2015,April Issue by Mind Champs

RNI No: APENG/2013/49994

Postal Regd. No: HD/1180/2013-2015

Posted at PC Secunderabad on April 7-8, 2015 Date of Publication: April 6, 2015 w w w. m i n d ch a m p s i n d ia .co m

Intelligence, knowledge and its applicability are the 3 elements that set apart a competent student from the other students, to be a top performer. To find, encourage and honour the competent students of our country – Mind Champs India is organizing “All India Challenge Exams” in Math, Science and Logic.

April 2015

mind Champs

Volume III Issue 1

INDIA

AIMCE

H RAP G O T PHO

All India MATH Challenge Exam

AISCE

All India SCIENCE Challenge Exam

MY MOTHER - DOCTOR MY FATHER - ENGINEER MY BROTHER - PILOT

I-

for classes

PRIZES

Prize

2Prize nd

3 Prize rd

Note: School wise and class wise topper will be given Medal & Certificate

1 th

III-X

LEVEL

29 August 2015

2 th

LEVEL

HOTEL

Biology

s h t a M

AILCE

All India LOGIC Challenge Exam

`75

A MONTHLY EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVE

WHICH STREAM OF STUDY SHOULD I PURSUE?

Commerce

Art

MANAGE

MENT

ICIAN T U A E B

? AFTER AFT

X XII

M LIS A N R JOU

WHAT NEXT?

September 2015 For more details contact:

MIND CHAMPS INDIA A-75, Journalist Colony Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad - 500 033 Telangana, INDIA

MY INDIAN AR

+91 99080 07557 info@mindchampsindia.com www.facebook.com/mindchamps www.twitter.com/MindChampsIndia

VIEW POINT Is it a model for the West

FESTIVALS Different Shades of Hindu New Year

BYGONE LUMINARY “Babasaheb” Dr. B R Ambedkar

KNOW THE COUNTRY Germany

Presents

INTERNATIONAL

SCHOOL

EDUCATION

LEADERSHIP

SCHOOL

ACADEMIC

EXCELLENCE

SUMMIT 2015

AWARDS - 2015

May 2-7, 2015 | Singapore & Malaysia

o discuss and debate why leadership is important in school education, deduce ways on how one can implement time tested quality educational practices, and, also find newer ideas, to make the present day education system, a robust entity in the development of a nation. To encourage and motivate excellence in school education, the schools with best pedagogical practices and pursue the vision or mission of contributing to the society by providing quality education for the future leaders, will be awarded with a school excellence award.

TENTATIVE PROGRAM

1st May, 2015 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fly to Kuala Lampur from their respective airports

Arrive at Kuala Lampur

School Visit in Kuala Lampur Summit delegate registrations are closed.

Reach Lotus Desaru Beach Resort

nd May

May

Singapore Schools Visit

Singapore Universal Studios Visit

For Stall bookings & Sponsors Contact:

S. Hemachandra Rao +91 94944 39494 E-mail: brahmam@ brainfeedmagazine.com

School Education Leadership Summit 09:00 am to 03:00 pm & School Academic Excellence Awards Night 19:00 pm to 21:00 pm

May

(at Lotus Desaru Beach Resort)

www.brainfeedmagazine.com

May

Departure from Singapore

contents

volume III issue 1

APRIL 2015

Readers’ Column

News

Editorial

Know the country

This Month at a Glance

Technology

Earth View

The Big Question

View Point

Commemoration

View Point

Short Story

Festivals

Humour Column

Mentors Speak

Language study

Bygone Luminary

Book Review

Health

British Council

Write Right

Quiz & Amazing Facts

Frames of Physics

Mind Mine

Why is Singapore’s school system so successful

08 COVER STORY

IT’S YOUR CHOICE

MENTORS SPEAK

IS IT A MODEL FOR THE WEST?

CHILDREN ARE BUDDING GENIUSES IN THE MAKING

41 DIFFERENT SHADES OF HINDU NEW YEAR

april 2015

R EA DER ’ S C OL UM N Congratulations’ Congratulations on the grand success of Brainfeed’s 2nd National Conference. I had read the complete coverage of the conference and found that it had so much to offer for an educationist. The panel discussions (on various topics) of some of the experienced educators from different parts of our country were very informative and insightful. The topics presented by keynote speaker Ms Swathi Popat Vats – ‘Creating a safe school environment’ where she explained the seven hierarchies of needs according to Maslow was very interesting to read. Wish Brainfeed all the best in its future endeavors.

L. Shailaja & K Lalitha, Gachi bowli, Hyderabad

Thanks for the expert advice

I was really excited

S Ravi, Bengaluru

april 2015

The festival article ‘People, language, region differ but their New Year day doesn’t’ gave us some new insight on the way people from different places celebrate their new year and that is falling on the same day in places that are thousands of miles away from each other. That is very interesting because Ugadi is celebrated by Telugu & Kannada speaking people and Gudi Padwa is the new year of Maharashtrian’s and the Nowroz is the Persian new year we would love to know some more historical background about this uniqueness festivities celebrated by people speaking different languages.

G Savitha, Pune

I have read the section expert advice Dr Purnimaa’s ‘Mantra to crack the exam’ the tips that she has given are so simple and I feel every student should follow those tips to get themselves ready for the ﬁnal examinations. I have also prepared a time-table and trying to follow what all she had advised to do and prepared for my ﬁnal exam without any anxiety or fear.

Uniqueness of this new year

I am a parent (mother) of a 10 year old boy and he is a very sensitive child and when I saw you article written by Dr. Sunita Gandhi, I was really excited because that is what a mother like me wanted. Her advice with some good examples, was very interesting to read and gave me a lot of parenting tips with which I feel now I can really make my son grow into a balanced individual. N. K Ramani, Mysore

april 2015

volume III

issue 1

EDITORIAL

Chief Editor Brahmam K V Editor Sadanand S Executive Editor G. Bhageeradha +91 91775 13996 Sub Editors Kruthi Deepthi Hema Gopal Art & Design Lakshmi D Rakesh N Sales Anil Sharma, Director Sales +91 096321 74951 Circulation Hemachandra Rao S +91 9177774851 Printed, Published and Owned by Kakani Veera Brahmam Printed at Kala Jyothi Process Pvt. Ltd. 1-1-60/5, RTC X Roads Hyderabad-500 020, Telangana, India Published from 8-3-191/565/K, Vengal Rao Nagar SR Nagar Post, Hyderabad-500 038 Telangana, India Contact No. : 040- 6551 5151 +91 94944 39444 Email: info@brainfeedmagazine.com brainfeedmagazine@gmail.com Bengaluru Office D J Business Centre, office 102, # 20 Gold Tower, 50, Residency Road Bengaluru-560 025, India Contact No. : 080 - 41 627 627 +91 96321 74951 www.brainfeedmagazine.com facebook.com/brainfeededumag RNI No. APENG/2013/49994

“

he crowning fortune of a man is to be born to some pursuit which ﬁnds him employment and happiness, whether it be to make baskets, or broadswords, or canals, or statues, or songs.” said Ralph Waldo Emerson. Choosing a career for yourself from the scores of options available will be a tough task but with a little bit of researching, enquiring, and getting acquainted with career planning counsellors will help you decide on the right career for you. Our cover story this month is on career planning – an attempt from Brainfeed to inform the school leavers about all the career options or courses that are available for them to choose from and turn it into a successful and secure future. We have interviewed an expert career counsellor Ms Sangeetha Virmani, Senior Associate Vice President - Client Activation, of Univariety a reputed career guidance organisation we share her views and advise on how career counsellor can help in deciding a student’s career in accordance with her or his inclination, interests, capabilities, skills and resolve to pursue it to its logical end – that is, excelling in the ﬁeld of his or her study. Many a varied stream of study and careers have been included in the cover story but still there are a lot more of career options available, you just have to decide on what you want to be and if you work on it dedicatedly, you have all the possibility to be that one day in your future. ‘Know your career from your handwriting’ by Y. Mallikarjun Rao gives you some ideas on how one can decide on their career prospects by studying their handwriting. In our mentor speaks section – read Ms Anjali Razdan’s views on teaching, education and teachers. A couple of articles on the schools in Singapore, South Korea and Finland give an insight into the functioning of these school and how they are adding to the education pool of these two countries. And spend some relaxing time reading the regular sections of Brainfeed – know the country, bygone luminaries, short story, humour column and test yourself by doing the quiz and mind mine. Happy Reading

CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE & E-MAG www.brainfeedmagazine.com

Brahmam K V Chief Editor

AND FOLLOW US ON facebook.com/brainfeededumag

twitter.com/brainfeedmagzn

april 2015

THIS MONTH AT A GLANCE

sunday

APRIL 2015

monday

tuesday

There are hundreds of paths up the mountain, all leading to the same place, so it doesn’t matter which path you take. The only one wasting time is the one who runs around the mountain, telling everyone that his or her path is wrong. –Hindu proverb

06 Indian Politician

13 SAFDAR HASHMI Playwright

Birth Anniversary 1954

World Human Space Flight Day

19 ANJU BOBBY GEORGE Athlete

26 L. SHANKAR

Dr. B R AMBEDKAR Social reformer

Happy Birthday 1940

Birth Anniversary 1891

april 2015

D PURANDHARESWARI Indian Politician

Happy Birthday 1959

Happy Birthday 1945

World Earth Day

28 Birth Anniversary 1912

Birth Anniversary 1563

Cricketer

Happy Birthday 1950

Sikh Guru

S VENKATARAGHAVAN

Chief Minister of AP

Film actress

GURU ARJAN DEV JI

ZOHRA SEHGAL

Happy Birthday 1966

Indian Politician

Violinist

ANANDMURTI GURUMAA Spiritual leader

World Health Day

NAJMA HEPTULLA

Happy Birthday 1937

Birth Anniversary 1920

N CHANDRABABU NAIDU

Happy Birthday 1977

Vice President of India

MD. HAMID ANSARI

Musician

Birth Anniversary 1886

Birth Anniversary 1908

RAVI SHANKAR

OSMAN ALI KHAN ASAF JAH VII

BABU JAGJIVAN RAM

wednesday

BHANU ATHAIYA Costume designer

Happy Birthday 1929

USTAD ALLAH RAKHA Indian Tabla Player

Birth Anniversary 1919

thursday

friday

saturday

UP COMING EVENTS April 10-11, 2015 ICMELT

03 BADE GHULAM ALI KHAN Vocalist

SAM MANEKSHAW

Birth Anniversary 1902

Birth Anniversary 1914

ROBERT DOWNEY JR. Actor

Military leader

Indian Politician

Happy Birthday 1954

Happy Birthday 1965

April 16-19, 2015 GlobELT 2015 (An International Conference on Teaching and Learning English as an Additional Language) Antalya, Turkey www.globeltconference. com

10 JAIRAM RAMESH

(International Conference on Multilingual Education, Learning and Teaching) Hatyai, Thailand www.icmelt2015.weebly. com

TERENCE LEWIS

KASTURBA GANDHI

Dancer

Political activist

Happy Birthday 1975

Birth Anniversary 1869

April 19-23, 2015 International Conference for Academic Disciplines Vienna, Austria www.internationaljournal. org/vienna.html

17 VIKRAM

CHARLIE CHAPLIN Movie Actor

Film actor

Birth Anniversary 1889

Happy Birthday 1966

S. JANAKI Playback Singer

Happy Birthday 1938 English Language Day

30 DADASAHEB PHALKE Film producer

Birth Anniversary 1870

Bengaluru, India April 28, Pune, India www.matlabexpo.com/in

POONAM DHILLON Film actress

May 2- 7, 2015 International School Education Leadership Summit 2015

Happy Birthday 1962

Singapore & Malaysia www.brainfeedmagazine. com

April 23 & 28, 2015 MATLAB EXPO 2015

KARAN RAZDAN

SACHIN TENDULKAR

Happy Birthday 1961

Happy Birthday 1973

– Swami Vivekananda

(10th International Conference on ICT for Development, Education and Training) Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, www.elearning-africa.com

Actor

Cricketer

“The great secret of true success, of true happiness, is this: the man or woman who asks for no return, the perfectly unselfish person, is the most successful.”

May 20-22, 2015 eLearning Africa 2015

World Malaria Day

FEBRUARY MARCH 2015 2015

MAY 2015

april 2015

COVER STORY

IT’S YOUR CHOICE CHOOSE YOUR STREAM OF STUDY AND MAKE A CAREER OF IT S Sadanand

“Climbing to the top demands strength, whether it is to the top of Mount Everest or to the top of your career” said A. P. J. Abdul Kalam. Isn’t it true that one needs to have immense strength – that is perseverance, will to excel, and the desire to grow and reach the pinnacle of their chosen career path, then, the ﬁrst step you have to take is choose the stream of study or career that you feel match your interest and future goals. Read on to know about various career paths that await you. 8

april 2015

ou are done with your ICSE/ CBSE/SSC examinations’ and you must be elated at last that you could handle your school education till 10th standard doing the best that you can and now’s the time to wait for that day when you will know how you have fared in your final examinations. But feeling anxious about your result would do no good to you and your plans to enjoy the summer holidays to the maximum extent – go on feel free as a bird, fill up your days and nights with mirth and laughter. It does not matter whether you secure high, average or low percentage of marks, whatever you have achieved is what you are so it will be good for you if you ignore the discouraging or insinuating talk of your peers or elders as there are a plethora of careers for you to choose from depending on your education, performance (in these examinations), interests, knowledge and your future aspirations.

It is you who is going to study and you will have to study what is up to your aptitude and perseverance ability. Go on, get enlightened, read about the varied number of study options we have and that you can plan your future of study right from your plus 1 stage, so that when you reach the bachelor level of study, you will be well prepared in that subject, you have chosen to pursue, till it fetches you that prized job or helps you in starting your own business. Stop running after one career option that lakhs of other students are blindly running after, don’t go with a crowd mentality, choose your own field of study, and, excel in that and you will have your bright day in the future with a perfect career that will match your background, education and interest. It is you who is going to study and you will have to study what is up to your aptitude and perseverance ability. Just because somebody wants you to become a car racer you cannot become one – it is your interest and resolve to become one will make you a car racer.

Give a thought Talking about car racing have you ever given a thought to that as a career option, no, because you were so immersed in your subject books, learning what your teachers taught you, you did not have time to think about what is not taught in the classroom. That doesn’t matter because now you can start thinking about that and try to get as much information on that subject as you can – get to know about cars, racing cars, motors and machinery, parts of a car, repairing of a car and also the struggles and sacrifices of well known car racers and the amount of money that you will have to put in to be on the car racing circuit. Let me caution you that car racing as a career is a very expensive option – if you have the resources it’s fine, if not, and still you get excited just thinking about the race track and all its surrounding activity, don’t get upset, you can check out some of the careers that surround car racing and the racer. Pit crew is one vital part of car racing and it consists of ‘crew chief’, ‘pit coach’ ‘gas person’, ‘jack operator’, ‘car mechanics’ and ‘scorer & spotter’ – a long list of career options that can be tried if your interest is cars, speed, race track, and speed machines. Another set of people helping car racers are ‘shop fore person’ who act as a liaison between the shop workers and the trackside crew chiefs and address the problems the chief notices during a race. And then there are the mechanical engineers, mechanics, fabricators, painters etc. april 2015

COVER STORY

CAREER PLANNING

Passion to work One essential requirement to be in a car racing team is that you will have to have strong Math skills as it is needed to make quick calculations or for measuring a car’s clearance, during a racing event. So it is you who should tell others what you want to be and work towards achieving that, no matter what obstacles or sacriﬁces you will have to go through. You got to remember that there is no job that is small or big – what keeps a person doing his or her work is the passion with which that job is carried out. In the race circuit, when your team’s racer climbs the podium and pops open a champagne bottle and sprays its contents on his team members and supporters, that is the moment when you will realize how important your part was, in response to that of the other team members then it is a moment of immense pleasure and satisfaction – it is an appreciation for the good work done by you.

