system. Since ancient times, it had been the responsibility of the educators to imbibe values in the learners. There is an increasing moral complexity in the contemporary world and pupils are expected to face more complicated decision-making situations about issues involving values. They should be helped in developing the ability to make the right choices in such situations. The increasing rate of juvenile delinquency cannot be ignored. It is a definite symptom of a crisis which today’s youth is undergoing in the process of his personal growth. In such a situation, value education assumes a special significance. It was not until 2005 that the need for including Value Education in the curriculum was felt. The deteriorating values in society have become a grievous concern for the educators. The Central Board of Secondary Education has incorporated the Value Education programme within the curriculum. Schools are the right platform to impart value education so that the right impressions are formed in the child’s mind to guide him throughout his life. Tender minds must be instilled with virtues such as love, empathy, compassion, gratitude and good interpersonal relation. Keeping this in mind, CBSE initiated the teaching of Life Skill in all the CBSE affiliated schools and made a wide-spread plan for the training of character as well. Life Skills help children to become emotionally resilient and capable of making choices. It also helps to sharpen their inner-self. It is only to promote holistic approach towards Value Education that CBSE has made it mandatory to include Value Based questions in assessment. It is the need of the hour to equip teachers with skills through trainings and workshops so that they become instrumental in bringing about social change by inculcating the values of cooperation and mutual regard, honesty and integrity, discipline and social responsibility in children. These values have a special significance in Indian society today as young men and women are passing through a crisis of character. Dr. Radha Krishnan (former President of India) has mighty said, ‘Civilizations are not built with bricks and mortar, steel & machinery, they are built with men and women, having high values and character.’

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Grooming Responsible Citizens

Manisha Singh

Principal Rabindranath World School

Decades ago, our local communities were different than they are today. They were tight-knit and friendly, everybody knew everybody, and relatives were living just around the corner. Today, things are moving a lot faster, people are busier and families are travelling far for a variety of different activities. The sense of community that was once strong in students’ is no longer relevant. As a result, today’s youth has to face more challenges and issues than any other generation of and do not have the skills to overcome the obstacles. The statistics being projected these days is disturbing, for example, children being killed by abuse or neglect, teens committing suicide, children being arrested for violent crimes and drug abuse, students admitting to have cheated in an exam, stealing something from a store and even telling lies to get ahead in life. This raises the question of whether these students even know what trust or honesty really is. Maybe, they just believe that other people should be trustworthy, but they themselves do not need to necessarily imbibe the same. With all these issues going on in the lives of youth, there is a need for someone to step forward and do something. Many people expect that parents, extended family and friends should be able to recognize the reasons behind these issues but sometimes they are not able to provide the support required. In this case the schools could step in and discuss about the importance of morals and values with their students. In the mid-twentieth century, theories of cognitive and moral development emerged to help assist schools in understanding how their students’ develop, and consequently, how to teach better to assist in the students’ development. Piaget developed a theory about cognitive development that progresses in four stages. He proposed that by the time children begin school they are in the pre-operational stage (ages 2-7) of their cognitive development where the main emphasis is on the mastery of motor development skills. As they move through elementary school, they move into the concrete operations stage (ages 7-12) where they begin to think logically and concretely about situations. As students move from the pre-operational stage to the concrete operational stage, they are able to move from being egocentric all the time, to the ability to be socio-centric at times. This means that they can now see things from other peoples’ point of view instead of only seeing things from their own perspective. Then around the time students move onto the middle school they move into the formal operation stage (age 12 and older) where they develop the ability to think abstractly. Therefore, this is the right time to enable the students to relate to their personal community and develop their traits like fairness, civic virtue and justice. The main objective of Value Based Education in schools is to basically develop social and moral integrity of students as moral education caters to the needs of mental and physical development of students. It helps them to become better person. We have to impart these lessons right from the Pre-Primary level. Pre-primary Education should be carried out through the play-way method not only for the academic development but also to inculcate values in a child. Towards this, various teaching strategies can be used, such as,

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• moral stories and songs • celebration of National and religious festivals • educational excursions and outings • recitation of hymns and prayers • behavioural guidance • celebration of Grandparent’s day • celebration of teachers and mother’s day

