Brainfeed Magazine June issue - 2015 by Brainfeed Magazine

con tent s

volume III issue 3

JUNE 2015

Readersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Column

Editorial

This Month at a Glance

Education Singapore Schools

Festivals

Education

Bygone Luminaries

COVER STORY

Education - Back to School

EDUCATION IN ITS 21ST CENTURY AVATAR

Write Right

Travel - Meghalaya

Education - Part I Setting Meaningful Goals

Know The Country - Italy

Technology

The Big Question

News

Commemoration

Short Story

Humour Column

EDUCATION

Language study - French

Setting Meaningful Goals Part I

Book Review

British Council

Amazing Facts

Quiz

Mind Mine

20 SUMMIT REVIEW

IT WAS A LEARNING PROCESS

TRAVEL

Lose Yourself in Nature Make a Trip to Meghalaya

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REA D ER ’ S C OL UM N Motivation in the right spirit The article about Gamification in education is very interesting to read. It felt almost similar to the way parents sometimes teach their children to learn new things or even do chores around the house. Instead of making them jealous or arrogant towards their siblings/ peers, this technique succeeds in bringing out the competitive streak in the children. Earlier, when joint families existed, this approach was the most sought after by the elders in the family. Glad to know that this can be implemented in the field of education too. They can assume new role like “lead detective” if they finish a mission successfully. The appreciation they get through this gamification is indeed a powerful influence. This could drive them to achieve more even in many other areas of their lives. However, like everything in life, too much can be too bad. There has to be a controlled competition. R. Kalyan, Engineer, Hyderabad

Ways to deal with children The two articles about how to teach social intelligence to the children gifted with exceptional skills, and the ways to recognize ADHD early on in the children and deal with them are very informative. The two sets of children discussed in these articles contrast in nature. Naturally, the ways to teach them would also differ. However, I saw many similarities, which would seem unfair. Some of the common traits the two groups share are- lack of social skills, difﬁculty in empathizing or unreasonable outbursts of emotions. Meditation can help a child calm down, resolve anger issues and increase concentration. As they say, education must be an overall development and I agree with the view expressed here that measures have to be taken in all these areas.

Caring and Proper guidance for the young ones The interview of Ms Swati Popat Vats and the detailed description on why Early Childhood Care and Education is important were very enlightening. As a pre-school teacher myself, I can identify with the many things mentioned in the article regarding ECCE. The teachers need to be trained appropriately in order to deal with the young learners. As their brain development is at its maximum in this age, the kids need to be equipped with ample creative tools to improve or draw out their imagination. This is also the age where their real interest in any ﬁeld would be revealed. So, it is equally important for the teachers to analyze the students’ skills and help them in the right direction. Also, the Govt. should make the ECC.Ed course common across the country. The work that ECA is doing in providing free courses for Anganwadi teachers is highly commendable. Kudos!. P. Swetha, Pre-primary teacher, Noida

Brainfeed is happy to announce that this month forward, our free academic supplement ‘SOLVE IT’, which features material for students of VI to X standards, has now included the subjects of XI and BRAINFEED’S ‘SOLVE IT’ XII standards. ‘Solve It’ supplement will cater to the students appearing for the examinations of all boards of education. The ACADEMIC SUPPLEMENT offers material and previous/model question papers of competitive exams like Science and Math Olympiads, IIT JEE, BITSAT, EAMCET, etc. Students are advised to avail of this opportunity by subscribing to the magazine.

Ch. Venkatesh, Yoga Master, Hyderabad

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june 2015

volume III

issue 3

Chief Editor Brahmam K V Editor Sadanand S Executive Editor G. Bhageeradha +91 91775 13996 Sub Editor Kruthi Deepthi 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

EDITORIAL

“ suppose it is because nearly all children go to school nowadays, and have things arranged for them, that they seem so forlornly unable to produce their own ideas”, said Agatha Christie the English crime novelist, short story writer, and playwright. So for a long time – (Agatha Christie wrote her stories during the 20th century) whatever teachers have been teaching in schools were meant to make the learners experts with their bookish knowledge. The topper would be able to reproduce the text book verbatim from ﬁrst to last page, that kind of a prowess they would show. But the present and the future, need learners who can think, create new things, new ideas and in turn produce newer jobs that we never had comprehended about. Read, how that will be possible in this edition’s cover story ‘21st century education/skills’. The 1st International School Education Leadership Summit – 2015 held in Malaysia and Singapore saw the participation of close to 40 school heads and their teachers. Get to know about the success of Brainfeed’s 1st International summit through the experiences and words of some of the eminent educationists who were part of the entourage. Awestruck you will be, when you get to know about the schools in Singapore that have been imparting quality education for the children of Singapore – one school being almost a century old. Continuing from this issue, every month, you will get to read about how you can ‘study better, stress less and gain success’ a series of steps you can follow to change the way you work up to your success in career and life. It’s school time again and all the children will be back to school; read Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev’s advice on how students should groom themselves to perform better in their education. Upholding the established look and content of Brainfeed’s regular sections we have for you the ‘festivals of India’, ‘bygone luminaries’, ‘commemorations’, ‘technology’, ‘big question’, ‘short story’, ‘amazing facts & quiz’. Rejoice at the colourful photo feature on ‘Singapore tour’ on the center spread. Play some mind games and feel triumphant on achieving some degree of success in solving those puzzles and number games. Brainfeed is offering ‘Solve it’ the academic supplement to XI and XII standard students from this month. Happyy reading. CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE & E-MAG www.brainfeedmagazine.com

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THIS MONTH AT A GLANCE

sunday We all want to be famous people, and the moment we want to be something we are no longer free.

JUNE 2015

monday

tuesday

02 Global Day of Parents

Tennis Player

World Oceans Day

17 Hemanta Kumar Mukhopadhyay

LEANDER PAES

Happy Birthday 1950

Birth Anniversary 1920

Happy Birthday 1973

Mahatma Gandhi, in New Delhi,urges the South African government to stop the hooliganism of Whites. 1946

The first practical ‘Typewriter’ got patented by its inventor Christopher Latham Sholes.

1868

P V NARASIMHA RAO

Birth Anniversary 1921

Apple Inc. releases its first mobile phone, the iPhone. 2007

Tennis Player

Music composer

29 Former PM of India

The Spirit Rover is launched, beginning NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover mission. 2003

Business magnate

International Day of Yoga

Birth Anniversary 1936

16 LAKSHMI MITTAL

World Blood Donor Day

TARLA DALAL Chef and writer

Queen Elizabeth II officially opens London’s Gatwick Airport in Crawley, West Sussex, United Kingdom. 1958

MAHESH BHUPATHI

Happy Birthday 1974

03 Telangana officially becomes the 29th state of India. 2014

– Jiddu Krishnamurti

wednesday

Congo gains independence from Belgium. 1960

24 GURU GOPINATH Kathakali dancer

Birth Anniversary 1908

The heart of an excellent person resembles the coconut, which, though hard without, contains refreshing water and delicious food within. –- an ancient Indian quote.

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thursday

friday

saturday

04 RICHARD ALLEN Hockey player

Birth Anniversary 1902

Canadian PM Stephen Harper makes a historic official apology to Canada’s First Nations in regard to a residential school abuse in which children are isolated from their homes, families and cultures for a century. 2008

World Environment Day

E. M. S. NAMBOODIRIPAD Politician

Birth Anniversary 1909

World Day against Child Labour

K.S. SUDARSHAN

20 RAHUL GANDHI

VIKRAM SETH

Happy Birthday 1970

Happy Birthday 1952

Indian Poet

Politician

Former RSS chief

Birth Anniversary 1931

June 7–11, 2015 International Education Conference London 2015 London, United Kingdom www.cluteinstitute.com

June 10-11, 2015 5th Indian Education Congress and Indian Education Awards 2015 Vivanta by Taj, Surajkund, New Delhi. www.educationbiz.in

Tamil is established as a “classical language” by the President of India, Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, in a joint sitting of the two houses of the Indian Parliament. 2004

UP COMING EVENTS

June 27-30 2015 Seventh International Conference on Communities and Technologies (C&T 2015) Limerick, Ireland http://comtech.community/

July 10-11, 2015 International Academic Conference on Teaching, Learning and E-learning Hungary, Hungary, Budapest 2015 http://www.conferencesscientific.cz/

MAY 2015

26 Kim Campbell is sworn in as the first female Prime Minister of Canada. 1993

Madagascar gains its independence from France. 1960

NASA launches the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph, a space probe to observe the Sun. 2013

JULY 2015

Scriptures are not mere books for intellectual studies. We must learn to assimilate these ideas and come to live them. –Swami Chinmayananda

Why should the wise man be anxious over a small portion of this world? Is the mighty sea ever agitated by the movements of the little fish ? –an old Hindu saying

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COVER STORY

S Sadanand

Education in its st

21 century Avatar ‘An educational system isn’t worth a great deal if it teaches young people how to make a living but doesn’t teach them how to make a life’, said an unknown author. After reading this quote, it feels like we have traversed a full circle and had come back to the starting point in trying to ﬁgure out what is the best kind of education we can provide to our younger generation of learners. Fifteen years have passed by in this 21st century and still we are debating on the methods the education system should follow to prepare students to lead a better life ahead in their future. 8

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he kind of education that has been imparted till now right from the time it was introduced sometime in the 17th century by the educated Britishers, was the kind of education that made the educated only fit to work, earn and make a living – the living status differed according to the level of study one pursued. The kind of education we are used to, never taught us any skills that would make us an independent individual and choose to be what one wants to be. Having said that, let us now analyze and understand what exactly our education system lack in terms of converting our huge numbers of human resource into nation building individuals. Sixty eight years have passed by since India became independent and still we are experimenting with different forms of education systems trying to figure out which one best suits our society and bring the necessary changes to our education system that are conducive to the growth of its each and every citizen. The main problems plaguing our education system are dearth of qualified & dedicated teachers and rote learning where students study only to score marks in exams. This is because we still follow the education system that was introduced by the colonial masters to create clerks and civil servants. So, what needs to be done to change the way we teach or educate our future generation of learners? Many educational policy makers the world over are talking about 21st century education/skills that are a set of abilities that students need to develop in order to succeed in the information age. The term “21stcentury skills” is generally used to refer to certain core competencies

such as collaboration, digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem-solving, that advocates believe schools need to teach to help students thrive in today’s world. It’s said that, it addresses a rapidly changing world ﬁlled with fantastic new problems as well as

exciting new possibilities. So, what are 21st century skills? The 21st century skills are a set of abilities that students need to develop in order to succeed in the information age. The 21st Century Skills lists three types of skills:

LEARNING SKILLS

What are 21st century learning skills? The 21st century learning skills are often called the 4 C’s: critical thinking, creative thinking, communicating, and collaborating. These skills help students learn, and so they are vital to success in school and beyond. Critical Thinking Critical thinking is a focused, careful analysis of an issue to understand it better. It is said that “left brain” activity is usually referred to critical thinking. Some of the main criticalthinking abilities are analyzing, arguing, classifying, comparing & contrasting, deﬁning, describing, evaluating, explaining, problem solving and tracking. Creative Thinking Creative thinking is an expansive, open-ended invention and discovery of possibilities. It is said that “right brain” activity, means creative thinking. Some of the common creative thinking abilities are Brainstorming, creating, designing, entertaining

imagining, improvising, innovating, overturning, problem solving and questioning. Communicating Communicating is the process of transferring a thought from one mind to others and in return, receiving thoughts back. Communicating allows minds to tune to each other, thinking together. Some of the basic abilities required for communicating are analyzing, choosing a medium, evaluating messages, listening, reading, speaking, turn taking, using technology and writing. Collaborating Collaborating is working together with others to achieve a common goal. In this age of social media and crowd sourcing, collaboration is more important than ever. Some of the basic abilities needed to collaborate are allocating, brainstorming, decision-making, delegating, evaluating, goal setting; leading a group, managing time and resolving conﬂicts occurs from using one of the following strategies: asserting, cooperating, compromising, competing, or deferring. Team building means cooperatively working overtime to achieve a common goal. june 2015

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COVER STORY

LITERACY SKILLS

What are 21st century literacy skills? Literacy skills help students create knowledge through writing as well as developing media and technology. Information Literacy Information literacy involves traditional skills such as reading, researching, and writing; but new ways to read and write have also introduced new skills: Consuming information: The current excess of information requires students to gain new skills in handling it. Some of it is reliable, but much is not. Students must take on the role of the editor, checking and crosschecking information, watching for signs of bias, datedness, and errors. Students need to look at all information as the product of a communication situation, with a sender, subject, purpose, medium, receiver, and context. Producing information: In the past, students were mostly consumers of information. When they produced information, it was largely for a single reader— the teacher—and was produced for a grade. It was therefore not an authentic communication situation, and students felt that writing was a purely academic activity. Now writing is one of the main ways students communicate. It has real-world applications and consequences. Students need to understand that what they write can do great good or great harm in the real world, and that how they write

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determines how powerful their words are. Students need to take on the role of professional writers, learning to be effective and ethical producers of information. Media Literacy Media literacy involves understanding the many ways that information is produced and distributed. The forms of media have exploded in the last decade and new media arrive every day. Students’ use of media has far outstripped educational use, and students will continue to adopt new media long before teachers can create curricula about it. It is no longer enough to teach students how books, periodicals, and TV shows work. Students need to learn how to critically analyze and evaluate messages coming to them through any medium. As with information literacy, the key is to recognize the elements of the communication situation- sender, message (subject and purpose), medium, receiver, and context. These elements are constant regardless of the medium used.