The work you do as a profession has to appeal to your senses and make you happy only then you will have a secure and ideal life. So, shall we now move away from the race track and get into some serious talk about other careers and professions that are waiting for you with open hands. First, let us analyze each and every professional career that is there in our working world and zero in on the one that you can opt for, keeping in mind your liking, ability, skill, knowledge and determination. Just be reminded that each and every job out there in the market cannot be a lucrative job – it is your choice to choose what kind of a job you want to do and strive to study and achieve that job/profession or a successful business venture.

Know Your Values

Learn about Yourself

Identify Your Skils

Research Career Options

Link Your Major & Your Career Take a look at the diagram to get an idea on how you can choose and plan your career .

april 2015

Know your values: Put together your career plan by understanding the values that you hold close to your heart, values like personal values, family values, socialcultural values, material values, spiritual values and moral values that will guide your chosen career’s progress. You need to know that values are beliefs that are linked to emotion and they act as a motivational construct that will drive you to strive and attain your desirable goals. Learn about yourself: Zero in on a career that ﬁts your unique qualities – your abilities, talents, needs, values, and interests – and the life-style you want to live. To choose a satisfying career you have to have a clear picture about yourself. Writing down your ideas will make a big difference in your self-understanding. Some strategies that will help you to know yourself: • Take tests that are available online that measure your abilities, interests, values, and personality. • Study and analyze your performance and achievements in school. Which subjects you have done well or not done so well. • Observe how you use your leisure time – your hobbies, community projects, activities with social, political, or religious organizations. For each one, write down three headings: Abilities, Interests, and Values. And, under each heading write down your thoughts. • Discuss with a family member, a friend or a professional counselor, who you feel is a good listener and is also a good advisor.

• Write about your experiences and ﬁnd out the themes that correspond to who you are as a person. • Write a mission statement – that tells what you want to be, what you want to accomplish in life, and what values or principles that you want to guide you. Identify your skills: Skills are the activities or actions that you are able to perform very well. You learn a number of skills depending on your interests, study, training and future plans. You got to identify those skills that will help you in deciding on the best career that will suit your skills and interests. A lot of skills identifying quizzes are available on the net; these are good tools to identify your skills as these skills are important and that they will help you make that perfect and suitable career choice for yourself. Research career options: Firstly, do an extensive research to explore the various career options (you just have to go through the following pages) and then make a list of careers that will be suitable for you. By identifying different careers of your interest it will be easy for you to select the one that matches your interests, skills and future aspirations. Link your Major to your career: Linking of your major or any liberal art subject to your career planning will give you an added advantage to choose the career of your choice. A wide range of disciplines could be considered with common areas of interests like law, business, journalism, library science, communications, medicine, public health, counseling, speech and hearing, pathology, human resources, social work, environmental studies, technical writing, public administration and international affairs.

Gain expertise Before you decide and embark on your study journey spare some time thinking about all the subjects you have studied till now. The subjects you will be conversant with are one regional language, the national language – Hindi, for some Sanskrit or any other language, English, Social Studies, Science and Math. Every subject you have studied till now has the potential to be your career option, just that you have to pursue further studies in that subject, gain expertise, master it and you have made your career. For example let’s take Telugu, the language, Telugu speaking people learn as a 1st language subject. Have you ever thought of making a career in Telugu, no, because in spite of it being your mother tongue you won’t think of a career, by doing higher studies, in the Telugu language? Why because everybody wants to be known by the moniker ‘a World citizen’ and to be that English is the preferred vehicle and everyone has to just jump onto the ‘English language expert’ bandwagon. Sadly, there is no separate stream of study available for students who want to study our regional languages and make a career out of it. As of now, at the level of education you are, the question of making a career through Telugu, Hindi or Sanskrit does not arise, as anyway you will have to study all the subjects that make up your studies till graduation. So, let us just stick to that and try to ﬁgure out which subjects would be the best for you to study as you climb the rungs of each level of education right from the +2 level to graduation to post graduation to doctorate. april 2015

COVER STORY

Streams of study First let us take each subject that you have studied till now and ﬁnd out what are the streams of study that are available in each of the courses at the +2 level. The subjects that you have studied till the tenth standard can be divided into three categories or courses for your +2 level of education. The study of Science subjects – Botany, Zoology, Chemistry and Physics is one stream that will prepare you for Medicine and many other science based courses at the higher level of study. Math with Physics and Chemistry is another stream of study that will lead you to Engineering and Math & Science based courses. The remaining subjects Social Studies, English and to some extent Math will make up for the Commerce or liberal Arts courses of study. So, now it’s your choice – to plan and choose the course of study as per your aspirations, perseverance, and futuristic view or life that you want to live. Remember that this is the ﬁrst step to make your future bright and secure as these courses lay the foundation on which your career can and will be built. Let us now analyze each course of study in terms of its scope & topics, practical skills & attributes, and, higher options of study at the +2 level.

SCOPE & TOPICS Scope & Topics Bi.P.C – Botany, Zoology, Physics and Chemistry will lead you to study Medicine, Veterinary, Agriculture, Dentistry, doctorate in each subject to many more streams of study in Science. M.P.C - Math, Physics and Chemistry will give you numerous opportunities of career options ranging from a study for doctorate in each subject to engineering. C.E.C – Commerce, Economics and Civics will cover accounting, economics and related subjects relevant to trade and business. B.A – Bachelor of Arts deals with a very wide range of courses such as History, Geography, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, languages, Anthropology, Human Resources, journalism etc. Practical skills & attributes: Commerce – for example accountancy - you should be well at ease with calculations and good at analytical skills. Manage time properly, ability to complete a task within a speciﬁed time. Good communication is vital, as there will be many queries concerning the accounting entries, and also that it is a team work. Science - for example zoology and botany - the idea to study human and animal anatomy and plants life should make you feel excited and comfortable. Patience is the key to excel in this subject as you will have to spend longer duration of time studying them. Keen observation and determining the properties of an object by using your senses is an important aspect in Science. Math – for example algebra and geometry - ability to make and use generalizations, rapid and sound memorisation of mathematical material, ability to concentrate on mathematics for long periods without apparent signs of tiredness, an instinctive tendency to approach a problem in different ways: even if a problem has been already solved. Arts - stream has a wide variety of subjects which can offer exciting opportunities If you have an avid interest to pursue career in mass media, journalism, literature, sociology, social service, human psychology, politics, economics and history.

Note: The list of skills/attributes increases as one progresses to higher level of their study in these above ﬁelds, but the above given skills are the basic ones that students should have to start with.

april 2015

Career options in

Higher options of study: (After +2) Commerce - there are many degree and diploma courses for students who opt for the Commerce stream of study. Some of the key subjects that one can learn are Economics, Accountancy, Business studies and Business Law. Some of the popular graduate courses offered through the commerce stream are B.Com, BBA, BMS, BBM, CFA, CA, ICWA, CFP etc. You can choose your subject of interest that is offered by many major commerce colleges, such as Business economics, ﬁnancial accounting, Business communication, Marketing, Business law, Business ﬁnance, Auditing, Cost accounting, Income tax. A student has to take total six subjects along with English and one additional subject.

COMMERCE stream T

he options in Commerce stream are aplenty, to make a bright career you can pursue Bachelor of commerce degree (B.Com) with specialization in any one subject. After completion of graduation one can opt for post graduation (M.Com). And then study for Ph.D to get a doctorate degree in the respective subject that will lead to a respectable profession such as teaching faculty, research scholar and also in the banking sector in higher posts.

course) or after graduation (with the speciﬁed percentage) by registering for the 10 months PE II course. Master of Business Administration (MBA) is another popular and high in demand course. By doing this course you will learn how to manage a business professionally and can opt for a degree or

The professional courses in commerce stream: Chartered accountancy (CA) one of the most highly rated and popular professional career for commerce students. A chartered

accountant audits a company’s account books, will be a ﬁnancial advisor and an income tax assessor. You can become a chartered accountant by joining a CA course either after the 10+2 board examination by registering for the Professional Education (PE)-I course (10-month

diploma in management. The duration of a regular MBA course is 2 years and an Executive MBA course is of 1 year. april 2015

COVER STORY

Chartered financial analyst (CFA) is a very highly paid course of study for Commerce students. A chartered financial analyst manages financial accounting, management accounting, financial management, investment management, security evaluation, project planning, venture capital management and credit rating. The duration of the course is 3 years. Company secretary (CS) as a career option is also very good paying and highly regarded profession. From being an all important link between the Company, the Board of Directors, shareholders and governmental and regulatory agencies to handling matters related to central/state sales tax, excise laws, labour laws and corporate law, Company Secretary is considered one of the most important member of the management of the company. You can apply for a company secretary course after passing (10+2) examination. Cost accountant course is also a very good course for you to pursue. A cost accountant advises the management on the most appropriate course of action based on the cost efficiency and capability. You can do the course after getting through your Senior Secondary Examination (under the 10+2 scheme) of a recognized board. Cost and Works Accountancy (CWA) is an emerging field of study in Commerce. The role of a cost and works accountant covers collection, assimilation, collation and analysis of financial information from all areas of an organization. He plays a crucial role in the company as his quality of information determines the success or failure of the organization. Members of

april 2015

this profession will be the driving force in the team of management, a key consultant, an effective Cost and Management Auditor and an appropriate advisor in place. Taxation is a process of imposing financial charge or tax on the citizens who earn ‘taxable’ income. There is an increasing need for formal training in taxation to understand & enforce the new system at all levels. A tax practitioner can join any organization with the key responsibility of monitoring the tax related issues of the firm. Professionals in this career can also opt for teaching jobs in universities and colleges. The option of working independently as a tax consultant is also becoming popular. Bank Probationary Officer is the starting level appointment for bank personnel. They have one or two years of probation period during which they are exposed to various banking functions like loans and advances, foreign exchange, credit rating, risk management, marketing, etc.

Taxation is a process of imposing ﬁnancial charge or tax on the citizens who earn ‘taxable’ income. There is an increasing need for formal training in taxation to understand & enforce the new system at all levels.

Accountancy includes summarizing, reporting and analyzing transactions to keep financial records which facilitates in tracking the income and assets of business over a period of time. The services of accountants are required to record all types of financial transactions ranging from proper maintenance of staff salary to balance sheets to calculation of taxes, which is integral for the functioning of any firm as these financial records determine most decisions related to present and future projects. With the high demand for skilled accountants due to the rapid growth of banking and financial sectors in the country, a course in accounting is considered a good option in India for a successful career ahead. Stock Broker is a regulated professional broker who buys and sells shares and security in stock markets. With liberalization and various other norms for greater transparency in operations,

international trading and investment processes, stock markets in India have gone through tremendous improvement in recent times. A course in stock broking will hone your skills of analyzing the market trend and ensure that a prospective stock broker is in a better position to understand the underlying concepts of the stock markets and how it functions. Agriculture Economics overlaps the two disciplines, agriculture and economics. A study of economic principles, with emphasis on their application to optimizing decisions in the area of agribusiness, methods of production and agricultural industry problems is known as Agricultural Economics or Agronomics which is a postgraduate course. There is a growing need for well-trained students with knowledge of agricultural production resulting in additional jobs in this field. Banking a degree in banking and finance aims to provide students with an understanding of the ways in which financial intermediaries and institutions operate and the structure and functioning of financial markets. Specialised banking activities include corporate finance, investment and treasury banking amongst numerous others. A career in banking is a well-paid, secure job and thus, it is not astonishing that it has been a coveted career choice of all times. Securing employment in banks, both in public and private sector is considered a reputed career in India. Business Administration and Business Management, both have their base in commerce and are management oriented courses which have acquired prominence with the rapid growth

of industrialisation. The core components include Human Resource Management, Marketing, Organizational Behaviour, International Trade and Business Law. Finance Management involves learning the essential areas of managerial decision-making. It is obvious that each company aims for a financial objective. Thus, the duty of a finance manager is to plan, analyze, monitor and direct the financial activities of the company. With the introduction of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), only trained finance managers are capable of handling this system and therefore the demand for a formal education in financial management is on the rise in India. Qualified financial management students can have a promising career in the posts of a financial manager, financial officer, auditor and risk analyst amidst numerous other allied designations in industries such as Banking and Finance, Insurance Industry, Mutual Funds etc. Statistics is the branch of mathematics which deals with the study of the collection, organization, analysis, and interpretation of data through surveys and experiments. Since there is a need to interpret numerical data in order to comprehend what the numbers indicate and determine trends, the scope of statistics can be extended to a variety of disciplines such as crime statistics, census, education and sports amongst numerous others. Since statistics play a key role in determining trends to plan future actions, the services of a statistician is required in almost every field. Trained statisticians are hired both in private as well as government undertakings. Teaching and research field is also

open to candidates who have achieved a certain level of competency in statistics. Commerce stream provides you with many opportunities that are highly rated career prospects as it encompasses ﬁnancial markets, economics to the latest management practices. Doing the courses in the commerce stream of study provides you with proﬁciency and knowledge to even start your own business venture. april 2015

COVER STORY

Career options in

SCIENCE stream I

f your aim is to become a doctor or a dentist then you will have to qualify to study medicine or BDS by taking the entrance exams like NEET (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test), AIPMT (All India Pre Medical Test), AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences), AFMC (Armed Forces Medical College), JIPMER (Jawaharlal Nehru Post Medical Education and Research) etc. The other stream of study will be to pursue Bachelor of Science degree (B.Sc) by choosing any science subject as the major subject. There are a number of colleges offering specialization in major subjects like Chemistry, Mathematics, Zoology, Botany, Geology, Physics etc. You can move higher by studying for a Masters degree (M.Sc) in the selected subject and then do Ph.D degree to get a doctorate.

The professions that you can opt for after your B. Sc or M.Sc are as a teaching faulty in schools and colleges, Professors (college/ university), Scientist, Geologist, Chemists, physicists etc. If that does not interest you then you can take the UPSC, Banking, and insurance

april 2015

exams to get into some respectable and highly remunerative professions. The professional courses in Science streams: M.B.B.S (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) offers courses on Human anatomy. The duration of the course is approximately 5 Â˝ years which includes one year of internship. Students can opt for Post Graduate specialization in different subjects such as Cardiology, Anesthesiology, Surgery, Dermatology, ENT, Gynecology, Neuro Sciences, Ophthalmology, Orthopedics and Pediatrics. B.D.S (Bachelor in Dental Sciences) offers courses in Dental Surgery and duration of the course is 5 years with Internship. After completion of B.D.S one can do Post Graduation (P.G) in Dental Sciences. Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, B.Sc. (Agr.) is an undergraduate degree awarded by university faculty of agriculture and agricultural colleges. The program is 4 years of study above Grade 12. The B.Sc. (Agr.) degree requires specialization or majoring in animal science, plant protection, soil science or agricultural engineering.

Bachelor of Pharmacy (B. Pharm) is also an attractive career prospect one can pursue. It takes 4 years to complete the course. After completion of the course you can start a rewarding career in departments such as Drugs Research or Production in various Pharmaceutical Industries.

B.V.S (Bachelor in Veterinary Sciences) encompasses courses of the Animal disease, prevention and surgery cases. This course takes 4 1/2 years time with a practical Internship. One can do P.G studies in different specializations after completion of B. V. S course.