This helps in making a child aware of his/her culture, ethos, religion, festivals and courteous social behaviour. It also instills in them religious tolerance, national pride and patriotism. Value education at an early stage forms the building block in developing a child into an ideal and useful citizen of the country. A teacher has to play a major and decisive role in imparting values to students. There is something much more than mere information that has to be imparted to the young minds. School and family can play an equal role in lending the first lesson of moral values. Along with curricular subjects, students should be given lessons on dignity of labour, punctuality and determination. Teachers can narrate the stories of great personalities like Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi and Winston Churchill to make them understand the significance of moral values in our life. Value Education, therefore, is a part of the educational programme which cannot be shelved or done away with. It has to be a part of life and should be given an important role in the process of learning. Value Education should be a part of every subject and should not be taught in a separate class. Teachers are to be encouraged to find ways to implement character education topics in their daily lesson plans. For example, in literature class students could be prompted to discuss the value of justice in the decisions of a central character from a piece of literature. Or in Math class students could learn how to construct graphs by using data about recycling; the importance of conserving our environment would be a good way to conclude the class period. This will provide teachers a lot of freedom to be creative and have fun while imparting important values through their lessons. Besides this, schools need to ensure that they involve the local community in their efforts to provide holistic education to students. Parents can be encouraged to be involved with their children’s school by being a part of the PTA (parent-teacher association), volunteering to chaperone field trips and keeping them aware of what is going on in the life of their child at school. Also, it is important for schools to encourage community involvement by inviting neighbourhood communities to support school causes. With the support of parents, the community and the dedication of the school staff, a value based education is achievable.

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Inclusive Education

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Inclusive Education - A Practitioner’s Perspective

Anita Makkar

Principal The HDFC School

“If a child can’t learn the way we teach, maybe we should teach the way he learns”.

Ignacio Estrada Today, many young children worldwide are affected by biological, environmental and physiological conditions that can limit their cognitive development. Educators and academicians around the world in the 1990s have made efforts to recognize children with special needs and provide remedies for them. As awareness spread, it was observed that there were significant segments of children in schools in India, who were finding it difficult to cope with their regular classes. A realization dawned, in the year 1999, that something ought to be done in this direction. It was a realization coupled with a strong belief that we cannot ignore children with learning disabilities and special educational needs. As educators, we cannot absolve ourselves of the responsibility of these intellectually challenged children as they also have a right to education. There are special, with specific needs that are beyond the scope of regular classroom teaching. They need help from special educators. For a long time, children with disabilities were educated in separate classes or in separate schools. People got used to the idea that special education meant separate education. But now we know that when children are educated together, positive academic and social outcomes occur for all the children involved. Surveys were conducted on various aspects of children with special needs viz a viz the extent of their challenge, the manifestations of their uniqueness, the finer differences in their limitations, their individual strengths, their specific needs and much more. Then came setting up the facilities – induction of special educators, activity rooms and so on. And within a year, a separate wing came up in a normal school setting for children with Learning Disabilities and Special Needs. It was a time consuming process, but the commitment was as great as the determination to bring the idea to fruition. Parents were initiated, sessions organized for their counseling and Individual Educational Plans (IEP) were drafted for each and every child according to his/her needs and ability. They were integrated with regular classes for subjects as well. Further research led to a deeper understanding of what was desired and preceded our attempts towards partial inclusion. It was observed that partial inclusion works very well with SEN (Special Educational Needs) and they can travel together with mainstream children in the school buses, can go to the school assembly with their assigned classes, and can attend various performing arts, visual arts classes and sports together. But when it comes to teaching of subjects, there has to be different teaching as the level of comprehension and their pace of assimilating the knowledge differs according to their degree of challenge. They need to be provided education by special educators who are taught different tools and techniques during their training. In such a scenario, it becomes imperative to ensure their optimum growth, cater to their varied interests, organize their capabilities, enhance their strengths and minimize their weakness with the ultimate goal of making them self-sufficient and independent individuals, always in sight. They have to be trained to exhibit a socially correct behaviour so that they

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are largely accepted in the society. We need to equip them with social-vocational skills so that neither the parents nor the society treats them with contempt. Inclusive Education happens when children with and without disabilities participate and learn together in the same class. There is a need to customize the curriculum and syllabi according to the child’s needs. Teaching such children cannot be generalized. It has to be child-specific and child-centric. The SEN children have a short attention span, so they need classrooms and duration according to their needs. It has to be recognized that they need different tools and techniques to comprehend the same content and context. “One size fits all” isn’t applicable in this setup. Along with the education and training of SEN children, it is the school’s responsibility to continue to counsel and guide the parents, so that parents and teachers can work together. We have to understand that it takes quite some time for parents to accept the disability/challenge of the child because autism and learning disabilities manifest themselves between the ages of three years and seven years. Not only this, the entire school community needs to be sensitized viz-a-viz empathy and support. The peers have to be sensitive to the uniqueness and different abilities of these children. The care-givers have to be committed, dedicated and alert towards the specific, as well as changing needs of these children. Educational institutions must physically and mentally accept the fact that children with special needs come into our lives leaving footprints on our hearts that can never be removed.

