ScooNews - July 2018 by ScooNews

Volume 2 Issue 12 July 2018 CHANGING TEACHERS’ LIVES EVERYDAY, EVERY WAY!

Children must be taught how to think, not what to think Margaret Mead

Group Editor Ravi Santlani Editor Nichola Pais Deputy Editor Parvathy Jayakrishnan Reporter Anushka Yadav, Anshu Pande, Ashima Sharma, Anuj Kr. Website Team Vaibhav Ramchandani, Pranav Sharma, Ojas Godatwar, Gaurang Mandhana Art Direction Rexsu Cherry Design CP Sharma Advisory Board: Anand Kumar, Founder, Super-30 Dr Jagpreet Singh, Headmaster, The Punjab Public School, Nabha Dr Neeta Bali, Director- Principal, G D Goenka World School, Gurugram Dr Swati Popat Vats, President, Podar Education Network & President, Early Childhood Association India Geeta Dharmarajan, Founder & President, Katha Lt Gen SH Kulkarni (Retd), Director, Mayo College Meenakshi Uberoi, Education Evangelist, Founder, De Pedagogics Nishi Misra, Principal, Scindia Kanya Vidyalaya, Gwalior Sandeep Dutt, Founder & Chairman, Learning Forward India Skand Bali, Principal, The Hyderabad Public School, Begumpet Pics Pressfoto Pixabay, Shutterstock Cover Design ATLT Inc Founder & CEO Ravi Santlani Vice President Operations Vinay K Singh Vice President PR Vanya Bhandari National Sales Head Pankaj Sharma BD Executive Yashwant Parmar, Shivam Joshi EDITORIAL OFFICE EduPulse Media Pvt Ltd, J-3, Jhalana Institutional Area, Second Floor, Jaipur 302004 India Email: editor@scoonews.com FOR ALL SALES QUERIES Pankaj Sharma +91-74120-27891 sales@scoonews.com FOR SUBSCRIPTION +91-72405-17913 subscribe@scoonews.com PRINTED AND PUBLISHED by Ravi Santlani on behalf of EduPulse Media Pvt Ltd PRINTED AT Popular Printers, Fateh Tiba, MD Road Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. PUBLISHED AT, J-3, Jhalana Institutional Area, Second Floor, Jaipur 302004 India Editor : Ravi Santlani Publishing Date: 10 July ‘ 2018 Total number of pages 60, including Covers

STRAIGHT TALK

Nichola Pais

Dreamers, Doers, Teacher Warriors

hild brides. Severely impoverished children of the Sabar tribe. Students frozen by the fear of exams. Children struggling minus a Maths teacher… These are children who generally slip between the cracks in a world where the privileged garner the attention. ‘Generally’, because hope does shine through from the most unexpected sources… Introducing you, dear reader, to the ScooNews Teacher Warriors 2018. Ordinary men and women who have accomplished the extraordinary. They did not set out to change the world, become saviours, power a movement. But unwittingly they have done just that, one mighty challenge, one dogged endeavour at a time… Their driving inspiration? That quality education is the key to social transformation and the fundamental right of every child - not just every advantaged child.Starting off on the back foot needn’t translate as being also-rans for the rest of their life. As Teacher Warrior Nirmala Tandon (IIMPACT) vouches, “Freed from the shackles of illiteracy, they should be able to compete with their privileged peers on par, and excel in areas they choose, to attain a quality of life far better than their parents. They should become good honest human beings, responsible citizens of our great country and also contribute to society in whichever way they can.” It is difficult to remain unmoved by the tales of these unstoppable educators. It is impossible to miss their pride and sense of fulfilment in their mission. “When you see the transformation occur in a child coming from the underprivileged section of the society working as a child labour, indulging in the act of begging, drug exposure and how through education you can change him/her to a self-sustained person who then becomes capable of taking his and family's responsibility in a better way… there is a deep sense of inner satisfaction,” vouches Teacher Warrior Mukti Gupta (Help Us Help Them). …Inner satisfaction that does not come with that shot of Botox, that superior job, that bigger car. Perhaps it is time to take a leaf out of Teacher Warrior Aditya Natraj’s book when he says, “I see no challenge. I only see joy in this opportunity to serve.”

July 2018

CONTENTS

12 COVER

“ONE CHILD, ONE TEACHER, ONE BOOK & ONE PEN, CAN CHANGE THE WORLD” – MALALA YOUSAFZAI

CTET 2018: Crack IT teacher!

The Central Teacher Eligibility Test makes a valuable addition to a teacher’s qualification, says Nichola Pais

ScooNews Teacher Warriors 2018

Honouring Education’s Real Heroes

48 Quality of Teaching in Indian Schools: Do we make the grade?

OPPORTUNITIES & CHALLENGES IN EDUCATION

44 CII Northern Region announces School Summit 2018

July 2018

IS HOMEWORK REALLY NECESSARY?

51 Against the Odds : These toppers are an inspiration!

YOURS TRULY UPDATING & UPGRADING! I always look forward to the Tech it Out! column as it keeps updating us about the edtech that’s necessary for our education atmosphere and to boost our generations of techno savvy students. I loved the simple yet revolutionary technology mentioned in the April issue of your magazine. It makes me, as a reader, want to try the available gadgets and apps; thanks for updating us to upgrade. Shobhit Tiwari, Jaipur

IMPROVING LEVELS Education levels in Delhi are apparently on the rise. The learning outcome data following the completion of Mission Buniyaad shows that now 63% of the students from classes III to IX can read the grade-appropriate text and 71% can solve division. However, 70% of the students from classes VII to IX have learned division of three digits by one digit, which is much lower than the levels expected. The findings also show a 48% increase in reading Hindi/ Urdu text, and a Mathematics increase of 54%. This shows the effectiveness of the Chunauti scheme, run by Delhi government in its schools for children between classes III to IX to improve learning levels. May the trend continue! Maryam Zakaria, Surat

HAPPY SCHOOLS Delhi government’s initiative to create a happiness curriculum is welcomed by the entire nation as the aim of the curriculum is in itself a positive and game changing step towards making our students realise the importance of being happy, self-aware

and confident. To get such great news from India’s largest education media house was a joy indeed! Bharti Singh, Gurugram

BRAVO KERALA

SGEF CALLING As a regular reader of ScooNews, I am eagerly anticipating the ScooNews Global Educators Fest 2018 in August. In fact, I even preserved the post-fest magazine copy in 2017, which provided details about the topics discussed. The issue was filled with timely and interesting interviews with some of the best and most diverse names including Sonam Wangchuk, Prof Sugata Mitra, the Kung Fu Nuns of the Himalayas and Valentina Trivedi. Looking forward to more such speakers and their fresh and delightful ideas!

I read with interest the news about Kerala’s Higher Education Department sanctioning two additional seats for admission of transgender students in all courses in universities, and affiliated colleges in the state. This is indeed heartening news which marks a progressive step towards inclusive education. The order, which was issued by the higher education department of the government, comes after a recommendation by the social justice department seeking reservation for transgender students. It is a fact that due to societal issues, many trans students have to discontinue their studies or join other academic institutions after an academic year or after the admission process is closed. Thus it is heartening to see the government sanction two additional seats exclusively for admitting transgender students, subject to the fulfilment of qualification.

The article about the reduction in the count of child marriages made me very happy. I'm glad people are understanding that forcing girls to marry at a young age takes a toll on not just their physical life but also on their mental and psychological life. It is a huge improvement and may we continue to march against it and eradicate this practice and thinking from our society.

Anamika Rao, Pune

Aditi Manjrekar, Nagpur

Avinash Pandey, Mumbai

TOWARDS IMPROVEMENT

INSPIRING ISSUE

HEARTENING RESULTS

I loved the April edition of ScooNews magazine! The cover story on Professor Sugata Mitra was very inspiring. His methods and techniques, if taken into practice, can change the way our education system looks right now. I wish all teachers give it a read and try to inculcate the new ways of teaching as much as they can. Let's take a step towards improving ourselves and the system.

I was happy to see the CBSE class X and XII results. Indeed there is an improvement in pass percentages and that merely shows that we are moving in the right direction. We need to improve the state of our public schools now so that more children are in school. The future of India lies in the hands of our children. It is our duty to ensure they get all the support they deserve to lead fruitful lives in every way.

Sambhav Singh, Mumbai

Malini Mehta, Mumbai

TALK TO US

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TRENDING Atal Tinkering Marathon’s Top 30 Innovations showcased on National Technology Day

HRD Ministry’s Samagra Shiksha: A scheme for holistic development of school education Launched by the Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Prakash Javadekar, the SamagraShiksha is an integrated scheme for school education extending support to states from preschool to senior secondary levels for the first time in New Delhi. A paradigm shift in the conceptual design of school education, the scheme aims at treating schools holistically as a continuum through each level by integrating the two T’s namely Teachers and Technology. The Union Minister pointed out that Samagra translates to a holistic approach that treats education as a whole. He further added that the budget outlay on the new scheme is decided to be Rs.34,000 crore in 2018-19 and will experience a 20% increase with Rs.41,000 crore in 2019-20. About one million schools are expected to get library grants of Rs.5,000 to Rs.20,000 as an effort to strengthen the libraries and prove the government’s motto “Padhega Bharat Badhega Bharat”. Under the scheme, each school was promised to get sports equipment at the cost of Rs.5000 for Primary, Rs.10,000 for Upper Primary and up to Rs.25,000 for SSC and HSC schools to make the dream of “Khelega India Khilega India” come true. With an allocation of Rs.4385.60 crores in 2018-19 and Rs.4553.10 crores in 2019-20, Javadekar also said that Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) will be expanded from class 6-8 to class 6-12 as a step towards fulfilling Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s commitment to Beti Bachao Beti Padhao. Shifting the focus of student learning from content to competencies, the scheme will be built on the grade-wise, subjectwise learning outcomes and the largest National Achievement Survey (NAS) con-

July 2018

ducted in 2017-18. It will help to strategise district-level interventions for improving the quality of education with the active participation of all stakeholders especially the parents/ guardians, School Management Committee (SMC) members, community and the state functionaries. The nodal agencies for teacher training will be SCERTs and DIETs to emphasise the integration of in-service and pre-service training structures in states for a needfocused and dynamic approach. The scheme also aims at enhancing the use of digital technology through smart classrooms, digital boards, and DTH channels by promoting ‘Operation Digital Board’ in all secondary schools over a period of 5 years. Digital initiatives such as ShaalaKosh, Shagun, ShaalaSaarthi and DIKSHA were promised to be strengthened. A competition was announced, over myGov, to design the logo for the scheme signifying a holistic approach towards students’ development Shri Prakash Javadekar unveiled the brochure and website of the Samagra Shiksha Scheme. Detailed information of the scheme has been provided on the website of the states/UTs, teachers, children, institutions, and the public at large. Linked to the website, an online Project Monitoring System measures the progress against targets and monitors processes of implementation of various interventions of the scheme. Also present at the occasion were Shri Anil Swarup, Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy, Ms. Rina Ray, Special Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy, and senior officials of the HRD Ministry.