If you want to do Post Graduation (M.Pharmacy) then you can specialize in one of the following a. Pharmacology b. Pharmaceutics c. Pharmaceutical Analysis d. Pharmaceutical Chemistry e. Pharm D

B.H.M.S (Bachelor in Homeopathic Medicinal Sciences) offers courses on how to increase the self healing power of our body by using medicine which are derived from natural and herbal sources. The duration of the course is 5 1/2 year. B.A.M.S (Bachelor in Ayurvedic Medicinal Sciences) covers courses on how to restore the balance of our body without side effects. Main

Diploma course in Pharmacy (D.Pharmacy) offers a 2 years duration course after which one can start practicing as a Pharmacist in various Medicinal Institutions. One can also opt for further studies such as B.Pharmacy and later M.Pharmacy. Bachelor in Nursing (B.Sc Nursing) is a 4 year course which covers topics such as healthcare, medicine dispensing and caring of ailing patients. There are various other courses which students can choose which

are indirectly related to Medical / Medicine courses. These are Biotechnology, Bioinformatics, and Bachelor in Physiotherapy. Biotechnology enables technologies involving manipulation of living organisms or their sub cellular components to provide useful products, processes or services for the betterment of mankind. This is a 4 year course. Bioinformatics, a relatively new concept is related to storage, retrieval and analysis of biological data for drug discovery and drug design. It integrates information technology for processing biological information such as nucleic acid (DNA/RNA), protein sequence and structure. The duration of the course is 4 years or else you can also do B.Sc Bioinformatics, a 3 year course. B.P.T (Bachelor in Physiotherapy) is the study on how to restore the functioning of the body that is affected due to paralysis, injury, shock. The basic duration of the course is 3 years.

focus of the courses are to regain balance of liver disorders, rheumatic and chronic conditions. The duration of the course is only 3 years. Horticulture is a service, related to plant conservation, landscape restoration, landscape and garden design/construction/maintenance, arboriculture, horticultural therapy, and much more. This range of food, medicinal, environmental, and social products and services are all fundamental to developing and maintaining human health and well-being. Horticultural therapist must have at least a bachelor’s degree in the subject. While research scientists and educators can enter entry-level positions in their respective ﬁelds with only a bachelor’s degree, most people have Ph.D.’s or doctorates. Coursework typically includes plant physiology, plant breeding, pest management, entomology, and plant pathology. april 2015

COVER STORY

Career options in

ENGINEERING stream I

f Engineering is your career option then you have to qualify the entrance examinations like AIEEE, BITSAT, JEE Main, JEE Advanced, CET, COMEDK conducted by recognized bodies, to study at some of the top notch engineering colleges.

Engineering offers you a wide range of career options. There are numerous government and non-government institutions in India offering courses in various branches of Engineering. Amongst them, one of the most notable and prestigious engineering colleges are the Indian Institute of Technologies (IITs) there are seven IITs in our country they are Mumbai, Powai, Delhi, Guwahati, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Madras and Roorkee. Apart from these there are 20 National Institute of Technologies (NITs), couple of IIITs and several private institutes in India that offer you an opportunity to make a good career in Engineering. The different branches of engineering that have great potential to make your career in engineering secure and proﬁtable are:

Agricultural Engineering Agricultural engineering is the engineering discipline that applies engineering science and technology to agricultural production and processing. Agricultural engineering combines the disciplines of mechanical, civil, electrical and chemical engineering principles with knowledge of agricultural principles. Architecture Architecture is both the process and the product of planning, designing, and constructing buildings and other physical structures. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural symbols and as works of art. Automotive Engineering Automotive engineering is a combination of mechanical,

april 2015

electrical and materials science. Engineers in this ﬁeld can design new vehicles or look for ways to improve existing automotive engineering technology. Automotive engineers can design and test brake systems, engines, safety mechanisms, fuel technologies and transmissions.

their sub cellular components to provide useful products, processes or services for the betterment of mankind. This is a 4 year course.

Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering

Biological and Agricultural Engineering

Students interested in aeronautical and astronautical engineering need a mechanical, scientiﬁc and mathematical aptitude. The science of designing and testing new vehicles for spaceﬂight or general aviation is interdisciplinary.

Biological and agricultural engineering is the application of engineering principles to agriculture, food and biological systems. Agricultural engineers must understand, identify and solve the various problems in the agricultural world, including equipment design and

Biotechnology Biotechnology enables technologies involving manipulation of living organisms or

and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings. Computer Engineering Computer engineering is a discipline that integrates several ďŹ elds of electrical engineering and computer science required to develop computer hardware and software. Ceramic Engineering

production problems. Biological engineers design systems for the biological materials used in products, including such as food and drugs. Biomedical and Medical Engineering Engineers with training in biological and medical sciences are called either biomedical engineers or medical engineers. Biomedical and medical engineers develop life-saving devices, such as pacemakers and prosthetic limbs, as well as diagnostic medical equipment.

Civil Engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical

Ceramic Engineering is a complex discipline with multiple hightech applications. Inorganic, non-metallic ceramic materials are processed at extremely high temperatures and transformed into a wide variety of products. Ceramics contribute to everyday life in a number of ways as components of items that include glass light bulbs, jet engines, computers, cars and household appliances. Ceramic sciences combine chemistry, physics and engineering principles. Fiberoptic devices, microprocessors and solar panels are some examples of ceramic sciences applied to everyday life. Chemical Engineering Chemical engineers are responsible for breaking down, analyzing and researching different chemical compounds. They can help create the materials used in food, textiles, industrial products or medicine. The ďŹ eld of chemical engineering offers a variety of opportunities to work on specialized, innovative projects. Chemical engineers must be highly skilled in calculus, chemistry, physics and biology. Drafting and Design Engineering Students who want to be a part of the building process should consider drafting and design.

Drafting and design engineering can teach students how to create plans and designs that can be followed by construction workers, architects and manufacturers. Electrical Engineering and Electronics Electrical engineering is concerned more with power generation, storage and transmission. Electronics engineering is focused on appliances and devices that use electricity, as well as electricity applications that are used in signal processing or control systems. Those working in electrical and electronics engineering need inquiring and analytical minds along with creativity. Being detailed oriented and skilled in math and computers is also valuable. Engineering Mechanics Engineering mechanics are not necessarily mechanical engineers. Rather, they are engineering scientists who may go into careers in research, manufacturing or engineering. Engineering Physics Students with a degree in engineering physics may ďŹ nd jobs in a number of industries as well as academia. Such jobs may include aerospace engineer, nuclear engineer and materials scientist, as well as acoustical engineer, medical physicist and optical engineer. Environmental Engineering Environmental engineering professionals work in many areas related to the environment, such as air and water pollution control, recycling, public health, environmental health engineering and even wildlife protection. They work to protect people and the environment while april 2015

COVER STORY

solving environmental problems. Environmental engineers can be involved in local and global issues, and they can work towards goals like protecting the ozone and minimizing global warming. Forest Engineering Forest engineering is the application of engineering principles and techniques to the management of forest lands. This includes working to ensure the health and sustainability of wild lands, timberlands and watersheds while allowing for such economic activities as timber harvesting and recreational use. Geological Engineering The field of geological engineering is concerned with mineral and energy resources and exploration. Closely related to mining engineering, it involves the location and extraction of minerals from the earth and the identification of new sources of energy, like geothermal energy, for industrial use. Geological engineers also inspect geological conditions in areas of resource exploration for safety and feasibility. Genetic Engineering Genetic engineering is the process of manually adding new DNA to an organism. The goal is to add one or more new traits that are not already found in that organism. Examples of genetically engineered (transgenic) organisms currently on the market include plants with resistance to some insects, plants that can tolerate herbicides, and crops with modified oil content. Industrial Engineering

and

Production

In today’s world, manufacturing industries need to constantly look

april 2015

for ways of reducing costs to keep pace with growing competition. An area which is often overlooked is engineering productivity. Our engineering productivity solutions team focuses on minimizing material handling costs through efﬁcient packaging, storage, inventory control, material delivery, facility layout and logistical processes. Instrumentation Engineering Instrumentation is the use of measuring instruments to monitor and control a process. It is the art and science of measurement and control of process variables within a production, laboratory, or manufacturing area. Industrial Engineering Industrial engineers explore ways to manufacture products or complete tasks in a quicker, more convenient manner. Professionals in this ﬁeld rely on their knowledge of business organization, product requirements and safety methods

Mechanical engineers can work in design, development and research of machinery and mechanical systems and equipment.

to maximize output. Industrial engineers may also work to improve product delivery through better management methods and quality control. Manufacturing Engineering Manufacturing engineers design, direct and coordinate the manufacturing process of products at every level. From the beginning planning process of a product to ﬁnalizing and packing the completed goods, a manufacturing engineer is involved in the process. Materials Engineering Materials engineers study speciﬁc substances at the atomic level using computers to replicate characteristics of those substances. Understanding material composition at the most basic level and the synthesis of new materials are of primary importance to material engineers, who select, design, develop, manufacture, test and evaluate materials that

meet the specifications of various projects and products. Math Mathematics is a much broader field than merely arithmetic. In its theoretical form, mathematics is the study of patterns, logic and quantity. In its applied form, maths is used to develop new financial instruments, understand statistical patterns and make predictions, keep track of complex financial structures of modern corporations and develop new computer hardware. Mechanical Engineering Mechanical engineering is a broad area of engineering. Mechanical engineers can work in design, development and research of machinery and mechanical systems and equipment. They may create power-producing and power-using machinery, including gas turbines, industrial equipment for manufacturing and electric generators. Metallurgical Engineering Metallurgical engineering is the study of metals. Combining theory and practice, degree programs cover the mining, extraction, design and processing of metals, as well as how metals react to environmental changes or stress. Mining Engineering Mining engineering is a discipline that applies science, technology and mechanical principles to locate and extract mineral resources from the earth as safely, efficiently and non-destructively as possible. The recovery techniques used depend on whether a mine is a surface or an underground operation. Mining engineers may also play a role in converting exhausted mining sites into livable habitats.

Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering Naval architecture and marine engineering graduates work in shipbuilding and design, marine safety, offshore drilling, technical consulting and marine systems engineering. Nuclear Engineering Nuclear engineering requires knowledge of chemistry, mechanical engineering and nuclear safety. Professionals in this ﬁeld design, maintain and work with nuclear reactors. Nuclear engineers are responsible for ensuring that nuclear power plants run efﬁciently and safely. They help design new reactors and handle nuclear fuel. Ocean Engineering Ocean engineers study the effects of the ocean on ships, vehicles and other structures. They design dams, levees, canals and complex tide abatement systems. Essentially, ocean engineering is the marine-based branch of civil

engineering. It merges classical courses in civil and mechanical engineering with oceanography and naval architecture. Petroleum Engineering Petroleum engineers assess the cost, impact and potential of drilling operations to extract oil, gas and other natural resources from underground. They design new methods for extracting these resources that also address safety, environmental and economic concerns. Petroleum engineers also look for ways to improve production through advanced techniques and technology. Plastics Engineering The ﬁeld of plastics engineering involves the application of scientiﬁc and engineering principles to the development of a wide variety of polymer products. From airplane wings to golf clubs and a host of goods in between, a plastics engineer solves materialrelated problems with the goal of designing and developing products april 2015

COVER STORY

with improved performance and durability. Plastics engineers may ﬁnd careers in government, academia and the manufacturing industry. Polymer Engineering Polymer engineers work primarily in the ﬁeld of plastics development. They may help develop new plastics or assist in the testing and evaluation of products. Polymer engineers may be expected to maintain a laboratory or oversee other employees in working on a product or process. Rubber Technology Rubber Technology is the subject dealing with the transformation of rubbers or elastomers into useful products, such as automobile tires and rubber mats. The materials include latex, natural rubber, synthetic rubber and other polymeric materials, such as thermoplastic elastomers.

Surveying Surveyors determine ofﬁcial land, water, and air boundaries and mark important reference points for use in architecture, construction, mapping and litigation. They take detailed measurements and map the contours and boundaries of a designated area on the Earth’s surface, either underground or underwater. Through these measurements, they can establish property and political boundaries, help contractors and architects plan their buildings, create maps and gather digital information for GIS. Surveyors blend knowledge and expertise from cartography, geography, engineering and surveying to perform these duties.

to efﬁciently generate outcomes that couldn’t be attained by any one component. Utilizing interdisciplinary approaches and methods, the principles of systems engineering can be applied to problem-solving tasks in many industries.

Systems Engineering

Space Technology

Systems engineering refers to the development of reliable and effective systems. Essentially, it is a combination of components or elements that work together

Space technology – technology developed by space science or the aerospace industry for use in spaceﬂight, satellites, or space exploration. Space technology includes spacecraft, satellites, space stations, and support infrastructure, equipment, and procedures. Many common everyday services such as weather forecasting, remote sensing, GPS systems, satellite television, and some long distance communications systems critically rely on space infrastructure. Textile Technologies Textile technology programs teach the science of creating and enhancing ﬁbers, fabrics and other textiles used in manufacturing, apparel, healthcare and consumer products. Training in textile technology prepares students for a number of different career paths, such as textile engineer, interior designer, materials scientist and researcher.

april 2015

Career options in

ARTSstream I

f Commerce, Medicine or Engineering is not your ďŹ eld of interest then Arts stream of study will truly be the one that will make your career. You can study Bachelor of Arts (BA) that will qualify you to a diverse number of specialized courses that will open opportunities to well paid professions. Some of the major subjects that are offered by various colleges are history, linguistics, literature, law, philosophy, religion, performing arts, anthropology, communication, sociology, psychology and many more. After graduation you can do Master of Arts (MA) in your selected subject. And then to further your educational qualiďŹ cations and increase your job prospects you can do Ph.D and get a doctorate in your chosen subject.

Here are some of the attractive career options for student who pursue Arts stream of study.

Here are some of the attractive career options for student who pursue Arts stream of study. Depending on their specialized subject of study they can work as a Market analyst, Sociologist, Social Worker, Historian, Anthropologist, Human Resources, Personal Executive, Writer/journalist/Editor, lawyer, Media Personnel, School Teacher/College Professor/university Professor etc. Apart from these an Arts graduate can appear for UPSC, Banking, insurance exams and get into some respectable and highly remunerative professions.

Courtesy: study.com; Wikipedia; Plancareer.org; askiitians.com; times now; indiatoday.intoday.in; careers360

april 2015

COVER STORY

Career guidance and counseling helps students choose the best career option Brainfeed had talked to Ms Sangeetha Virmani of Univariety to elicit her views and opinions on various issues related to choosing the right career and how one should plan their careers and what roles does a counsellor play and what parents have to do while choosing a career for their wards. Read on…

Career Guidance – can you let the Brainfeed magazine readers know what exactly it means?

• There are too many colleges and too many combinations to choose from so one can’t know about all possibilities

Deciding on what to do after schooling is a very long and confusing process for students as well as parents. Most of the time students reach out to acquaintances or school teachers for information on courses and colleges. It is not possible for any one person to know about hundreds of courses across the globe. There are many portals that provide information to students regarding the courses available in different colleges but many a times students are unable to decide what the best option for them is just by reading the information available. This is where career guidance and counselling come into picture.

• There are no tools which select the relevant options and compare comprehensively to help decide the best selection for each student Students either over pay for their education or get admitted into an institution of lower quality compared to their academic excellence. So with the change in the scenario career counselling has become indispensable these days.

You give expert advice on career planning. What is your success rate in terms of making successful careers? Any case studies as examples. We at Univariety have so far been able to help 25,000 students get placed for under graduation courses across USA, UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, India, and UAE. Univariety provides a tangible advantage to college seeking students by providing offers, scholarships, access to events and access to networks.