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Bridging The Achievement Gap

Shalini Bajaj

Principal The Maurya School, Gurgaon

Sudhir is the most indisciplined child of the class. He takes pride in disturbing the class as well as the teacher. His notebooks and assignments are incomplete. His grades in exams are steadily declining. His non-serious attitude towards studies is a matter of concern for his parents as well as the school. Most of his teachers have given up on him and want him out of the school. Aashima is a very quiet and shy girl. She has problems in understanding concepts. She is weak in languages as well as mathematics. She never tries to clarify her doubts and tends to avoid company. The teachers do not have any complaints with regards to her behaviour; nevertheless, she has been labelled as slow and according to the teachers, she does not fit into the system. Smriti is the biggest bully of the school. All her classmates are scared of her. She is weak in academics and takes pride in her inability to perform. Her noncommittal attitude towards work disturbs her teachers. She feels discouraged and occasionally becomes temperamental when peers or facilitators try to help her in academics. Sudhir, Aashima and Smriti are typical low achievers. Low achievers are students who are unable to perform well in academics. Sudhir is a bright student but Aashima and Smriti have not been able to keep pace with other children in the class. There could be many children in every school struggling with concepts, who are ignored largely by teachers and peers. These students have low self-esteem and confidence. They start doubting their capabilities and carry a negative perception about themselves. There are different reasons for low achievement such as background, uneducated parents, non-conducive learning environment at home, parental pressure and incompetent, ineffective teachers. The gap between the high and low achievers keeps on widening with time. Now the important question is how to bridge this gap. Every student has a right to be a useful citizen and it is the collective responsibility of the Head of the School, Staff and Peers to help them. There are no set rules for helping low achievers. A smart and conscientious teacher will customize solutions for a child accordingly. Sudhir requires more counseling whereas Aashima and Smriti would require a mixture of suggested methods to work effectively. Identification: It is imperative to identify low achievers as early as possible. The teachers should maintain a record for every child and extra help should be provided to students finding difficulty in learning. As every child is unique and learns at his own pace, the school should ensure some flexibility in terms of time for a child to reach the required level. Extra time should be devoted regularly and religiously to the low achievers. Teaching Methodology: It is the most important factor to eliminate low achievements. Every child learns with the assistance of different styles and methods. An effective teacher will use more than one method to teach a concept. Use of the smart board, role play, peer teaching, project methods, in addition to the traditional chalk and talk method can curb inattentiveness

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in class and enhance understanding for everyone. The teacher should plan her lesson well and use simple language. She should speak slowly and give explicit instructions. The content should be repeated a number of times with concrete examples. She should give one instruction at a time and write the key points on the board. She can make use of coloured chalks to highlight important concepts and draw tables, graphs and diagrams for clarity and effectiveness. Patience: It can do wonders. Why is it that a particular teacher has all the students eagerly awaiting her class? For some students it’s the only bright spot in the school. Every child develops the feelings of trust, fear and love during the formative years. An excellent teacher possesses motherly instincts and is always approachable. She will find time to listen to their problems, sort out their issues and give extra time to students finding difficulty in her subject. Counseling: A school counselor has a major role to play in terms of identifying any psychological problem being faced by the low achievers. It could be due to a learning disability or the unrealistic expectations of parents. The school should customize the curriculum and provide support to children with learning disabilities. Language: Low achievers generally have poor command over languages, which make understanding of concepts difficult. There should be special classes for reading, listening and speaking for the low achieving children to enhance their command over the instructional language. Extra-curricular activities: Low achievers have a low self-esteem due to problems with understanding concepts during the formative years of schooling. These students have weak understanding of basic concepts and find it hard to comprehend complex concepts. This problem could have been sorted out easily in the initial stages of their schooling. The school can focus on the innate talents possessed by the low achievers and encourage them to excel in their area of interest. The victory over negative feelings of not performing well in academics by excelling in any other field will raise their self-confidence. The vicious cycle of self-defeat can be broken and low achieving children will slowly and gradually perform better in academics also. Schools should provide an enabling environment for inclusion of all children with varied needs so that they can reach their full potential through adequate learning opportunities, effective teaching techniques and appropriate resources.