By broadening the students’ perspective to see all media as part of a larger communication situation, we can equip them to effectively receive and send information in any medium. Students must learn to recognize the strengths and weaknesses of each medium and to analyze each message they receive and send. Technology Literacy We are living through a technological revolution, with huge changes taking place over brief spans of time. A decade ago, Facebook didn’t exist, but now many people cannot live without it. The average cellphone is now more powerful than computers from several years ago. We are surrounded by technology, and most of it performs multiple functions. By understanding how to evaluate this new information and how to use these new tools to create effective, well-grounded communication, students can harness the power of new technology and be inspired to learn.

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LIFE SKILLS

What are 21st century life skills? Life skills equip students to thrive in the classroom and in the world beyond. The 21st century life skills are ﬂexibility, initiative, social skills, productivity, and leadership. Flexibility Given the rapid rate of change in our world, the ability to adjust and adapt is critical to success. Student’s needs to learn to quickly analyze what is going on around them and make adjustments all the while keeping their goals at the forefront of their minds. Flexibility is not spinelessness. In fact, a spine needs to be ﬂexible to allow the person to move while remaining upright with eyes on the prize. Initiative The entrepreneurial spirit is founded on initiative—the

willingness to step forward with an idea and take the risk of bringing it to fruition. The changing economic landscape requires entrepreneurs. Students need to learn how to set goals for themselves, plan how they will reach their goals, and enact their plans. Once students feel comfortable with charting their own course, they will readily launch into activity. Social Skills Human beings have always been social creatures, connecting to and depending on a tribe of some hundred others. Technology now allows people to belong to multiple tribes- students at the same school, friends on Facebook, colleagues on LinkedIn, fans on fan sites, gamers on massively multiplayer online games. In all of these environments, social skills are critical. Whether students are having a face-to-face meeting or are tweeting to hundreds of strangers, there are real human beings with real thoughts, feelings,

and needs on the other end. And, as work environments become more collaborative, social skills are a key to success. The best way for students to develop social skills is to collaborate with others. When students work together on a project, they have common goals and interests; they are required to develop social skills such as cooperation, compromise, decision making, communicating, using emotional intelligence, using constructive criticism, trusting others, delivering on promises and coordinating work. Productivity Students should learn the habits of productivity by goal setting, planning, time management, research, development, evaluation, revision and application. Leadership Leadership is a suite of related skills that combines the other life skills. Good leaders take initiative, have strong social skills, are ﬂexible, and are productive. They also identify goals, inspire others to share those goals, organize a group, resolve conﬂicts among members, encourage the group to reach their goals, help group members solve problems and improve performance and give credit where it is due. That list pretty well describes what you do daily as a teacher— because you are the leader of your class. However, if students are perpetually in the role of followers, they never have to learn these skills. They need to occasionally become the teacher. Group projects

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COVER STORY

also require students to take on leadership responsibilities. How should education be structured to meet the needs of students in this 21st century world? How do we now deﬁne “School”, “Teacher” “Learner” and “Curriculum”? School According to 21stcenturyschools website – Schools in the 21st century will have project-based curriculum to engage students in addressing real-world problems, issues important to humanity, and questions that matter. It shows a new way of understanding the concept of “knowledge”, giving a new meaning to “educated person”. A new approach to designing and delivering the curriculum is needed. Schools will be ‘nerve centers’, connecting teachers, students and the community to the wealth of knowledge that exists in the world.” Teacher A teacher’s primary role will be to orchestrate learning and helping students turn information into knowledge, and knowledge into wisdom. The 21st century will require knowledge generation and schools will need to create a “culture of inquiry”. Today learners must be seen in a new context, ﬁrstly, a student’s interest must be maintained by helping him or her, prepare for life in the real world. Next their curiosity should be kindled that will make them lifelong learners- inside and outside school.

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Learner The classroom will be studentcentered where the teacher is the facilitator/coach, students and teachers have mutually respectful relationship as co-learners; students are highly motivated with great deal of student freedom. Students are self-directed, and work both independently and interdependently. The curriculum and instruction are designed to challenge all students, and provide for differentiation. Curriculum Curriculum is connected to students’ interests, experiences, talents and the real world. Performances, projects and multiple forms of media are used for learning and assessment. Twenty-ﬁrst century curriculum has certain critical attributes. It is interdisciplinary, project-based, and researchdriven. It is connected to the community – local, state, national and global. Sometimes students are collaborating with people around the world in various projects. The curriculum incorporates higher order thinking skills, multiple intelligences, technology and multimedia, the multiple literacies of the 21st century, and authentic assessments. How do we assess students, and how do we acquire and utilize the new technologies? Assessment Assessment moves from regurgitation of memorized facts and disconnected processes to

demonstration of understanding through application in a variety of contexts. Real-world audiences are an important part of the assessment process, as is selfassessment. Technology Technological resources are tools students use to create knowledge for a personal and social change. Technology should be easily available, computers and access to the Internet at home and in the school. Art, music, theatre, television, radio and ﬁlm studios can be created with relatively small expenditures. All classrooms should have televisions to watch broadcasts created by their school as well as by other schools.

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So, is it really possible to change the education system to beneďŹ t the crores of younger generation of learners of our country, in this century, by employing the 21st century educational skills? Maybe if we put our heads together and contemplate and see that is so clearly visible and reinvent our own education system that would pave the way to make the younger generation worthy to lead a contented life by giving him or her the knowledge, skills, understanding and experimenting by making them a good human being.

countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s educational woes. All the skills listed there and the positives that have been enumerated about the 21st century education does point towards the sincere aim of the educationists and the governments the world over, to successfully bring a change in the lives of the future learners. But in a country like ours wherein there is a large disparity between 20% of learners in private schools from that of the remaining 80% learners from government and semi-government schools. The 20% of learners are those who have access to the 21st century infrastructure and education and are well equipped to prepare themselves for a rosy life ahead.

Is the paradigm of 21st century education/skills that we have just read about is truly the panacea to our

The majority of children from our country study in Government and

Conclusion:

semi-government schools and mostly these schools have a very poor track record in transforming the lives - for the better, of their young learners. These students have never been taught any skills except learn their lessons by rote route, the only reason why many of the students from these schools end up doing some odd jobs to earn their living. Only if the government wakes up to the need of these poor and desperate learners and take some drastic measures to give them the best opportunity to learn, by introducing 21st century learning through skills enhancement programs and projects. But the 21st century education that professes to impart education through the digital mode has a big price tag attached to it and it will take a committed government with a strong sense of purpose and willingness to create the infrastructure and make available all the equipment and instruments for the beneďŹ t of the majority of the learners of our country. Only then there will appear a rainbow on the horizon of the education system of India. Sources: thoughtfullearning.com 21st centuryschools.com Latasinha.wordpress.com

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COVER STORY

We need to channelize the energies of students

Ruchira Ghosh

Ruchira Ghosh has been a school sector professional with over 15 years of experience in project management, content development, marketing and communications and relationship management. Brainfeed had an opportunity to interview her, read on for her views and opinions on 21st century education/skills.

Regional Director South Asia (Cambridge International Examinations)

What exactly is 21st century education or literacy?

21st century education is no longer a thing in the distant future. It is happening all around us since we are well into the 21st century. Yes, technically the term ‘21st century education’ refers to application and skills-based holistic education that prepares young people to live and thrive in a globalised economy while contributing actively to world peace and intercultural understanding.

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What are the fundamentals of 21st century literacy?

Content that encourages deeper understanding, creativity and independent thinking; classroom practices that allow room for mistakes, exploration, collaboration and inclusion; school leadership that establishes and shares a clear vision; parents who are constructive partners in the school community; assessment system that supports the developmental journey of learning and is objective, rigorous and fair and students who develop as conﬁdent, innovative, engaged, reﬂective and responsible global citizens.

Educationists the world over are talking about providing 21st century education or skills to young learners – does your institution have any such practice or process in place?

Cambridge International Examinations works closely with over 11000 schools worldwide. Our curriculum strongly focuses on skillsbased learning and active learning, and our syllabi reﬂect this philosophy. Cambridge teachers are provided opportunities to develop their skills and gain qualiﬁcations in pedagogical practices that allow them to practice 21st century ‘teaching skills’ in the classroom.

We feel conﬁdent that Cambridge curriculum meets the needs of 21st century education and it delivers a broad, balanced, coherent and consistent programme of learning with smooth progression routes designed for the needs of all learners. Our curriculum supports student-teacher partnership in learning and encourages Active Learning pedagogy which plays a vital role to enable learners to achieve their maximum potential.

What will the 21st century curriculum look like?

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The focus is on how we teach our children

Daniel Smith Head of Mosaica International School

What exactly is 21st century education or literacy?

21st century education often focuses on how we teach our children rather than looking at why we are teaching them and what we are preparing them for, in the 21st century economy. This obviously includes a fundamental set of skills to provide proﬁciency with technology but should also consider the soft skills such as leadership, empathy, collaboration, presentation abilities, entrepreneurship and others that are essential to the dynamically evolving 21st century work place.

Educationists the world over are talking about providing 21st century education or skills to young learners – does your school have any such practice or process in place? YES! We believe in a student centered classroom that gives children ownership of their learning with signiﬁcant guidance and support from the teachers. Worksheets, lectures, or other traditional methodologies are used sparingly and only to set the stage for learning experiences that increasingly place decision making power, creativity, problem solving, group work, technology integration, and other scenarios; rather than having them work in a formal class construct of desk rows, repetition and test

Mr. Dan Smith has over thirteen years of professional teaching and administrative experience in various school in the US. Prior positions include teaching various social studies courses and advising students at the middle and high school levels, head of K-12 independent day school, Assistant Director, and Department Chair. Dan Smith shares his views and opinions with Brainfeed on the topic of ‘21st Century education/skills’. preparation that doesn’t reﬂect what they will need to do as adults.

What are the fundamentals of 21st century literacy?

The biggest challenge for students today is not access to information but how to distinguish meaningful or helpful information from the millions of resources available on any given subject. The tools of technology provide many opportunities to do this but because they are always changing, we need to approach technology through a lens of education rather than training. The speciﬁc skills for applications or tools will always be changing and are now learned through practice more than formal training. However, the ability to adapt to changing technology and take advantage of its advances comes through education that lets children use it actively. Additionally, students need to learn how the tools of the 21st century change, challenge, and enhance the ways we can communicate effectively, appropriately, and creatively.

What will the 21st century curriculum look like?

A 21st century curriculum will be much more focused on skills and competencies rather than on academic content. It will provide more opportunities for individualization

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COVER STORY

rather than assuming all children of the same age, in the same class, at the same time are identically prepared for the same information. Curriculum needs to reﬂect authentic learning and students should always have an understanding of what they are doing and why they are doing it to ensure that the most meaningful engagement for learning is happening.

The debate continues

How should education be structured to meet the needs of the 21st century learners?

Any answer to this is a guess. It shouldn’t look like a typical 20th century classroom that assumes masses of students parroting information from their neat rows of desks. However, I also resist the model, some preach about exclusive online learning and no need for formal schools. The changing tools of learning will provide unique and diverse ways for students to learn that we can’t even predict but learning is a social and organic process that is always going to require the careful hand of a master to guide and support meaningful learning. That will sometimes come in a Socratic discussion with a group of students around a table or at others with a student working individually on a selected project or guided online course.

Ancient Indian learning process was oral and then the British introduced their kind of education and now we talk about 21st century education, propagated by the western educationists – how beneficial it will be for our young learners? Learning has never changed. Education, the formal systems and organization of learning, seems to be constantly shifting with the latest trends and tools. This often leads us further astray as we talk about schools, their organization and all of the shiny objects we think we need to attract families. 21st century education will be most beneficial when we make decisions that are based on what is best for learning rather than what is the best way to organize education and schools for the teachers, parents and principals in charge of them. The most beneficial learning might look very different from one day to the next and is best measured not by looking at schools, principals, or teachers but evaluating whether students are authentically engaged and excited about their learning, which may be very different from student to student and school to school.

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Seetha Murthy Silver Oaks School, Hyderabad

What exactly is 21st century education or literacy?

It’s 15 years since the 21st century started. But the debate continues on what is 21st century education! The hangover of 20th century education system weighs heavily on us to think differently about the needs of education in this century. Therefore I would deﬁne 21st century education as a transformative process to help, not just the school going children but those in colleges, universities and adults of all ages, in establishing their presence in a technology age with abundant information where there is an intense need for thinking minds.

Educationists the world over are talking about providing 21st century education or skills to young learners – does your school have any such practice or process in place? From stone age to agrarian age, industrial age to technology age, the journey of humans has been eventful, adventurous and stressful. As we are entering the threshold of knowledge age, there is great need to recognize the power of human thought in

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Brainfeed had the opportunity to interview Ms Seetha Murty, Principal at Silver Oaks School Hyderabad on the topic of 21st century education/skills. Read on to know her views and opinions on that topic.

this evolution. Focus should be given extensively to how human thought can understand the universe and live in it harmoniously with people, knowledge and environment. Silver Oaks believes that 21st century education should inculcate goals for conservation, emotional intelligence, social justice and sustainability. And to achieve this, thinking minds and feeling hearts are groomed in the schools. With an inside out approach on character ﬁrst and competence next, the school is able to groom young people to be contributors, not just consumers. Policies and processes like soft spoken culture, live life the lean way, stationery policy etc., inﬂuence the affective domain while extensive thinking strategies and constructivist approaches trigger the cognitive domain.

What are the fundamentals of 21st century literacy?

Besides the reading, writing and arithmetic, critical thinking should be the fundamentals of 21st century literacy.

What will the 21st century curriculum look like?

21st century curriculum should be contemporary and futuristic where learners understand their role in the universe and empower themselves to make meaningful contribution.

How should education be structured to meet the needs of the 21st century learners?

With all the three components of curriculumwritten, taught and assessed, well deﬁned and demarcated.