How does one become a career counsellor? Are there any certiﬁcate courses available or is there a trial and error method? In India, there are hardly any institutes which offer courses in career counselling. Most counsellors start off as teachers and get into this career unintentionally.

april 2015

Univariety offers a 72 hour Counsellor Training programme for counsellors aspiring to gain knowledge and get a certiﬁcation to become an academic counsellor.

In other countries, how can one become a professional career counsellor? There are many certiﬁcate and short courses in professional career counselling available in US, UK, Canada and Australia. These courses are typically for duration of 6 weeks to a year.

Can you tell us about Univariety- what does the company do? Univariety is the largest and fastest growing company in India which sets up outplacement systems in high schools. We also help high school students gain clarity on courses, colleges, country and scholarships. Currently, 30,000+ students from 280+ premier schools across India, Singapore, UAE and Indonesia are using our system. Our students are placed in 44 of the top 100 universities across the world and our students gained over USD 2.5 million in scholarships last year alone. We have a growing list of 280 plus schools covering almost all the states in India and few schools in abroad. Many of them have continued their association with us. This conﬁrms our belief of establishing relationships of lasting mutual value with our schools through committed service delivery. Allocating importance to long-term client relationships, turnaround times, and an overall excellent experience in our dealings, we try to ensure that the students not only suit the academic capabilities

but also have been placed in the best colleges matching their preferences. We believe in meeting the school’s requirements within a framework of speciﬁc schedule and in a costeffective manner.

How many schools are under your counselling purview?

280+(IB,CIE,ISC,CBSE and State Board Schools)

Generally parents go with word of mouth involving their neighbours, friends and relatives to decide on the career of their children. What do you have to say about this? Parents while being well intentioned are not always well informed. Even the advice they get from friends and relatives are more often than not biased and mostly based on personal experiences. For a student, it is necessary to get advice which is unbiased as well as well intentioned. Univariety has introduced technology and made the process of undergraduate admission a simple and straight forward process. The data on courses and colleges are regularly updated and is always up to date.

What do you have to say on this group mentality that we see nowadays amongst the parents when it comes to choosing their ward’s career? Parents, family members, friends and teachers are usually the greatest inﬂuences in a student’s life. Quite often, students develop a strong liking or disliking for the careers that these people have. In India, parents still have the tendency to encourage children

We have a growing list of 280 plus schools covering almost all the states in India and few schools abroad. Many of them have continued their association with us. This conﬁrms our belief of establishing relationships of lasting mutual value with our schools through committed service delivery.

april 2015

COVER STORY

to follow the herd and apply for courses with more earning potential than on careers that are off beat. Our data shows that only 10% of students think about not following the herd. However, parents usually have half baked information about different careers and colleges. Their opinions are based on either too less or too much information, thus leading them to resort to traditional courses such as engineering and medicine. Moreover, there is a general perception that studying abroad is expensive so ﬁnancial constraints also become a factor when it comes to choosing their ward’s career. More often than not, while the advice may be well intentioned, they are not well informed.

What is the process of career counselling?

Career counselling is an essential exercise because choosing a career is one of the most important decisions in a student’s life. A specialised team at Univariety counsels students based on a set of steps. It begins with a psychometric test in order to understand the student’s interest and aptitude. Then counselling sessions are held to help the student with right stream selection, by considering various options that he/she shows interest in. Subsequently, based on

further discussions, some more options are eliminated and choices are brought down to one choice of career that the student can take up.

Psychometric test- what is its validity?

You cannot validate a psychometric test because it is just an indicator. Its not the sole determining factor. Because many a times, the student may not answer honestly. Moreover, there are many types of psychometric tests and its validity depends on the type of questions asked and its purpose as well. At Univariety, the psychometric test is designed after considerable research and expert opinion.

What is the percentage of students who take career guidance from professionals like you? 20-30 percent.

What is the percentage of students going abroad for under graduate and graduate courses? US - 30%, UK, Canada/Australia/ New Zealand - 10%.

However, parents usually have half baked information about different careers and colleges. Their opinions are based on either too less or too much information, thus leading them to resort to traditional courses such as engineering and medicine. 26

april 2015

In spite of being expensive, why are many undergraduate students opting for overseas education? It is a growing misconception that only overseas education is expensive. Studying in India specially in prestigious private colleges also is expensive. Having said that, it is also true that education abroad is better in terms of quality; and gives better exposure to students which helps in an overall personality development. Moreover, students ﬁnd the placement options are better if they have a foreign degree as they become a global professional.

Compared to overseas educated students with that of locally educated student- the overseas educated student is preferred for jobs. Do you think the locally educated students are less qualiﬁed? No. Getting a job depends on conﬁdence that a candidate exudes along with the subject knowledge that he/she has. These qualities are based on the institution that a student

comes to their child’s career and future plans?

graduates from. So, whether a candidate is educated locally or overseas, preference for a job is based on the individual’s charisma and how well he/she has been prepared and trained for jobs, by the institution.

What is your advice to students on how one should choose or plan their career? Career guidance essentially involves developing a pathway or a flow chart to guide a student to take up a career that he/she would put the passion in doing it, so that work becomes pleasurable and not a burden. Career guidance is a supporting tool developed for choosing the right career by making informed choices. This involves a 4 step process where a student first comes up with initial career options, then hypothesizes if he/she can actually do it. This is followed by validating the hypothesis which involves considering the nature of work, parent’s approval and job satisfaction. The final step is to spend a day with the professional in the chosen career to get a feel of the work and job. This helps concretize the career choice that a student makes.

Any words of wisdom for parents to adhere to, when it

Yes. It is very important for the parents to understand their children’s mindset, their aptitude and interests so that guidance is easier and beneﬁts the children. They should create a suitable support system for school counsellor and us to guide the student correctly. Because, more often than not, parents don’t agree with the counsellor’s decisions and that confuses the child even more. The right time for parents to start their ward’s career counselling is from 9th standard onwards.

Do you see any role for the teachers and principals in choosing the career of their students? Yes. The teachers should also be a part of the support system by developing the knowledge and skill base of the students and provide subject oriented counselling. This is because after parents, the student turns to his/her teachers and school for career advice. The school must provide exposure to students so that they are aware of the various subjects that exist and choices available after school, including co-curricular activities.

Have you ever counselled a student to take up some unconventional career according to his/her inclinations and interests? Yes, we have. We have advised students to get into unconventional courses like commercial cookery, event management, visual arts, dance, music, ﬁlm making and acting, ﬁtness instructor, fashion, jewellery, and game designing, to name a few.

Career guidance is a supporting tool developed for choosing the right career by making informed choices. This involves a 4 step process where a student ﬁrst comes up with initial career options, then hypothesizes if he/she can actually do it. This is followed by validating the hypothesis which involves considering the nature of work, parent’s approval and job satisfaction.

april 2015

COVER STORY

Career options in

DEFENCE & PARAMILITARY FORCE stream A career in defence forces promises one of the most prestigious and respected positions in the country. Youngsters who aspire to choose a career of excitement, adventure, and challenges can ﬁnd no better place than defence to meet all their professional expectations. The Indian Armed Forces are the military forces of India which consist of four professional uniformed services: • • • •

The Indian Army Indian Air Force Indian Navy Indian Coast Guard

The various paramilitary organisations and various inter-service institutions also help the Indian Armed Forces. The Ministry of Defence is responsible for the management of armed forces in India. UPSC Recruitment Of Commissioned Ofﬁcers The Union Public Service Commission recruits the Commissioned Ofﬁcers in the Armed Forces by conducting mainly the two all India Competitive Examinations. National Defence Academy (NDA) and Naval Academy (NA) The UPSC holds entrance examination twice a year for entry into the NDA and Naval Academy. Candidates on completion of 10+2 examination or while in the 12th standard are eligible to compete. Combined Defence Service Examination CDSE is conducted by the UPSC twice a year. University

april 2015

graduates or those in ﬁnal year of graduation are eligible to appear in the examination. Successful candidates join the Indian Military Academy/Air Force Academy and Naval Academy for Permanent Commission and Ofﬁcers Training Academy (OTA) for Short Service Commission. Short Service Commission (Technical) Entry The Short Service Commission (Technical) Entry Scheme provides avenues to eligible technical graduates/post graduates for recruitment in Technical Arms. After SSB and Medical Board, the selected candidates are required to undergo approximately 49 weeks pre-commission training at OTA, Chennai.

Feel Proud - Join Indian Army Apart from recruitment through the UPSC, the commissioned officers are also recruited in Army through the Non-UPSC entries. The Army offers both permanent and short service commissions. Permanent commission (PC) is granted through the Indian Military Academy (IMA) Dehradun and Short Service Commission (SSC) is granted through Officers Training Academy (OTA) Chennai. When you opt for ‘PC’, you are basically looking at a permanent career in the Army, a career till you retire. SSC is a wonderful option for all those of you who aspire to serve it for a few years. It gives you the option of joining the Army, and serving it as a commissioned officer for five

years. Once your tenure is over, you are allowed to opt for PC. Alternatively, you can also ask for a ﬁve years extension and can choose to resign from your post any time during this period. Permanent Commission (PC) • •

NDA Direct Entry

• Engineering Graduates • University Entry Scheme • 10+2 TES Entry Short Service Commission (SSC) • Non-Tech • Tech (Both Men and Women) • NCC Special Entry (Both for Men and Women) Short Service Commission (Women) Women are offered Short Service Commission in three streams. viz., Non-Technical Graduate, Technical, Post Graduate/Specialist for a

period of ten years, extendable by additional four years purely on voluntary basis. The duration of training is 49 weeks at Officers training Academy, Chennai. For Short Service Commission (Women) (Technical) Entry, candidates who have passed or are appearing in final year/semester of B.E/B. Tech in notified streams are eligible to apply. Candidates have to appear for SSB interview followed by Medical Test.

aspiring candidates at rally site followed by document checking, physical ﬁtness tests, physical measurement, and medical examination. This is followed by a written examination for the candidates found eligible in all respects. Finally selected candidates are dispatched to respective Training Centres for training. Life in Army Indian Army offers humongous opportunities for youngsters seeking job satisfaction, security, economic stability, social status, quality of life, variety and adventure. The competition in the Army is clean and devoid of any other factor but competence.

Recruitment of Personnel Below Ofﬁcers Rank (PBOR)

BE AN AIR WARRIOR Career in Indian Air Force

In the Army, there are eleven Zonal Recruiting Offices, two Gorkha Recruiting Depots, one Independent Recruiting Office and 59 Army Recruiting Offices in addition to 47 Regimental Centres which carry out recruitment through rallies in their respective areas of jurisdiction.

Recruitment of Ofﬁcers through Non- UPSC Entries: Recruitment of Commissioned Ofﬁcers in the Indian Air Force is mainly done through the UPSC. For technical branches, women special entry scheme, National Cadet Corps (NCC) special entry scheme, service entries, recruitment is made directly through the Recruiting Directorate for the Indian Air Force.

All recruitment is being carried out through open rally system. Recruitment of Personnel Below Ofﬁcer Rank (PBOR) is carried out through open rally system. The recruitment of PBOR commences with the preliminary screening of

As an ofﬁcer in the Indian Air Force, you will strategize, lead and manage. Depending on your qualifications, you could join one contd. on pg. 32 april 2015

EARTH VIEW

VIBRANT

Colored landscapes from the land of CHINA

april 2015

COVER STORY

of the various branches in the IAF. Broadly the Air Force has three branches with further substreams. Flying Branch • Fighters • Transports • Helicopters Technical Branch than a regular salary. In fact, the experience that you gain in the Navy can help you shape your future through outstanding ﬁnancial beneﬁts, unparalleled career potential, and the lifestyle of freedom and personal growth that you’ve been waiting for.

Executive ofﬁcers can specialize in any of the following:-

Broad Classiﬁcation of Navy Branches

• Pilot

• Education • Meteorology

Executive Branch

• Submarine

Life in Indian Air Force

As an ofﬁcer of the Executive Branch one can exercise command of ships, submarines and aircraft.

• Hydrography

• Mechanical • Electronics Ground Duty Branch • Administration • Accounts • Logistics

Indian Air Force Personnel have been the pioneers of adventure activities in all these spheres. Adventure primarily constitutes an essential component of military training. It helps in developing a sense of purpose, determination, courage and perseverance against all odds. You can find detailed information related to joining of Indian Air Force and benefits of service etc., at the website Career in Indian Air Force. Nausena Bharti - Career Opportunity In Indian Navy A job in the Navy offers you a chance to exploit your true potential as a professional - by learning new skills, acquiring unrivalled experience in the process of applying those skills, and making the most of Navy advancement. In the Indian Navy, you will find there’s much more to be gained

april 2015

On board a Coast Guard ship is engaging, adventurous and challenging experience for youngsters.

• Gunnery & Missiles • Navigation and Direction • Anti-Submarine Warfare • Communications

• Observer

• Diving

Life at Sea Life at sea is full of challenges and immense satisfaction. While you are at sea, the Navy looks after the welfare of your family like its own. Indian Coast Guard The other cadres that form part of the Executive Branch are - Law, Air Traffic Control, Naval Armament Inspection, Information Technology and Logistics. Engineering Branch An Engineer Officer’s career is interspersed with technical courses up to post graduation level in India/abroad. You can also join in the Naval Architecture Cadre of the Engineering Branch. Electrical Branch For a ship to be able to fight effectively, all the equipments must be kept working at peak efficiency. Electrical Officers have this responsibility and other challenging tasks. To sharpen their skills, the Navy offers excellent opportunities for postgraduate courses in India/abroad to deserving candidates. Educational Branch Education Officers are responsible for scientific and methodical instructions, including theoretical aspects of technical subjects of all branches of the navy and also for general education. An Education Officer can specialize in almost all specializations of the Executive Branch.

The life of a Coast Guard officer is happy with a mix of many things such as hard work, professionalism, risk and adventure and the opportunity to move around and visit different places within India and abroad. Onboard a Coast Guard ship is engaging, adventurous and challenging experience for youngsters. From saving human lives at sea and assisting fishermen in peril, to apprehending poachers and preserving marine biodiversity, job satisfaction comes easy to a “Coast Guardsman”. Each day at sea is filled with promise, and each mission is different in an inimitable way. Central Armed Police Forces Indian Paramilitary forces also recruit for various posts from time to time. Following are the seven Central Armed Police Forces which come under the purview of Ministry of Home Affairs. Assam Rifles (AR) is a potent organization with 46 battalions and its associated command and administrative back up. It is designated by the GoM committee as the Border Guarding Force for the Indo-Myanmaar border and is also its lead intelligence agency. Border Security Force (BSF) is a Border Guarding Force of India.

It is a Union Government Agency under the administrative control of Ministry of Home Affairs. It is one of many law enforcement agencies of India. It currently stands as the world’s largest border guarding force. Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) is a premier multi-skilled security agency which provides security cover to nuclear installations, space establishments, airports, seaports, power plants, sensitive Government buildings and ever heritage monuments. Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is an armed Force of the Union of India, with the basic role of striking reserve to assist the State/Union Territories in Police operations to maintain law and order and contain insurgency. Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) is a specialized mountain Force and most of the ofﬁcers & men are professionally trained mountaineers and skiers. National Security Guard (NSG) It is a task-oriented Force and has two complementary elements in the form of the Special Action Group (SAG) comprising Army personnel and the Special Ranger Groups (SRG), comprising personnel drawn from the Central Para Military Forces/State Police Force. All the personnel are on deputation. Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) is a Border Guarding Force (BGF) under the administrative control of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Courtesy: india.gov.in/career-defenceand-paramilitary forces april 2015

VIEW POINT Singapore’s instructional regime that helps it perform so well? What are its limits and constraints?

