Feild visit documentation For IL&FS Education By Kanhika Nikam
Gundecha Education Academy
aBOUT SCHOOL
methods
Activities
tools
Gundecha Education Academy Established in 2004 The Gundecha Education Academy situated in Kandivali East, develops students’ learning application skills and ability to choose the curriculum of any examination board (CISCE, CBSE, IGCSE, IB) after class VIII. The schools vision is to become a world class institution providing holistic education in a facilitative, challenging and positive environment that: • Enables the students to realize their potential • Takes care of their intellectual, physical, psychological and ethical wellbeing and • Empowers them to be global citizens imbued with Indian values who contribute effectively to the society.
• The tuition fees per month: Pre-primary Rs.2,700, Primary Rs.3,000 and Secondary Rs.3,200. • Admission application forms are issued during the month of September on a particular date and time. • Forms are given out on first come first basis with preference to siblings of existing school students • Proximity and the year of birth are other factors considered • There is no selection process since the number of forms given out is same as the numbers of seats available. As long as the parents can afford the fees they are not denied admission.
Admission
• There is a waiting list in case of drop outs. • Parents submit the filled form with documents like proof of residence and the child’s birth certificate • They are then called for the an interaction session. The teachers need to see the parents, talk to them to understand them and the children so they can plan strategies and provide the right kind of environment. This is a looked at as a bonding period since it’s a beginning of a long association between the school, the child and the parents.
Admission
Facilitators
The pre-primary class strength is 35 - 36 children with the facilitator child ratio 18:1. There is plenty of help to take care of the children with: • 2 facilitators • A care taker ‘Aunty’ to take the children to the washrooms etc. • Trainees from SNDT working from morning to noon as part of their internships
Facilitators
• Most teachers are graduates with ECCE training and an in house training • The school parallelly runs its own teacher training institute where they have a course affiliated to SNDT college • Majority of the teachers are recruited from here since the training is specifically aligned to the philosophy of the school. The rest are recruited from SNDT as lot of them have already worked with the school as trainees.
Facilitators
There is a training session for teachers coming from outside for a week in June. They are first observed for what knowledge they already have and then introduced to the schools curriculum that is inspired by Howard Gardner’s ‘Theory of Multiple Intelligences’. There are micro teaching lessons on: • How to take up a class • How to write a lesson plan • How to deal with special children • What is classroom management and so on.
Facilitators
• All the facilitators wear a blue jacket with large pockets. This avoids dirtying their clothes and helps give them a certain identity amongst the children.
Parents involvment When the school was new there were a lot of issues between the school and the parents. Then the school thought since it’s the parents who trust the school with their children, they should be well informed about everything to help them get adjusted to the schools ways, specially when the school is genuinely doing good things. Now parents are given the chance to sit in class for a whole day. The teachers trains them on how to go about it. They spend three hours assisting the teacher in whatever she is doing, they don’t teach anything or give any definitive instructions. For eg: They help taking the children to the computer lab, assist them on how to hold the mouse, if the teacher is busy with one group of children they take care of the rest of them etc.
Parents involvment This initiative was a big eye opener for the parents. Gradually they’ve become very understanding. They say, ‘We thought that our children were just playing in school’ and ‘You call us anytime and we’ll be there’. So now the school has a ‘Parent Volunteer List’ which they make use of when their teachers are on leave. There many are parents who have qualifications like B.A, B.Ed, M.A, M.Ed, have ECCE training, have some teaching experience or even who are computer literate. So the school immediately calls these parents when needed. There are doctor parents who volunteer to give lectures on health and hygiene. Some of them even take up particular subjects in higher classes.
Parents involvment It’s not only the mothers, even fathers are equally supportive. This helps in creating complete transparency which in turn creates a lot of trust between the parents and the school. This symbiosis works beautifully and the parents speak very highly of the school.