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Technology in Education

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Cloud Computing: The Inception of a New Era

Neelima Prakash

Principal Lions Public School, Gurgaon

“I don’t need a hard disk in my computer if I can get to the server faster… carrying around these non-connected computers is byzantine by comparison.” Steve Jobs, former Chairman, AppleInc (1997) ‘Cloud computing’ – a relatively recent term, defines the path ahead in the world of computer Science. Having being built on decades of research, it utilizes all recent achievements in various fields. It is used in almost all fields related to the computer trends. Cloud computing is used in the field of Entertainment, Medicine, Military Operations, Security issues, Business, Finance etc. Cloud Computing is the use of computing resources (hardware and software) that are delivered as a service over the Internet. In cloud computing the word ‘Cloud’ is used as a metaphor for the Internet, so the phrase ‘Cloud Computing’ means a type of Internet-based computing’, where different services such as servers, storage devices and applications are delivered to an organization’s computers and devices through the Internet. The name ‘Cloud Computing’ was inspired by the cloud symbol that is often used to represent the Internet in flowcharts and diagrams. The end user accesses cloud-based applications through a web browser or by means of mobile applications. The goal of Cloud Computing is to provide easy access to computing resources and IT services. A Cloud service has three distinct characteristics that differentiate it from the traditional hosting. It is sold on demand - typically by the minute or the hour and it is flexible. A user can have as much or as little of a service as they want at any given time and the service is fully managed by the provider. The National Institute of Standards and Technology, an agency of the US Department of Commerce, lists five fundamental and important characteristics of cloud computing. They are: • On-demand Self Service • Broad Network Access • Resource Pooling • Rapid Elasticity or Expansion • Measured Service. Any application that we use, such as a Word or an Excel document online, or plotting a graph using a website such as Editgrid.com, it is considered to be a part of Cloud Computing. Now, let’s take a look at the utility of Cloud Computing across the world-

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Email

Whether you are using Gmail, Yahoo Mail or Outlook.com, the email is stored on the cloud. In Cloud Computing one can exchange messages, run filters, tag them. And the cloud storage can easily save messages, attachments in messages etc. Social Media

The whole social media movement is around us, whether we are on Facebook, Google+ or Twitter. Social media networks have become a great example of Cloud Computing and storage.

File Storage

There was a time when we stored our data files on floppy disks and then went on to CDs. Suddenly, storage is all-too-easy and cheap because it is on the Web. Now there is Box.net or a Dropbox that stores files and helps you switch easily between your laptop storage and “cloud storage”. Sound and Video

When you watch a video on YouTube, you have “cloud servers” at the back-end streaming your favourite videos. Sites such as Saavn.com and Hungama.com let you stream music for free in a similar manner. The following is a list of the three main types of services that can be offered by the cloud:

• Platform as a Service (PaaS): Users create and run their own software applications while relying on the cloud provider for software development tools as well as the underlying infrastructure and operating system. The service delivery model allows the customer to rent virtualized servers and associated services for running existing applications or developing and testing new ones.

• Software as a Service (SaaS): Under this layer, applications are delivered through the medium of the Internet as a service. Instead of installing and maintaining software, you simply access it via Internet, freeing yourself from complex software and hardware management. The cloud provider hosts a single application which offers complete application functionality.

• Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): Users rent computing power – either actual hardware or virtualized machines – to deploy and run their own operating systems and software applications. It is a provision model in which an organization outsources the equipment used to support operations, including storage, hardware, servers and networking components. The service provider owns the equipment and is responsible for housing, running and maintaining it. The client typically pays on a per-use basis.

The back-end systems that deliver cloud services are generally deployed in one of the following four ways: • Public Cloud: Customers access cloud services and store documents in large

documenters equipped with hundreds of virtualized servers that house data from multiple organizations.

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• Private Cloud: A single organization uses a dedicated cloud infrastructure. • Hybrid cloud: Two or more cloud types are linked to enable data and applications to

flow between them in a controlled way. • Community Cloud: Community Cloud shares infrastructure between different

organizations from a definite community by means of common concern (security etc.) Dominant Cloud Computing Companies:

Microsoft, AT & T, Amazon, Google, Net Suite etc.

Implementation of Cloud Technology in Education System

“Cloud Computing technology’s objective is to move any application stored on a computer to a remote location, eliminating all the standard components, including operating systems and hard drives, which are necessary in today’s computers and make them accessible online through standard browsers.”

Control & Connectivity : All the main users of the Institution are connected to the cloud. (students, faculty, admin staff, examination staff etc.) Secure: Separate login is provided to different users. Easily accessible: Anyone can access data easily, anywhere. Easily Analyzable: On the basis of accessibility teachers can easily identify problem areas in which students tend to make mistakes, by analyzing students study records.