Organised by Atal Tinkering Labs of the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) of NITI Aayog, the Atal Tinkering Marathon aims at identifying India’s best student innovators through a nationwide challenge covering six thematic areas, namely clean energy, water resources, waste management, healthcare, smart mobility and agritech in six months. On the basis of novelty and prototype functionality, Top 100 innovations were shortlisted out of more than 650 innovations received. A month’s time was given to the 100 teams to further refine their prototypes and rework their presentations. To further select the Top 30 innovations, they were judged by an esteemed panel of judges including industry and academia experts. The selected innovations were identified to be from 20 different Indian states and union territories. Shri Rajiv Kumar, ViceChairman, NITI Aayog, announced the Top 30 innovations and their prizes.Based on the philosophy of incentives and prize awards being a great stepping stone, the ATL Student Program aims to create an exponential wave of innovation and entrepreneurship amongst school students. It also aims at institutionalising a mechanism for high school students wherein they can work with university incubators to pursue their innovative and entrepreneurial ideas along with their education.

ICFAI Group wins World’s Greatest Brands & Leaders Asia & GCC 2017-18 Award

At the India UAE Business and Social Forum 2018: Awards & Business Summit, which was held on May 9, 2018 at Hotel J W Marriot Marquis Dubai, Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts of India (ICFAI) won the World’s Greatest Brands & Leaders Asia & GCC 2017-18 Award. Mrs. Sobha Rani Yasaswy, Chairperson of ICFAI Group received the award by H.E. Dr. Akima Umezawa, The Consul General of Japan in Dubai. ICFAI was chosen as “Iconic University of India” and Mrs. Yasaswy was also awarded the Brand Leader award during the ceremony. She expressed her happiness on being presented the prestigious award and said, “ICFAI will always strive to be a leader in the higher education sector for over three decades now. ICFAI has been a pioneer of quality education in India.” Primary and Secondary research across 16 industries in India is the base of selection for this award. PricewaterhouseCoopers and United Research Services International, one of the top professional services firm, formed the jury panel for selecting the awardees. Out of 1500 nominations, 400 were shortlisted by a secondary data scoring, amongst which ICFAI was chosen for this award. About United Research Services Media Consulting P.L: United Research Services Media Consulting P.L. publishes the AsiaOne – A Pan Asia Business & News Magazine. AsiaOne has a reader audience in 9 countries of Asia & Middle East. As many as 500 plus brands and leaders used the researchbased award properties in terms of logo and text rights, with PricewaterhouseCoopers P.L. as the process reviewers. H.E. Vipul, Consul General of India in Dubai, Head of Adani Group, Mr. Vinod Adani and over 300 businessmen, dignitaries, entrepreneurs, social leaders from all over the world attended the forum in Dubai.

Norway donates US$82 million to UNICEF’s work for children The Government of Norway donated US$82 million to UNICEF to improve education, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), social inclusion and child protection programmes for children in 2018. Norway’s contribution shows a continued commitment to reach the most vulnerable children - through the provision of multi-year, flexible funding. Thematic funding pools are central to UNICEF’s new Strategic Plan 2018-2021. Member states have endorsed thematic funding as an innovative approach to increase funding predictability for UN funds and programmes. Thematic funding, often referred to as “softly earmarked” funding, saves costs as funds are combined into large pools that allow for streamlined management

throughout, from planning to reporting. Partners can decide to allocate thematic funding to health, HIV and AIDS, nutrition, education, child protection, WASH, safe and clean environments, social protection, gender equality and humanitarian action pools at global, regional and/or country levels. Due to the reduced transaction costs, more resources reach the children and communities who need them most.

Water and Wastewater Management in Odisha School Curriculum In order to raise awareness about various aspects of sanitation and hygiene practices, the Odisha government has decided to include a chapter on water and wastewater management at the secondary level in schools from this academic session. The recurrent widespread of water-borne diseases, which is caused by faecal contamination of drinking water in different parts of the state, led to the decision taken by the government. The government asked the school and mass education department to design the appropriate course by collaborating with the housing and urban development department and agencies dealing with water and wastewater management. In a recent newspaper report, a housing and urban development

official was quoted, “A high-level meeting was held last month to discuss various aspects of faecal sludge and septage management when the idea to add a chapter in the classes IX and X curriculum cropped up. Officials of the school and mass education department were also present and gave their nod.” The curriculum in school will comprise of different aspects of wastewater management including guidelines for septage management to provide instructions on constructing right-size septic tanks, the release of wastewater, and transportation of sludge in a manner that ensures that surface or groundwater is not contaminated. Ananta Narayan Jena, Mayor of Bhubaneswar said, “All-around efforts are being made to generate awareness among the citizens.”

July 2018

TRENDING

“Education cannot wait” says Priyanka Chopra as she meets Rohingya refugee children Following a four-day trip to refugee camps and informal settlements in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, actress Priyanka Chopra made a plea for support for Rohingya refugee children and women who are in a very vulnerable condition. The actress, who is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, said, “After seeing the distressing images of the Rohingya crisis unfolding last year, being here and meeting the children and families affected has helped me better understand the enormity of this crisis. Nearly 60 per cent of the more than 700,000 refugees are children, living in desperately difficult conditions – with limited access to permanent shelter, clean and safe water,

food and education.” She added, “In the past four days, I’ve seen the incredible work that UNICEF and partners are undertaking, and the progress made in these makeshift camps in the last 9 months, but there is still so much more support needed. The kids I met were smiling but I could still see a sadness in their eyes that reflected the carnage and horror they witnessed. Yet at the same time, meeting children at a learning centre, I saw real hope. I saw children happy, learning and playing. I saw enthusiasm and children living their childhood the way it’s meant to be. There are so many more children eager to go to school. Because of lack of space, only a frac-

Goldman Sachs partners with Coursera to launch online ed program for female entrepreneurs

July 2018

tion of these children has access to the basic education provided by UNICEF.” Priyanka also visited the border area near Myanmar where lakhs of Rohingya women, children and men crossed over following the escalation of violence in August 2017. She also visited a nutrition centre and a UNICEF-supported learning centre for children. She emphasised, “No matter where a child is from or what his or her circumstances are, every child is the future of this world, and it is up to us, as global citizens, to make sure they have a future…Without education and learning opportunities Rohingya children will quickly become a lost generation. Education cannot wait.”

An online education program has been launched by the Goldman Sachs Foundation to further 10,000 Women, which will provide female entrepreneurs across the world with a digitised curriculum and interactive platform of women business owners. Partnering with Coursera, the world’s largest online platform for higher education, 10,000 Women will provide greater access to its proven curriculum, providing female entrepreneurs with a world-class business education and a global peer-to-peer network. Structured to meet the needs of women business owners in developing markets, the course is free. Participants will be provided with focused and tailored exercises in an introductory module which will assess the strengths and weaknesses of their business and themselves as business leaders. Additional modules will also review strategies to identify, optimise, and execute growth

opportunities. At the end of the 10,000 Women course, learners will have a Business Growth Plan to follow as they continue to grow and evolve their businesses. Additionally, participants will be provided with real-time support, mentoring and group learning across technologies and channels by a support network of fellow students and alumni. This will drive personal growth and foster an online community, allowing participants to create meaningful connections that will last beyond the completion of the program itself. Goldman Sachs had launched the 10,000 Women initiative in 2008 to foster economic growth by providing women entrepreneurs around the world with business education and access to capital. 10,000 Women has reached more than 10,000 women though the inperson program, where 70 percent of graduates report higher revenues and nearly 60 percent create new jobs.

Central Board of Secondary Education class XII results declared

Education Above All Foundation offers education to 10 million outof-school children

Qatar-based Education Above All (EAA) Foundation will offer ten million out-of-school children from around the world primary education. This was announced by EAA Foundation chairperson Sheikha Moza Bint Nasser, who is the second wife of the Emir of Qatar, United Nations (UN) Secretary General Antรณnio Guterres, and world leaders at a high-level summit in New York City. The EAA Foundation revealed that it had worked on the program with its partners to reach these numbers for the last six years. So far, , the program has enrolled 6.6 million out-of-school children around the world, and aims to reach 10 million. In Asia, 3.2 million out-of-school children will receive education, as the pro-

Central Teacher Eligibility Test: Information & timelines

gram has implemented more than 30 projects with international and local NGOs, development agencies, development banks, and the private sector across 10 countries. Work in Asia also involved addressing the gender gap, fostering skills for meaningful employment, and avoiding the risk of children resorting to violence due to frustration over lack of opportunity. The summit discussed issues such as the global education crisis, barriers to education of out-of-school children like poverty, conflict, discrimination, natural disaster. Founded in 2012, the EAA Foundation is working to help realise the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to end poverty.

The Central Board of Secondary Education will be conducting the 11th edition of Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) on Sunday, September 16, 2018. The test will be conducted in 92 cities all over the country. The detailed information bulletin containing details of examination, syllabus, eligibility criteria, examination fee, examination cities and important dates is available on CTET official website www.ctet.nic.in. Aspiring candidates are requested to download the information bulletin from the above-mentioned website only and read the same carefully before applying. They need to apply online only through CTET website www.ctet.nic.in. The online application process starts 22/06/2018 (Friday). The last date for submitting online application is 19/07/2018 (Thursday) and the last date to pay the fee is 21-072018 (Saturday) before 3.30.p.m.