Parents involvment • Parents had put in a lot of efforts for a day of fancy dress in the Nursery class • Materials were used very innovatively for all the costumes
Parents involvment • A lot of them also help teachers in making teaching aids and charts for the class boards.
Change in education over the years • Each year the innate intelligence among children is increasing, they’re picking up so much. They can manipulate our mobiles and computer. • The awareness and exposure they get is also much more than what the pervious generation got, they also already learn so much at home. • It’s a challenge for the facilitators to plan a curriculum for them and to keep up with them. The facilitators are always on their toes.
• Initially pre-primary education wasn’t given much of importance. It didn’t make a big difference if children were sent to school or not. • Now a days over all awareness and attitude amongst the teachers, parents and the society has improved. They’ve realised the importance of the first initial years. • Every year the school has an induction program where they tell parents the importance of early life education. Now they think twice before taking leave. They don’t want the child to miss out on any activity.
Change in education over the years
aBOUT SCHOOL
methods
Activities
tools
cURRICULUM
• The school believes in Howrad Gardners Theory of Multiple Intelligences. • Thus they use a mixture of strategies to simulate the nine intelligences though activates based on monthly themes (eg. nature facts).
cURRICULUM
Every month has a particular theme. E.g.: • August the theme was celebration, since it’s the month of festivals • July was dedicated to health and hygiene which is required during the monsoon. • September is germination of seeds, where children grew plants, watered them daily and recently took them home.
eVALUATION
• The school believes in Howard Gardners Theory of Multiple Intelligences. • Thus they use a mixture of strategies to simulate the nine intelligences though activates based on monthly themes (eg. nature facts).
eVALUATION
At the beginning of school students are given a folder in which all their work (evaluations, worksheets, etc.) are stored to be taken back home at the end of the year. Thet carry this folder with themselves throughout pre primary.
• Home assignments are given in form of worksheets called it fun sheets. • It’s simply a revision of what has been done in class so children are able to do it by themselves. • There is definitely need of some kind of home assignment. It gradually develops the habit of sitting at home and working.
Home work
• For activities that need parental supervision, like helping the child prepare some material for the class assembly, a note is sent to the parent through the diary.
Home work
Second LAnguage
• Hindi (swar & vyanjan) is introduced in Senior KG. First standard onwards they start it properly. • And as they watch Hindi movies and television it’s not difficult to grasp the language. Considering the Hindi typeface which is much complicated, their writing in Hindi is better than English, because their writing readiness is much developed by then. • It’s believed that a child can pick up at least seven languages at a time. Add to this the context of Indian children who learn a minimum of 3 languages: English, Hindi and their mother tongue. And if both the parents speak different languages, more language is added.
Felid Trips
• The school has 5 to 6 theme based trips per year. • If the children are being taught about community helpers, they’re taken to the street and shown the cobbler, the post office etc. • At the post office they write a letter to their parents, drop it off in the post box and after a few days the letter reaches home. Instead of telling them, they realise all this by themselves, this is truly ‘learning by doing’. • Other places they’re taken to are the Bislery factory and the Parle-G factory. • They’re taken for a purely fun based picnic twice a year to places like Tikugini Wadi.
aBOUT SCHOOL
methods
Activities
tools
Assembly
One batch of students come in the morning and one in the afternoon. Class begins with an assembly with activities like: • Breath in - breath out exercise • Warm up activities
Assembly
• Prayers with Vakratunda Mahakaya
Assembly
• Prayers with Vakratunda Mahakaya
Assembly
• Meditation with Gayatri Mantra • Rub your hands put it to your eyes
Assembly
• Different students everyday read out an amazing fact, a riddle, a short story and a thought for the day • A song sung by all • Thus each child gets to speak in front of the class. This build confidence and prepares them for the annual day to speak for an audience.
• There are different readiness activities. • Play groups have few readiness activities but from nursery onwards it’s properly structured. • The activities progress, get complex depending on the class.