Why is Singapore’s school system so successful

IS IT A MODEL FOR THE WEST or more than a decade, Singapore, along with South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Finland, has been at or near the top of international leagues tables that measure children’s ability in reading, maths and science. This has led to a considerable sense of achievement in Finland and East

april 2015

Asia and endless hand-wringing and head-scratching in the West. What then do Singaporean teachers do in classrooms that is so special, bearing in mind that there are substantial differences in classroom practices between – as well as within – the topperforming countries? What are the particular strengths of

Is it the right model for countries seeking to prepare students properly for the complex demands of 21st century knowledge economies and institutional environments more generally? Is Singapore’s teaching system transferable to other countries? Or is its success so dependent on very specific institutional and cultural factors unique to Singapore that it is folly to imagine that it might be reproduced elsewhere? Singapore’s instructional regime In general, classroom instruction in Singapore is highly-scripted and uniform across all levels and subjects. Teaching is coherent, fit-for-purpose and pragmatic, drawing on a range of pedagogical traditions, both Eastern and Western. As such, teaching in Singapore primarily focuses on coverage of the curriculum, the transmission of factual and procedural knowledge, and preparing students for end-ofsemester and national high stakes examinations. And because they do, teachers rely heavily on textbooks, worksheets, worked examples and lots of drill and practice. They also strongly emphasise mastery of specific procedures and the ability to represent problems clearly, especially in mathematics. Classroom talk is teacherdominated and generally avoids extended discussion. Intriguingly, Singaporean teachers only make limited use of “high leverage” or unusually effective teaching practices that contemporary educational research (at least in the West) regards as critical to the development of conceptual understanding and “learning how to learn”.

primary and secondary schooling, stream students according to their exam performance and, crucially, prompt teachers to emphasise coverage of the curriculum and teaching to the test. The alignment of curriculum, assessment and instruction is exceptionally strong. High stakes for both students and teachers. Frans & all, CC BY-NC

For example, teachers only make limited use of checking a student’s prior knowledge or communicating learning goals and achievement standards. In addition, while teachers monitor student learning and provide feedback and learning support to students, they largely do so in ways that focus on whether or not students know the right answer, rather than on their level of understanding. So Singapore’s teaching regime is one primarily focused on the transmission of conventional curriculum knowledge and examination performance. And clearly it is highly-effective, helping to generate outstanding results in international assessments Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). The logic of teaching in Singapore Singapore’s education system is the product of a distinctive, even unique, set of historical, institutional and cultural inﬂuences. These factors go a long way to help explain why the educational system is especially effective in the current assessment environment, but it also limits how transferable it is to other countries. Over time, Singapore has developed

a powerful set of institutional arrangements that shape its instructional regime. Singapore has developed an education system which is centralised (despite signiﬁcant decentralisation of authority in recent years), integrated, coherent and wellfunded. It is also relatively ﬂexible and expert-led. In addition, Singapore’s institutional arrangements is characterised by a prescribed national curriculum. National high stakes examinations at the end of

Major government commitments to educational research and knowledge management are designed to support evidence-based policy making. Finally, Singapore is strongly committed to capacity building at all levels of the system, especially the selection, training and professional development of principals and teachers.

Beyond this, the institutional environment incorporates top-down forms of teacher accountability based on student performance (although this is changing), that reinforces curriculum coverage and teaching to the test. Major government commitments to educational research (£109m between 20032017) and knowledge management are designed to support evidencebased policy making. Finally, Singapore is strongly committed to capacity building at all levels of the system, especially the selection, training and professional development of principals and teachers. Singapore’s instructional regime and institutional arrangements are also supported by a range of cultural orientations that underwrites, sanctions and reproduces the instructional regime. At the most general level, these include a broad commitment to a nation-building narrative of meritocratic achievement and social stratiﬁcation, ethnic pluralism, collective values and social cohesion, a strong, activist state and economic growth. In addition, parents, students, teachers and policy makers share a highly positive but rigorously instrumentalist view of the value of education at the individual level. Students are generally compliant and classrooms orderly. Importantly, teachers also broadly share an authoritative vernacular april 2015

VIEW POINT or “folk pedagogy” that shapes understandings across the system regarding the nature of teaching and learning. These include that “teaching is talking and learning is listening”, authority is “hierarchical and bureaucratic”, assessment is “summative”, knowledge is “factual and procedural,” and classroom talk is teacher-dominated and “performative”. Clearly, Singapore’s unique configuration of historical experience, instruction, institutional arrangements and cultural beliefs has produced an exceptionally effective and successful system. But its uniqueness also renders its portability limited. But there is much that other jurisdictions can learn about the limits and possibilities of their own systems from an extended interrogation of the Singapore model. At the same time, it is also important to recognise that the Singapore model is not without its limits. It generates a range of substantial opportunity costs, and it constrains (without preventing) the capacity of the system for substantial and sustainable reform. Other systems, contemplating borrowing from Singapore, would do well to keep these in mind. Reforming the Singapore model The Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s challenged policy makers to take a long hard look at the educational system that they developed, and ever since they have been acutely aware that the pedagogical model that had propelled Singapore to the top of international leagues table is not appropriately designed to prepare young people for the complex demands of globalisation and 21st knowledge economies. By 2004-5, Singapore’s government had more or less identified the

april 2015

kind of pedagogical framework it wanted to work towards, and called it Teach Less, Learn More. This framework urged teachers to focus on the “quality” of learning and the incorporation of technology into classrooms and not just the “quantity” of learning and exam preparation. While substantial progress has been made, the government has found rolling-out and implementing these reforms something of a challenge. In particular, instructional practices proved well entrenched and difﬁcult to change in a substantial and sustainable way. This was in part because the institutional rules that govern classroom pedagogy were not altered in ways that would support the proposed changes to classroom teaching. As a consequence, wellestablished institutional rules have continued to drive teachers to teach in ways that prioritise coverage of the curriculum, knowledge transmission and teaching to the test over “the quality” of learning, or to adopt high-leverage instructional practices. Indeed, teachers do so for good reason, since statistical modelling

of the relationship between instructional practices and student learning indicates that traditional and direct instructional techniques are much better at predicting student achievement than high leverage instructional practices, given the nature of the tasks students are assessed on. Not the least of the lessons of these ﬁndings is that teachers in Singapore are unlikely to cease teaching to the test until and unless a range of conditions are met. These include that the nature of the assessment tasks will need to change in ways that encourage teachers to teach differently. Above all, new kinds of assessment tasks that focus on the quality of student understanding are likely to encourage teachers to design instructional tasks. These can provide rich opportunities to learn and encourage high-quality knowledge work. The national high stakes assessment system should also incorporate a moderated, schoolbased component that allows teachers to design tasks that encourage deeper learning rather than just “exam learning”.

The national curriculum should allow substantial levels of teacher mediation at the school and classroom level. This needs to have clearly speciﬁed priorities and principles, backed up by substantial commitments to authentic, in-situ, forms of professional development that provide rich opportunities for modelling, mentoring and coaching. Finally, the teacher evaluation system needs to rely far more substantially on accountability systems that acknowledge the importance of peer judgement, and a broader range of teacher capacities and valuable student outcomes than the current assessment regime currently does. Meanwhile, teachers will continue to bear the existential burden of managing an ongoing tension between what, professionally speaking, many of them consider good teaching, and what, institutionally speaking, they recognise is responsible teaching. One of the central challenges confronting the Ministry of Education in Singapore is to reconcile good and responsible teaching. But the ministry is clearly determined to bed-down a pedagogy capable of meeting the demands of 21st century institutional environments, particularly developing student capacity to engage in complex knowledge work within and across subject domains. The technical, cultural, institutional and political challenges of doing so are daunting. However, given the quality of leadership across all levels of the system, and Singapore’s willingess to grant considerable pedagogical authority to teachers while providing clear guidance as to priorities, I have no doubt it will succeed. But it will do so on its own terms and in ways

The national curriculum should allow substantial levels of teacher mediation at the school and classroom level. This needs to have clearly speciﬁed priorities and principles, backed up by substantial commitments to authentic, in-situ, forms of professional development that provide rich opportunities for modelling, mentoring and coaching. that achieve a sustainable balance of knowledge transmission and knowledge-building pedagogies that doesn’t seriously compromise the overall performativity of the system. It is already clear that the government is willing to tweak once sacred cows, including the national high stakes exams and streaming systems. However, it has yet to tackle the perverse effects of streaming on classroom composition and student achievement that continues to overwhelm instructional effects in statistical modelling of student achievement. Towards a knowledge building pedagogy Singapore’s experience and its current efforts to improve the quality of teaching and learning do have important, if ironic, implications for systems that hope to emulate its success. This is especially true of those jurisdictions – I have in mind

England and Australia especially – where conservative governments have embarked on ideologically driven crusades to demand more direct instruction of (Western) canonical knowledge, demanding more testing and high stakes assessments of students, and imposing more intensive top-down performance regimes on teachers. In my view, this is profoundly and deeply mistaken. It is also more than a little ironic given the reform direction Singapore has mapped out for itself over the past decade. The essential challenge facing Western jurisdictions is not so much to mimic East Asian instructional regimes, but to develop a more balanced pedagogy that focuses not just on knowledge transmission and exam performance, but on teaching that requires students to engage in subject-speciﬁc knowledge building. Knowledge building pedagogies recognise the value of established knowledge, but also insist that students need to be able to do knowledge work as well as learning about established knowledge. Above all, this means students should acquire the ability to recognise, generate, represent, communicate, deliberate, interrogate, validate and apply knowledge claims in light of established norms in key subject domains. In the long run, this will do far more for individual and national well-being, including supporting development of a vibrant and successful knowledge economy, than a regressive quest for top billing in international assessments or indulging in witless “culture wars” against modernity and emergent, not to mention long-established, liberal democratic values. Courtesy:theconversation.com april 2015

VIEW POINT

ifty years ago, both South Korea and Finland had abysmal education systems. Finland was at risk of becoming the economic stepchild of Europe. South Korea was ravaged by civil war. Yet over the past half century, both South Korea and Finland have turned their schools around — and now both countries are hailed internationally for their extremely high educational outcomes. What can other countries learn from these two successful, but diametrically opposed, educational models? Here’s an overview of what South Korea and Finland are doing right.

at the forefront of international comparative tests of achievement, including tests of critical thinking and analysis. But this success comes with a price: Students are under enormous, unrelenting pressure to perform. Talent is not a consideration — because the culture believes in hard work and diligence above all, there is no excuse for failure. Children study year-round, both in-school and with tutors. If you study hard enough, you can be smart enough.

“Koreans basically believe that I have to get through this really tough period to have a great future,” says Andreas Schleicher, director of education and skills at PISA and special advisor on education policy at the OECD. “It’s a question of short-term unhappiness and long-term happiness.” It’s not just the parents pressuring their kids. Because this culture traditionally celebrates conformity and order, pressure from other students can also heighten performance

The Korean model: Grit and hard, hard, hard work. For millennia, in some parts of Asia, the only way to climb the socioeconomic ladder and ﬁnd secure work was to take an examination — in which the proctor was a proxy for the emperor, says Marc Tucker, president and CEO of the National Center on Education and the Economy. Those examinations required a thorough command of knowledge, and taking them was a grueling rite of passage. Today, many in the Confucian countries still respect the kind of educational achievement that is promoted by an exam culture.

The Koreans Have Achieved A Remarkable Feat: The Country Is 100 Percent Literate. But Success Comes With A Price. Among these countries, South Korea stands apart as the most extreme, and arguably, most successful. The Koreans have achieved a remarkable feat: the country is 100 percent literate, and

april 2015

Finland

South Korea

In South Korea & Finland

IT’S NOT ABOUT FINDING THE “RIGHT” SCHOOL

expectations. This community attitude expresses itself even in early-childhood education, says Joe Tobin, professor of early childhood education at the University of Georgia who specializes in comparative international research. In Korea, as in other Asian countries, class sizes are very large — which would be extremely undesirable for, say, an American parent. But in Korea, the goal is for the teacher to lead the class as a community, and for

for my own kid, I would choose, very reluctantly, the Korean model. The reality is, in the modern world the kid is going to have to know how to learn, how to work hard and how to persist after failure. The Korean model teaches that.” The Finnish model: Extracurricular choice, intrinsic motivation. In Finland, on the other hand, students are learning the beneﬁts of both rigor and ﬂexibility. The Finnish model, say educators, is utopia.

peer relationships to develop. In American preschools, the focus for teachers is on developing individual relationships with students, and intervening regularly in peer relationships. “I think it is clear there are better and worse ways to educate our children,” says Amanda Ripley, author of The Smartest Kids in the World: And How They Got That Way. “At the same time, if I had to choose between an average US education and an average Korean education

In Finland, school is the center of the community, notes Schleicher. School provides not just educational services, but social services. Education is about creating identity.

Finland Has A Short School Day Rich With School-Sponsored Extracurriculars, Because Finns Believe Important Learning Happens Outside The Classroom.

Finnish culture values intrinsic motivation and the pursuit of personal interest. It has a relatively short school day rich with schoolsponsored extracurriculars, because culturally, Finns believe important learning happens outside of the classroom. (An exception? Sports, which are not sponsored by schools, but by towns.) A third of the classes that students take in high school are electives, and they can even choose which matriculation exams they are going to take. It’s a low-stress culture, and it values a wide variety of learning experiences. But that does not except it from academic rigor, motivated by the country’s history trapped between European superpowers, says Pasi Sahlberg, Finnish educator and author of Finnish Lessons: What the World Can Learn From Educational Change in Finland. “A key to that is education. Finns do not really exist outside of Finland,” says Sahlberg. “This drives people to take education more seriously. For example, nobody speaks this funny language that we do. Finland is bilingual, and every student learns both Finnish and Swedish. And every Finn who wants to be successful has to master at least april 2015

VIEW POINT

one other language, often English, but she also typically learns German, French, Russian and many others. Even the smallest children understand that nobody else speaks Finnish, and if they want to do anything else in life, they need to learn languages.”

when it comes to current American education woes “the dropout crisis is just the tip of an iceberg. What it doesn’t count are all the kids who are in school but being disengaged from it, who don’t enjoy it, who don’t get any real beneﬁt from it.” But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Finns share one thing with South Koreans: a deep respect for teachers and their academic accomplishments. In Finland, only one in ten applicants to teaching

Notes Amanda Ripley, “culture is a thing that changes. It’s more malleable than we think. Culture is like this ether that has all kinds of things swirling around in it, some

Teachers In Finland Teach 600 Hours A Year, Spending The Rest Of Time In Professional Development. In The U.S., Teachers Are In The Classroom 1,100 Hours A Year, With Little Time For Feedback. programs is admitted. After a mass closure of 80 percent of teacher colleges in the 1970s, only the best university training programs remained, elevating the status of educators in the country. Teachers in Finland teach 600 hours a year, spending the rest of time in professional development, meeting with colleagues, students and families. In the U.S., teachers are in the classroom 1,100 hours a year, with little time for collaboration, feedback or professional development. How Americans education culture

can

change

As TED speaker Sir Ken Robinson noted in his 2013 talk (How to escape education’s death valley),

april 2015

of which are activated and some of which are latent. Given an economic imperative or change in leadership or accident of history, those things get activated.” The good news is, “We Americans have a lot of things in our culture which would support a very strong education system, such as a longstanding rhetoric about the equality of opportunity and a strong and legitimate meritocracy,” says Ripley. One reason we haven’t made much progress academically over the past 50 years is because it hasn’t been economically crucial for American kids to master sophisticated problem-solving and critical-thinking skills in order to survive. But that’s not

true anymore. “There’s a lag for cultures to catch up with economic realities, and right now we’re living in that lag,” says Ripley. “So our kids aren’t growing up with the kind of skills or grit to make it in the global economy.” “We are prisoners of the pictures and experiences of education that we had,” says Tony Wagner, expert-in-residence at Harvard’s educational innovation center and author of The Global Achievement Gap. “We want schools for our kids that mirror our own experience, or what we thought we wanted. That severely limits our ability to think creatively of a different kind of education. But there’s no way that tweaking that assembly line will meet the 21st-century world. We need a major overhaul.” Indeed. Today, the American culture of choice puts the onus on parents to ﬁnd the “right” schools for our kids, rather than trusting that all schools are capable of preparing our children for adulthood. Our obsession with talent puts the onus on students to be “smart,” rather than on adults’ ability to teach them. And our antiquated system for funding schools makes property values the arbiter of spending per student, not actual values. But what will American education culture look like tomorrow? In the most successful education cultures in the world, it is the system that is responsible for the success of the student, says Schleicher — not solely the parent, not solely the student, not solely the teacher. The culture creates the system. The hope is that Americans can ﬁnd the grit and will to change their own culture — one parent, student and teacher at a time. Courtesy: ideas.ted.com

FESTIVALS Year’s Day in Tamil Nadu. It is celebrated on the ﬁrst day of the Tamil month Chithirai, which falls on 14 April. Women draw patterns called Kolams. A lamp called a Kuttuvilaku is placed on the center of the Kolam, to eradicate darkness.