CBSE class XII results were declared and the overall pass percentage is 83.01 as against last year's 82.02 per cent. The top three regions with high pass percentages are Thiruvananthapuram (97.32 percent), Chennai (93.87 percent) and Delhi (89 percent). Meghna Srivastava from Noida and a product of the Step By Step School is the allIndia topper scoring 499 marks out of 500. She secured 99 marks in English (Core), while in the other subjects -Psychology, History, Geography and Economics -she scored a perfect 100. Anoushka Chandra from SAJ School, Ghaziabad, came second with 498 marks. Girls beat boys when it came to pass percentages. While girls secured a pass percentage of 88.31percent, the boys managed 78.99.This year, the CBSE board will also provide Class XII digital mark sheets in DigiLocker at - digilocker.gov.in - which can be accessed on mobile phones on Android and iOS platforms.

July 2018

TRENDING CBSE Class X result available online The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Class X result is available online on Google, SMS Organizer and the official portals - www.cbse.nic.in, www.cbseresults.nic.in, www.results.nic.in. A student will require his or her roll number, date of birth, school code and centre number to check the marks. This year more than 16 lakh students had appeared for the 10th board examination conducted by CBSE. The overall pass percentage this year is 86.7 percent. Thiruvananthapuram region has topped with a pass percentage of 99.60 percent, followed by Chennai (97.37 percent), and Ajmer (91.86 percent). Four students topped the exams by scoring 499 out of 500, namely Prakhar Mittal from Gurgaon, Rimzhim Agarwal from Bijnor, Nandini Garg from Shamli and Sreelakshmi G from Cochin. While seven students secured the second position with 498 marks, 14 students bagged the third spot with a score of 497. Girls have a pass percentage of 88.67 percent and boys with 85.32 percent. A total of 27,476 students have scored more than 95 percent marks, while 1,31,493 students have scored equal to or more than 90 percent marks. The pass percentage for differently-abled students was 92.55, with Anushka Panda of Sun City, Gurgaon and Sanya Gandhi of Uttam School, Ghaziabad topping in the category by securing 489 marks out of 500. Somya Deep Pradhan of JNV, Dhanpur in Odisha bagged the second spot with a score of 484. As many as 135 candidates in the differently-abled category secured 90 per cent marks and above, while 21 of them secured 95 per cent marks and above.

July 2018

Indian Institute of Science on top 100 list of global university brands

The World Reputation Ratings 2018 are here. Scholars are asked to name no more than 15 universities which they believe are best for research and teaching in their field, based on their experience. The World Reputation Rankings 2018 are thus based on the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest invitation-only opinion survey of senior, published academics across 21 countries. As to the results, the US continues to dominate the table this year. Harvard University takes top spot for the eighth consecutive year, while 43 other US institutions make it to the top 100. The University of California, Los Angeles joins the top 10 for the first time since 2014, ranking at joint 9th place (up from 13th last year) alongside the University of Chicago. For UK universities, Cambridge and Oxford take fourth and fifth place respectively. However, the count is down from 10 last year to 9 this year. While Australia retains three top 100 institutions, although two have dropped slightly, Germany has six universities in the top 100, but three of those have fallen from their 2017 standings. Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tsinghua and Peking universities have maintained their positions at 14th and 17th place respectively, but half of its six representatives have fallen. Interestingly, while Japan has five institutions across the top 100 (down from six), four of these have declined. Singaporeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s two ranked institutions have risen. And in good news for India, the country has entered the ranking for the first time since 2011, courtesy the Indian Institute of Science making it to the 91-100 band.

COVER STORY

July 2018

SCOONEWS TEACHER WARRIORS 2018

HONOURING EDUCATION’S REAL HEROES T

hese superheroes do not wear capes but their acts are nothing short of astonishing… and yes, they save lives. It’s that special time of year again, when ScooNews felicitates the real braves of education. The ScooNews Teacher Warriors Awards 2017 put in motion the act of highlighting the heart-warming efforts of a dedicated band of men and women championing education rights for disadvantaged children. This year’s winners are similarly worthy of complete respect and emulation. ScooNews takes pride and pleasure in bringing the wonderful mission of

these Teacher Warriors to the forefront. Their endeavours are bound to inspire, as we bring readers a closer look at their mission, their beliefs and their vision. The future of underprivileged children is significantly brighter thanks to the untiring efforts of these admirable individuals, driving change against tall odds. While the chosen Teacher Warriors will be felicitated at the awards ceremony at the ScooNews Global Educators Fest 2018 in Udaipur on August 3, 4, we bring readers a closer look at their motivation and mettle, in their own words…

July 2018

COVER STORY

Dr Kriti Bharti Saarthi Trust

July 2018

Parvathy Jayakrishnan writeback@scoonews.com

ducation gives empowerment. Even today, there are many under-aged girl children who are forced to drop out of school and get married against their wishes. Taking up the challenge to free these girls and give them another chance to get back to life is Dr Kriti Bharti of Rajasthan. To fight this societal evil and give the girl child support, she founded the Saarthi Trust in Jodhpur in 2011 with a dream of establishing a society free of exploitation for children and women, along with a vision of implementing a curative approach to deal with such problems. Saarthi Trust has achieved the milestone of saving a number of children and women from exploitation. She believes that children are most vulnerable in our society and hence they shouldn't be abused or exploited in the name of customs and traditions. Else the future of our country is at stake. Saarthi Trust is working for the establishment of child rights, women’s rights, child marriage annulment, child protection and women protection along with supporting their development and rehabilitation.

Giving child brides a chance “As you know, I work against child marriages. I am freeing girls who are forced into marriages through the Child Marriage Annulment. I have also put out a condition for these child brides: I will fight their cases in court but they have to continue studying from the point they had to drop out of school. All the child brides whose cases I am fighting in court are studying. Some are at primary level and some are pursuing higher education. All these girls are supported by the Saarthi Trust. The reason behind this condition is that in India, girls and women are exploited in a number of ways. After becoming free from child marriages, there are other malpractices via which these girls can be victimised. Education and empowerment is the only medium which will strengthen these vulnerable girls in every situation and save them from future exploitation.”

Abandoned at birth “My own childhood was difficult. My father had abandoned me before birth. My relatives didn't accept me and they were abusive towards me in my childhood days. At the age of 10 years, I was poisoned and had become bedridden. I was cured through Reiki therapy. I learnt to sit, walk and crawl again after

two years. After that I had taken sanyas but I had to come back because of some reasons. While returning home, I decided to continue my studies which I had dropped out of in standard 4. I took a huge jump to standard 10 and then studied regularly. Now I have done my PhD on ‘Children in Need of Care and Protection’. Education has helped me a lot in my survival which is why I feel the need to educate girls and teach them the importance of education.”

Justice and smiles “My motto in life is to make the world free from exploitation so that every child can prosper and fly in their own sky. Justice to victims and educating them plays an important role in achieving this. My motivation is the smiles of victim girls set free from child marriages and when they became empowered thereafter. This satisfies me to the fullest. Education always nourishes you with the knowledge to fight, knowledge to live, knowledge to establish a society free from exploitation. Everyone in this world has to face challenges and education is the medium that plays a vital role to fight against it. My dream is to establish a society where no child is exploited and where they can be free. For this, justice to victims and education are the only two things that can help.”

July 2018

COVER STORY

Arup Mukherjee Puncha Nabadisha Model School

Anushka Yadav writeback@scoonews.com

42-year-old employee of the Kolkata Traffic Police, Arup Mukherjee’s vision of education for the Sabar tribe developed during his childhood. The people belonging to the Sabar tribe are found in Purulia district of West Bengal, along with a few other states like Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Odisha. The Sabars are mentioned in literature as old as the Mahabharata. The British listed them as a criminal tribe in the Criminal Tribes Act of 1871. To walk into their village feels like taking a trip back to several decades. There is no electricity. The Sabars are shy of outsiders. They live in huts with no toilets (they go outdoors), entire villages have a single tube well to draw water from and for food, they catch tadpoles, snakes, mice, small birds, etc.

Often to overcome the misery of an empty stomach, they get addicted to cheap liquor. Illiterate and ignorant, they do not know anything about the government’s policies to help them or who to approach to receive such aids. Arup bagged a humble job in the Kolkata Police, got married, and had twins, all the while holding on to his childhood resolution. The opportunity came when a kind neighbour offered him a plot of land. Arup took a loan at work and built a boarding school for the Sabar children. He started bringing in children of the extremely impoverished families. The temptation of education would not be much. So he tempted them with the promise of good meals every day - an irresistible offer! Puncha Nabadisha Model School started with 20 children and now accommodates more than 80 children. Most of the children have families who lack access to even two meals a day or a sweater in the winters.

July 2018

Arup employs a local husband and wife duo for the cooking, maintaining stock and other necessary work. Another Sabar woman sought refuge there to escape her abusive husband. She cleans the place, washes the children’s clothes and does other chores. There are two local teachers, who teach the children all subjects in a somewhat informal, home-schooling manner. Though he can only afford to pay everyone a very meagre salary, Arup says the teachers as well as the domestic help are very sincere in their supervision of the children. The older children (between the ages of 10-15), go to the government’s primary school that happens to be in the next building. The local hospital is also nearby. Arup is determined to make these kids pass out of school, after which they will be eligible for government jobs reserved for scheduled tribes. They are also doing well in their studies. They wear decent clothes, get help with their studies, eat well and are much loved.

From hunting birds to attending school “As you know, my work is for the most backward tribes of Purulia. You have to see to believe that people can live in such primitive conditions even in the 21st century. There are entire villages where not even a single villager owns a bicycle – villages without electricity or any proper means of transportation. People fall asleep intoxicated to avoid the pangs of hunger. I elaborate so much of the background, to make you realise how overwhelming it is to see children, who were hunting birds with bows and arrows, to wear clean uniforms, eat a filling meal and go to school every morning.”