Language Readiness
• For eg. In language the child learns to listen first, then speak, then read and finally write. • Initially the child can’t speak freely. Gradually through activities their listening and speaking skills are trained. • Reading also has progression, first the teachers have picture talks and object talks. Only once they master that, they’re taken to the alphabet.
Language Readiness
• Another good and a favourite activity happening in school, suggested by Maharashtra government is the sports nursery. • Here the children play games through which they sharpen the skills required for particular sports • After a few years the sports teachers are able to identify a particular sport potential in a particular child and then they inform the parents.
Sports Readiness
Due to the light weight and modular furniture the seating arrangement keeps changing. Different kind of set ups are made for different activities.
fOUR CORNER ACTIVITES
• Teachers set up the four corners of the classroom with material related to art and craft, reading, puzzles and blocks. • Children come in groups to every table, settle down and interact with the material in turns. This way in a short time all the kids get to explore four different activities.
fOUR CORNER aCTIVITES
• For storytelling one can’t sit on chairs and listen. • All the furniture is pushed to the walls. The children and the teachers spread out a mat and sit on the ground.
Picture Talk
• The pictures have the story and quiz questions written behind it. This makes it easy for the teachers to read and the children to see the pictures at the same time.
Picture Talk
• For circle time activity children sit in a semi circle. Teachers too sit down and talk to them and listen while they expressing themselves.
cIRCLE TIME aCTIVITES
• Children pick up faster through rhymes / while singing. • There are theme & action based poems, puppet shows, finger plays, tomato plays.
Music
• There is a music teacher who plays the Casio and sings for and along the children. • This is one of their favourite activities.
Music
Edutainment room During this unstructured free play, children play with their pre played, favourite toys according to their imagination and fantasy.
Edutainment room The space is divided into indoor and outdoor play area. Indoor play area has smaller toys, doll house, kitchen play area etc.
Edutainment room The outdoor play are has kids cars and kids gym equipment.
Science Experiment The teacher explains simple physics principle by demonstrating experiments to the class.
Fine motor activities • Activities are like tearing paper into small pieces and sticking it on the paper are done sitting on the floor. Facilitators can supervise better as she can look at all their books at once.
Fine motor activities • Children can also tear and keep the pieces safely on the ground. • Resources like glue stick are give by the school and are shared amongst the children.
Warm up activities
aBOUT SCHOOL
methods
Activities
tools
Technology
• Teaching is supported by technology driven by JIL where the teachers get information, pictures and teaching aids related to any topic specially for school purpose. • Once a week children are shown movies related to concepts taught in class, in the audio visual room.
Technology
• Junior KG onwards the children are introduced to computers for at least two half an hour classes pre week. • They have integrated the US based and the Waterford Early Reading programme with their curriculum. The concepts introduced in class are simultaneously taught though stories and games on the computer. This way they are able to relate to the programme better.
Technology
• The child is asked start at the same point where he or she left the last time. • The software gives individual reports to help the teachers spot particular concepts that the particular child is not being able to grasp. Thus, extra attention can be paid to it. • They’re asked to solve different activities related to the same concept till the computer feels he or she has understood the concept fully. Only then can he / she can move forward. • The computer class is a big favourite among the children.
sIGHT WORDS
Everything around the school is labelled big and bold to help children associate words to the corresponding objects and activities.
fURNITURE
Everything around the school is labelled big and bold to help children associate words to the corresponding objects and activities.
sTATIONARY
Everything around the school is labelled big and bold to help children associate words to the corresponding objects and activities.
• They don’t have too many books, which remain in school eliminating the need for students to lug heavy bags to school and back. • Only in Junior and Senior KG they have an English Reader. • All the reading and writing sheets are developed by the facilitators themselves.
tEACHING aIDS
• Toys and other 3D tools are bought readymade. • The school carpenter is there’s a need to get anything custom made. The art teacher also helps making custom tools. • This happened mostly during the sports / annual day, when they need a particular instrument for a particular game.
tEACHING aIDS