DIFFERENT SHADES OF HINDU NEW YEAR 14-15 April 2015 oumya quickly got up as the alarm rang 5am not her usual time though. Today was special, Mahavishuva Sankranti, the Oriya New Year. On this day, people offer delicious Pana – a sweet drink made of different types of fruits, water, milk, bela, curd and sugar or jaggery - to the Tulsi Plant, Lord Shiva and Shalagram and their deities in various Temples of the state. For people of Orissa, it’s the time to offer water to thirsty souls, humans and animals alike. You will ﬁnd water pots placed on the roadsides. This Sankranti is also known as Pana Sankranti to Jala Sankranti.

On the other hand, Vishu is celebrated as Malayalam New Year’s Day in Kerala whereas on the same day, Baisakhi Festival, also called Vaisakhi, which holds great importance for the Sikh community and farmers of Punjab and Haryana takes place. Sikhs also celebrate this day in honor of their tenth guru, Guru Gobind Singh. Baisakhi commemorates the day when the Sikh Guru eliminated caste differences and founded Khalsa Panth in 1699, at Anandpur Sahib, Punjab. In Bengal too the New Year is celebrated in mid-April on the first day of Baishakh. Pahil Baisakh or Maithili New Year is the celebration of the first day of the Maithili New Year. This day usually falls on 14 April on Gregorian calendar by the Maithils in Mithila region of India and Nepal. This day coincides with the new years of other eastern states of India. In India, which ever part we stay in, we celebrate New Year days with families and friends. Even though we tend to celebrate the most on January first, the traditional feasts and foods are a

Her friend Ishika too got up early, no she was not celebrating Mahavishuva Sankranti but her own new year Rongali Bihu or Bohag Bihu. She is from Assam but stays with her friend Soumya in Bangalore. Around mid of April, one can experience an exciting array of New Year celebration happening in India in different styles and customs including Tamilnadu, Punjab, Assam, Kerala, Bengal and Sindh. Hindus all over the world do not have a common New Year’s Day. The celebration of the New Year has more to do with community, language and region, than with religious belief. The Assamese New Year (around 14–15 April) marks the ﬁrst day of the Hindu solar calendar. People welcome the spring with cleaned home, neighbourhood and new dresses. Similarly, Puthandu, also known as Varusha Pirappu, is celebrated as New

compulsory inclusion in the traditional celebration. And when one has friends from different areas and has the rare opportunity to celebrate with all, then it’s the best situation to be in. The more the merrier! april 2015

MENTORS SPEAK

CHILDREN ARE BUDDING GENIUSES IN THE MAKING

then for the ﬁrst year they will only know the management system and do not know the education patterns. Therefore, it is the duty of the principal to guide them through the educational policies and built a trusting alliance between them. Then there should be no problem and they will let the principal work on her own. But sometimes, frictions start to happen before the trust is even started to be built, which is very troublesome. With maturity and experience any situation can be dealt with.

Mrs. Anjali Razdan, Principal, AMS. P. Obul Reddy Public School is Postgraduate in Botany from Bombay University and holds a P.G. Diploma in Higher Education (D.H.Ed.) and a B.Ed degree. With a rich experience of over 37 years and with celebrity students under her wing, she can be easily termed as the mentor for many teachers.

Brainfeed had the opportunity to have a tête-à-tête with Mrs. Anjali Razdan where she explained why she is passionate about her work. Here are the excerpts from the interview.

There are many… at ﬁrst, it is run by a trust Andhra Mahila Sabha (AMS) founded by Late Durgabai Deshmukh, who was a freedom

What are the features of a good school?

According to me, a good school does not feature only the furniture and infrastructure, it is the teachers who makes it a good school. Without being boisterous, I can say that, a good principal with a vision (along with the management) to lead and convey the same to the teachers who in turn will lead the students to follow the same mission and vision and the total outcome will result in a good school.

Do the academic head and the management have to be in sync to run a good school? If the management is academically inclined, then the academic head will understand them better and faster. We all have to be aligned. If the management are educationists then it will be easy but if they are not and are from corporate sector,

april 2015

What are the unique features of your schools – the methodology and approach employed in teaching?

ﬁghter. She created this trust 75 years ago which is a philanthropic institution. Therefore, due to this our fees is amongst the lowest and we give scholarships to almost 200 plus children. Those children mainly belong to the darwans, ayahs of our school. They may be underprivileged yet they are hungry for knowledge. We have all the modern amenities and children of who’s who study here sitting right beside children of a darwan.

How do you select students for scholarship?

There are basically two criteria, ﬁrst their ﬁnancial stability have to be checked. We have a yearly income cut off and their merit. Some of them are given scholarships for higher education as well.

There’s a paucity of good and knowledgeable teachers in most parts of our country, how are you able to maintain the high quality of teaching in your school? We fortunately do not have to face that situation. Here the average tenure of a teacher ranges from 18-22 years; even the most recently joined teacher is 3 year old. Even our salaries are good and there is a family kind of bonding between all of us.

How effective is the role of technology in the class room?

We have lot of technology going around for learning like smart boards and software content. Our computer science teachers have created an ERP solution for us and in this way we are trying to economize the whole thing. Then we have brought software, ‘Read to me’ which eases the English pronunciation of the teachers and students alike. The software ﬁrst scans a book and then it starts speaking, it gives out vocabulary, questions and even if the teacher is going wrong with any pronunciation,

Our fees is amongst the lowest and we give scholarships to almost 200 plus children. Many schools are introducing the Those children mainly belong use of tab and cell to the darwans, ayyas of phones right from the Kindergarten as a our school. They may be learning tool, what are underprivileged yet you comments on that? they are hungry for No, we have not gone that far. But like any normal staff knowledge. it will get corrected. This is one foolproof method to get ones English right.

room, there are laptops and PC for the teachers to make digital content. From middle school onwards one may even think of giving tabs but for pre-primary it is a strict no.

What are your views on ﬁeld trips and excursions in this technological era? It is very important and in sync with whatever is happening in the classrooms. We give them questionnaires about the place they are about to visit and ask those unique things which are not there in the text books.

What kind of security arrangements do you have in place for your students in school and when they are travelling to and fro from school? We carry ﬁrst aid box for any untoward accidents and teachers and ayahs accompany the children in the buses along with a bigger kid who is a bus leader.

Do you cross check the background of each and every person you induct? We have outsourced our transportation system. Many times the drivers change then both the supervisors, one from school transport department and the other from agency would cross check the credentials.

What kind of sports and games activity do you provide for your school students? To what extent are they encouraged to participate in their sport of interest and talent? Physical education is an integral part of our academics. Many of our students are medalists in different levels. We give extra classes if they miss any due to their sporting engagements.

What kind of disciplinary measures you employ to punish a wrong doer, student? First and foremost, we counsel because we have to understand the difference between a victim of the situation and one who did it for fun. We involve the parents too in the process. If we ﬁnd the child did it for fun, we ground them without giving them any TCs. When grounded they are debarred from doing certain things which they like. 99% students have come clean after being grounded. One more thing we ask them to do is to do one good thing along with proof. Throwing them out is not an option.

What will be your message for our readers?

Do not underestimate the potential and power of the children. According to my experience, you might not know what kind of a gem they will become. april 2015

BYGONE LUMINARY

Baroda. Later in 1920, he went to England, where he was awarded honor of D.Sc by the London University. On 8 June, 1927, he was awarded a Doctorate by the University of Columbia.

“Babasaheb” Dr. B R Ambedkar “I measure the progress of a community by the degree of progress which women have achieved.”

r. Ambedkar, was one of the architects of the Indian Constitution. He was a well-known politician and an economist. He made outstanding efforts to eradicate social evils like untouchability and caste system. He worked his whole life towards the rights of the dalits and other backward classes. He was the Law Minister in the Cabinet of Jawaharlal Nehru of independent India. He is popularly known as the ‘Father of Indian Constitution’ as he was the chairman of the constitution drafting committee.

Born: April 14, 1891 Died: December 6, 1956

Dr. Ambedkar was born to Bhimabai Sakpal and Ramji in a low dalit caste Mahar in Madhya Pradesh. In 1908, he got the opportunity to study at the Elphinstone College along with a scholarship of twenty ﬁve rupees a month from the Gayakwad ruler of Baroda, Sahyaji Rao III. Political Science and Economics were the subjects in which he graduated from the Bombay University in 1912. He decided to use the money for higher studies in the USA. When he returned from USA, Dr. Ambedkar was appointed as the Defence secretary to the King of

In 1950, Dr. Ambedkar traveled to Sri Lanka to attend a convention of Buddhist scholars and monks. After his return he decided to write a book on Buddhism and soon, converted himself to Buddhism along with his followers. He founded the Bharatiya Bauddha Mahasabha in 1955. His book “The Buddha and His Dhamma” was published posthumously. He resigned from the cabinet in 1951 following the stalling in parliament of his draft of the Hindu Code Bill, which sought to expound gender equality in the laws of inheritance and marriage. Since 1954-55 he had been suffering from serious health problems including diabetes and weak eyesight. On December 6, 1956 he died at his home in Delhi. He was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honor in 1990.

Summer time! Stay Away From

HEALTH

DEHYDRATION

www.ameyalife.com

Call 180030702060

Dr. N. S. D. Prasadrao

Thirst can be a sign of dehydration (deehye-DRAY-shun). Dehydration means that your body doesn’t have enough water in it to keep it working right. You lose water when you sweat, urinate (pee), you even lose a little water when you breathe. Our bodies need water to work properly.

Signs of Dehydration • Feeling light headed, dizzy, or tired • Rapid heartbeat • Dry lips and mouth Another sign of dehydration is not peeing as much. Normally, urine should be a pale yellow color. Dark or strong-smelling pee can be a sign of dehydration. What to Do

Why Am I Dehydrated?

It’s a good idea to drink water before, during, and after you play, especially if it’s hot.

Children get dehydrated when they’re playing hard and having fun they can get dehydrated when they’re sick.

In addition to drinking water, it’s smart to dress in cool clothes and take breaks indoors or at least in the shade.

april 2015

Do I Need a Doctor? A child may need to go to the doctor or emergency room if he or she has a heat-related illness or a virus with vomiting or diarrhea that just won’t quit. Thirst-Quenching Tips You have to drink at least eight glasses of water a day. You do need to drink enough to satisfy your thirst, and maybe a little extra if you’re sick or if you’re going to be exercising. The best drink is water, of course, but milk is another great drink for kids. A glass of juice is ok, but water should be considered the drink of champions.

WRITE RIGHT

HANDWRITING SECRETS - 22

PART I

Know your career from your Handwriting You can also approach a Psychology based ‘career analyst’ who would administer certain tests on you to understand which career will suit you better.

Y. Mallikarjuna Rao Director National Handwriting Academy, Hyderabad Email:handwriting56@gmail.com

rom class ten to post graduation, almost every student thinks and works on the career what he or she is going to be in, on daily basis. One of the best ways to choose right career is to discuss the issue with parents, teachers, friends and well wishers... and ﬁnally you decide what suits you the best. To assist choosing your career know your traits through your handwriting, based on the most effective science called ‘Graphology’. And to decide which career to pursue, you ask yourself the crucial questions and you will be able to answer the age old question “which career is right for me?” 1. What are you good at and what do you love? 2. Are you promotion or prevention Focused?

Apart from the very traditional Doctors and Engineers, there are dozens of careers you can think of, few of them are: Entrepreneurs, academician, software developer, Accountant/Auditor, Financial Advisor, Market research advisor, Physical therapist, Editor, Audiologist, Fund raiser, Services in Government, Librarian, Animator, Designer, Scholastic consultant, Psychologist, Landscape architect, Cosmetologist, Health policy specialist, Occupational therapist, bureaucrats, Lawyers, Security personnel, army/ Navy Ofﬁcer, Police, Life coach, Gemologist, Oceanologist, Author, Singer, Musician, Movie maker, theatre artist, scientist, organic farmers. Every career demands certain qualities or traits. Observe the following traits from your handwriting and strengthen your positive ones by practising particular stroke and choose your career wisely. 1. Most of the jobs claim to be very attentive and expects the person in the profession who is attentive to details. A writer who places the dots on i’s and j’s very closer is good with memory and observation.

2. If you are planning to be an entrepreneur, you need to be an ambivalent. A Person who relates to extroversion and introversion, generally writes in a slant which is in between vertical and hard right slant.

3. People in training and the one working with large groups, need to be little jovial. The writer who is making wavy strokes for ‘m’ beginnings and ‘t’ bars, generally is observed with sense of humour. They are also analytical.

4. Managers, Principals, institution heads need to possess abundant leadership qualities in all walks of their life. A writer who makes a long underline below the signature has that trait and he believes in himself, has a good amount of inner strength too.

3. What is the best environment for your personality type? 4. What kind of life style do you want? 5. Where do you want to live?

to be contd.

april 2015

FRAMES OF PHYSICS

Role of Learning Theories in Instructional

Design and e-learning Dr. RK M.Sc., Ph.D. DTT (Cambridge Univ.) Dr. RK’s Frames of Physics, E-mail: framesofphysics@gmail.com

Instructional Design (ID) is the systematic process of translating general principles of learning and instruction into plans for instructional materials and learning. Instructional technology is the systematic application of strategies and techniques derived from Behavioural Cognitive and Constructivist learning theories to the solution of instructional problems. e-learning is the synchronization of technology and education and most often, the instructional designer’s greatest role is that of ‘bridging’ concepts between the two worlds.

Behaviourism: It is based on observable changes in behaviour. Behaviourism focuses on a new behavioural pattern being repeated until it becomes automatic. Cognitivism: It is based on the thought process behind the behaviour. Changes in behaviour are observed, and used as indicators as to what is happening inside the learner’s mind. Constructivism: It is based on the premise that we all construct our own perspective of the world, through individual experiences and schema (An internal knowledge structure). Constructivism focuses on preparing the learner to solve problems in ambiguous situations.

A behavioural approach can effectively facilitate mastery of the content of a profession (knowing what); cognitive strategies are useful in teaching problemsolving tactics where defined facts and rules are applied in unfamiliar situations (knowing how); and constructivist strategies are especially suited to deal with ill-defined problems through reflection-inaction. The knowledge of learning theories plays an important role in instructional design.