End to exploitation “I have been hugely inspired by the work of Mahashweta Devi, the Padma Vibhushan winning Bengali writer who earned the name ‘Mother of the

Sabars’. The villages across Purulia are developing fast. We are adapting modern lifestyles. But the Sabars are still living in poverty and darkness. Their illiteracy is a weak spot that is being mercilessly exploited by people all around. This fact itself is my biggest motivator. I want to do what I can to change this scenario.”

Education – the only chance “My vision is for the Sabar children to get quality education, learn to interact with people outside their tribe, get government jobs and live lives of dignity. They can go back to their tribes and explain the value of education. Nothing drives home an idea as strongly as a real life example. Education is the only chance they have – to exposure, to broader perspectives, to jobs, technology and an end to abject poverty. That is where my goal lies, to educate one child at a time.”

July 2018

COVER STORY

Roshni Mukherjee ExamFear Education

Parvathy Jayakrishnan writeback@scoonews.com

n today's world where the internet is often more accessible than books, a young woman, who is so passionate about teaching decided to try out an experiment to help children learn. Seven years ago, Roshni Mukherjee started her YouTube channel ExamFear Education to put out lessons in Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Math and English and today the channel has a whopping 552,502 subscribers and more than 5,000 educational videos. ExamFear is a group of people with desired skills and qualifications who are passionate about teaching and they hope to promote free quality education throughout the world. ExamFear not only explains concepts of various subjects, they also make it interesting with

tricks and experiments to make learning fun. They also provide tips to make notes, revise before an exam and make a good timetable. Examfear has expanded their vision to include lessons in regional languages as well. ExamFear Education - Hindi is almost a year old now with 27,000 subscribers and counting.

Transformative initiative â&#x20AC;&#x153;I have always been very passionate about teaching and I wanted to teach and reach the masses. When I see that the content we created is being used by millions of children across the country today, I feel great. I started off with a couple of Physics videos back in 2011. With time, I saw that the videos were truly helping kids understand and love learning science and math. This encouraged me to create more and more content. By now, I have created

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more than 6,000 videos on Physics, Chemistry, Math, Biology, English Grammar, Geography and Science experiments for Classes 6 to 12. There are numerous emails and comments that I receive everyday with success stories from different parts of the country. Once a child from a small town wrote to me that there were no good teachers near their house, but with the help of ExamFear videos, she found studies interesting and could even score 96 per cent in the Board exams. When a student, Deepal Jain, from a town in Madhya Pradesh became the Biology topper of MP Board, and gave credit to our free education platform, and said that she could totally rely on self-study and ExamFear Education, I was proud of her and satisfied with our work. It gives me immense satisfaction when a child says, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;What you could explain in 10 minutes, my teacher could not do in

a week’. We have students from low economic backgrounds getting good grades in Board exams, cracking medical entrance exams and finding studies interesting. All such stories make us feel happy and satisfied with whatever we do! Something that I started as my passion is actually helping children achieve their goals. My initiative is truly able to transform lives. It is a feeling that is indescribable in words.”

Equal education for one and all “Equal education to one and all, is our motto at ExamFear Education. The idea is to build this free education platform so that every child can access good quality education irrespective of caste, creed, location or economic background. In our country, there are two sets of educational institutions one that provides good quality education but is unaffordable for many, and

another that is low cost or free but lacks quality. Therefore, our idea has always been to strike a balance between the two. We wanted to build a platform that provides free education maintaining the quality. I am highly motivated by the support that I receive from students, teachers and parents who use our content. I am strongly motivated by our students’ success stories, and aim to create more and more such beautiful stories. The first thing that I do every morning when I start my work is read a few emails/ comments from children. They motivate me to work with more enthusiasm to build this free education platform bigger and better!”

Empowering every child “Issues like child labour, poverty and child abuse, are very depressing. I strongly believe that education can def-

initely improve the lives of underprivileged kids, hence our idea of free education. Education in our country is often directly connected to good scores, which in turn often distracts children from real learning. Due to too much pressure from parents and teachers, children prefer rote learning rather than conceptual understanding. We, at ExamFear focus on conceptual understanding and discourage rote learning. We help children think about every minute concept with real-life examples. “Our vision is to make good quality educational content available to everyone for free, so that every child enjoys learning, every child fulfils her/ his dreams, every child feels confident of what he/ she knows and learns, every child is empowered with education. Education is everyone’s right! Let’s educate and empower!”

July 2018

COVER STORY

Rajani Paranjpe Door Step Schools

Anushka Yadav writeback@scoonews.com

he Society for Door Step Schools was founded by Rajani Paranjpe, also known as Rajani tai, along with her student Bina Lashkari and other colleagues from Nirmala Niketan College of Social Work, Mumbai in 1989. Its aim was to address the three major issues related to education of children from marginalised sections of society through its various programs namely non-enrolment, wastage and stagnation. Door Step School, Pune runs various community based programmes for the

Primary Education of the underprivileged children for their school enrolment and support classes for them to be able to cope up with their studies in school. Through these programmes, DSS also works with parents in order to raise awareness about the importance of education and their role in it. Door Step School also runs programmes in government schools, which are categorised as School Intervention Programmes. Recognised for her contributions to the field of non-formal education on various occasions, Professor Rajani Paranjpe is a Rotary Club Pune Vocational Excellence awardee (2003 and 2009), Maharshi Karve Stri

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Shikshan Santha Bava Puraskar awardee (2008) and a Pune Marathi Granthalaya Matrusmriti Purskar awardee (2011). She currently serves as President of the Door Step School and continues to strive for the education and welfare of underprivileged children.

Igniting a spark â&#x20AC;&#x153;During all these years of my work I have never given a thought to this question. It is difficult to say which is the most satisfying part of my work - every part of it is satisfying, must be so, otherwise it would not have been possible for me to continue doing it year after year. But when I look at the entire

process now I think the most satisfying moment in my life is the one when I see that spark in the eyes of a student which shows that he/ she has understood what I wanted to say and has opened a new gateway of ideas.”

Every child counts “My motto is very simple and apparently very easy to achieve: I want every Indian child to be able to read and write if nothing more. I think every child counts, as every one of them is a precious gift of god. My motivation comes from within and without. I am a teacher by nature – it is my instinct. I like to share with others what I know and always wanted to be a

teacher in my life. But the motivation for the work which I am doing now is based on my experience, exposure and training. As a professional social worker, I was exposed to situations in slums, the conditions in which children live and grow and the reasons which keep them away from schooling. I used to teach Research Methodology and worked in our college’s Research Department on various research projects. This experience showed me again and again and brought to my notice very clearly that education, however minimal, makes a difference.”

Miles to go “My field experience of working for

adult literacy showed me very clearly that teaching children is far easier than teaching adults. These and such other experiences helped me in my decision to focus on literacy of children and I am doing it to the best of my capacity but unfortunately the end is not in sight. My dream is to reach out to every child who does not have access to education and find out a suitable way of making that child literate. It is really disturbing to see how so many children fall through the cracks – and how so many different problems come in our way in achieving the simple goal of making every child able to read and write.”

July 2018

COVER STORY Anushka Yadav writeback@scoonews.com

n educator, mathematician and renowned columnist for various reputed journals and magazines, Anand Kumar started Super 30 programme in Patna, Bihar in 2002. With an extraordinary vision and a down to earth attitude, he provides education to economically backward students for the toughest examination in India - IIT-JEE. A speaker at reputed institutions such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University, Kumar’s work has been showcased by Discovery Channel. He has also been invited as a participant on ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’.

Anand Kumar Super 30

Anand Kumar has made it possible for 422 out of 480 students to enroll in the IITs in 2018.

Taking education to those who lack resources “Today, education reaches to those who can afford it whereas those who have the talent, power and the will to do something extraordinary often lack access to basic education. We at Super 30 believe in giving education to those who have that zeal and talent but lack the resources; it is this aspect of my work as an educator that makes me want to go to sleep with satisfaction every day.”

Lessons in patience “My late father has always been my motivation and pillar of strength. I lost him at a young age but everything that he taught me continues to help me every day. He taught me how to maintain my calm even in the toughest of rides. He said it is important to be patient when someone is revolting against you even when you are doing a good deed. My father has taught me everything from how to speak and behave, to becoming a better educator. It is his words that motivate and empower me.”

Powering dreams “My dream and vision for all the children is to live in a country where they don’t have to leave their education despite having the talent and the will to study; each child deserves to get quality education and fulfill their dreams.”

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Mukti Gupta Help Us Help Them Nichola Pais editor@scoonews.com

elp Us Help Them (HUHT) is a non-profit organisation working directly with underprivileged children catering to their needs of education and overall development since 2005. Their aim is to provide educational support to underprivileged children, enrol poor students in mainstream and boarding schools, provide healthy nutrition, and educate students about hygiene and cleanliness. The vision of HUHT is to develop good human beings, who in turn will give back to society in the future.

Under the inspiring Mukti Gupta’s direction, currently HUHT runs two projects for 600 children with 35 faculty members. These include a rural school in Mallickpur (South 24 Parganas) Primary education (Nursery – 1) and Supplementary education (Class 2- 10). They also run School-On-Wheels (SOW), a mobile classroom, bridging the gap between mainstream school and street children. Their upcoming projects include a free residential school for over 1000 underprivileged children with facilities at par with any other residential school in India, and a

management tie-up with Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences to provide quality education.

Inner Satisfaction “When you see the transformation occur in a child coming from the underprivileged section of the society working as a child labour, indulged in the act of begging, drug exposure and how through education you can change him/her to a self-sustained person who then becomes capable of taking his and family's responsibility in a better way… there is a deep sense of inner satisfaction. Help Us Help Them was started in Mallickpur with 10 students and three teachers and today we have 675 students and around 35 members. In our 12 years, we have managed to spread education among thousands of underprivileged children where many of them were first generation learners.”