To prepare our students navigate the 21st century world they must become literate in 21st century literacy - what is your opinion on that? Any learning becomes signiﬁcant when all the three domains of learning are involved. The psycho- motor, cognitive and affective domains need to be involved in the learning environment. To navigate through the maze of an emerging world, students should be empowered to ﬂy their air crafts with skill and knowledge and of course respect for the universe.

Ancient Indian learning process was oral and then the British introduced their kind of education and now we talk about 21st century education, propagated by the western educationists – how beneficial it will be for our young learners? Ancient Indian learning process had many advantages. In the pre-colonial days, village schools educated children to respect their culture, promote their economy and appreciate their ecology. Gandhiji referred to these schools as ‘beautiful trees’. Colonialism hijacked the local purpose of education. For selfish ends or otherwise, schools began to educate children for a remote, invisible or impersonal target. All of us arrived into 21st century, not just western educators. Therefore goals of education should address tangible needs. In India, we are at a cross roads with regard to goals of education. Between the ancient philosophy and the foraying technology, we are yet to make a balance. This uncertainty will not be beneficial. What could be beneficial is clarity and purpose of an education system which keeps in mind local needs and global developments.

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COVER STORY

It prepares young people to live and thrive

Jaya Mani

Young at heart, energetic and dynamic, communicative, innovative, sharing and caring - that is Ms Jaya Mani M, the principal of VISTA School, Pearson School, Hyderabad. She has over 28 years of teaching as well as a school administration experience. She shares her views and opinions on the topic of 21st century education/skills; read on.

Vista School

Starting from story-telling in preprimary classes to story writing, collage making, debates, role plays in the middle and senior school, we conduct a number of competitions in the school. Every competition conducted, speaks of some As educationists, we are responsible value added learning to the students. to groom the students for lifelong application based learning. We really Sharing and caring is a very important need to channelize the energies of attitude to be developed in students the students; make them aware of the who are majorly coming from nuclear challenges and prepare the students to families. Group activities, field trips and face them; they need to be well-equipped classroom get-together parties train the with the latest technology and be updated students for the interpersonal skills. with current advancements in different Literary skills play a major role in any areas of importance. student’s life. A good set of vocabulary, The students are facing lot of peer good command on the subject, welland parental pressure and even from versed with current affairs enable the teachers to excel in the classroom. To students to gear up their application avoid such traits, we definitely have to based knowledge skills and to face any put the student into a comfort zone to competitive exam. We do certificate based learn and apply his/her knowledge to book campaign from primary to senior school, that the students are motivated make a good life/career. to read books and submit a review of the We at VISTA school, take school same. Those who could complete the set assembly as a perfect platform to groom target get a certificate, too. communication skills of the students; Student council elections that we conduct we focus on the speaking skills, in the school every year, address their pronunciation, body language and the leadership qualities. confidence levels with which the student speaks on the dais. This training helps ‘Each one teach one’ programme is the students compere for the school where the students teach the blueevents and celebrations. collar staff in the school. They go to rural Educationists the world over are talking about providing 21st century education or skills to young learners – does your school have any such practice or process in place?

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communities in the surroundings to bring awareness about education. They become teachers and conduct assessments, also. They also give prizes to the best achievers. All these and many more, we do with the principle of “Purpose behind everything”. We make a note to explain the students, the purpose of any learning programme or activity that we do in the school. This enables us to perform the activity in an effective way and have a learning outcome too.

What are the fundamentals of 21st century literacy?

When we refer to fundamentals of 21st century skills, I take it that they are the skills which every child needs to be equipped with to sustain in the changing world. With different ﬁelds of learning, different areas of work, different scenarios to look into, different people to manage, different locations to move in job, different cultures to understand, different challenges to face, anybody and everybody needs to be trained for the same. That is what has evolved as 21st century skills.

What will the 21st century curriculum look like?

In schools, the curriculum framework should address all the fundamentals of the 21st century skills. The focus is on the holistic development of the child. As the child grow into an adult, she/he should be communicative, adaptive, knowledgeable, dynamic, decision maker and a leader. All these cannot be expected in a day or two. They need to be groomed gradually with live examples, age appropriately. That is what the education system now is addressing.

To prepare our students navigate the 21st century world they must become literate in 21st century literacy - what is your opinion on that? There is a need to mould them to meet the needs of tomorrow. When necessity takes its role, demand arises. The 21st century skills are in the necessity base now; they may turn into requirements and then into demand in the future.

Ancient Indian learning process was oral and then the British introduced their kind of education and now we talk about 21st century education, propagated by the western educationists – how beneficial it will be for our young learners? Whatever we are teaching and learning now, is all from the basis of ancient Indian education – the best example being “The Panchatantra”. I believe that there are different innovative methodologies, which are coming up, to groom students for the skills required in today’s world. Now-a-days, Science and technology are playing a major role. For the comfort of the people, there are many things which came up into the market. Many scientists, technologists, philosophers, astronomers, etc are working towards a better world – which makes man live more comfortably. I do not mean that living with comfort means living with machines. But there is innovation in present generation. There is drastic technological growth in today’s world. There are numerous fields that a student can choose. There are lots of challenges as well, which we did not face in our childhood. So, I believe that we are heading towards holistic development of the child to become a global citizen and not that we adapted western education. For a child to choose any field of growth, it depends on the culture he embedded from the family and the school. And, school definitely plays a major role. june 2015

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INTERNATIONAL

SUMMIT REVIEW

SCHOOL

EDUCATION

LEADERSHIP SUMMIT 2015

IT WAS A

LEARNING PROCESS Brainfeed magazine’s 1st International School Education Leadership Summit – 2015 was organised at Lotus Desaru Beach Resort, Malaysia on May 4, 2015 - the duration of the trip was from May 2 – May 7 2015. Read on to know about the experiences of the educators and teachers who took part in the summit. B. S. N. Murthy, Kennedy High School P. Sreedevi , Jubilee Hills Public School

he Malaysia & Singapore trip was an incredible experience for all the participating School heads of 38 Schools from Telangana & Andhra Pradesh states. It was a learning process with a mixture of vacation, education & knowledge sharing. The spic & span cities of Kuala Lumpur & Singapore have a lot in store to explore, learn & also take back many sweet memories home. The tour started on the 2nd May 2015 in Kuala Lumpur – the palace of the King of Malaysia at Putrajaya, the gigantic Murugan at Battu Caves, China town, Little India & city site seeing trip were a real treat to our eyes.

Visited the Genting Highlands on the 3rd of May 2015, the rope way journey to the highlands was an adventurous one with the mind boggling scenic view. Huge malls with amusement events &

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shopping added to our excitement. After this hectic day, we proceeded to Lotus Desaru Beach Resort in the evening by dinner time. The International School Education Leadership Summit – 2015 was conducted at Lotus Desaru Beach Resort in Malaysia on the 4th of May 2015. Mr. K. V. Brahmam, Founder & Managing Editor of BRAINFEED Magazine initiated the proceedings of the Summit with his welcome address. He spoke about the journey of BRAINFEED magazine, since its launch and the appreciation it received from the education fraternity. He initiated the day’s program by narrating the objective behind the International School Education Leadership Summit – 2015. The chief guest for the occasion, Prof. B. V. R. Chowdari, from the Department of Physics, National University of Singapore, spoke on

the topic “Singapore education system – success story”. It was an elaborate report, on how the educational policy paved the way for Singapore to emerge as an important economy among the developing economies the world over. The facts, ﬁgures & the statistics in his presentation enlightened the participants with the steps taken by their Ministry of Education, in the policy making &

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Prof. B. V. R. Chowdari Department of Physics, National University, Singapore

their meticulous implementation at the school level to encourage students to enable them develop scientiﬁc temperament. The stress on Olympiad participation was something they lay emphasis on. This was followed by the speech of Dr. Rajdeep Singh Rawat, Associate Professor, National Institute of Education, Singapore. He spoke about the Background

& signiﬁcance of research at the school level, where opportunities are umpteen & motivation is the need of the hour, to make every student work towards their own dreams. He enlightened the participants about the Science Mentorship Program, which they are successfully implementing in Singapore. He concluded, with a suggestion to encourage participation of students in International Physics Olympiad, Asian Physics Olympiad & IYPT. After the lunch break, Ms. Anne Sivanathan, Executive Member of Association of Registered Childcare providers, Malaysia, spoke on the topic – Methodology, age appropriation curriculum & worldwide appreciation. Her presentation made insights into the various teaching methodologies world over, like Woldorf, Headstart,

Ms. Anne Sivanathan Executive Member of Association of Registered Childcare providers, Malaysia

Dr. Rajdeep Singh Rawat Associate Professor, National Institute of Education, Singapore

Pickler & Rote Learning. She revealed that these methodologies are aimed at self-directed learning, which will pave the way to exploration & discovery in the early childhood or formative years. The activity she conducted to reveal the different perspective of children was an eye opener to the participants. june 2015

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SUMMIT REVIEW

This was followed by the presentation of Mrs. Sridevi Gundapaneni, Academic Director of Jubilee Hills Public School, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad on the topic, Innovative practices in Education. She said that the 20th Century teachers are teaching the 21st Century students and the need of the hour is that the teachers should change with the changing times. She spoke about the 4 pillars of UNESCO â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Learning

to know, Leaning to live together, Learning to do & Learning to be and the role these objectives play in grooming a better next generation. She stressed the need for diagnosing the learning gaps, through the best assessment tools & fool proof evaluation methods. She revealed the importance of CCE concept and how to reap the fruits of its effective implementation. After the speeches were concluded, Mr. K.V.Brahmam, initiated the next part of the summit - INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL EDUCATION EXCELLENCE AWARDS â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 2015. The chief guests of the day Prof. B. V. R. Chowdari & Dr. Rajdeep Singh Rawat presented all the school leaders with awards for the best pedagogical practices & for imparting best quality education to the 21st century students. While concluding the proceedings of the Summit, I expressed my gratitude and thanked all the speakers for their valuable presentations & suggestions and proposed to form a consortium of all the participating schools to collectively improve

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the standards in imparting quality education in their schools. The participants unanimously accepted the proposal. In the early hours of 5th May we started off to Singapore by road. We were in an excited mood to see one of the best cities in the world. Many sweet memories to relish from this multi cultural, multi religious, multi linguistic country the laws & their implementation are something we need to learn.

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INTERNATIONAL

SCHOOL

EDUCATION

LEADERSHIP SUMMIT 2015

The day started with our visit to Tanglin Trust School, a school established in 1925, that caters to the age groups 3 to 18. We met Mr. Peter D Crook, the CEO of the school. He gave a presentation about the school’s infrastructure & methodology of teaching. The school tour was very informative. The spacious classrooms, well equipped labs, libraries with a treasure trove of books, huge auditorium and big playgrounds were all big attractions to the students. We were overwhelmed by the hospitality extended by the school staff.

thought provoking & informative too. Singapore city tour for the rest of that day was a feast to everyone’s eyes. Every building is an architectural wonder.

Then, we headed to Character Montessori School, which revealed innovatively designed classrooms with unique equipment to impart the Montessori methodology of teaching. We met Mr. KK & his wife Mrs. Grace, who are doing a very remarkable job in the early childhood education. Mr. KK’s presentation on the need and the concept of innovative way of teaching in the formative years was

Visit to the Universal Studios on the 6th May 2015 was another landmark in our journey. We felt as if we were on the top of the world, with all those amusements bringing out the child in everyone – Mummy, Hollywood, Madagaskar, Water world, Jurrasic Park, Terminator… the roller coaster rides were very scary & thrilling too. The creative presentation of all these is worth tons of appreciation. The day ended

at one more very exciting place and that was the Singapore Zoo -Night Safari, we spent an hour in the evening with all the wildest animals in the woods & the ﬁre show that followed was thrilling too. The last day of our tour started with the visit to Jurong Bird Park, which made our day colorful with varieties of birds from all parts of the world ﬂying around us. The bird shows were very appealing with loads of excitement. We spent the rest of the day shopping and reached the Changi airport to return home with loads of sweetest memories to relish for a lifetime. june 2015

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SUMMIT REVIEW

t was Brainfeed’s futuristic and laudable idea to have an International School Education Leadership Summit (ISELS) at Malaysia and School Visits in Singapore, known to have the best educational practices in the world. Brainfeed magazine was started with a vision to “bring together qualified and experienced educationists and share their experiences, practices and advice for the benefit of all the educationists of India.” To continue with their fulfilment of this vision, a Conference cum School Visits for 40 school correspondents and school heads to Malaysia and Singapore was organized from 2nd -7th May 2015. The objectives of the programme were: • To discuss and debate why leadership is important in school education, and, 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, by presenting the school excellence awards to the schools with best pedagogical practices and the vision or mission of contributing to the society by providing quality education for the future leaders. The tour was a mix of business and pleasure in two countries, Malaysia and Singapore. In Malaysia after the sightseeing on the first two days the delegation proceeded to Lotus Desaru Beach Resort, all geared up to participate in the one day Summit and awards ceremony followed by a Gala Dinner where everyone let their hair down and enjoyed. The summit was an avenue to explore new and experimental ideas and methods in education.