In physics, behaviourism can be compared to Dalton’s atom which was simply a particle. Cognitivism can be compared to Thompson, Rutherford and Bohr’s theories of atomic model i.e., there was something occurring within the atom causing its behaviour. Constructivist approach can be considered as quantum theory of learning. The quantum theory builds upon the previous atomic theories. Constructivism builds upon behaviourism and cognitivism.

The need for instructional design is being noticed in e-learning especially in educational institutions. Subject Matter Expert’s (SME) concepts should be developed properly by graphic designers and programmers. The success of e-learning mainly depends on understanding the learning theories and adoption of proper technology by keeping learner in mind. Instructional designers play the pivotal role in brining together these fields.

“Pedagogy must drive the choice of Instructional technology, not the other way around”. 46

april 2015

NEWS

WeCare launches a near-site childcare center for Microsoft

ith companies working towards catering to the changing needs of employees in today’s fast-paced life, WeCare, a leading daycare-cum-pre-school in South India today announced an association with Microsoft to operate a state-of-the-art childcare center close to the Microsoft campus at The center is slated to start its operations in April 2015 and is open for Microsoft employees in Hyderabad. The 10,000 sq. feet child-care center will be one of the largest daycare-cum-pre-schools in Hyderabad. It will accommodate 126 children in the age group of 6 weeks to 8 years.

“The trend of daycare-cum-preschool centers is being driven by several factors, including an increasing awareness amongst employers that there is a direct connect between a good worklife balance and productivity,” said Reshma Shrinivas, Founder and MD of WeCare. “The WeCare childcare center will offer more than just custodial care. It will focus not only on the intellectual and physical growth of the child but also emotional, social, language and creative development. The most important goal of our early childhood curriculum is to help children

Reshma Shrinivas Founder & MD, WeCare

become enthusiastic learners and help them become independent, conﬁdent and creative. We teach them how to learn rather than what to learn,” said “Corporate sponsored childcare centers are growing ﬁve times faster now than it did ever before. Women are going back to work in greater numbers after having children and that has prompted a need for childcare centers. We plan to open more centers in Hyderabad and expand our base to Chennai as well,” said Reshma.

“Microsoft recognizes that high quality childcare is one of the needs of a modern-day parent. With our association with WeCare, we hope to address this need,” said Rohit Thakur, Senior HR Director, Microsoft India. Microsoft employee Prashant Bhugra said, “as working parents, we worry about our children when we leave them behind. With a quality childcare center located close to our workplace, Microsoft addresses the modern-day challenges of its employees.”

New Vision College student gets KVPY fellowship

amshi Bharath, of New Vision IIT & Medical Academy, Khammam has won the ‘Kishore Vignanika Protshahan Yojana – KVPY’ fellowship that is an initiative of the Government of India wherein the Intermediate level students are selected through an examination. Brainfeed congratulates Shri. CHGK Prasad, Chairman, New Vision Education Trust, Khammam, for nurturing a talent like Vamshi Bharath – who is the only recipient of this scholarship from Telanagana. He will receive a monthly grant of `5,000 and `20,000 per annum during his graduation study. And during his post-graduation study he will receive `7,000 monthly and `28,000 per annum.

april 2015

KNOW THE COUNTRY

THINGS TO DO AND SEE: The ultimate fairytale castle of Neuschwanstein – It is situated on a rugged hill near Füssen in southwest Bavaria. It has been the inspiration behind the Sleeping Beauty castles in the Disneyland parks. The castle was commissioned by King Ludwig II of Bavaria who was declared insane when the castle was almost completed in 1886 and found dead a few days later. Brandenburg Gate – It is the only surviving city gate of Berlin and symbolizes the reuniﬁcation of East and West Berlin. Built in the 18th century it is regarded as one of the most famous landmarks in Europe. Visit Heidelberg Old City During WWII, the city was almost completely spared by allied bombings which destroyed most of Germany’s larger inner cities. As a result, Heidelberg has retained its baroque charm of narrow streets, picturesque houses and the famous Heidelberg Castle. Holstentor – It is one of the two remaining city gates of the city of Lübeck. Built in 1464, the gate now serves as a museum. Because of its two captivating round towers and arched entrance it is regarded

april 2015

GERMANY Brace yourself for an adrenaline rushed roller coaster experience as you venture out in Germany’s gripping scenery, fun loving culture, city beauties, romantic palaces and towns. Germany is one of the most inﬂuential European nations culturally, and one of the world’s main economic powers. The country is well known around the world for its precision engineering and high-tech products along with the annual Oktoberfest.

Frauenkirche Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady) is a Lutheran church that was completely destroyed during WWII. The church reconstructed using original plans from the 1720s and reopened in 2005.

Population : 80.716 million (2014) Capital : Berlin Area : 357 031 sq. km. (137 850 sq. mi.) Languages : German Currency : Euro (EUR) Currency : 1 EUR = 67.92 INR Exchange Natural : Coal, lignite, natural Resources gas, iron ore, copper, nickel, uranium, potash, salt, construction materials, timber, arable land. Agricultural : Potatoes, wheat, Products barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry. Calling code: +49 ISO 3166 code: DE Internet TLD: .de Best time : May to October to visit Climate : Generally moderate continental climate without sustained periods of cold or heat, maritime climate in the North, in the South mountain climate in the Alpine regions.

Enjoy the serene Rhine River and Rügen Cliffs - Located in the Jasmund National Park in the northeast of Rügen Island; it faces constant erosion of the chalk cliffs tower high above the Baltic Sea. The Rhine River has been an important trade route into central Europe since ancient times and a string of small towns has grown up along the banks which still retain a historic feel today. Prominent People of Germany – Albert Einstein, Martin Luther, Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel, Johannes Gutenberg, Karl Marx, Stefﬁ Graf, Boris Becker as a symbol of Lübeck. Together with the old city center (Altstadt) of Lübeck it is one of the top tourist attractions in Germany. Cologne Cathedral - The greatest Gothic cathedral in Germany, Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom) has been Cologne’s most famous landmark for centuries. Construction of the Cologne Cathedral began in 1248 and took, with interruptions, more than 600 years to complete Be a part of Oktoberfest - The Oktoberfest in Munich is the largest Volksfest in the world with over 6 million visitors annually, the festival has been held since 1810. Visitors enjoy a wide variety of traditional fare such as Hendl, Schweinebraten, Würstl, Knödel and large quantities of German beer.

The India Connect – India and Germany had a discreet contact during early times, resulting in more visible influence in Nazi Germany’s use of the Swastika in its flag. During World War II, freedom fighter Subhash Chandra Bose met with Adolf Hitler and obtained limited assistance from Nazi Germany including his travel by a German Navy U-boat to Japan’s navy. From early times to modern day connections between the two countries have evolved down the line. Hundreds of schools in India used to teach students German before it was replaced with Sanskrit as their third language as part of an effort by Germany’s top technical colleges to attract more Indian students. april 2015

TECHNOLOGY

TRAVEL SMART WITH BLUESMART ravel like a pro with Bluesmart without any tension. The high-quality carry-on suitcase can be controlled from your phone. Download the app use it to lock and unlock it, weigh it, track its location, be notiﬁed if you are leaving it behind and ﬁnd out more about your travel habits. You can also charge your phone 6 times over with a built-in battery. Now that’s travel smart?

After decades of no innovation in the luggage industry, ﬁnally the innovators have come up with Bluesmart. You cannot lose anything while travelling with Bluesmart. You can lock your suitcase via your smartphone; if you get separated from your Bluesmart, it will lock automatically.

Access can be shared with people you trust, and you will be notiﬁed anytime someone attempts to open the suitcase. Bluesmart has a built-in digital scale so you can ﬁnd out its weight and whether it’s approved by the airline. Just pull the handle and the app will tell you if you are ok to go. They have included a super powerful battery charger that can charge two devices whether it is your smartphone, tablet or ebook at the same time. The proximity sensors will send alerts when you are separated from your Bluesmart. You can also locate your Bluesmart with a proximity heat map and receive a reminder of the last recorded location. Bluesmart also helps you to sync and manage your travel plans.

APPS of the Month MindNode App - It makes mind mapping easy. Mind maps are a visual representation of your ideas, starting with a central thought and growing from there. This allows you to brainstorm & organize your thoughts in an intuitive way, so you can focus on the idea behind it.

Elevate App - Elevate is a brain training program designed to improve focus, speaking skills, processing speed, memory, math skills, and more. Each person is provided with his or her own personalized training program that adjusts over time to maximize results. Chegg App - View millions of textbooks and solutions packed into one glorious app! Rent or Buy textbooks, Read eTextbooks, get guided textbook solutions & solutions to millions of questions on your Android.

april 2015

World Atlas App – Expand your knowledge - with over 260 countries and 230 capitals, this is the most complete atlas app on the market. Includes olympics data, demographics, geographic info, travel info, weather info, ﬂags and satellite + street maps. It uses Wikipedia’s “List of Sovereign States and Dependent Territories by Continent” as the master list.

Avaz App - It has been developed for children who are non-verbal or who have difﬁculty speaking. Avaz has been designed with the vision of making every voice heard! Avaz is child- and caregiver-friendly, and helps therapists and educators to bring out the maximum potential in children.

THE

BIG

Question

How long would it take to walk around the World? Rosie Swale - Pope - who ran around the World I don’t know how long it would take to walk around the World but it took me 1,789 days to run. I wore out ﬁfty-three pairs of shoes! I started the run for charity after my husband died, and I am so glad I did. I found out so much about people, and animals, and forests – and about myself. One of the most unforgettable experiences was meeting a wolf pack in the forest in Siberia. Siberia is the loneliest place on earth. It’s a winter fairyland of beauty and extreme cold. I was in my tent at night when suddenly I heard a noise. Moments later, a wolf put his head right inside the tent. Great furry paws stretching out in front of his nose, snow melting on his fur so it looked like he was wearing diamonds. Then he just backed away and was gone. The wolf pack followed me at a distance for ten days, but never came close and didn’t harm me. I remembered that wolves often look after people. The people I met were pretty special, too. Everywhere. Like the terrifying man in Russia who ran up to me waving an axe, and kindly gave me a parcel of bread! He was a woodsman called Alexie and he thought I must be hungry. Or like the children of White Mountain in Alaska who gave me a beautiful banner they had made before I set off into another thousand miles of wilderness. Their teacher said, ‘ We’ve named a star after you. When we look up at the night sky, we’ll be thinking of you!’.

At last I made it. All the way round the world. There are two footprints carved into the ﬂagstones of my home in Tenby, Wales - my ﬁrst step and my last step. There were twenty thousand miles in between. Thank you for your great question. If you have a dream, whatever it is, GO FOR IT!! I wish you all the good luck in the world. april 2015

COMMEMORATION

APR

THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF HUMAN SPACE FLIGHT

JALLIANWALLAH BAGH MASSACRE DAY (1919)

INDIAN WOMEN SAVINGS DAY

On the orders of BrigadierGeneral Reginald Dyer, the army ﬁred on the crowd for ten minutes, directing their bullets largely towards the few open gates through which people were trying to run out. According to sources 1000’s have died a tragic death.

Nowadays the focus of the banks that organise the World Savings Day is on developing countries to initiate Indian Women Savings Day, where many people are unbanked. Savings banks play an important role in enhancing savings in countries like India with certain campaigns and earmarked for women with high interest rates.

his day is celebrated as the start of the space era for humankind, reaffirming the contribution of space science and technology in today’s world. The day also aims to promote aspirations to explore and maintain outer space for peaceful purposes. On April 12, 1961 the first human space flight was carried out by Yuri Gagarin. This historic event opened the way for space exploration for the benefit of all humanity. Recognizing the same United Nations General Assembly in 2011 declared 12 April the International Day of Human Space Flight.

his day is the ill fated day when a crowd of non-violent protesters, were fired upon by British soldiers, Baishakhi pilgrims, had gathered in the Jallianwala Bagh garden in Amritsar, Punjab to protest against the arrest of two of their leaders.

his day is marked to raise awareness of the role of women in building national economy by generating household savings. Be it single women or married, their role in savings is very crucial.

APR

WORLD HERITAGE DAY

WORLD EARTH DAY

WORLD INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY DAY [WIPO]

On April 18 every year “International Monuments and Sites Day” is celebrated whose traditional name is World Heritage Day. The ﬁrst Heritage Day was celebrated as the International Day for Monuments and Sites on 18 April 1982 by ICOMOS in Tunisia.

Typical ways of observing Earth Day include planting trees, picking up roadside trash, conducting various programs for recycling and conservation. Some people are encouraged to sign petitions to governments, calling for stronger or immediate action to stop global warming and to reverse environmental destruction.

April 26 was chosen as the date for World Intellectual Property Day because it coincides with the date on which the Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization entered into force in 1970. The WIPO works together with various government agencies, non-government organizations & community groups.

his day aims to encourage local communities and individuals throughout the world about the importance of cultural heritage in their lives, identities and communities. It is also aimed to promote awareness of its diversity and vulnerability and the efforts required to protect and conserve it.

april 2015

his day is celebrated to promote ecology and respect for life on the planet as well as to encourage awareness of the growing problems of air, water and soil pollution.

his day is celebrated to promote discussion of the role of intellectual property in encouraging innovation and creativity. The day helps to raise awareness of how patents, copyright, trademarks and designs impact daily life.

SHORT STORY

A GLASS OF MILK When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light ﬁlled his eyes. Immediately he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room. Dressed in his doctor’s gown he went in to see her.

ne day, a poor boy who was selling goods by going door to door, to pay his way through school, found he had only one thin dime left, and he was hungry.

He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. Instead of a meal he asked for a drink of water. She thought he looked hungry so brought him a large glass of milk He drank it slowly, and then asked, “How much do I owe you?” “You don’t owe me anything,” she replied “Mother has taught us never to accept payment for a kindness.” He said… “Then I thank you from my heart.” As Howard Kelly left that house, he not only felt; stronger physically, but his faith in God and man was strong also. He had been ready to give up and quit. Years later that young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were bafﬂed. They ﬁnally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease. Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation.

He recognized her at once. He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day he gave special attention to the case. After a long struggle, the battle was won. Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval. He looked at it, then wrote something on the edge and the bill was sent to her room. She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally, she looked, and something caught her attention on the side as she read these words…… ” Paid in full with one glass of milk.” (Signed) Dr. Howard Kelly. Tears of joy flooded her eyes as her happy heart prayed: “Thank You, GOD, that Your love has spread abroad through human hearts and hands.”

Teacher : Ramu, give me a sentence starting with “ I “. Ramu

: I is...

Teacher : No, Ramu. Always say, “I am.” : All right... “I am the ninth letter of the alphabet.” Teacher : Mohan, Assam is special for which product? Student : “Sir, would you Mohan : I don’t know ma’am. mind e-mailing my exam results to my Teacher : Ok I’ll give you a parents?” clue, from where do you get tea powder? Teacher : “But your parents don’t have a Mohan : From our computer.” neighbour’s house!!! Student : “Exactly!”

Baby mosquito came back after its ﬁrst ﬂight… His dad asked him, “how do you feel ?” He replied “it was wonderful daddy… All humans clapped hands for me!! :)”

Ramu

TEACHER : PAPPU, your composition on “My Dog” is exactly the same as your brother’s. Did you copy his ? PAPPU: No, teacher, it’s the same dog !

april 2015

LANGUAGE STUDY G GERMAN

VOCABULARY

Ich hätte gern... ixh hett-er gairn...