Small leaps towards dreams “I take it as my responsibility and duty to give back to society what it has given me. Also, I strongly believe when you selflessly work towards something with good intentions, God gives you

immense strength and power to keep going. This is the driving force behind me that helps me overcome challenges. And these challenges are actually a learning process. I get empowered to see a child getting empowered. I feel inspired to see how my students are getting moulded in the right way and taking small leaps towards their dream. The motivation I get when I see other families coming to our school with their child because their neighbour's child is doing well is matchless as it spreads the message that education is needed.”

Wheel of help “My dream and vision is to imbibe values in order to make good human beings by providing them an access to education and helping them spend their childhood in schools and not just work for a meagre income. Integral education is also very important and that's why we strive to ensure that extracurricular activities are part of the curriculum for a holistic education which we provide to our students. I want to see all the children, give back to the society selflessly by supporting the underprivileged section of the society in the same manner how they've been supported.”

July 2018

COVER STORY

Mukesh Sahay

Sonaram High Secondary School

Nichola Pais editor@scoonews.com

irector General of Assam Police, tough cop Mukesh Sahay kept a tight rein on law and order during his tenure. In fact, insurgency activities had shown a sharp decline as he operated with a firm hand. Post superannuation in April this year, Sahay turned to a possibly tougher mission – teaching kids maths! Aware that the Sonaram High Secondary School in Guwahati had been functioning minus a Maths teacher for two years, he offered to fill in and that was that! Ever practical, he points out that he is

simply offering his services; at the end of the day, it depends on how the students take it. And the students are evidently taking it very well, as are the school authorities. Mukesh Sahay’s simple guiding philosophy – lighting a candle rather than cursing the darkness - mirrors his mission of quietly yet effectively making a difference.

Joy multiplied “I was born in a village in Bihar. I did my studies in Patna. I did my postgraduation in Physics. I also have a degree in law and diplomas in i) Intellectual Property Laws in the Internet age and ii) Cyber Laws. I have been working since my school days to

July 2018

augment my family income and to sustain my studies. I joined in the Indian Police Service (IPS) in 1984 and worked in Assam, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Sashatra Seema Bal (SSB) in various capacities. I demitted office on April 30, 2018 as the Director General of Police (DGP), Assam. Immediately afterwards, I have been volunteering my services in school education specially in Mathematics and Physics. This is for my own pleasure primarily. If the students get benefitted, this pleasure will multiply manifold.”

Giving back “The school where I started volunteering my services did not have a

Mathematics teacher for two years for classes XI and XII. Post retirement, I decided to fill up this gap for my own satisfaction and for the benefit of the underprivileged students. The burning desire to pay something back to society was the real motivator behind the move. This gives me great satisfaction because it helps me keep physically active, mentally engaged and socially relevant. But the real satisfaction will come if and only if the students get benefitted, even on a nano scale. Quality school education is the key to social transformation and is the fundamental right of every child. I am strongly of the view that all citizens, especially the educated ones, must contribute in this process.”

Try to light a candle “I am very fond of quotations. Some of the quotations that constantly motivate and propel me are as below– i.

Rather than cursing the darkness, try to light a candle.

ii.

Challenges are what make life worthwhile. Without challenges life won’t be worth living.

iii. Struggle is life, stagnation is death. The strong urge to do something for society, especially the less privileged and the underprivileged gives me strength, stamina and the motivation to keep mov-

ing and keep going. To help the students is my humble contribution in this direction. I am no dreamer neither am I a visionary. But I do strongly believe that quality school education is the fundamental right of every child. It is the key to transforming society. Access to quality education only can provide equality of opportunity to all and will lead to an egalitarian society driven by democratic values. A quality education will bring the best out of every child and help them actualise their potential. This will help the nation, society and civilisation achieve the desired objectives. Such an education system will provide required knowledge, skills including life skills and attitudes to transform the children into worthy members of society, community and the nation.”

July 2018

COVER STORY

Safeena Husain Educate Girls

Nichola Pais editor@scoonews.com

n active social worker and founder-Executive Director of Educate Girls, Safeena Hussain works to tackle issues at the root cause of gender inequality in India’s education system. Educate Girls empowers communities to facilitate girls’ education in rural India and helps them take a stand against gender inequality. Their mission stems from the belief that if girls in educationally backward districts are educated, they will have the potential to enter the formal economy, gain employment and lift their families out of poverty. Working in partnership with the government, the community and with the help of 11,000+ community volunteers (called Team Balika), Educate Girls has helped ensure higher enrolment and attendance for girls as well as improved learning outcomes for all children. Established in 2007, Educate Girls has grown from a 500-school pilot project in Rajasthan to now serving over 21,000 schools spread across 15 districts in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. They aim to achieve behavioural, social and economic transformation for all girls towards an India where all children have equal opportunities to access quality education.

The turning point “I grew up in Delhi. After my schooling I took a break and went to a Krishna Ashram on the banks of the Ganges in Rishikesh. This gap year helped me connect with my inner self and develop a sense of charity and service. After graduating from the LSE, and spending

over a decade working with grassroots development projects in Latin America, Africa and Asia, I finally decided to return to India. When I moved back, as I was deciding what I should dedicate my life to next, a personal incident led me back to a cause that was always close to my heart – that of girls’ education. On a project for setting-up a clinic in a village at the foothills of the Himalayas in north India, my father and I came across a group of women. They asked him how many children he had and my father, putting his arm around my shoulder, answered, “This is it. This is my daughter, my son, my everything!” The women replied to him by lamenting his misfortune over the lack of a son. I realised in that moment, in which I felt both angry and sad, that women and girls were still being discriminated against. I asked myself what would be the most sustainable way to create gen-

July 2018

der equality – Educate Girls was the answer. After a 50-school test project followed by a 500-school pilot project in Pali, Rajasthan, Educate Girls was independently registered in 2007. Since then, Educate Girls has consistently scaled its operations and presently works across 15 districts of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. There are over 4.9 million total beneficiaries of its programmatic interventions, since inception. Educate Girls works in educationally backward districts by partnering with the government and mobilising communities to achieve impact in three key outcome areas – Increased enrolment and retention of girls and quality learning for all children.”

Education’s transformative power “I once remember asking an out-ofschool girl, ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ She replied, ‘I

don’t know, No one has ever asked me this question, so I’ve never thought about it.’ This same girl, enrolled into school by Educate Girls, is now studying well and aspires to be a police officer. This is the transformative power of education! I am firmly convinced that education is the most effective means of offering the same opportunities to excel in life to girls and boys, women and men - thus promoting social equality. I strongly believe that creating community ownership and involving people in the process of social transformation is a powerful way to sustain change. Our volunteers from the villages have a motto, ‘My village, my problem, I am the solution’. Also, we have seen that in patriarchal communities it is essential to involve the men and boys in conversations. More often than not, girls are not aware about their rights and boys don’t know that they are violating a girl’s rights.

Ultimately, gender-inequality is a mind-set issue and that’s what our activities address.”

Educating one girl – educating future generations “Not a single girl I have met so far has said to me that she does not want to be in school. For me, and everyone at Educate Girls, nothing compares to the joy of seeing girls, in their school uniforms, with their book and bags, walking to school and learning well! We celebrate every single enrolment because we know that by educating that one girl we have educated future generations! The feeling of seeing a child improve in their learning because of some additional help from us, is phenomenal. Ultimately, the fulfilment in achieving actual impact for these underserved children is what keeps us

going in spite of the challenges and set-backs and this is why we so work hard. This commitment to every child has always been at the forefront for Educate Girls and because my vision was about solving a widespread issue, from the start Educate Girls’ model was about being ready for scale. When we started expanding to more districts I wanted to be sure that Educate Girls would continue to be accountable to the last child and so we have always pursued innovation and partnerships that enable this accountability. This is also why Educate Girls initiated the world’s first Development Impact Bond (DIB) in education, which is a proof of concept that ties funding to pure outcomes. My dream is to one day wake up to an India where every daughter in the country is no longer discriminated against and where every child has access to quality education and equal opportunity.”

July 2018

COVER STORY Parvathy Jayakrishnan writeback@scoonews.com

hen a teacher at a reputed public school decides to change life for herself and for others, there is no stopping her. Nirmala Tandon spent 17 years in a prestigious school as a senior teacher of history, happy and content in her chosen career path and amidst children all the time. Her life took an unexpected turn when her husband, who is the Founding President of a society called IIMPACT, offered her a chance to spread education to girls living in remote villages.

Nirmala Tandon IIMPACT

IIMPACT is a registered society, started by the IIM-Ahmedabad alumni batch of 1978, whose primary focus is educating girl children from socially and economically disadvantaged sections of society. There are many gaps in economic progress and many social

July 2018

causes that beg immediate support in a country like India. But perhaps none are as compelling as the lack of literacy and lack of social status among large numbers of girl children and women in general. Nirmala started going to the villages a couple of times a week, stayed with the girls in mud homes and started enjoying the stay with them. There was no tap water and not even toilets. Their simplicity, happiness, innocence and hard work were an eye opener for her and had an impact on her life, making her humble. The office was lovingly decorated with pictures of the happy faces of little girls, their stories as told by them, their thoughts and sayings filled with sheer innocence. â&#x20AC;&#x153;All these gave me the courage and encouragement to move on forward. In truth, it is they who made me realise life's realities.

Sometimes I would stare at the posters and imagine girls smiling. Meenu, Bhuteri, Kavita, Pooja, Neelam were all on that poster. Very often I asked our guests to do the same and they agreed with me as well,” Nirmala says. Slowly yet surely, the fruits of her work over the past years became a reality. Girls, with the support of IIMPACT, are today continuing their studies after class 5, passing with first division marks, appearing for class 10 and 12 Board exams, pursuing graduation, getting jobs and the rapid spread of their mission in 11 states have touched the lives of over 85,000. She says she finds it difficult to believe and wonder if she is just dreaming when she sees her dreams and that of the girls come true.

Visible transformation “Providing education to girls who

were out of school, first generation learners from the remote rural underprivileged sections of the society, has been the most satisfying aspect of my work as an educator! I am amazed to see how keen the girls were to learn, to come to the learning centre on a regular basis and how they graduated with flying colours. The girls are continuing to study further and are well-settled in their lives today, enabling their parents to attain better living standards, sending their daughters to school and most importantly many of them coming to the same centres as teachers. This is truly bringing transformation in blocks where we are present.”