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Prof. B. V. R. Chowdari from the National University of Singapore enlightened the participants on the system of education in Singapore. Based on results of the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), students are placed in different secondary education tracks or streams: “Special”, “Express”, “Normal (Academic)”, or “Normal (Technical)”. He underlined the rigour of the Singapore curriculum and the efforts put in by the students as the reasons for Singapore’s success in education. The next speaker to highlight the system of Singaporean education was Prof. Rajdeep Singh Rawat, from National Institute of Education and Nanyang Technological University. Prof. Rawat spoke about the excelling of Singapore students in the Mathematics and science Olympiads. He also shared his own experience of training students for these Olympiads for the past 15 years. Ms. Anne Subashini Sivanathan, an Educationist from Malaysia took the audience on a glimpse of the “Methodology, Age Appropriate Curriculum and Worldwide Approach on Pre-school”. She also drew the audience’s attention on the necessity to help Students with special needs. I had the opportunity to speak on “Innovative Practices in education for the 21st Century” and I stressed on the need for Educators to unlearn the 20th Century methodologies on “Teach Less to Learn More”. In the second country, Singapore visits to two best schools one pre-primary and one having K-12 was organized. The visit to Tanglin Trust School, an IB school of

international repute, left the visitors speechless. The infrastructure, the staff and the professional development centre were some of the things that the school leaders realised were what made a school, truly a temple of learning. The second visit was to the Character Montessori School. This school is different from the other schools in that, it deals primarily with building the character of children in the ﬁrst two years of learning which would form the basis for a lifetime. The remaining days and time was packed with a number of activities ensured to give one the best tour experience. The participants were spell bound by the tour and the educational enrichment they had received. One of the participants Mr. Ramachandra Rao Kodali said, “ The ISELS 2015 gave an opportunity to the educationists across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana to interact and share ideas with a wide range of talented and successful people. The school visits in Singapore made us realize how much more we need to provide to our students to get the best out of them and to make them responsible citizens. The guest speakers’ knowledge and the way they shared it with us and their simplicity despite their vast experience and expertise encourages us to give our best to the student community and make the teaching and learning process as fruitful and enjoyable as possible. Very sincere thanks to team Brainfeed.” Mrs. Sridevi Gundapaneni, Academic Director of Jubilee Hills Public School, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad

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INTERNATIONAL

SCHOOL

EDUCATION

LEADERSHIP SUMMIT 2015

he recent summit trip organized by Brainfeed to Malaysia & Singapore, was a beautiful journey of discoveries and memories. The complete trip was very well organized and executed. Mr. Brahmam, the master strokes man has always had a keen eye to provide a platform for educationists to use experience and expertise to maximize their contribution towards the education industry. I would like to applaud the Brainfeed magazine team for their vision, initiatives and their continuous efforts to bring together passionate edupreneurs, thus giving them an opportunity to share ideas and experiences. This is exactly what this trip achieved for all of us. Nearly 40 schools across AP & Telangana were represented here and I could see that each and every one of them was dedicated towards achieving just one goal- to empower the generations of tomorrow with the weapon of the best possible education. I extend my heartfelt gratitude towards the entire team of Brainfeed for recognising our humble efforts to make a difference in laying happy foundations, through Iris Floretsthe happy play school, where children revel in the joy of childhood. International School education Leadership Summit 2015 and School Academic Excellence Awards 2015 will always be very close to my heart as they have come very early in our quest for shaping the future citizens of tomorrow. I wish Mr. Brahmam and his team success in all his future endeavours as they continue on their soul satisfying journey of bringing together the people behind providing the very essential backbone of society - Education. Sirish Turlapati Chairman & Managing Director Iris Florets-the happy play school, Hyderabad

ur Malaysia & Singapore trip was really a successful trip with sweet memories of Batu Caves, Kings Palace, Putrajaya, China Town, Little India, Twin Towers, Jurong Bird Park, Night Safari, Fire Show, Genting Highlands, Universal Studio, Sky Park, Sentosa, The Awards Function, Gala Dinner, Tanglin Trust School, Character Montessori School and so on, which will remain as part of our everlasting memories. I am very grateful and thankful to Kakani Veera Brahmam garu; he is an extraordinary man. His fabulous idea of this trip & all the meticulous arrangements are to be praised. I sincerely hope that our BRAHMAM garu will keep creating more & more such journeys, to all corners of the world. I would also like to thank all school correspondents who joined me for the funﬁlled & informative tour. I thank everyone of you, from the bottom of my heart, for your presence in the trip and also for adding more colour to these everlasting memories.” Dr. S K.Khaseem, Director, Ayyanna Educational Institutions Visakhapatnam

Mr. Shiv Prasad Menon described the programme as being excellent, and said that he is ready to attend any such programme in future. While another participant Mr. Sankaramanchi Krishnamohan said, “Everything has been explained in a nice manner .”

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Delegates actively participating at Brainfeedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 1st International School

Mr K. Ramesh Rao & Mrs K. Sarala Ramesh Kennedy Sparks School, Hyderabad

Mr K Ramachandra Rao Victory High School, Chandur, Nizamabad

Mr Guduri Pullaiah Ravindra Group of Inistitutions, Kurnool

Mr Sheik Khaseem Ayyanna E/M School Vishakapatnam

Mr Adireddi Ramana Pratibha Vidyalayam Visakhapatnam

Mr G. Narayana Rao Universal Public School Visakhapatnam

Mr K. T. V. Prasad & Mrs K. Uma Rani Sri Rama Rural High School Chilumuru, Andhra Pradesh

Mr G. V. Pavan Kumar GV Shankaraiah Memorial High School, Nellore

Mr Mettu Innareddy & Mrs. M. Anthony Mary Oak Valley International School Kapra, Hyderabad

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Mr S. Krishna Mohan Vijayasai E/M School Bodan, Nizamabad

Mr Ch. G. K. Prasad New Vision High School Khammam

Mr A. Krishna Reddy & Mrs A. Balasaraswathi Ramakrishna High School Vishakapatnam

Mr V. Siva Prasad Menon Sri Sivananda High School Visakhapatnam

Mr M. Ramachandra Reddy Saibaba High School Kadapa

Mr B. Srikanth Reddy & Mrs. M. Sudeshna Little Angels High School Guduru

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Education Leadership Summit 2015 (May 2-7, 2015) held in Malaysia & Singapore

Mr P. Venkateswara Rao Hindu High School Narsarao Peta

Mr K. Sambasiva Rao Spring Board School Narsarao Peta

Mr M. Venkata Rao Bharati Vidya Niketan Visakhapatnam

Mr Turlapati Sirish Iris Educare Ltd Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad

Mr Y. Mallikarjuna Rao Handwriting Academy Hyderabad

Mr Mr M. Sivasankar Reddy & Mrs. M. Sreedevi Nagarjuna High School Kadapa

Mr G.Venkat Naga Sekhar & Mrs G. Geeta Venkat Geeta High School Patancheru, Hyderabad

Mr S. Sheshu Kumar Nirmala High School Khammam

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Mr Paparao Naidu Sunshine High School Palakollu

Mrs G. Sree Devi & Ms. Nagpal Sonia Jubilee Hills Public School Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad

Mr Annapareddy Balreddy & Mrs.Gopu Francinamma Chalapati High School Visakhapatnam

Mr Sappa Sekhar Pallavi High School Vijayanagaram

Mr Bazaru Gangaiah Balavikas English Medium School, Kadapa

Mr Ramesh SVR E/M School Nellore

Mr B. Suryanarayana Murthy & Mrs. Bhagi Padmavathi Kennedy High School Hyderabad

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SCHOOL

School heads from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh being honoured with Brainfeed’s School Academic Excellence Awards – 2015 at EXCELLENCE the 1st International School Education Leadership Summit – 2015 AWARDS - 2015 held in Malaysia and Singapore.

ACADEMIC

New Vision High School

Ayyanna English Medium School

Pallavi High School

Nirmala High School

Balavikas High School

Hindu High School

Geeta High School

Ravindra High School

Sri Vijayasai English Medium School

GV Shankaraiah Memorial High School

Sri Rama Rural High School

Saibaba High School

Sunshine High School

Jubilee Hills Public School

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Sri Sivananda High School

Ramakrishna High School

Pratibha Vidyalayam

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Victory High School

hool

Little Angels High School

SVR English Medium School

Chalapati High School

OAK Valley International School

IRIS Educare Ltd.

Nagarjuna High School

Handwriting Academy

Bharati English Medium School

Universal Public School

SVR Infra Projects

Kennedy High School

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SUMMIT REVIEW

After the hectic activities of Bra Education Leadership Educatio delegates visited the famous at Singapore, here are some of th can see them gleefully enjoying

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Brainfeed’s International cation Summit - 2015 – the s attractions in Malaysia and f the photographs in which you ying their leisure time.

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EDUCATION

Brainfeed’s ‘1st International School Education Leadership Summit 2015’ delegates visited two schools in Singapore. Get to know about them.

Character Montessori haracter Montessori is a decade old preschool based on the philosophy of Maria Montessori, whilst also engaging in 21st century education. The management believes in building up the character in the formative years of the child. The founding CEO is NG Kok Keong, an architect and a Montessori Certified Educator. The founding Principal Grace Yong is one of the five Kotler Certified Managers in Singapore and an Early Childhood Education Leader for over a decade. She is a trained Buzan instructor for Mindmapping and developed Asia’s first mindmapping programme for preschoolers.

Grace Yong worked for a charitable organization youths-at-risk. She says it was a challenge and the only way to build character is when they are young. The teacher to children ratio (1:8) in their school allows the teachers to pay individual attention towards each child. So they engage more teachers, which is worth the higher fees. Character Montessori, in contrast to conventional schools, believes in letting them learn at their own pace. To prepare them for the real world, they are trained with breakables like crockery and glassware- the kids have to move those things from table to table,

NG Kok Keong, Founder & CEO

without damaging them. This can teach them independence, discipline and control over body movements. Math without tears and Chinese without tears are the subjects designed for younger learners, which makes it fun to learn. Character Excellence means academic character and moral character. Things like sharing, forgiveness and being grateful are the major things that are taught. Instead of saying, “Good Girl/ Boy” and bestowing unreasonable praise on a child for doing something properly, the teachers engage in afﬁrmations like “Thank you for being helpful”, as a positive reinforcement for the child. Rather than punishing them for a mistake, the teachers focus on explaining why it is wrong to do so. Also, the school has students and teachers from different ethnicities, which helps the kids to accept and understand cultural diversity at an early age. The management feels that NRIs (Non Resident Indians) are very good teachers as their English is grammatically correct, with neutral accent. They plan to recruit more NRIs in the future.

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Tanglin Trust School anglin Trust international school swears by its IB and GCSE standard results which ensure the students to join in any world university. It was established in 1925 by Anne Grifﬁth Jones as a private school, with only 5 students. The number of students grew, but the school had endured setbacks when it was closed brieﬂy for a while, after the World War II.

Peter Derby Crook, CEO

Later on, British Association of Singapore took over the administration in 1958. TTS is the second oldest International School in Singapore, catering to students from ages 3-18 in three levels Infant School, Junior School and Senior School, and a Sixth Form College offering A levels and IB diploma. True to the school’s claim that they prepare their students for life, sports and physical ﬁtness are given a huge importance through PSHCE, which is the Personal, Social, Health, and Citizenship Education. CEO Peter Derby Cook opines that TTS strongly believes in learning outside the classroom, where the students indulge in activities like hiking, trekking and river crossing. Tanglin Trust being an International School with students from a diverse demographic, the management believes that

learning a second language is a must for a student’s global success. French, Hindi, German, Spanish, Mandarin Chinese are a few of the languages offered even at the mother tongue level; i.e. the level of the native speaker. Philosophy for Children lets the students raise questions about the world around them. The creative writing course allows free reign to the students. Internationally reputed and award winning instrumental musician and ﬁlm maker teach at TTS. Visits to other nations are arranged to understand the living situations and to collaborate with

the working styles of the students and understand the local culture. Spain, France, India and China are the frequently visited countries by the students. TTS has close ties with India, with their Himalayan Health Project and Travel and Adventure Project. Also, after the devastating ﬂoods in 2010, TTS took part in the reconstruction of Lamdon School, Ladakh. Last year, Community Link Scholarship Project was launched, and two students from Lamdon got the opportunity to ﬁnish their IB Diploma at TTS. Tanglin plans to extend the scholarship to two more students next year. june 2015

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FESTIVALS

June 2

Sant Guru Kabir Jayanthi he Birth Anniversary of Sant Kabir Das is observed on Jyestha Purnima as per Hindu Lunar Calendar and falls on 2nd of this month. He was a mystic born in a Muslim family, but always preached that Ram and Rahim are one and the same. He was a reformer who stood against social discrimination. He was a great poet whose famous written verses were couplets called ‘Dohas’. Even in his death, he called himself the child of Allah and child of Ram. His work is also incorporated into the Sikh Scripture- Guru Granth Sahib.

According to a legend, after his death, there was a dilemma whether to cremate the dead body in Hindu tradition or to bury him as a Muslim. His devotees- both Muslims and Hindus, found ﬂowers in the place of his corpse and took them to their respective pilgrim centres and performed the funeral rites accordingly. People of all religions gather on this day, reciting the poems of Kabir and performing prayers. Various associations organize satsangs where spiritual and religious leaders preach the way of life prescribed by saint Kabir. Bhagat Mahasabha in Jammu and Kashmir organizes a procession‘Shobhayatra’ in honor of the saint.

June 12- 14

Sindhu Darshan indhu Darshan or ‘Singge Khababs’ Festival is celebrated to promote River Sindhu or Indus as an icon of the communal harmony and unity of India. In 1995, Mr. L. K. Advani rediscovered Sindhu River, which was a pilgrimage for Hindus before the Partition. To promote the importance of the river, Advani started Sindhu Darshan Abhiyan with just seventy people. This year, the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council in collaboration with Tourism Department of Jammu and Kashmir will celebrate this festival from June 12 to June 14.

As a symbol of National Integration and to forge a bond of unity and to provide an opportunity to visit the beautiful region of Ladakh, the festival promises a potpourri of Indian culture and performing arts. It also salutes the brave soldiers of India who fought at Siachin, Kargil & other places. People from all over India bring water from the rivers in their regions and mingle it with Sindhu River, representing the cultural unity. Bonﬁres are lit and pujas are performed on the banks of the river by various religious associations. The festivities go on for three days by the Indus River, which originates from the Mansarovar in Tibet, attracting even a large number of foreign tourists.