Benefits of Cloud Computing for Institutions and Students “Cloud Computing has the potential to create irreversible changes in how computers are used around the world” 1. Personalized Learning: Cloud computing offers opportunities for greater student choice

in learning. Using an Internet-connected device, students can access a wide array of resources and software tools that suit their learning styles and interests.

2. Reduced Costs: Cloud-based services can help institutes reduce costs and accelerate the use of new technologies to meet evolving educational needs. Students can use office applications for free without having to purchase, install and keep these applications up to date on their computers. It also provides the facility of ‘Pay-Per-Use’ for some applications.

3. Accessibility: One can login and access the information from anywhere and at any time. Many schools and colleges give assignment works during vacations. With Cloud Computing, students are able to interact while doing the assignments as they are on single computer. This process is not only efficient but also saves time and improves the quality of learning among students.

4. No Extra Infrastructure: Colleges and governments are now more competent in making more research facilities available to the students and creating a global environment instead of wasting time on worrying about the buildings, labs, teachers etc.

5. Go Green: Education cloud will surely reduce the carbon footprint.

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6. User Friendly: This new facility is user friendly easy to understand and easy to operate.

7. Content Growth: Content has traditionally come from limited, relatively “known” channels like textbooks, encyclopedias, newspapers and television. Most content now comes from relatively “unknown” sources through the web. ‘IGNOU’ is the best example of e-learning. The free softwares such as OpenOffice.org can be used for Cloud Computing services. Only a browser is needed for students to connect to the Cloud Computing service for learning.

8. Compatibility: It is compatible with most computers and operating systems. Concerns Over Adoption There are several obstacles computing faces before being adopted. Security: Among many other concerns surrounding the implementation of security in Cloud Computing one of them is data privacy. The users do not have control or know where their data is being stored.

Performance and Availability: Some of the concerns include how to guarantee quality in performance from an outside vendor. Availability of services is another related concern in terms of the possibility of massive vendor outages. This is especially true since it may impact student learning or the timely delivery of the research results, which are typically tied to strict timelines.

Cost: The cost is another factor that may be introduced by additional vendor relationship management or possibly additional measures that are unique to Cloud Computing.

Control: The amount of control that the user has over the cloud environment varies.

Latency: All access to the cloud is done via Internet, introducing latency into every communication between the user and the environment. Conclusion

Cloud Computing is an emerging computing paradigm which promises to provide opportunities for delivering a variety of computing services in a way that has not been experienced before. It is essential for an educational and learning organization. With its budget restrictions and sustainability challenges, the cloud formations are best suited to its IT activities. Cloud Computing paradigm is still relatively young in terms of maturity and adoption. The expectation is that it will undergo several changes in the future, in terms of resources, issues, risks and ultimately best practices and standards. Cloud Computing could have considerable potential in improving the IT application and infrastructure at Educational institutions.

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Digital Classrooms

Rani Rai Principal

St PBN Public School Technology can become the “wings” that will allow the educational world to fly farther and faster than ever before, if we allow it to. A teacher standing in front of the room near a chalkboard is one of the iconic images of education. Smart boards and other digital technologies, however, are changing how classrooms are structured, how teachers teach and how students learn. Technology benefitted us in every aspect of our life right from communication to education. In ancient days students were taught in a gurukul by the gurus. But this system has been replaced by a modernized culture. New methods of teaching have been introduced. Instructional material such as 3D animated modules and videos have begun to replace the traditional methods. The students are now thrilled with this concept of innovative and interactive learning process. The concept of Digital Classroom has not only made education interesting but has given an opportunity to students to enhance their performance. The Digital classrooms equipped with smart classes have computers, tablets, video cameras and teachers /educators use slide shows / videos to expedite information. But this is only a narrow definition of a Digital Classroom. The Digital Classroom in a broader perspective is a classroom where learning is not confined within the four walls but has reached the doorstep of the students through E-learning, where textbook is one of the sources of gaining knowledge but not the only source. In a digital classroom, students possess the necessary skills to communicate, collaborate and learn. Why Digital Classrooms?