Banishing illiteracy, bringing smiles “I taught in a prestigious public school and thereafter chose to work for the underprivileged in remote villages on an honorary basis for 15 years. My

motto is to see blocks free of poverty and illiteracy to empower the poor as the future of India lies in the villages. The warmth and affection of the communities, their eagerness to send their daughters to school, boundless energy and spirit, the positive change, the request to open more centres motivated me to bring smiles, cheer and happiness in the lives of these girls and the communities.”

Competing with the privileged “Our girls should stand on their own feet. Freed from the shackles of illiteracy, they should be able to compete with their privileged peers on par, and excel in areas they choose, to attain a quality of life far better than their parents. They should become good honest human beings, responsible citizens of our great country and also contribute to society in whichever way they can.”

July 2018

COVER STORY

Shukla Bose

Parikrma Humanity Foundation

Nichola Pais

Rajendranagar, Bengaluru. Today, with four schools (Jayanagar, Koramangala, Sahakarnagar and Nandini Layout) and one junior college, Parikrma Humanity Foundation continues to offer high quality education, hope and support to 1,802 children from four orphanages and over 99 slums in the city.

In the year 2003, 165 children from marginalised families started a new chapter in life, huddled together on a small roof-top in a school in

Helmed by the indefatigable Shukla Bose, Parikrma supports each child from the age of 5 until the age of 25, when they are an active and contributing member of society. Parikrma aspires to provide quality education on par with privileged children. They prove that underserved children have the ability to do as well, if not better, when given an opportunity. They have the highest attendance in the country at 96% and the lowest drop-out rate at

editor@scoonews.com

July 2018

less than 1%. Parikrma Humanity Foundation has been awarded the Derozio Award for excellence in special education and social commitment. Parikrma also received the Governorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s award for exemplary social work in January 2007. Parikrma Humanity Foundation is now a chapter included in Cornell University and IIMB. They have also received the CNBC Digitalising India Award 2016 for the category of Digital Innovation in Driving Social Impact, CSR Awards for being one of the 50 Most Impactful Social Innovators in 2016.

Confidence and humility â&#x20AC;&#x153;It gives me most satisfaction when I see my students learn every day. They

are like sponges and soak up new learning with great enthusiasm. It is greatly satisfying to see them apply that learning into the real world and question the validity and actually find other innovative ways to deal with the issue. I feel very happy when I see my students make special effort to be caring and compassionate. I like them being confident but it gives me great joy to see their humility as well.”

Writing the true narrative “I truly believe that education is the only way that we can do true nation building. And when I say building a nation, I mean that while the young generation needs to be proud of their heritage and past, they need to also be aware that they are also the

citizens of the world. I am so convinced that quality education is the only way we can create a safe and peaceful world, that every day I wake up with renewed energy and a sense of purpose to do my little bit. And when I see that however little my contribution might be, it is actually transforming lives of the children and their families, I know I cannot stop and have to continue to improve my children’s lives. Working with slums and poor communities is very challenging because it takes generations to change mind-sets and way of thinking. We have seen slow shifts in the way the poor are thinking and that keeps me motivated all the time. I want the Parikrma children to write the true narrative of the poor because they are qualified to do.”

Preparation for responsibility “I believe that somehow although we, as adults, have not done a good job, our next generation are far more astute and generous in their thought process. We need to continuously inspire them to understand that they have a role to play in making our world a better place. So while education helps them to get recognition and better jobs, education should also prepare them to take on the responsibility of the world. My dream for the Parikrma students is that they will be the role models of their community, hold their head high with dignity and create many more Parikrma schools after I am dead and gone. It is then that my mission will have been fulfilled.”

July 2018

COVER STORY

Aditya Natraj

Kaivalya Education Foundation

Anushka Yadav

and business development positions in Europe.

writeback@scoonews.com

n 2008, Aditya Natraj established the roots of Kaivalya Education Foundation and subsequently launched the Gandhi Fellowship programme - a 2-year full-time programme to train young people in leading social change, with 1000+ Fellows and alumni.

On returning to India, he took over and steered Pratham Gujarat into becoming the state’s largest educational notfor-profit. Aditya is an education expert for Monitor Consulting and a member of the Advisory Board of the Nirmala Niketan College of Social Work in Mumbai. He has an MBA from INSEAD in France.

Before beginning his journey as the founder of KEF, he qualified as a chartered accountant and worked as a corporate finance consultant for KPMG before working in senior management

Currently, he oversees development of 1400 school leaders, 4200 district leaders and 1200 state leaders across 15 states to effect systemic change and improve student learning outcomes.

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He has been awarded various fellowship and awards, namely the Ashoka Fellowship, Echoing Green Fellowship, Aspen India Fellowship and the Times Now Amazing Indian award in the Education category.

Impacting teachers’ lives “The greatest joy in my work is creating meaning, pride, learning and joy in the lives of teachers. I enjoy helping teachers see meaning and purpose in their work. Teachers have to see how every action of theirs is moulding a child’s heart and mind. Every warm gesture of theirs is inspiring a child to be generous. Every positive

stroke is helping build self-esteem. I enjoy bringing back the pride into the teaching profession. Today, doctors, engineers, lawyers are felicitated, but not teachers. Unless we as teachers start taking pride in our own work, in our own actions, no one else will respect the work we do. I enjoy helping teachers become learners, reflective practitioners in service of children. Unless we as a profession learn, we will get bored ourselves and not be able to inspire children! I enjoy bringing joy into the lives of teachers! Helping them have fun while teaching. Teaching need not be boring, stern, disciplinarian – it can be warm, engaging, team based.”

Joy in service “The journey is the destination. We are all on this earth for a purpose. And that purpose is quite simple – to serve humanity with whatever skills we have. Few of us have been given the opportunity to serve others by being involved in education, helping mould values of the society of tomorrow, helping shape futures of young people. I see no challenge. I only see joy in this opportunity to serve.”

Cognitive and conative skills “I dream that children get a more holistic education beyond cogni-

tive, lear n-by-rote alone, to also include socio-emotional development and conative skills. Socio emotional learning helps them connect with others, empathise, work in teams, be more self-aware, gain more self-control, be more content while still acting in this world, and take better decisions. Conative skills help them persist when the chips are down, develop resilience, tenacity, purpose, meaning, drive, energy. Without socio emotional and conative skills, with merely cognitive skills, a child cannot truly enjoy her life and be of service to her family, community and country.”

July 2018

INSPIRATION

“ONE CHILD,

ONE TEACHER, ONE BOOK & ONE PEN,

CAN CHANGE

THE WORLD”

Image Credits: nationalgeographic

– Malala Yousafzai

Image Credits: Glamour

July 2018

MALALA YOUSAFZAI’S

Extraordinary Journey Now A Movie Director Amjad Khan decided to make a biopic on the brave girl. With its first motion poster storming through social media, Gul Makai traces the courageous and extraordinary journey of the inspiring activist.

Anushka Yadav writeback@scoonews.com

n October 9, 2012, a young girl was shot by a Talibani gunman in Swat valley while she was going to school. However, a fighter, an educator, a women rights activist, an inspiration and the youngest Nobel Prize laureate was born that day, even as Malala continues to go from strength to strength. In an effort to immortalise Malala’s story, director Amjad Khan decided to make a biopic on the brave girl. With its first motion poster storming through social media, Gul Makai traces the courageous and extraordinary journey of the inspiring activist. A pseudonym of the Pakistani activist Malala, she used Gul Makai as her pen name while writing blogs for

BBC Urdu during the subjugating Talibani rule. Featuring TV actor Reem Shaikh as the Nobel laureate, the poster exhibits the character with an exploding open book depicting the spine-chilling life of Malala Yousafzai. Aiding to the expressive visuals, Kabir Bedi’s voice reverberates, “This is about those times when the Taliban was destroying Pakistan and Afghanistan in the name of Jihad and religion. When from a very small village in Pakistan, a voice arose...” The shooting of the film had begun in 2015 but was disrupted due to conflicts in the Kashmir valley. It will also be Om Puri’s last film accompanied by a song recorded by him. The official synopsis of the film, as quoted by The Indian Express, reads, “Gul Makai accounts the courageous

Image Credits: DumKhum

journey and struggle of Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai, from her humble upbringing in the Swat Valley to her becoming the champion for free education to all. Gul Makai is a small tribute to this lion-hearted girl who is in every essence a global citizen championing a cause that transcends boundaries, caste, religion and geography.” Shot in the valleys of Kashmir, the film features Divya Dutta, Mukesh Rishi, Abhimanyu Singh and Ajaz Khan while tracing the then-horrifying socio-political environs of Pakistan.

July 2018

FEATURE

Is homework really necessary?