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June 24

Sao Joao Feast of St John the Baptist ne of the major Christian festivals of Goa is the Sao Joao feast of St John the Baptist, celebrated on June 24th. The legend in the Scripture about this major religious ﬁgure, the ﬁrebrand prophet, as he was also known, is that on hearing of Jesus’ birth, he leapt for joy in his mother, Elizabeth’s womb. The preacher later christened Jesus in the River Jordan.

Since then, the well is considered to be a representation of Elizabeth’s womb and on this day, villagers throw gifts into the wells. Young men sing “Sao Joao, Sao Joao, Viva Sao Joa’s” and take a plunge into wells to retrieve them. They wear a ‘copel’, a crown like head gear made with fresh flowers and leaves tied to bamboos in a round shape. Colourful boat races are organised on this day. Sangodd, a floating platform in the streams, is made from two boats or banana tree trunks tied together. The members of the Sangodd have a uniform dress code to distinguish themselves from the people dressed colourfully. San Joao, like any other Goan feast, is celebrated with enthusiasm, merriment, colours and cheer. People, especially the newly married or those with kids born after the previous Sao Joao gather with gifts containing mangoes, pineapples, jackfruits and a bottle of the famous liquor of Goa, ‘Feni’. The celebration of San Joao, for nearly 175 years, is influenced by Festa de São João do Porto, which is celebrated on the night of 23rd June, in North Portugal. Goa was a Portuguese colony and became a part of India only in 1961.

June 26-27

Vibrant Ladakh Hemis festival

his Buddhist festival is celebrated on birthday of Guru Padmasambhava, also called Lord Rimpoche. He is believed to be the representative reincarnation of Buddha and fought with demons to safeguard and improve the spiritual condition of all people. He introduced the practice of Tantric Buddhism. He is believed to have been born on the 10th day of the fifth month of the Monkey year. Although this is celebrated by all the Buddhists of India, the Hemis festival, celebrated in the Hemis Monastery- the Gompa, located 40 kms away from Leh in Ladakh, is famous for its extravagant and colorful celebrations. Its vast courtyard, surrounded by a number of shrines in front of the main gate, has a richly decorated table filled with ceremonial items like holy water, uncooked rice, incense sticks etc. The portrait of “Dadmokarpo” or “Rygyalsras Rimpoche” is put up on the walls. On the first morning, thumping sounds are made using the musical instruments like cymbals, trumpets, large wind pipes, etc. Lamas perform a traditional dance – the ‘Cham’- wearing frightful masks, red-robes and hats. The dance represents the victory of good over evil, where the dancers pretend to be demons and Gods. Sacred plays are also enacted. On the second day, ‘Hashang and Hatuk’ dance is performed, which is about a monk, Hashang or ‘Laughing Buddha’, and his disciple. It is eagerly viewed by the local people and tourists alike. The locals in their traditional attire bring yak butter tea and a canister of roasted barley flour which is a Tibetan staple foodstuff. People enjoy the Ladakhi liquor known as ‘Chang’. A handicrafts fair is also held displaying the beautiful handicrafts made by the people of the Leh and Ladakh region. june 2015

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EDUCATION

HOW TO STUDY WELL M.Sree Sai Deekshitha Rani, an eighth standard student of Saibaba High School, Kadapa, gives some tips on how to study well – hope students will ﬁnd them useful in planning their studies. So, you need to study for tests, but you don’t really know, how to do that, well. Lucky for you, that problem ends here! Follow these simple steps to learn how to study well.

Have a good space to study: You need a desk or a table with a lot of space. You also need good lighting, so that you’re able to see what you need to be studying. This place should be somewhere quiet, where you can study without being distracted by the TV or family members.

Test your knowledge: After you think you’ve learned everything you need to know, have a friend/family member quiz you on it, or make up a quiz for yourself, then hide your notes and ﬁll it out. Take back your notes and correct your little quiz and see how you did. Did you get all the answers right, or do you need to study some more?

Be conﬁdent: Before you start studying, the most important thing is to have conﬁdence in yourself. Keep in mind that “I can do anything”. Nothing is impossible.

Work hard: Don’t just sit around and keep studying without a plan. If you really want to be at the top, ﬁrst take steps to train yourself to become a good student. Try your level best.

M. Sree Sai Deekshitha Rani

Be attentive and interested: You have to be interested and attentive on the subject you are studying. Don’t study while watching TV/ listening to music/ and distractions that turn your mind away from studying. Concentrate on the topic you are studying.

GET-TOGETHER

sessions for School Heads Starting this month, Brainfeed magazine will be organizing a ‘Gettogether, debate and discussion session’ for the beneﬁt of principals and educational institution heads of Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam.

Every month, The topic for this month’s ‘debate and discussion’ is

A NEW TOPIC

SPECIAL PROGRAM FOR GIFTED CHILDREN

will be selected and eminent and experienced heads of schools will

DEBATE and

June 27, 2015

June 28, 2015

discuss the topic and

Hyderabad

Visakhapatnam

FIND SOLUTIONS

School Heads can register by sending mail / call Email: info@brainfeedmagazine.com Mobile: +91 94944 39494

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to some of the burning issues that the educationists are facing right now.

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BYGONE LUMINARIES

elallur Nilakantha Somayaji, born in Kerala, was a polymath of India. He was born into a Hindu family and studied Vedanta, mathematics and science of astronomy. Nilakantha Somayaji contributed to Indian astronomy with his writings substantiating his knowledge of several branches of Indian philosophy.

He was an expert at conducting debates using Mimamsa (analysis) to establish his view-point. He refers to and quotes Pingala’s chandas-sutra, Vedas, Scriptures, Dharmasastras, Bhagavata and Vishnupurana. Nilakantha was also refered to as Sad-darshani-parangatameaning, one who had mastered the six systems of Indian philosophy. His most famous woks include Tantrasangraha, a comprehensive astronomical treatise, and Aryabhatiya Bhasya, an elaborate commentary on Aryabhatiya, the only known book of Indian mathematician Aryabhata. His other works explained inﬁnite series expansions of trigonometric functions, problems of algebra, spherical geometry and about ten treatises on the observations in astronomy. His texts contain detailed mathematical proofs, which is quite unusual for any available ancient Indian work. He was one of the very few scholars of ancient India who recorded details about his own life.

P V Narasimha Rao Born: June 28, 1921 Died: December 23, 2004

Kelallur Nilakantha Somayaji Born: June 14, 1444 Died: 1544

V Narasimha Rao, former Prime Minister of our country, is called the Architect of Modern India. He was born in Hyderabad during the Nizam rule. After ﬁnishing his post graduation in law, he took part in the Freedom Fight by revolting against the Nizam using Guerilla warfare. He later joined the Indian National Congress.

When the land reform act was carried out, he gave away most of his inherited estate holdings to landless peasants and became an example to the feudal lords to do the same. He was a polyglot fluent in almost 14 languages and he had written fiction in Telugu, Hindi and Marathi. He was very aggressive in his statements, which earned him the reputation of being arrogant. After the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, PV was chosen to be the leader of INC, making him the first non-‘Nehru-Gandhi’ family member to be the chief. In 1991, when he was elected as the Prime Minister, India’s economy was in a dire situation. The loan from IMF left India in a state of near bankruptcy. His bold economic measures had transformed India’s image in the global market. He was one of the most underrated PMs of our India. june 2015

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EDUCATION

Now that summer is almost coming to an end, it’s time to go back to school. As parents prepare for their children’s coming academic year with new books and stationery, it is also a time to think about making sure the coming year turns out to be one of learning and all-round development. Here are a few guidelines from Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev of ISHA Foundation.

Encouraging the Habit of Reading

Nurturing Intelligence and Ambition Every child has the necessary intelligence to live his life fully. As a parent, you should just create an atmosphere for him to grow into his intelligence; just encourage him to be intelligent and aware. The problem comes when a parent wants their child to be intelligent their way, not the child’s way. A parent’s idea of intelligence may be that the child should become a doctor. Maybe he would have made a wonderful carpenter but you want him to become a doctor; not because you want your child to dedicate himself as a doctor, but simply because you have an idea in your head that in the social structure, a doctor or an engineer means some kind of prestige. Don’t try and live your life through your children. This is a sure way to destroy children. Your child need not do what you did in life. Your child should do something that you did not even dare to think of in your life. Only then will this world progress.

Reading as a habit and as a culture must be nurtured. The impact of reading is totally different from watching videos or playing computer games. It exercises your mind and insight in a completely different way. Hopefully, the younger generation will be brought more into reading than watching videos. Yes, the audio-visual media could be very educative, it is powerful too in its own way but reading has more intricacy and depth to it. There is more profoundness in reading Instilling Discipline when compared to watching cinema. If the larger public was reading more than what they are doing Essentially, in English, the word “discipline” right now, if they just focused on something to means “a learning” or “to learn.” When you say, “I read, they would be much quieter, more am disciplined,” that means you are always willing to thoughtful and would look at life with learn. You are not stuck in some mode. Discipline is not a little more depth. just doing something in a particular way. If you constantly strive and are willing to learn how to do everything better, you are disciplined. If you bring yogic practices into a child’s life, there is no way they cannot be disciplined. Discipline will happen to them. Practicing yoga brings discipline into life because you have to do certain things in a certain way. Otherwise it does not work. The way yoga is taught is so meticulous that once you start doing it with that sense of meticulousness, there is no way you cannot be disciplined.

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WRITE RIGHT

HANDWRITING SECRETS - 23

Cursive Style they all support to the school, learning systems, methodology, I’ve posed a question, “Do you teach cursive handwriting to your students? And why do you think it is advantageous over print style?”

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

rainfeed’s 1st International School Education Leadership Summit – 2015 had given us about 7 quality hours that we have spent in 2 schools in Singapore that were much more exciting and informative than the 7 long days we spent in watching the world’s best marvels, studios, hotels, birds and animals, amazing cable cars and thrilling theme parks, etc. in both Malaysia and Singapore.

The ﬁrst school we visited was the Tanglin Trust School which was 40 years older than the country itself and it shows crystal clear in every department of the school. Singapore is celebrating its 50th year, and the school, its 90th. CEO of the school, Mr. Peter Derby Crook, enriched us with all the school’s systems using Power Point Presentation. Then, he took several questions from all of us and answered very patiently and politely. Along with several questions related

Mr. Peter replied. “Yes, we do teach them cursive style. Apart from improving ‘speed’ in handwriting, it is fun to teach to our teachers, and to learn, to our students. We have separate blocks for primary and pre-primary students. Our primary teaching faculty follows several teaching methods to teach young students about how to start cursive handwriting style. And we are happy with cursive style because it is the only system which helps the child’s cognitive development in the tender age itself. It is also observed that for the best fine motor coordination, cursive style is highly encouraged. Though very few children face difficulty with the cursive handwriting, they can be rectified with the scientifically developed techniques given by our trained teachers. We also developed Resource rooms for the children who have learning difficulties. Students with very slow handwriting, mirror image writing and with dysgraphia issues would

be treated with the support of resource room equipment and the issues are resolved in a due course of time.” Later, we were taken on a school tour in different batches. Post lunch, we have moved to another preschool, Character Montessori School. We were divided into a few groups and Mr. Kok Keong (K. K.) himself, who founded the school, explained us the need of education and the service their school is offering to the society. He explained us the functional development of the brain, age-wise, how a teacher can really understand and contribute to the development of the child’s brain. In the interaction session, to my question regarding the implementation of handwriting and difﬁculties faced by young children, Mr. K. K. answered with touching points. “To avoid confusion between cursive letters and non-cursive letters at a very young age, we start teaching them cursive handwriting. And it helps the brain functional specialization, when we teach cursive writing. In the process, we have observed several times, that it develops good thinking skills of a child. It also supports the child in improving the coordination between the left and right hemispheres of the brain to the recommended level.” Ms. Grace Yong, who looks after the execution of several activity based learning in the school had taken us to several class rooms and demonstrated to us the tools of pre-writing and writing skills. june 2015

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TRAVEL

eghalaya literally means abode of clouds, which is not at all an exaggeration. In the midst of dense forest, where the tree tops almost touch the sky, diverse indigenous tribes live in awe of nature. Don Bosco Museum in Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya, provides insights into the rich ethnic lifestyles. For a trekking lover, Meghalaya is the perfect holiday spot. Meghalaya has a diverse ﬂora and fauna due to the vast climatic and topographic conditions. Rare bat species can be found in the limestone caves. Scotland of the East: Shillong is rightfully called as Scotland of the East. The rolling hills covered with fog reminded the Europeans of Scotland. The scenic Shillong Golf Club was founded by the British in 1898. Also called ‘Gleneagle of the East’, it is also one of the oldest and best natural golf courses in the world. Ward’s Lake, an artiﬁcial lake is a hit for boating activities.

Tired of visiting crowded popular places? Take a trip deep into the woods of Meghalaya and immerse yourself in amazing nature. 40

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LOSE YOURSELF IN NATURE:

MAKE A TRIP TO

MEGHALAYA

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Waterfalls and Caves:

Double Decker Root Bridge:

Nohkalikai falls, a part of Khasi Hills, is India’s tallest plunge waterfall with 340 metres of height. Cherrapunjee and Mawsynram hold the record for being the wettest places on earth receiving the highest rainfall.