GERMAN

I WANT...

BEGINNERS Here are some everyday used simple words in German language.

THAT’S FINE.

I’D LIKE...

in for

P PRONUNCIATION

Ich möchte... ixh merxht-er

Es gefällt mir. ess ge-felt meer

I LIKE IT.

I DON’T LIKE IT. Es gefällt mir nicht. ess ge-felt meer nixht

OK/AGREED. In Ordnung/Einverstanden. in ord-noong/iyn-fer-shtan-den

BOOK

Review

About the author: Annelies Marie “Anne” Frank, born on 12 June 1929 was a diarist and writer. She is one of the most discussed Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Her wartime diary ‘The Diary of a Young Girl’ has been the basis for several plays and ﬁlms. She gained international fame posthumously after her diary was published documenting her experiences hiding during the German occupation of the Netherlands in World War II. She passed away early March 1945. april 2015

I WANT/WE WANT... Ich will/Wir wollen... ixh vill/veer voll-en

I AM/WE ARE.... Ich bin/Wir sind... ixh bin/veer zint I HAVE/WE HAVE... Ich habe/Wir haben... ixh har-ber/veer har-ben

G P

The Diary of a Young Girl By: Anne Frank

Das ist gut. dass ist goot

The Review: Nazis occupied Netherlands in 1942 which forced many Jewish families to flee for safety to neighbouring countries. The story revolves around a thirteen-year-old Jewish girl and her family who fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. The next two years they and another family lived packed up in the “Secret Annexe” of an old office building. Cut off from the outside world, Frank wrote about their journey as they battled for life everyday and the hanging threat of discovery and death. Anne’s father, the lone survivor from her family which included her mother and elder sister, published the diary after he got liberated from the camp. Absolute marvel of a writing!

YEARS OF CULTURAL RELATIONS

Extrasensory perception by Katherine Bilsborough ESP or extrasensory perception is a catch-all expression for the alleged ability of certain people to receive transmitted thoughts from others, to transmit their own thoughts, to see what will happen in the future or to be able to move objects from one place to another without physically touching them. These special people are called psychics or sensitives. Some believe that we all have this ability to some degree but that most of us choose not to develop it.

Over the years there have been numerous ESP experiments conducted by serious scientists in serious institutions. Joseph Banks Rhine, a botanist at Duke University published a famous book in 1934 called Extra-Sensory Perception in which he claimed to have overwhelming evidence of ESP. However, other scientists have been unable to duplicate his results since. This has resulted in the book losing much of its original credibility and fame.

Some people are happy to believe in ESP while others are firm disbelievers. Parapsychologists who are dedicated to scientifically studying the claims that are made, lend a certain seriousness to the subject. They have identified four distinct types of ESP:

The Ganzﬁeld experiments are considered to have been the most carefully scrutinised ESP experiments. Alleged psychics had their eyes covered and ears blocked while a ‘sender’ attempted to transmit messages. Later the psychics would compare the messages received with the original messages sent out. There was a great deal of excitement and interest at the time but the research failed to produce convincing results.

psychokinesis is the ability to influence a physical object just by thinking about it precognition is the term applied when somebody is able to foresee future events. Many people are sceptical about ESP. Alongside the existence of documented evidence there are plenty of claims that have turned out to be fraudulent. For most people it is difficult to accept such claims without having had first-hand experience. The lack of scientific evidence is another fact or to take into account. On the other hand, most of us have, at some time, experienced a seemingly inexplicable occurrence – hearing the telephone ring and knowing who will be on the other end of the line or cases of coincidence that seem to be too extreme to be accidental.

One of the strongest criticisms against ESP is that in order for it to exist, the fundamental laws of physics would necessarily have to be broken.

1 What do we call people who possess ESP?

Human beings are attracted to the whole spectrum of supernatural phenomena. ESP will always continue to fascinate. This becomes clear when we see how much of the media is dedicated to the topic: magazines, journals, websites and television and radio programmes. Some of the most successful ﬁlms in recent years have fuelled interest among the younger generations who are starting to ask the same questions and to look for explanations for the same phenomena as their parents and grandparents before them. Who knows? One day we might just ﬁnd these answers because one thing is certain: ‘The truth is out there.’

4 How do younger interested in ESP?

Word search R K R A Q B F E P X X L T R

D Q E C E U N U I P E A N A

E U V I Q M I H V L C C A Q

G F E S U C Q G M A N I V C

E W I Y W J A S N N E T E I

L V L H H B I Z B A D P C O

L U E P L C B W G T I E N T

A I B Q I D D Q T I C C E K

M X S T A T S F R O N S D Q

O U I E X R L Y R N I O I O

N R D A R J G L R Y O O V W

C Q P S Y C H I C J C G E D

See if you can ﬁnd these words in the grid. They can be horizontal, vertical, diagonal and backwards.

2 Why has Rhine’s book lost credibility? 3 What is the main reason for ESP not being generally accepted? generations

become

5 What are the different types of ESP?

Joke teacher Question: How do you cook toast in the jungle? Answer: Put it under the gorilla (pronounced as ‘griller’). Question: What’s the difference between a buffalo and a bison? Answer: You can’t wash your face in a buffalo. This type of English joke works because when we’re talking certain words often have weak forms, so that they end up sounding like other words. For example, the word bison can sound like basin. Look at the joke below and see if you can work out what the weak form is. Question: Why did the cookie cry? Answer: Because its mother was a wafer so long.

EXPLANATION ALL_G_D CO_NC_DEN_E PH_S_C_L CR_T_CI_M P_Y_C_IC DI_BEL_EV_R S_E_TI_AL EVI_EN_E SC_ENT_FIC

Comprehension

C K L L R J S G K E R M K M

1 People who possess ESP are called psychics or sensitives 2 Because scientists have been unable to duplicate his results 3 Because it breaks the laws of physics 4 Through media and ﬁlms 5 Clairvoyance, telepathy, psychokinesis and precognition

L Y F M C I F I T N E I C S

Answers

telepathy is the process by which a person is able to read another person’s thoughts without the use of any of the normal senses

Vocabulary 1 evidence 2 sceptical 3 criticism 4 botanist 5 convincing

clairvoyance describes the act of being able to obtain knowledge of a person or event without the use of the normal senses

Vocabulary Five words/phrases from the text: • sceptical: showing doubt • evidence: that which proves or disproves a theory • botanist: a specialist in plants • convincing: easily believable • criticism: a critical comment Exercise one Vocabulary gap fill. Now use the five words/ phrases to fill the gaps in the sentences below: Police are looking for ………[1] to prove that the suspect is guilty. I’ve always been ………[2] about the existence of the Loch Ness Monster. My main ………[3] is that the film is too complicated. Her father is a ………[4] so their house is full of plant books and specimens. Can you give me one ………[5] argument why I should lend you my car? Exercise two Comprehension: true or false. Decide whether these sentences are TRUE or FALSE according to the text:

Want to find more learning activities? Visit http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en | www.britishcouncil.in/english/learn-online

april 2015

AMAZING

FACTS 1. BUTTERMILK does not contain any butter.

He appeared in the TV series “The Big Bang Theory” as himself and is among those who has a restraining order against Sheldon Cooper in the series. His last tweet posted on 23rd Feb 2015 says “A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP”. He passed away four days later.

The Great Pyramid at GIZA in Egypt holds a constant temperature of 68 degrees Fahrenheit.

Among her previous projects are two films with titles taken from a Rudyard Kipling line. The titles are directionally opposite of each other (the second is a sequel to the first), and feature British characters of sub-continental origin. Which two films are these?

The liquid inside YOUNG COCONUTS can Y be used as a substitute for blood plasma. OAK TREES do not produce acorns until they are ﬁfty years of age.

The right lung of a human is larger than the left one. This is because of the space and placement of the heart. april 2015

Which part of the world has the largest number of children aged 5-14 who work? a. Sub-Saharan Africa b. Asia and the Paciﬁc c. Latin America Caribbean

and

the

1. “J” is for “Jana Dhan Yojana”, the banking inclusion projeect, and “A” for “Aadhar”, the UID project.

The letter J does not appear anywhere in the periodic table of the elements.

This 2014 book about events in Indian history from about 1970 till 1980 led to bookstores boycotting its publisher, Rupa, because it was exclusively offered only on Amazon.com for the ﬁrst 3 weeks. Who wrote this book?

2. “East is East” and “West is West”, starring Om Puri.

point three times that of regular water.

This American cultural icon’s last tweet was posted on 23rd Feb 2015 and said “A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not

3. The actor Leonard Nimoy, most famous for playing “Spock” in “Star Trek”. More here.

Human saliva has a boiling

Who?

5: B - Asia and the paciﬁc has the largest number of child workers aged 5-14 in the world, 127 million. Sub-Saharan Africa has 48 million and Latin America and the Caribbean has 17 million.

It takes approximately 2 million ﬂowers for a BEE to make 1 pound of honey.

“India’s Daughter” is the name of a controversial documentary that was even banned for viewing in India. The maker of the ﬁlm is Leslee Udwin, who’s produced other ﬁlms before.

4: The President of India, Pranab Mukherjee - the book is “The Dramatic Decade, The Indira Gandhi Years”.

Men’s shirts have the BUTTONS on the right while women’s shirts have the buttons on the left.

preserved, except in memory. LLAP”.

The Narendra Modi-led Indian govt. is an acronym-friendly one. An acronym used during the 2015 budget is “JAM”, used to denote ways to help deliver ﬁnancial beneﬁts to the poor. In “JAM”, if “M” is for “Mobile”, what do the letters “J” and “A” stand for?

The HUMAN BRAIN is 80% water.

ANSWERS

Natural PEARLS melt in vinegar.

ORDER YOUR COPY

CROSSWORD SOLUTION 21 2

P 5

TODAY

O 13

Name

: ........................................................................

Address

: ........................................................................

........................................................................

...................................Pin:............................... Mobile No. : ........................................................................

SUDOKU SOLUTION 21

15+

12+

17+

4 3 6 2

8 5

4 672X

14+

4–

4 8 7

7 3 1

2 5X

1 5

7–

5 4 3

ISSUES

ACTUAL AMOUNT

PAY ONLY

`900

`750

`1,800

`1,400

`2,700 `2,000 3 36 Note: If you want to get the magazine by courier add `360/- per year.

School Managements can contact for bulk orders for their students at SPECIAL DISCOUNTED price. Kindly draw the DD/Cheque in favour of “Brainfeed Magazine” payable at Hyderabad Cheque/DD No: .....................................................................

6–

Bank & Branch: ......................................................................

Date: ......................................................................................

Signature: ..............................................................................

11+

6 5

8-3-191/565/K, Vengalarao Nagar

Ph: 040- 65 51 51 51, +91 9494 43 9444

email: info@brainfeedmagazine.com

16+

12+

YEARS

Amount: .................................................................................

84 X

18+

560X

2 3

6 3

8 5

1 7

49X

School Name: ....................................................Class: .........

Issued Date: ...........................................................................

KEN KEN SOLUTION 16 4–

: ........................................................................

SR Nagar Post, Hyderabad - 500 038.

facebook.com/brainfeededumag www.brainfeedmagazine.com april 2015

MIND

MINE CROSSWORD 22

KEN KEN 17 1–

2–

4–

192X

10+

A 3X3-square puzzle will use the digits from 1 to 3, a 4X4-square puzzle will use the digits from 1 to 4, etc.

2–

35 X

7–

480X

6–

3–

10+

13+

210X

168X

80X

84X

19+

6–

How to Solve Ken Ken? Fill the grid with digits so as not to repeat a digit in any row or column. Digits within each heavily outlined group of squares, called a cage, must combine to make the arithmetic result indicated.

april 2015

Solving a Ken Ken puzzle involves pure logic and mathematics. No guesswork is needed. Every puzzle has a unique solution.

Across

Down

2 Earth’s natural satellite 3 Earth’s largest artiﬁcial satellite 5 PhysCon speaker & exoplanet expert 9 Ceres 10 Worldwide 12 Globe 16 Half of last Radiation’s theme 17 European equivalent of NASA 18 Link to 21 The theme of the 2012 PhysCon 23 Convey 24 The Universal Language 25 Object like the sun 26 Milky Way 27 Close or attach securely 28 In 2006, the IAU redeﬁned this

1 The cosmos 4 “___ Golden Record” contains sounds and images to represent Earth for intelligent extraterrestrials 6 Community enrichment program 7 The systematic study of the physical & natural world through observation & experiment 8 This agency’s mission is to “pioneer the future in space exploration, scientiﬁc discovery, & aeronautics research” 11 The world’s largest and highest energy particle accelerator 13 PhysCon speaker talking about interdisciplinary applications of tomography 14 Connect with something else in one’s mind 15 To span 16 People who study 19 “Blue __” hint: Apollo 17 20 Equilibrium 21 Inclusive 22 Correspond to 23 Amalgamate

29 Blend

SUDOKU 22 8

In a cage marked with a plus sign, the given number will be the sum of the digits you enter in the squares. In a cage marked with a minus sign, the given number will be the difference between the digits you enter in the squares ( the lower digit subtracted from the higher one).

4 4

2 5

1 9

Presents

INTERNATIONAL

SCHOOL

EDUCATION

LEADERSHIP

SCHOOL

ACADEMIC

EXCELLENCE

SUMMIT 2015

AWARDS - 2015

May 2-7, 2015 | Singapore & Malaysia

TENTATIVE PROGRAM

1st May, 2015 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fly to Kuala Lampur from their respective airports

Arrive at Kuala Lampur

School Visit in Kuala Lampur Summit delegate registrations are closed.

Reach Lotus Desaru Beach Resort

nd May

May

Singapore Schools Visit

Singapore Universal Studios Visit

For Stall bookings & Sponsors Contact:

S. Hemachandra Rao +91 94944 39494 E-mail: brahmam@ brainfeedmagazine.com

School Education Leadership Summit 09:00 am to 03:00 pm & School Academic Excellence Awards Night 19:00 pm to 21:00 pm

May

(at Lotus Desaru Beach Resort)

www.brainfeedmagazine.com

May

Departure from Singapore

RNI No: APENG/2013/49994

Postal Regd. No: HD/1180/2013-2015

Posted at PC Secunderabad on April 7-8, 2015 Date of Publication: April 6, 2015 w w w. m i n d ch a m p s i n d ia .co m

April 2015

mind Champs

Volume III Issue 1

INDIA

AIMCE

H RAP G O T PHO

All India MATH Challenge Exam

AISCE

All India SCIENCE Challenge Exam

MY MOTHER - DOCTOR MY FATHER - ENGINEER MY BROTHER - PILOT

I-

for classes

PRIZES

Prize

2Prize nd

3 Prize rd

Note: School wise and class wise topper will be given Medal & Certificate

1 th

III-X

LEVEL

29 August 2015

2 th

LEVEL

HOTEL

Biology

s h t a M

AILCE

All India LOGIC Challenge Exam

`75

A MONTHLY EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVE

WHICH STREAM OF STUDY SHOULD I PURSUE?

Commerce

Art

MANAGE

MENT

ICIAN T U A E B

? AFTER AFT

X XII

M LIS A N R JOU

WHAT NEXT?

September 2015 For more details contact:

MIND CHAMPS INDIA A-75, Journalist Colony Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad - 500 033 Telangana, INDIA

MY INDIAN AR

+91 99080 07557 info@mindchampsindia.com www.facebook.com/mindchamps www.twitter.com/MindChampsIndia

VIEW POINT Is it a model for the West

FESTIVALS Different Shades of Hindu New Year

BYGONE LUMINARY “Babasaheb” Dr. B R Ambedkar

KNOW THE COUNTRY Germany