The digital classrooms have become the need of the hour as they have numerous benefits:- Saves Time and Paper: Notes can be prepared once and then shared a number of times. This gives the teacher more instructional time. The notes can be saved, e-mailed or posted online for a wider audience. It also minimizes use of paper. Customized Content: Digital notes can be tailor-made for students, rather than “one size fits all” textbooks. It also allow students to progress at their own pace. Larger Platform for the Students: They can communicate and collaborate with students across the world and derive their own meaningful conclusions. Rendezvous with Experts: Learners get the opportunity to communicate with experts. With Internet access, children can be exposed to a world of creative ideas outside their bubble. They can learn another language, or teach themselves how to draw, knit, or play chess. They have access to an endless array of options available, not just to help them learn, but to gain skills they might not otherwise have access. Instant Answers: Access to the Internet provides instant answers for the curious. This is the ‘search and learn’ environment children have access to today. Now, when they want to know

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“Why do leaves change colour’” they are only a “search” away from learning. This also gives students the ability to get an answer to a question they may feel uncomfortable asking in class. If a teacher uses a term they don’t understand, they can find the answer discretely, without interrupting the class. Access to Video: Electronic devices in the classroom can enhance the learning experience by providing instant video access. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech is not just something to read about. Man’s first step on the moon, early flight, presidential speeches, bridges being built… they all are made more real and easier to comprehend in the form of videos. A Magnified World: The digital white board makes computer images larger and more lifelike. It also gives students a place to interact on “Virtual field trips”, use a camera to zoom in on science samples and collaborate on Math problems. Lifeline to Learning: Netbooks, paired with Google Docs, allow students to access documents, presentations and websites and share them with other students. As a result, they are more involved in the curriculum and their self-esteem. This combination of technology also leads to self- directed and continuous learning. Students can collaborate after school as well. Multiple Choice: i-Pads provide an array of options for creating digital presentations and projects, reading with e-books and learning through apps. They make learning new skills fun and more student-centered. Children can choose what they want to learn, create, or play. Brings Parents and Teachers Closer: Digital Classrooms give abundant virtual communication opportunities to teachers and parents. What Should Schools Do?

The schools need to act as facilitators and help children get due access to these well-equipped and enriching classrooms. The schools also need to filter the content and ensure that the right information reaches the right people at the right age. Here lies the biggest challenge- How can we filter or barricade the information super highway? The school should also emphases on reinforcement of the learnt or studied content. When the information is just a click away then people tend to forget things faster. How many of us remember phone numbers now they are there in our phones - just a touch away? The schools also need to lay stress on soft skills. To socialize, to communicate, to care and to share is what only a teacher can teach. As Bill Gates rightly says “Technology is just a tool, in terms of getting the students to working together and motivating them, the teacher is the most important”.

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Parenting: The Art & Science of Nurturing

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Understanding Adolescence

Nirmal Yadav

Principal CCA School, Sector 4 Gurgaon

School Principals have a formidable task of bringing up children for twelve years or more in their voyage of school life. Together with teachers, hats of various hues are worn by them as they play different roles- foster parents, facilitators, mentors, motivators and inspirers, counselors, disciplinarians and care-givers. This is in addition to the fundamental duty of teaching with sincerity, enabling them to be solution providers and solve unknown problems of tomorrow with today’s knowledge. The bond between a student and a teacher begins at the infant level in preparatory classes, and continues to grow during the formative years of development that determine and give direction to the future life of the child. The teacher needs to adopt a different strategy to cater to the needs of the child at every stage of school life. It has been aptly said, “To teach Latin to John’, one ought to know John well.” Hence educators have to understand the needs of children, their strengths and weaknesses, be kind yet firm on principles, and lead them to the right path. Schools today need to evolve and grow constantly, adapting with time. Like nature, here too survival depends on how schools stand and deliver in the ever-changing environment, without losing sight of future needs. Adolescents who complete school education today have the advantage of two extra years of school life to balance their energy, emotions, skills and knowledge as compared to the time before the introduction of the 10+2 system when college life started at an early age and provided some tough lessons. Today in this fast pace of life, children do not have the time to learn the lessons of life the hard way. They have to be equipped with the best in pedagogy to emerge as winners in the tough competitive world. A delicate balance must be maintained by educators while dealing with adolescents today. The principles and values that exist within the four walls of a school are somewhat different from what they are outside. This causes confusion and conflict among children. In modern classrooms the teachers who teach adolescents encounter eyes that are:

• Questioning

• Giving new meaning to values

• Being indifferent

• Withstanding peer pressure

• Learning to come to terms with conflicting issues in an ever-changing society.

• Dealing with infatuations and attractions

• Struggling uphill in academics and competitions Beneath the surface of what we see, is hidden a mind filled with confusion that requires the attention of an understanding and sensitive teacher. The teacher as an enabler can either give

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wings or lead to a free fall. They need to serve as counselors. For the inquisitive eyes of adolescents, teachers can provide solutions by displaying the following qualities:

• Tremendous patience to hear out a child, and not be judgmental or impatient.