Cherrapunjee’s famous double decker root bridge is not made of concrete or steel, but grown out of trees. This special root bridge is one of a kind in the world. The BBC had made a documentary about the root bridges of Meghalaya. Ficus Elastica, a species of Indian rubber tree, produces secondary roots from its trunk. Since the tribes noticed this, they began to orchestrate the roots in such a fashion that they grew over and above a river. Gaps, if any, are ﬁlled with stones. There are other living root bridges also which are over 500 years old and over a hundred feet long. They are said to be able to support about 50 persons at a time. Since the trees are still alive, the roots grow and strengthen over the years, which might be one of the reasons the locals prefer these over the steel bridges. Now, if the locals need a new bridge, they just grow one on the trees!

Famous for the roaring, thunderous waterfalls with medicinal properties, Mawsynram, has many caves. Nature made stalagmite Shivalinga can be found in the Mawjymbuin Cave, where devotees offer their prayers. Just above that, there is stalagmite deposit resembling the Shivalinga turned upside down. Indulge in adventurous spelunking in the Krem Liat Prah, which is the longest natural cave in India. Hiking, trekking, mountaineering, speed boating, snorkelling and scuba diving are the other activities you can take part in.

Dawki: Dawki is an international trade border town, 95 kilometers away from Shillong. Deep gorges and ravines on the way make for a thrilling experience. Umngot River is the venue of the annual boat race held every March. This is the major export and import gateway to Bangladesh. Cleanest village in Asia: Mawlynnong, 90 km from Shillong, is the cleanest village in Asia. A small hamlet with about 80 houses has achieved this credit. The chief occupation is agriculture and the narrow roads with greenery on both sides make it apt to call Mawlynnong as ‘God’s own garden’. The locals never litter the road. They use the waste collected in bamboo dustbins as manure. june 2015

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EDUCATION

PART I

Study better, stress less and succeed in school Brainfeed brings to you a new series on how to ‘Make the Grade’ where you will learn everything you need to study better, stress less, and succeed in school. Quality education is important for both personal and professional success. So, successful students do well because they map out what matters most to them, and then follow through, putting maximum effort where ever necessary, and not wasting valuable time on things that are less important. The great thing is that these prioritizing techniques are available to everyone, and if you adopt them, you’ll not only do better in school but also learn great skills you can use in applying for jobs, getting into college, and even navigating personal relationships as well. In part 1, you’ll soon be mapping out smart and realistic goals, putting together a weekly schedule to help maximize every hour of your day, tracking your homework and your life in a way that helps you get everything done on time, and ﬁnding ways to get engaged in school even when things get – what’s the word? – Oh yeah: boring. 42

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SETTING MEANINGFUL

GOALS

s you move from middle school to high school to college the responsibility for big life decisions rests more and more on your shoulders. So, setting goals is a great way to gain a greater sense of control over your life and get moving in a positive direction. Research shows that setting goals enhances students’ overall experience in high school, in addition to improving academic performance.

Let us assume that “success in school” is on the top of your list of goals, but that still leaves some key questions open, like what success means to you, and how you – with your own specific set of studying skills and studying shortcomings – can do your very best. These are complicated questions, and time is of the essence, so let’s get to it. Setting goals: Getting there step by step Goals come in all shapes and sizes. Long-term goals relate to dreams you have for the future, like where you want to go to college, or what kind of career you want to have. The best way to reach those bigger goals is to set short-term goals. Short-term goals are the small steps you take every day, and that collectively keep you on pace to achieve those longer-term goals. Reaching smaller milestones also feels great, helping to keep you motivated, and showing how much progress you’re making along the way. Making SMART Goals Goals need a finish line, too. And that’s where SMART goals come in. SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-based.

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Let’s break them down:

Achievable

Specific

It’s super important to set goals that make you push yourself but are also within your reach. Figure out what you can achieve given your skills, and how much time and energy you can commit before you set your goals.

If you want to set yourself up for success, your goals need to be specific. Goals are often too vague or loose, making it hard to know if you have actually achieved anything. Saying “ I want to improve my grades” is an admirable dream, but it’s also pretty vague, whereas “I want to start getting at least 9/10 on the weekly geometry quiz” gives you a very definite bar to clear. There will be no doubt when you get there. Measurable Goals that are measurable allow you to easily figure out if you are getting closer to your target. Measurable goals involve things like percentages, days, weeks, or times. “ I want to get over 80% on the next four biology quizzes” is a clear and concrete goal – and once it’s achieved, you can start shooting for 85%... then 90%... and then for straight A’s.

Relevant Set goals that are important to you. Do you really have the desire to achieve the goals you’ve set for yourself? Whatever goal you set, make sure it ﬁts in with the other things you are trying to achieve. Time-based Finally, your goal needs to be timebased. Give yourself a deadline for completion so that you can create a sense of urgency for yourself. This will also help you keep track of your progress. Get on the road to your goals Setting goals is great, but eventually you need to get started (which is often the hardest part).

When creating goals, make sure that they’re what you really want for yourself and what you believe you can actually achieve. It’s all too easy to let parents, friends, coaches, and teachers inﬂuence you. But at the end of the day, you’re the one who has to accomplish these goals. If you’re trying to impress somebody else, chances are you’ll get off track or lose motivation. It’s easier to build momentum when you plan out the ﬁrst few things you are going to do. And don’t forget the details: Make sure your plan provides a clear sense of who, what, where, and how. So let’s say your goal is to complete 100 note cards for your research paper by next Friday. If we break that down, here’s what it looks like.

At the beginning of your school year, you should take a few minutes to write out your goals. They can be about grades, achievements or feelings. Then, once you’ve decided which goals you’re really going to prioritize and pursue, put that list somewhere where you can see it every day. That way, when you start to feel discouraged, you can easily remind yourself of some of the reasons why you should keep going. june 2015

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EDUCATION

To actually stick to your goals, you might have to change your habits…which can have you pulling your hair out until those habits become your second nature. But stick with it! Give yourself a month of doing something every day to make it a new habit. How Write up 35 note cards on Monday, 35 on Wednesday, and 30 on Friday. Use the handout from class to guide the formatting. Tips for achieving your goals There are lots of tricks that help us to remember and stay on top of our goals. Here are a few ways to stay on track. Write it down (and put it somewhere you can see it).

Essential Skills: Learning from Mistakes

Who You. But who knows, you might need to hit up someone else – a friend or sibling maybe – for a ride to the library to pick up books. What You’ve got that one ﬁgured out – 100 note cards. When Doing 100 note cards all at once seems a bit much. Let’s break up the work. Spend Sunday at the library from 1:00 to 2:00 pm to pick up books, and Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 5:00 to 6:00 pm to write up the notes. Where Research at the library, then make the note cards at home at your desk.

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Sometimes along the way to accomplishing your goals, you hit a bump in the road. Believe it or not, slip-ups are part of the learning process. When you don’t do things exactly right the ﬁrst time, it’s an opportunity to retrain your brain to think a little differently. It’s normal to fumble a few times before getting it right. Rather than spending time beating yourself up about it, use the situation to think about what you can do differently the next time.

Researchers say that when we write things down, we become more committed to them. You’re also more likely to remember things better when you write them down. So, as you come up with goals for yourself write it down or record it. After you have made your list, be sure to put it somewhere you can see it! The more frequently you encounter your goals, and the more often you think about them, the more real they’ll become. Before you know it, that list will become a reality. Tell a friend Sharing your goal with a friend or someone else can make you more committed to it. Picture it Pick a photo, create a collage, or draw something that represents that long-term goal of yours. Break it down When a goal seems too big, break it down into smaller pieces so that you can see how you’re doing. Have a plan B While coming up with a plan is crucial to success, sometimes even the best plans need a plan B. Chart your progress Consider having a notebook or an electronic document where you can record the progress you’re making. This will also help you focus on your own progress instead of comparing yourself to someone else. Reward yourself: Sometimes the satisfaction of getting something done is all the reward we need. Take time to celebrate your hard work and perseverance.

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WORKSHEET to focus in on concrete goals and start making PROGRESS!

Step 1: Pick something that you want to achieve in the next week or month h that relates to school. Write it down here:

Step 2: Check to make sure you have set up a SMART goal. Is your goal: SpeciďŹ c?

Clearly deďŹ ne what you want to achieve

Measureable? Numbers, please Achievable?

Make it doable (even if you have to stretch a little bit)

Relevant?

Relate it to the other things that matter most to you

Time-based?

Pick a time to start and complete it

Rewrite your goal ( if it needs to be SMARTer) Step 3: Set up a plan to make it happen. Remember to break it down to who, what, when, where, and how. Who

: ______________________________________________________________________

What

: ______________________________________________________________________

When

: ______________________________________________________________________

Where : ______________________________________________________________________ How

: ______________________________________________________________________

Step 4: What else can you do to stay on track? Write it down Tell a friend Picture it Break it down into smaller pieces Come up with a Plan B Chart your progress Set a reward

june 2015

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KNOW THE COUNTRY

THINGS TO DO AND SEE: TH

ITALY Enter the land of colourful homes, whose people speak the world’s sweetest language. Let the blue seas and quiet village life enchant you. Its vast history, culture and art grip you to no end as you watch the ancient ruins, volcanic islands and one of the wonders of the world. Don’t resist, just dive in as the birthplace of opera, pizza and gelato beckons!!

Rome: Capital of Italy, Rome is ﬁlled with cultural diversity and the road side restaurants, cafes, cathedrals and museums. The Piazzo Navona, the Bernini’s Fountain and the Trevi Fountain in the public squares are truly spectacular. Tourists throw 3 coins into the fountain, based on a legend that they would ﬁnd love. Vatican City: A walled city inside Rome, the smallest independent state in the world, is the centre of Catholicsm. St. Peter’s Square and Basilica consist of colonnades, lanterns,

Population Capital Area Languages Currency Currency Exchange Natural Resources

: : : : : :

60 million Rome 301,338 sq. km Italian Euro (EUR) 1 EUR= 71.25 INR

: Coal, zinc, asbestos, marble, magnesium and bauxite

Agricultural : Maize corn, rice, Products sugar beets, soybeans, meat, wheat and fruits Calling code: +39 ISO 3166 code: IT Internet TLD: .it Best time : April to June and to visit mid-September to October Climate

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: Warm and dry summers, mild and cold winters, Mediterranean climate

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Tuscany, Milan and Florence: The idyllic landscapes and vineyards of Tuscany bring you closer to nature. The fashion capital Milan’s tryst is ﬁlled with museums and historical monuments. Florence, the birthplace of Renaissance, holds the highly famous sculpture of David by Michelangelo, the bell tower, baptisteries and cathedrals. Venice:

drinking fountains, awnings and lavatories were constructed for the spectators. Torre Di Pisa (Leaning Tower of Pisa):

fountains and cobblestones. Sistine Chapel, residence of the Catholic Head, the Pope, is most popular for Michelangelo’s Frescos. Pantheon: A temple built for Roman Gods in 27 B.C., still largely intact, is the best preserved monument of ancient Rome. After adding altars and choir, it has become a fully Catholic Church. Huge vertical columns support the top dome, with an opening to the sky, whose interior is made to resemble the vault of heaven. Colosseum: The Colosseum is one of the seven ancient and the seven new wonders of the worlds. It is an amphitheater (open-air) built with stones and concrete. Gladiator combats, wild animal ﬁghts, simulated sea battles were hosted here. Oval seating arrangement,

One of the seven ancient wonders of the world, Pisa tower construction and the architect still remains an enigma. The legend about the enormous tower is that during the World War II, Germans were using it are an observation post; but the US army were so impressed by its beauty that they decided not to destroy it. Do not miss: Capri, Ischia and Procida islands, the Blue Grotto Lake, Funicular railway, and Campania, Amalﬁ Coast bay areas. The castles and museums in Naples rival Rome in culture. The cliff towns called Cinque Terre, scattered on the hillsides leading to the coast of Italy, are recognized as UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Venice is the most famous Italian island connected by canals and bridges, is rumoured to be sinking, year by year. The Gondola (boat) rides reﬂect a chilled, relaxed attitude. Prominent people of Italy: Monica Bellucci, Federico Fellini, Sophia Loren, Valentine, Miuccia Prada, Gennaro Lombardi, Giorgio Armani, Paolo Maldini, Roberto Vittori, Sonia Gandhi. The Indian Connect: Relations between the two countries have been cordial. Italian brands Gucci, Ferrari, Piaggio, Valentino, Versace, Prada and Chanel are some of the many Italian brands popular in India. Many Indians who migrated to Italy work in diary and agricultural, tourism industry and restaurant business. Owing to the Sikh and Hindu population living there, one can ﬁnd many Gurdwaras and ISCKON centres. Sonia Gandhi, the AICC President, is an Italian who acquired Indian citizenship through marriage to Rajiv Gandhi. Around 1,000 Italian citizens live in India, who are Christian missionaries or who work in Italian industries. Almost 15,00,000 Indians live in Italy. june 2015

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TECHNOLOGY

TECHNOLOGY THAT CORRECTS YOUR POSTURE

ost of the desk jobs require the employees to be seated for long hours without moving. The result is a strained posture and sore muscles. We often forget to pay attention until the problem becomes severe. A few orthopedic surgeons and a developer have worked separately on ways to change things for better and brought out two different products into the market.

Posture.io, introduced in May 2015, claims to be the perfect posture tracking system. It sends a signal to the user and makes suggestions to improve his posture. A Bluetooth energy sensor is attached to the back of the chair. It can track the hand movements and sense the posture using magnetic rubber strip attached to the user’s belt. The distance from the sensor to magnet and the angle are calculated. If the user slouches or leans forward, the distance and the angle change. Then he will be alerted through push notifications to Pebble smartwatch or generate a reminder in Outlook calendar. Posture.io is an unobtrusive and highly portable device.