July 2018

Parvathy Jayakrishnan examines the pros and cons and suggests a golden mean

Parvathy Jayakrishnan writeback@scoonews.com

Image Credits: myhomeworkhelp.com

emember those student says when we would wait for the bell to ring and just before that the teacher would say “Homework” and then we would go, “Ohhhhh!” Well, the approach of students towards homework has not changed much over the years. However, it is indeed high time that teachers start rethinking the whole concept of homework so that it can become a more effective tool for children to learn. Homework is typically a method used by teachers to reinforce topics taught in school. It is indeed effective if children make an effort to sit at home and work on a topic they learnt in school that day. Their memories would be fresh and homework is an opportunity for them to read more about the subject, explore deeper, gain a better understanding and clear doubts, if any. Homework is also an easy way for parents to be involved in their children’s school work, if they find time and inclination to sit with them and see them through it. According to Deepa Gayathri, academic co-ordinator at Orchids international school, Bangalore, “Homework is to reinforce the concept taught in the class. A study shows that the retention capacity is increased in this process. With the above underlying purpose, homework is beneficial.” However, Bangalore-based parent Jayshree Vaman differs in her idea of homework. “When a child spends the whole day in school learning, then why is this revision needed through the

July 2018

Image Credits: care.com

FEATURE

week? If required, a review can be done the next day or at the end of the week. Maybe a voluntary review by the parent can also be done.” Homework can be effective if there is a proper schedule and routine and if it is not overdone. For this, various subject teachers need to coordinate among themselves and make sure that all of them don’t give homework on a particular day which can end up taxing the students. They can even have a timetable for homework days to make it easier. WHEN HOMEWORK BECOMES NEGATIVE Stanford researcher Denise Pope found that too much homework can negatively affect kids, especially their lives away from school, where family, friends and activities matter. "Our findings on the effects of homework challenge the traditional assumption that homework is inherently good," wrote Denise Pope, a senior lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Education and co-author of a study published in the Journal of Experimental Education. Many students apparently feel forced or obligated to choose homework over developing other talents or skills. Researchers have found that students who spend too much time on homework experience higher levels of stress and physical health problems. Too much homework has also been shown to have a negative impact on

students’ social lives. Homework is painful for students if it takes away their play time or the time they use to engage in other recreational activities at home. Remember, they spend a good 7-8 hours in school learning and they deserve a few hours a day to take time for themselves. Too much of parental interference in school work can also be a hurdle for students. There may be clashes in the methods adopted by the teacher and the parent and this can ultimately confuse and frustrate the student. Also, when there is too much homework, some students often copy the work done by a classmate and that can do no good to them, rendering the entire idea of homework pointless. According to Richard Walker, an educational psychologist at Sydney University, data shows that in countries where more time is spent on homework, students score lower on a standardised test called the Program for International Student Assessment. The same correlation is also seen when comparing homework time and test performance at schools within countries. Past studies have also demonstrated this basic trend. Inundating children with hours of homework each night is detrimental, the research suggests, while an hour or two per week usually doesn't impact test scores one way or the other. MAKING HOMEWORK PURPOSEFUL When a teacher sets homework, he/she should be clear about the purpose of the homework. It can either be to rein-

July 2018

state the topic taught, to kindle curiosity in the student or a group activity homework which can help improve their social skills and make them realise that learning in a group can be more effective and fun than learning on their own. Homework does improve fundamental skills such as time management, organisation, task completion and responsibility. Parents can talk to teachers if there is consistently too much homework or if it gets too difficult for students. Now, since parents are constantly in touch through school WhatsApp groups, such issues do not remain with the students. If enough parents speak to the teacher, there might be a pattern that emerges that a teacher can address, either by covering the subject more in class or by assigning different homework. It is also okay to prioritise sleep and health over homework sometimes but parents need to make sure that it does not become a pattern. This can be sorted out with a little help from the teacher. The ‘homework debate’ is one that can never conclude. Opinions can vary from teacher to teacher. However, giving homework has its own positives and negatives. Teachers need to just make sure that their students are not taxed to the extent that they find it too stressful. That is when nothing good emerges from the entire exercise of homework.

FEATURE

CTET 2018:

CRACK IT TEACHER! Nichola Pais editor@scoonews.com

CTET OVERVIEW

The Central Teacher Eligibility Test makes a valuable addition to a teacher’s qualification, says Nichola Pais

The implementation of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act brought with it an enormous need to recruit quality teachers to fill the vacancies in various schools. If every child is to receive quality education, it is imperative that the right kind of teacher is recruited. With this view, the National Council for Teachers Education (NCTE) laid down the rule that a candidate aiming to join a school has to clear the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET). The responsibility of conducting the CTET is entrusted with the Central Board of School Education. Here’s decoding CTET…

What? The Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) is an examination conducted by the government to set national benchmarks and quality standards in the recruitment process for teacher jobs. Prospective candidates gain a better understanding of the teaching processes and are on the path to becoming leaders for students. It induces teacher education institutions and students from these institutions to further improve their performance standards. A positive signal is also sent to all stakeholders that the government lays special emphasis on teacher quality.

WHEN? Conducted by the Central Board of

July 2018

Secondary Education, the test will be conducted in 92 cities all over the country on September 16, 2018. It is applicable for teaching from class I to VIII. The exam can be attempted as many times as you wish. Validity of the certification lasts for seven years. Candidates who wish to teach from class 1 to 5 must appear for paper I and those desirous of teaching class 6 to 8 must appear for paper II. Candidates can also opt for both papers simultaneously.

WHY? The exam process is open, fair and transparent. Clearing CTET is based purely on merit, capability and sincere preparation through authentic text books. Tremendous success and opportunities lie ahead for those who clear the CTET. A CTET qualified teacher gets additional opportunities in central and state government schools along with aided and unaided schools. CTET certification adds credence to your academic qualifications, increases your salary package, leads to promotions and grants better grade pays. Schools that hire CTET certified teachers, add prestige and legitimacy to their organisation. Thus is opens the doors to new openings in the industry for professional growth. Additionally, it ensures students gain better standards of education.

HOW? Preparing for CTET might seem like a challenging task but is well worth it. In order to score well, start preparing

through recommended study materials. Giving mock tests gives one an idea of the level of your prep and practice in answering the exam. Given that the CTET success rate is not high, it is important for candidates to learn the syllabus thoroughly before appearing for the exams.

IN A NUTSHELL… The CTET exam is conducted offline. The duration is of two-and-a-half hours i.e. 150 minutes with 150 questions carrying total of 150 marks. The paper comprises objective type questions. There are five sections, with each section comprising 30 questions. There is no negative marking. The CTET syllabus is different for papers I and II. Paper I (for Classes I to V) comprises 30 marks for 30 questions in each section of Child Development and Pedagogy, Language I (compulsory), Language II (compulsory), Mathematics, and Environmental Studies. Paper II (for Classes VI to VIII) follows a similar pattern in the sections of Child Development & Pedagogy(compulsory), Language I (compulsory), Language II (compulsory), Mathematics and Science (for Mathematics and Science teacher), Social Studies/ Social Science (for Social Studies/ Social Science teacher).

A FEW POINTERS… Be thorough with the CTET 2018 exam pattern. Understand the CTET syllabus completely to help prioritise topics to prepare, and also to know which topics to answer first during the exam. Refer only to authentic text books and syllabus suggested by NCTE for preparation. Plan your test-taking strategy and pre-decide the amount of time you would like to give to each question. While preparing, time yourself in order to complete all questions smoothly on the day of the examination. Give online mock tests to gain an understanding of the pattern of the exam and ascertain your strengths and weaknesses. Solve previous years’ papers to gain confidence and work on your limitations. Do not try to learn new topics at the last minute but revise and practice the topics you are already strong in. Focus on child pedagogy, child development and teaching methods. Relax, eat and sleep well. Try not to panic and keep stress at bay. Like teachers advice their students, it’s just an exam after all! Refer to ctet.nic.in for further information.

July 2018

OPINION

OPPORTUNITIES & Challenges Arunabh Singh writer@scoonewsjaipur

in Education The education sector is rife with opportunities but, at the same time, it is peppered with challenges, says Arunabh Singh

About the author: Arunabh Singh is Director, Nehru World School, Ghaziabad Opinions expressed are solely those of the author's and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of ScooNews (Edupulse Media Pvt. Ltd.).

July 2018

Arunabh Singh writeback@scoonews.com

he education sector is one that is rife with opportunities, but at the same time, it is peppered with challenges of every shape and size. Many of these challenges - policy, legal, financial, governance etc. - are regularly discussed when educators get together for a meeting or a conclave. While such fora are also great places to discuss trends, technology and the future of education, there is one overarching question that continues to bother many school principals and management heads. This is a question that needs urgent redressal before the

challenges of the future can be answered…The Question of Trust How does a school ensure that the parents trust the school to do the best for their children? How does the school ensure that the students trust the teachers? How does the school ensure that the media does not distrust the schools at every step of the way? These are some of the questions that were raised while I was moderating a recent panel discussion with school principals. Interestingly, the answers to this particular problem of ‘trust’ have been found by many schools, while others are still to implement these best practices. Let me explain, with a five-question test. (Give yourself 2 marks for every question you get right!) Q: How do you develop an attitude that helps foster trust between parents/teachers and the school?A: Some schools have figured this one out long ago. The answer lies in involving parents and ensuring transparency in key areas like safety board/ audit/ curricula. When parents themselves see the inner working of a school and how complicated things can be, they will be your biggest supporters in times of crisis. Let parents explain issues to parents before the school has to defend itself from any action. Q: Why has the trust deficit between parents and schools widened so much of late? Has the media too played a significant role?A: The media does nothing more than exploit the trust deficit between parents and the school and use it to its advantage. In the case of an unfortunate incident at the school, does the management try to cover it up? Or do they clarify the matter/ involve the parents/ take action and look for solutions? If the school is open for parents to walk in with concerns, if the school has great social media presence with regular updates of what the kids have been doing, if the school can communicate the fact BEFORE incorrect messages become viral on WhatsApp, then there is no question of trust being dented. Q: How to convince all stakeholders about the purpose of the school?A: If there is genuine concern and care of the students then the parents would like to believe that the school is there for their development. The problem is that many say that ‘Child is the centre of Education’ and then remove the child from all planning/ decisions

regarding that education. Everything is about marks and not what the child wants to learn. Of course, once we have zeroed in on what our goal is then we need to address the massive gap between teaching and learning. Q: Not only parents, how do you address the lack of trust between students and teachers? A: Like students, teachers too can err, and in today's age of social media that mistake can be amplified. The answer to this is not to deny or brush away an issue - rather admit that there has been a mistake in teaching, involve the parents and make everyone comfortable with the fact that this is a learning process for everyone. There is no harm in asking parents for help in trying to find solutions to problems at school! Q: Finally, how does a school principal manage to find so much time to do so much, besides administering the school? A: If the principal is running the school on his/ her shoulders, then that person needs some lessons too! The principal needs to set up and monitor the systems that run the school and not do the job directly - otherwise, there never will be time for the core job of quality education. If you are not scoring an eight or ten out of ten on this basic question of trust, then there needs to be urgent action on your part; because the bigger question of technology is lurking around the corner that threatens to make education (as we know it today) absolutely redundant. The Question of Technology It is no longer the stuff of fiction that most of the jobs that we know today that we train our students for today will vanish in the next 20 years. We are already seeing automation hit the IT sector and from here Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning will take over many more industries and sectors. How do we then make our kids smarter than machines? How do we make them ready for jobs that haven’t been invented yet? How do we give them tools to adapt rapidly, be resilient, able to unlearn and relearn? These are the questions that will keep educators busy over the next few years. However, for technology to be used productively, first human trust has to be a stronger bond than our link to technology.