• An understanding that self-esteem of every child is important.

• The traits of a Role Model, as every word or act of a teacher is not for the momentary but it leaves an impact for life.

• A balanced attitude so as to suppress impulsive behavior and temper outbursts over small issues when amongst peers.

• An insight into the issues of adolescents and their perspectives. e.g - Adolescents believe in muscle power rather than negotiation

Teachers have to negotiate with adolescents and resolve conflicting issues with consensus. The prudence of educators should help them steer deftly to the course that is expected. Sometimes teachers pit their ego against a child’s ego and feel the child is impertinent in language or behaviour. What we adults take as arrogance is often not so; as the child perhaps hasn’t yet learnt fine conversation skills or polished social behaviour or attained the emotional maturity to resolve conflicts. We often react “how can he say this” or “how dare she speak like this in my presence” even to their most straightforward innocent sentences. Aristotle has rightly said, “The young think they know everything and are confident in their assertions”. Teenagers haven’t changed, no matter how much the world has advanced. The only difference is that adults have learnt to camouflage their feelings while teens are raw and have not acquired that finesse. We need to teach them negotiation skills and a civilized manner of conflict resolution. There is enough negativity in the world and we should facilitate them to explore possibilities and grab opportunities. These students will move in a multicultural society as adults and must acquire essential life skills to face challenges in life. “Yield not thy neck to fortune’s yoke, but let thy dauntless mind still ride in triumph over all mischance.” – Shakespeare The values that we live by are the distilled wisdom of the ages and ought to be inculcated in students, as righteousness always pays in the long run. Learning happens at school actively or passively or even by default but life skills take a long time to become a habit. Persistence plays a vital role in achieving this goal. If our children have learnt to live a fruitful and successful life, we have done our job.

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Parent-School Partnership

Aditi Misra Principal

DPS, Gurgaon The most vital stakeholder in the ecosystem of a school is the child who is the student of the school. The student cannot be viewed in isolation. The school needs to view students as children- who belong to a family. The parents necessarily need to be involved as partners in the child’s growth. The three contexts in which a child grows and learns are, the Home, School and last but not the least- The Community. All three contexts overlap to create spheres of influence and decide how children will learn and develop. The model of the Home-School Community Partnership views the child at the centre and works to create opportunities to enhance growth and development of the child. The Home-School-Community Partnership works at two levels- The Internal &The External.

• Internally, it seeks to foster interaction between the three spheres of influence. This is done by creating better interpersonal relations between individuals at Home, School and The Community.

• Externally, the partnership may draw the three spheres of influence closer or push them apart.

Dr. Joyce Epstein’s study points to six types of parental involvement: 1. Parenting 2. Communication (between School & Home) 3. To Volunteer: a bridge between School and Community 4. Learning at home 5. Decision Making 6. Collaborating with the community

Research has shown that parental involvement in all or one form (of the list given above) has resulted in visible success in student achievement. In the Indian educational frame work, Parents could be involved in partnership with schools.

1. Parents as Partners 2. Parents as Audience 3. Parents as Supporters 4. Parents as Collaborators 5. Parents as Co-decision makers 6. Parents as Ambassadors

Each partnership is vital for the success of the child. Schools need to decide which role of parent-partners they need to highlight and how to involve more parents in the school community.

Some ways to ensure and sustain Parent-School Partnership are as follows: • By drafting written policies which lay down, regulate and legitimize parent participation.

This is an important first step, as it lays down clearly events/ situations where parents,

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need to be brought in, how many need to be involved, what will this involvement look like and how will this partnership be taken forward.

• The second way is training parents and teachers to work together as partners with a common aim to enhancing students’ learning outcomes. Parents and teachers should never see themselves and each other as advisories. A simple way to ensure this is through informal meetings and not PTMs only.

• The third important way to build parent school partnership is by having frequent and regular two way communication. This should be done in a non-threat eningway and should foster mutual understanding.

• Last but not the least an assessment/ evaluation must be carried out to see the effectiveness of this partnership.

A ‘SWOT’ analysis would help gauge how efficient a particular Parent-School Partnership has been.

The importance of Parent-Teacher Partnership can be summarized up as:-

The Importance of Partnership

I dreamed I stood in a studio And watched two sculptors there.

The clay they worked was a young child’s mind, And they fashioned it with care.

One was a teacher, the tools she used

Were books and music and art; One a parent with a guiding hand,

And a gentle, loving heart.

Day after day the teacher worked, With a touch that was deft and sure, While the family also did their part, And polished and smoothed it o’er

And when at the last the task was done,

They were proud of what they had wrought, For the things they had moulded into the child

Could neither be sold nor bought.