Another device which is already in use is the Zami Stool, created by a doctor and designer duo, which is a backless concave four-legged stool. Four active pressure sensors are located in each leg. By measuring the pressure the user applies on the stool, it tracks his posture, time duration and then sends a message through its app on his phone. The app calculates the data using an algorithm, taking into account your personal details like age, weight, etc. It can also be used to do stretches and backbends on its concave surface. The basic prototype version was fitted to an office chair, but the new version will be available after December 2015. The app can also help you by tracking your posture even when you are seated on other furniture. Very useful tools for the healthy living of workaholics and couch potatoes.

APPS of the Month Word Wizard App - Word Wizard app for iOS

Lapse it App – Captures spectacular HD videos and condenses their length through time lapse. Time lapse is a photography technique where you can accelerate lengthy videos and watch the slowly changing events faster; like the videos in Nature and Animal channels where it captures the clouds moving or the flowers blooming. This is especially useful for people like artists, whose paintings take hours or sometimes days.

Science Glossary App - Find the scientific

Pocket App - Watch videos or read articles at your spare time. Supported on all major platforms and browsers, Pocket lets you read at leisure, on the go, even when there is no internet. Take the web pages and pocket them in your Android or iOS device for offline browsing. Pocket app is integrated in many apps and websites like Twitter, Pulse, Flipboard, Times of India, BBC, etc.

teaches English words to younger or special needs kids. The letters can be arranged into words and small sentences. Hints and colourful animations are available. The speak feature plays recorded voices in British, American and Australian natural accents. Any swear words arranged by the kids won’t be read aloud; instead those would be replaced by ‘OOPS’. Great feature that parents would like too!

terms and their definitions all at your finger tips. This Science app also features short biographies of famous scientists and historical people in the world of science. The app is created for students of high school and above, but it is amiable even to the new bees that are getting to know any field of Science. Click the link for more information provided on the makers’ Vision Learning website.

june 2015

THE

BIG Question How does lightning happen? W

atching lightning in the sky can be spectacular. It looks so mysterious and even now, we don’t know everything about it.

Lightning happens in the ‘Cumulonimbus’ clouds, which form during thunderstorms. They are often dark and angry-looking and sometimes have an ‘anvil’ at the top- an area of the cloud that extends a long way from the middle of the cloud and can look like the top of a mushroom. Within the cumulonimbus clouds, there are very strong winds (so strong that it’s dangerous for small planes to ﬂy into these clouds) which separate the closely bound protons and electrons, (positive and negative charges) in the atoms. Negative electrons are gathered at the bottom of the cloud, and positive charges are swept up to the top of the cloud. The negative charge at the base of the cloud wants to become neutral again by connecting to the positive charge at the top or with the ground below it, which is relatively positive. Eventually the electrons start trying to get to the ground. A ‘stepped ladder’ is formed- the ﬁrst streak of lightning, usually over 50 metres long, which branches into more stepped ladders. You may feel your hair beginning to stand on end in a lightning storm- because the positive charges on you are trying to connect to the negative charges in the stepped ladder!! Then the lightning strikes, and pulses of electric current go to and from the cloud to ground. Its positive charges going from the ground, called ‘return stroke’, are actually the really bright parts of the lightning. The stepped ladders are almost invisible. Sometimes, you can see lightnings between the clouds or within them. Also, lightnings can occur in snowstorms, sandstorms, in the ejected material over volcanoes.

Lightning never strikes twice in the same place. Is this true? One of the famous weather legends‘Lightning never strikes twice.’ This statement in itself has become a proverb in many countries. People used it to explain about things which very rarely occur since they believe the occurrence won’t be repeated. But, are they really right in thinking so? Statistics show that they are not. Professors from Institute of Atmospheric Physics at the University of Arizona have recorded 386 cloud-to-ground lightning flashes in 1997. They have observed that 35% flashes struck within a range of hundred metres distance. Also, the second set of flashes produced took a new path from the first and the rest of the flashes followed the same path. The electrical activity in the cloud above is not dependant on the location. A second strike is produced as soon as it ‘recharges’. Lightning does strike again and again on the same spot, especially if it is very high and has a metal object protruding, like an antenna. Television towers and skyscrapers are the most common places where lightning strikes more than twice. Chicago’s Willis tower (Photo: Craig Shimala) Source: NASA, Dr. Kathy Skyes, Professor of Sciences and Society at Bristol University.

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NEWS

Court order must for name/date of birth change: CBSE

International Baccalaureate schools grow in number

ndia is fast becoming a hub of IB league schools. According to a study conducted by the National University of Educational Planning & Administration, NUPEA - the number of schools with International Baccalaureate (IB) were only 11. But in 2013, the number grew to 107. India has also seen a growth in the number of schools offering international programs. There were 478 international schools in India. Out of these, 318 schools are afﬁliated to CIE (Cambridge International Examinations) and 58 to Edexcel, both based in the UK. 102 schools are afﬁliated to the IB; and 76 to both CIE and IB. The main reason is- these programs are now perceived as a requirement for global success. Also, now even the middle class parents send their children to these schools, whereas earlier only NRI kids or children of businessmen

opted for such schools. However, it is found in the study, that in the last 5 years, 67 IB and 139 CIE schools are directly affiliated with international boards without any state or national registration, nor state or national board affiliation. 236 schools have dual affiliation from national and international boards. Also, some schools unduly use the nomenclature ‘international’. The study recommended the government to establish International Schools Regulatory Authority (ISRA) so as to initiate a policy framework to specify the attributes of an international school. The tuition fees and other expenses have to be regulated by the ISRA and a visa policy drawn up for the foreign teachers. The ratio of Indian and foreign students and teachers at these schools must also be specified, NUPEA says.

Marks do not deﬁne you: Say Indian and Chinese students

he last week of May has been an anxiety ﬁlled week for millions of Indian and Chinese school students as they awaited their results. The pressure was on to fare better than others- to score that 90% mark or to gain an entrance into top league colleges.

In a forum on social media, many Chinese students said things like‘Although the university entrance exams are important, they are not the only route. Eighteen-year-olds should be in charge of their own lives’.

Every year, the same pattern is seen, but this time around, the learners of these two most populous countries have a different tune to sing, that of a viral one. Most of them have taken to the web expressing their opinion that there is more to their lives, then just achieving high score in exams.

Indian comedian Vir Das and East India Comedy Group made viral videos of satirical take on the examination system, which received tremendous acceptance. Indian students too seem to agree on the social media - ‘Going to a good university is not equal to ﬁnding a good, stable job.’

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entral Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has issued an order that the name or surname of the students can be changed only if they get those changes made through a court order. This has to be included in the gazette notification. This has to be done before the publication of the concerned candidate’s results. Also, no changes can be made in the date of birth after one year of issuance of the qualifying certificates. Correction in date of birth can be made only after submitting an application to the CBSE chairman. Whereas earlier, it was easy to make changes in name or date of birth- by filing an affidavit and publishing an advertisement in the newspapers. This has caused a backlog that threatens to become big after Class X and XII results. CBSE officials say that around 400 applications have been pending in Delhi. Many parents outside Delhi are unaware of the new order and have made applications in regional offices. They complain that this order has made things even more complicated for the students as they need to get their names changed to travel abroad for higher studies and it is time consuming to get a hearing and resolution in the court.

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Tremendous turn out for Kids’ Fair 2015

he month of May, saw the launch of Kids’ Fair at Hitex, Madhapur. Tollywood playback singer and dubbing artiste Sunitha Upadrasta inaugurated the expo on May 21st. At the ﬁfth edition of the fair this year, kids were seen having a lot of fun ﬂaunting their intelligence and competing at talent shows and quiz contests. After the success of last four years, with excellent track records, the fair is touted to be India’s largest Kids’ carnival. At the launch, singer Ms. Sunitha said, “In an era of digital world, the way kids learn education is totally changed. I wish people make use of these four days of exhibition. As it has lot of information, education and entertainment value.” The fair boasted of many stalls like Play Zones, Gaming Arcade, Painting and many more. First time in the country, innovative adventure games such as Spot Musical competition, Zumba Dance, Chhota Bheem, Gali Gali Sim Sim from Turner Entertainment, Robotics, Story Telling Session, Planetarium, Telescope and Solar Toys were showcased. In such an exuberant ambience, the kids and parents got

to interact with the owners of the platforms.

fairy tales from all over the world, were other highlights.

The star attractions were Build Your Teddy in 8 Minutes, Kids DJ, Selﬁe with Comic Characters. Kids enjoyed the bungee jumping, trafﬁc island, photo booth, balloon shooting, bouncy park, etc. Exhibition zone, activity zone and games zone were arranged. Not only the children, the parents were also seen enjoying themselves.

Kids’ Fair 2015 was launched at a moment when the schools were about to begin in a fortnight. The exhibition served as a one stop shop for all the needs of the kids- like notebooks, backpacks, lunch boxes, stationery, etc. T-shirts, bed sheets and masks of the popular cartoon characters were a thunderous hit with the children.

A couple of educative apps were also launched during the four day event. Talking story books, talking pens, fun educational aids, projection mapping demos, baby food supplements, hand Puppets, a single library app which featured

The fair which was held from May 21-24, was sponsored by Eenadu Group. RobinAge children’s weekly newspaper, Brainfeed, monthly educational magazine and ParentEdge, parenting magazine were the media partners.

Underprivileged kids to join private schools in TN

tand-off between the schools and the government in Tamil Nadu has ended. The issue arose in April, when several schools decided not to issue RTE applications this year as the government had not reimbursed over the past few years. The issue was taken up by many associations including CBSE institutions, Nursery, Primary, Matriculation and Higher Secondary Schools Association of the state. On May 16, a government order has been issued, sanctioning `97.05

crore to the school education department for reimbursement under the RTE Act. `25.14 crore was sanctioned for 2013-14 and `71.91 crore sanctioned for 2014-15. More than 5.75 lakh private unaided seats and more 1.43 lakh children can benefit under the RTE quota. According to the State of the Nation Report on RTE, 25% seats have to be filled under the quota, but only 11.3% are filled till now. Since 2013, 49,864 children

and 86,729 children have been admitted under the RTE quota in private schools in Tamil Nadu in 2013-14 and 2014-15, respectively. Thousands of underprivileged children in Tamil Nadu can now get admission to private schools as the schools have no problem admitting students under the quota. Earlier even the parents were afraid to join their children in private schools that the schools would ask them to pay for the child’s requirements in advance. june 2015

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COMMEMORATION

JUNE

WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY

GLOBAL DAY OF PARENTS

he Global Day of Parents is to be observed on June 1st every year, as proclaimed by the United Nations. The UN recognizes the role parents play in their kids’ harmony in life and their personality. This day is marked to appreciate the unconditional love, selﬂess sacriﬁces and unwavering commitment of the parents towards their children. Communities from all nationalities celebrate this day and discuss effective parenting methods for nurturing children in happy and healthy atmosphere. This day, children across the world, irrespective of race, gender or religion honour their parents.

JUNE

08 WORLD OCEANS DAY

UNEP raises awareness about conserving the environment by activities such as tree planting, recycling and clean-up campaigns. The agenda includes planning strategies to conserve the ecosystems, utilize the natural resources and reduce the impact and amount of unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions.

But we contaminate the oceans on a daily basis, whether knowingly or unknowingly. The plastic products that we use are the major threats to the plant and animal lives depending on them. World Oceans day informs the public about the human impact and to promote ways to preserve it for coming generations.

n 1972, World Environment Day was declared to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment. Later, UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme) was created to take positive steps in the direction of environmental protection.

JUNE

arth is called Blue Planet as three-fourth of it is water. The oceans help regulate the climate, provide many medicinal ingredients and other products. Oceans are the lungs of our planet as they generate Oxygen. They also provide passage ways for international trade. Energy resources deep in the oceans can be the solution for man’s future needs.

JUNE

WORLD DAY AGAINST CHILD LABOUR

WORLD BLOOD DONOR DAY

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF YOGA

LO (International Labor Organization) has declared June 12th as World Day Against Child Labour. According to UNICEF, almost 215 million child laborers are employed in various countries in many fields ranging from agriculture to hazardous and industrial work or sent to other nations as slaves, involved in illicit activities. They are deprived of the basic needs like education, shelter, health, sanitation or food. Since 2002, this day is observed to combat child labour around the globe.

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ecognised by the WHO (World Health Organisation), World Blood Donor Day is globally observed every year on June 14th. Every year, millions of people are found in life threatening situations, who can be saved with safe blood transfusions. Finding blood for transfusion is very difﬁcult, especially in developing nations. Many people pay for blood. This day encourages people to donate blood to those in need, without expecting anything in return. Meetings and public speeches create awareness on this day. Blood donation drives are conducted across the world.

his year will be the first time that International Day of Yoga will be celebrated. The United Nations, in December 2014, has declared this after a proposal from PM Narendra Modi in his speech in the UN General Assembly. Yoga is being practiced for more than 6,000 years in India and has a broad global reach, irrespective of religion. Yoga exercises the body, calms the mind and soothes the soul. It also provides a holistic well being. This day will be observed to encourage individuals to make healthier lifestyle choices.

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SHORT STORY

SLOW DOWN AND EXPERIENCE LIFE.

arry, a very successful young executive, was once travelling in the countryside in his brand new Mercedes. He was going a bit too fast in his sleek car.

stop. So, I threw the brick, only to get your attention.”

The boy’s shirt was drenched in his tears. Pointing to the sidewalk, he said sobbing, “My brother rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair. I wanted some help to lift him up. Will you please help me? He’s hurt and he’s too heavy for me.”