And each agreed they may have failed If each had worked alone,

For behind the teacher stood the school, And behind the parent, the home.

Ray A. Lingenfetter (Elementary School Principal)

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Building Bridges-A Principal’s Perspective

Ujwal Malhotra

Principal Bal Bharati Public School

Sector-1, Manesar, Gurgaon An educational institution is essentially a community space for childhood explorations and creative self-discovery, a place for dialogue between all those who share a special bond with the child. The journey of any school from its inception to the zenith is led by its indispensable human resource and the student has the ‘influence of family, reflection of a school and ideology of the society’. As educational leaders, we must build bridges to connect ‘Classrooms, Communities and Continents’. “High schools have long had three core tasks: to prepare young people for the world of work, to prepare them to use their minds well, to think deeply in an informed way, and to prepare them to be thoughtful citizens and decent human beings.”(‘The Students Are Watching, Sizer and Sizer, 1999). School life thus captures the ‘preparation’ element, where education must prepare young people to adapt to a fast changing society with a progressive outlook. We are personally responsible for the success of our students when they graduate from school. It is our duty to provide the bridge of educational support to help them plan their transition from school to college and into the workforce. We must create a culture of high expectations and ensure access to all learning opportunities to our students for addressing the problem of a large number of people unemployed in the society. We are passing through testing times. On one hand, we have a generation of graduates but lack employment opportunities for them; on the other hand our graduates are not equipped with the requisite skills that make them employable. It is worth reflecting whether our education system is a part of the problem or in sync with the demands of today’s world. Education is a system that enables us to learn how to relate to ourselves, others and the world. Rote-learning and standardization which were not very long ago considered the ideal means for mass transmission of knowledge, must give way to a system that enables us to bridge the three sectors of ‘education , business and community’. Today education is primarily directed towards an economic end. The world is now more open, globalized, interconnected, more technologically advanced. A teacher has to be a prophet who can look into the future and see ‘tomorrow’ into which the children of ‘today’ must fit. If you dream of something, you have the power of making it come true. Firm must be your Will, Patient your Heart and Passionate your Aspiration to attain the fulfillment of your goal, which is to develop students into academically proficient, morally upright and socially integrated individuals. We have to provide infinite possibilities for innovation, engagement and transformation. Teachers have to be given time and support to become producers of useful educational research themselves and build their own bridges to develop collaboration. If research evidence is a requisite requirement, then it needs to emerge from the ground upwards not as a centralized policy. Teachers need to be self-critical and reflective and see the need for research to lead their own expert knowledge.

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Teaching is all about sensitivity and adaptation. Teachers should adjust to the needs and circumstances of students, and derive tacit knowledge from their classroom practice so as to improve their teaching strategies. Why does one take up the teaching profession? ---To make a difference to others’ lives as well as to develop personally. The work environment must provide a platform for professional growth. The environment should be conducive to conducting scholarly work across interdisciplinary academic areas, participating in field studies and exploring cutting edge research. As educational leaders we need to build bridges –not bridges swinging in the wind but robust long-lasting bridges that have deep foundations on either side. Teachers need to be connected to expert research professionals on one side and supportive institutions on the other side. We have to place education at the centre of the community, through, problem-solving, social action, interdisciplinary learning, coaching beyond the school, action research and peer learning. We should have the desire to excel and the ambition to give back to the society, change the world for the better by addressing the questions of ‘quality, equity and accessibility’. We have to play a key role in connecting cultures and fostering tolerance by uniting scholars and educators in action, building bridges between ‘Ideas, Schools and Nations’, and working on the philosophy of ‘You, Me and Us’. Let us look within and build bridges between ourselves and those we serve by supporting them in their journey from cradle to career. Life is all about connecting with people. One has to keep all the channels of communication open. The teachers should be equipped to enhance their competence and knowledge to meet the new and changing demands of their careers. There is a need to strengthen, elevate and transform the teaching profession, holding the educators responsible for the success of their students, regardless of ‘race, disability or demography.’ Creative skills and teaching flexibility to generate solutions need to be encouraged. This calls for a generation of team-workers who solve real-life problems through sharing of ideas that drive progress, create opportunities and employment. It is good to think well; divine to act well. We all need to inspire people around us to maximize their potential. We must endure, manage, adapt and commit ourselves to excellence. A bridge is part of that infrastructure which supports movement of a Nation. Our prime role is also building bridges between the Teaching Community and its Students, between the School and the Parents, between Students and the Society, between Cultures and Nations and between human-beings across the globe.