As his car passed a lonely road, he sped up even more and zoomed past the maize fields and never looked at the beautiful nature around. Suddenly, a brick flew out of nowhere and smashed his car’s metallic finish side door! He hit the brakes suddenly and the vehicle spun twice around itself. Harry could see a kid standing near his car, looking at him. Harry jumped out of the car, grabbed the kid and shouted, “What do you think you are doing? Who are you? Why did you do that? That brick you threw ruined my new car!! Who do you think will pay for it now?” “Please, sir, listen to me…I’m sorry! I didn’t know what else to do!” pleaded the child. “I have been trying to stop many vehicles before, but no one else would

A teenager lost his contact lens in his room. He searched and searched and ﬁnally gave up. When his father came to know about it, he found it in two minutes. “How did you do it?” the son asked. The father replied, “Son, you were looking for a piece of plastic, but I was looking for Rs. 2000/-.”

Phone conversation: Wife: Had your lunch? Husband: Had your lunch? Wife: I am asking you Husband: I am asking you Wife: Why are you repeating what I said? Husband: Why are you repeating what I said? Wife: Let’s go shopping. Husband: I had my lunch.

Harry was touched by the concern the boy showed for his brother. Forgetting his anger, he decided to help the boy. He lifted the brother and put him in the wheelchair. He took out his handkerchief and wiped his bruises. He made sure the boy was alright. He watched them go towards their home merrily. Walking back towards his Mercedes, Harry introspected himself. He decided to slow down, and never miss out on the present moments- the joys or the sorrows. He never got the side door of his car repaired. The dent remains even now and reminds him that he must not go through life too fast for someone to throw a brick at him to get his attention.

A science teacher tells his class, “Oxygen is a must for breathing and life. It was discovered in 1773.” Dabbu responds, “Thank God I was born after 1773! Otherwise I would have died without it.”

One day Hiten got home early from school and his mom asked, “Why are you home so early?” He answered, “Because I was the only one that answered a question in my class.” She said, “Wow, my son is a genius. What was the question?” Hiten replied, “The question was- Who threw the trash in the classroom?”

Q: What did the duck say to the store cashier when he bought a lipstick? A: He said, “Put it on my bill.” Q: What is the only job where you get ﬁred before you start work? A: An astronaut. Q: What do you call a bear with no teeth? A: A gummy bear.

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LANGUAGE STUDY

F FRENCH

VOCABULARY

P PRONUNCIATION

I AM

SORRY Désolé(e) Day-zoh-lay

FRENCH for

GO AHEAD/AFTER YOU Je vous en prie Zheu-voo-zawn-pree

BEGINNERS

Je suis Zheu-swee I AM LOOKING FOR Je cherche Zheu-share-sh

MISTER / SIR

Here are some everyday used simple words in FRENCH language.

I WANT…. Monsieur Muh-syuh

MRS. / MADAM / MA’AM Madame mah-dahm

DO YOU HAVE……..?

MISS Mademoiselle mahd-mwah-zell

Je veux Zheu-veu

Avez-vous Avay-vooh WHAT’S YOUR NAME? (formal) Comment vous appelez-vous ? Koh-mawn voo zah-play voo

The Boy In The Striped Pajamas

BOOK

Review

Published on: January 5, 2006 By: John Boyne About the author: John Boyne is an Irish author who writes for young readers and adults. He has a total of thirteen novels under his belt, most of which are critically acclaimed. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas was New York’s no.1 bestseller and was later made into a ﬁlm. His novels are available worldwide and are translated into around ﬁfty languages. He received many awards like the Irish Book awards, People’s Choice Book of the Year and Hennessy Literary ‘Hall of Fame’ Awards.

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The protagonist of the story is a nine year old boy, Bruno, who feels lonely when his family moves from Berlin. Bruno’s boredom leads him to a concentration camp, of which his father, Nazi commandant, is in charge. There he befriends a boy, Shmuel, who wears striped pajamas like everyone else there. He ﬁnds out that Shmuel’s family is missing from the camp. His love for adventure gets the better of him and he crosses the fence. Set in the backdrop of the Holocaust, this historic ﬁction depicts the conditions of Jews in the Auschwitz Concentration Camps, seen through the eyes of a little boy. Bruno is envious of Shmuel and innocently believes that camps “were not all bad”. Though the reader can sense what happens next, the actual ending leaves him melancholic.

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YEARS OF CULTURAL RELATIONS

What did a dinosaur look like? by Linda Baxter Can we believe what we see? Dinosaur art has a long history. Life-size models in natural history museums, paintings and drawings, children’s toys, and, of course, the recent spate of computer-generated films. It captures the imagination, popularises the science and raises money for museums to support more research. We love looking at dinosaurs. But what are we seeing? The real thing? Or a little fact and a lot of imagination? Did the velociraptor look like a giant lizard? Or like a snake with long legs? Or did it look more like a bird with feathers but no wings? Bones All dinosaur reconstruction begins with bones. The good news is that more and more fossils of different types are being discovered all over the world. The bad news is that we don’t have complete skeletons for all the species that are being discovered. And it can be surprisingly difficult to work out where all the bones are supposed to go. One of the first reconstructions of the Iguanodon, over a hundred years ago, had a small horn on its nose. It was actually the creature’s thumb. Nowadays, we have multiple examples of complete sets of bones for some species, but that doesn’t mean that everyone agrees about their skeletal structure. Scientists are still arguing about whether the triceratops family had straight legs like a rhinoceros or bent legs like a lizard. And you’ll see both versions in dinosaur art. There are things that bones don’t tell us. Muscles The next step is to put muscles on to the skeleton. Muscles make marks on the bones that they are connected to, so we can study these marks in existing animals and draw conclusions about dinosaurs. But there are large parts of bodies without any bones – the whole abdominal area for example. How much muscle is there? A lot, like a horse? Or a little, like a bird? Computer modelling can help with this problem, but not everyone reaches the same conclusions. A computer model has been produced that shows that Tyrannosaurus Rex didn’t have big enough leg muscles to run very fast. And scientists are still arguing about it. There’s other evidence to show that he could run very fast indeed. Soft tissue Who could guess from its skeleton that an elephant has enormous ears and a long trunk? Soft tissue doesn’t fossilise. Some imprints of dinosaurs’ soft tissue have been found in rock possibly showing humps, or frills on the back of the creature or on the top of its head, but not in much detail. There really isn’t enough evidence for a lot of the additional

features that we see in our favourite images of some dinosaur species. Scientists are studying soft tissue to try to find out what organs dinosaurs had and what they used them for. If you examine an elephant’s skull, you’ll find evidence that it has a long trunk – spaces for passages for blood and nerves and tiny muscle connections for example. This research will be able to give us a lot of information about dinosaurs’ outward appearance. Skin Some preserved imprints of dinosaur skin show reptile-like scales, but it isn’t clear if they covered the whole body. Dinosaur fossils with feathers have been found in China and more and more scientists are now accepting that many dinosaurs, including T. Rex, probably had primitive feathers as a way of keeping warm. And maybe primitive fur. That’s certainly a revolution in the traditional depiction of dinosaurs. The colour of the skin, or scales, or feathers or fur, is another problem. There is no evidence at all from the fossils. The colours that are traditionally used are based on what we know of the animal’s natural habitat and whether it needed to hide for protection. But we could be completely wrong. We don’t even know how well dinosaurs could see colour. Most of the assumptions are based on what we know about birds and reptiles today. Faces We don’t know the shape of dinosaur eyes. Were they thin and slit-like, like reptiles? Or round, like birds? In traditional dinosaur art, the dangerous, predatory dinosaurs often have slit-like eyes because it makes them look nastier. The gentle vegetarians are given soft, round eyes. And what about nostrils? Traditionally, dinosaur nostrils have been placed quite high on their heads. But it’s now believed that they were much lower down, closer to the mouth. This discovery has a lot of implications for how the animals lived and breathed. It’s a big change for the artists to consider too. So what’s the conclusion? A 77-million-year-old mummified dinosaur (Brachylophosaurus) was found recently, and scientists are hoping that he (or she) will answer a lot of questions, particularly about skin, scales, muscles and soft tissue in general. Only a handful have ever been found before and this is the first one that can be studied in detail with modern technology. Until then, the fact remains that a lot of very different looking dinosaurs can be drawn from the same basic scientific evidence. And I think that the dinosaur-loving public should get to see all of them.

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

Exercise one We had a hamburger, but David just had chips because he’s a ………[1] The police have found ………[2] that proves the suspect was in the country on that day. She hurt her …...…[3] when she was using a heavy tool to mend the car. It is an exotic bird with multicoloured ………[4] Our feet left …...…[5] in the snow as we were walking. Exercise two Comprehension: true or false. Decide whether these sentences are TRUE or FALSE according to the text: 1 What do scientists use to reconstruct a dinosaur? 2 How do scientists know where the muscles were connected to the bones? 3 Why can’t an elephant’s skeleton tell us it has a trunk and big ears? 4 What purpose did a dinosaur’s feathers serve? 5 What are scientists hoping to learn from Brachylophosaurus?

JOKE TEACHER Question: What is brown and sticky? Answer: A stick.

DINOSAUR MUS_LE CREA_URE SK_L_TON EXT_NCT SKUL_ F_SSIL _EETH MON_TER PRE_ISTORI_

Question: What do you call a ﬂy without wings? Answer: A walk. This type of English joke is based on anticlimax and defeated expectation. The answer is always easier than you expect. It is a statement of the obvious. Look at the questions below and see if you can think of the easy and obvious answers. Question: What do you call a boomerang that won’t come back? Question: What’s the difference between an elephant and a letter box

Answers

3 thumb 4 feathers 5 imprints

Vocabulary 1 vegetarian 2 evidence

Word search

Vocabulary Five words/phrases from the text: • thumb: short, thick inner digit of the hand • evidence: something which proves or disproves a theory • imprints: marks made by the pressure of something • feathers: light structures that birds are covered with • vegetarian: person who does not eat meat

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

Comprehension 1 They use bones 2 There are marks on the bones where the muscles used to be attached

3 Because the soft tissue of ears, etc. does not fossilise 4 The dinosaur’s feathers were to keep the animal warm 5 Scientists are hoping to learn about skin, scales, muscle and tissue

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AMAZING

FACTS When BABIES are born, they have 300 bones whereas adults have 206. Bones fuse together during growth of the baby.

During the 17th century in Western Europe, TULIP FLOWERS were more expensive than GOLD. They were also used as currency.

2. 3.

There are over 50,000 people in Japan whose age is more than 100.

What is the largest single internal organ in human body? Which similar organs combined together are the lengthiest?

Mars. NASA plans to send microbes by 2030. Evidence of water and biodomes have been found in NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory mission, by the robotic rover ‘Curiosity’. ‘Burka Avenger’. It is a story of a teacher Jiya, who turns into a Burqa donning Superhero in the nights to fight crime using a martial art called ‘Takht Kabaddi’. It is made in Pakistan.

Professional Boxing Match in welterweight division held on May 2, 2015 in Las Vegas. The winner was Floyd Mayfeather, Jr of USA. He defeated Manny Pacquiao of Philippines. Manny Pacquiao is a member of the Lower House of Philippines Congress.

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Can you name the country that has the highest ‘sheep to person ratio’ in the world?

Sudan. There are more than 250 pyramids in Sudan, ranging from 6 metres to 36 metres of height.

Baldwin Street in New Zealand is the steepest street in the world. It takes almost ten minutes, just to walk about 350 metres.

The Great Pyramid of Giza is the most popular pyramid of the world, featuring in the list of wonders of the world. But, do you know that Peru has more number of pyramids than Egypt? There are many countries in which pyramids can be found- Algeria, Mexico, Spain, Iran, China, Italy, etc. Which country hosts the most number of pyramids?

There are six species of fish called Lungfish, in existence which can live out of water. They have one or two lungs.

To which planet does NASA plans to send microbes in order to create Oxygen? This planet is also believed to have vast oceans and waterways in ancient times. Fixed Nitrogen and Carbon containing molecules on the planet have been found in which mission?

New Zealand. With a population of 4.47 million people, the sheep of New Zealand outrank them by 6 times, i.e. 6:1 ratio. Earlier it was 18:1.

Cornea of the human eyeball, receives Oxygen from the air, not from the bloodstream like the rest of the body does.

What is the name of the multi-award winning animated series recently launched in India, which is based on a masked female superhero? This pro-educational fiction is produced in which country?

Humans are the only species that are affected by poison ivy.

Which sporting tournament finale was dubbed as the ‘Fight of the Century’? When was it held? Who was the winner? Who is the politician who participated in the match? Which country does he belong to?

Babies become right handed or left handed while still in the womb.

Small intestine. The small intestine is almost four times in length as the height of the individual. On an average, it would be 22 feet. But all the blood vessels put together would be 60,000 miles in length.

Some scientists believe that there is more water under the earth’s crust than all that in the oceans, rivers and lakes on the surface.

ANSWERS

It is said that while directing the film “AVATAR”, James Cameroon took everybody’s mobile that rang in the sets and nailed it to the wall.

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06/06/2015 16:34:34

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In a cage marked with a plus sign, the given number will be the sum of the digits you enter in the squares.

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1. Vehicle of communication; tongue; the speech and writing of a particular country, nation or group 7. Form of to be 8. Movement of the head to signify agreement, understanding or assent 9. Express in words; speak; state; utter 10. Better than average; suitable; proper, not bad 11. And so forth; and others of the same kind 13. You and me 14. Half of a laugh 15. A thought; mental picture 17. Put in a place or a position; a group of related items; fixed, established, firm 18. Preposition 19. Patient; untiring; indefatigable

1. Language specialist 2. Equally; in the same amount or degree; in the same manner; while 3. Complete a school course; obtain a degree 4. Article 5. Move; proceed 6. Teaches; develops the mind or character by training 9. Thus 12. Article 16. Organ of hearing 17. Observe; use the eyes; have the power of sight; understand

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