July 2018

EVENTS

CII NORTHERN REGION ANNOUNCES SCHOOL SUMMIT 2018

AMIT KAUSHIK

VAIBHAV SRIVASTAVA

NIRAV KHAMBHATI

Chairman, CII School Summit 2018 & CEO, Australian Council for Educational Research (India)

Head â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Business Development (India and SAARC DTO), CISCO Systems India Pvt Ltd

Partner, Kaizen PE

July 2018

Arunabh Singh writeback@scoonews.com

he need to improve the quality of school education as a vital precursor for the country’s economic growth can hardly be overstated. It is at the school level that the intellectual and moral foundations of children are built so they grow to be responsible and contributing citizens. While some schools are performing well, most of the schools in India are yet to gear up to take on the increasing demands of quality education as per international standards. With increasing awareness, there is tremendous pressure on the education system to provide quality education in an affordable manner. CII perceives these challenges as opportunities for all stakeholders, including government and private sector schools. According to Amit Kaushik Chairman, CII School Summit 2018 & CEO, Australian Council for Educational Research (India), “The biggest challenge before us today is achieving quality education for all children while ensuring equity. In our pursuit of this goal, the CII Northern Region national summit on school edu-

cation promises to provide an opportunity to share ideas that have worked and to learn from the best.” To address these issues and concerns and to discuss quality education in the country, CII Northern Region is organising a mega CII School Summit - A Million Good Schools Now! on July 17 – 18, 2018 at Chandigarh. The objective of the conclave is to bring together all concerned stakeholders like Public/ Private schools/ Academics/ Educationists/ Centre & State Governments/ Consultants to brainstorm on emerging trends/ concepts in school education. Vaibhav Srivastava, Head – Business Development (India and SAARC DTO), CISCO Systems India Pvt Ltd. says, "A Million Good Schools Now summit is a great initiative by CII to bridge the gap between schools and industry. With the ever-changing face of technology, it is imperative to align our school system to the desired outcome of industry ready workforce. I applaud CII’s efforts and am excited to be a part of this summit as a distinguished panellist speaker." According

Nirav

Khambhati,

Partner, Kaizen PE, "There are very few catalysts - as powerful as education - that are available to any nation for ushering in broad-based and rapid development. CII’s School Summit is an effective platform for bringing together all the relevant stakeholders and discussing a broad range of issues that are currently most relevant for India’s K12 system." The focus areas of discussion at CII School Summit - A Million Good Schools Now will be: Quality in School Education Opportunities & Challenges Importance of Setting Learning Outcomes & Systematic Assessments

Clear Using

The Role of the Teacher CSR in School Education Education Revolution Technology Innovation

through

Prakash Javadekar, Hon’ble Minister for Human Resource Development, HRD Ministry, India has been invited to be the Chief Guest at the summit. Leading thought leaders, government

July 2018

EVENTS

functionaries, and experts will be presenting at the CII School Summit (A few of them are listed below): Amit Kaushik, Chief Executive Officer, Australian Council for Education Research (India). Narayanan Ramaswamy, Partner & Head, Education Sector, KPMG. Ashish Dhawan, Chairman, Central Square Foundation. Dr Rukmini Banerji, Executive Officer, Pratham.

Chief

Arunabh Singh, Director, Nehru World School. Dr Swati Popat Vats, President, Podar Education Network.

Euphrates Gobina, Executive, UNICEF, India.

Chief

Dr Madhav Deo Saraswat, Principal, Scindia School, Gwalior. Dr Hrushikesh Senapaty, Director, National Council of Educational Research & Training (NCERT). Vinnie Jauhari, Director – Education Advocacy, Microsoft Corporation India Pvt. Ltd. Garima Babbar, Head Strategic Alliances – Education & Skill Development, Adobe Systems India Pvt. Ltd. Nirav Khambati, Partner, Kaizen PE. Divya Lal, Chief Operating Officer,

July 2018

SmartClass Educational A report on Quality in School Education - The Untapped Potential by KPMG & CII will also be released at the summit. The summit is an ideal opportunity to learn, network and meet with the think tanks present. For more information, please contact: Vishal Beri, Deputy Director (Confederation of Indian Industry) +91-172-2607228 | +91-9878834500 | vishal.beri@cii.in

FEATURE

With the world growing at lightning speed, schools act as the vehicles of change. Are they equipped for the challenge? asks Anushka Yadav

Quality of Teaching in Indian Schools:

DO WE MAKE THE GRADE?

education and our educators that the herculean task to create such a world seems possible.

Anushka Yadav writeback@scoonews.com

’m going to be a doctor!” “I’m going to be an engineer!” “My parents want me to become an IAS officer one day!”

The education system might help us figure out the professional journey we choose to walk on, but it is imperative to rekindle and protect the light of hope and humanity in a world of wars, disbelief and apathy; a world that enriches the little saplings of humanity into humane beings, their beliefs and values blossomed for a world that seems impossible to exist. It is through

Generations of lives are transformed through education - the most powerful tool that shapes and colours the tabula rasa or the blank slate of a child’s psyche that advertently changes, not just their perspective, but also the world itself. Our education system should provide avenues of learning for change rather than awarding schools for churning out professionals, who are skilled in filling their pockets by emptying the nest of a million others. Professor Claxton of the Bristol University Graduate School of Education said, “If we design an edu-

July 2018

Image Courtesy: i.pinimg

Image Courtesy: The Doon School website

cation system from which 40% of young people emerge with little but a sense of failure, there is a fault not in them, but in the system.” Probably the second largest education system in the world, the Indian education system tries to inculcate value learning and practical skills in its curriculum but often misses its target. Value learning is not about transforming individuals into saints, it is about educating individuals into beings who can put their schooling to practical use while effectively balancing between their professional and personal life along with being positive participants on the world stage. Rarely do we teach and encourage students to think, thereby, creating an endless cycle of individ-

uals cramming their way into the world. However, even after more than 15 years of education, we often find ourselves questioning the importance of the endless list of subjects that we have to study. The answer becomes clear as we step into the real world where years of memorising theory fails to deliver in the practical and the professional world. And while for decades we have heard several HRD ministers promise education being a top priority, we feed generations of students that education is essentially a rat race where scoring top marks in all subjects is a prerequisite for a successful career and life.

Now, clear your mind of the years of false education to let this be your first experience as a student. Imagine yourself dressed in a uniform, back to school surrounded by the innocent hustle bustle of hundreds of school mates passing by. The school bell rings for the classes to begin while you are filled with anxiety to ‘rote learn’ maths, sciences and languages… And then when the gong strikes for the first period and the teacher comes in with a warm smile, she writes on the whiteboard “COMPASSION” … Did you feel the anxiety melt away? In one moment, the palpitating fear to fail before you even began transforms into an eagerness to learn. Imagine going to school filled with

July 2018

FEATURE

Several education ministers believe that students should be given passing marks, even when failing in SSC and HSC examinations because if the students who have failed commit suicide, the state government is put under the radar of blame-game. This is where the true colours of our education prism are visible as the powers-that-be fail to understand that increase in student suicide rates are a result of the wobbly and unreliable education system. Passing each student without rearranging the patterns of the complex puzzle of education will only make the growing populace unprepared for the reality. While we fail to recognise and learn from schools abroad about the urgent need for emphasis on the development of skills and a practically prepared as well as emotionally well-equipped individual, renowned institutions such as the Doon School set an extraordinary example: when asked by the alumni their dearest memory from their school years, they unanimously responded “MIDTERMS!” Midterms at the Doon School are a lesson of and for life as students plan an adventurous trip all by themselves twice a year, usually for five to eight days during the months of March-April and September-November. The students of junior classes are accompanied and mentored by a tutor while students of class 10 and above are given the freedom to go on an adventure filled with thrilling experiences and memories. Sandeep Dutt, Chairman, Learning Forward and also an ex-Dosco, shared a nostalgic incident of his 1976 Midterms where he and his teammates took 10 days to come back to their campus while no one from their school came looking for them. “It showed leadership and trust on the part of our teachers and Headmaster, they believed that we

Schools

19901991

20102011

(in lakh)

Teachers

6 to 17 yrs (in crore)

110 32 (also includes 4 to 5 year olds)

Class 1 to 12 (in crore)

Enrolment in Private School

11 (assuming school condition with 300 student per school on avera

School-going population Student Enrolment -

2030-2031(Projected)

30 (also includes 2 years of pre-primary)

Pupil - Teacher Ratio

Expenditure on School Education (in Rs.lakh crore)

0.12

1.86

(% of total anrolment)

will come on our own; it reflects outward bound learning as well as experiential learning,” he vouches. An activity that induces several skills and values such as teamwork, leadership, planning and management, empathy, punctuality and time management, courage, strength, recognition of their original selves and their teammates, it is an essential learning process in the lives of Doscos. An initiation by the Adventure Club of the school, the philosophy behind the activity rests warmly in the words of Sir Edmund Hillary: “It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.” In contrast to such innovative and dedicated schools, we have government as well as private schools wherein we lack the basic necessities and resources such as clean washrooms and playgrounds while a PGT teacher who fails to write a good letter in English, crushes the morale of a student who fails to get a good score on the same subject. In an era where technology is changing every six months, our current education system wishes to thrive on archaic methods of teaching and out-dated knowledge. Although, the government expenditure on education has grown in-line with GDP and per child spending has increased in real terms, independent surveys such as ASER 2014 show that learning levels have largely remained flat over the last decade, possibly even declined; we might have witnessed an increase in quantity but we have dramatically decreased in quality. According to the central square foundation, the number of enrolments will observe a steady rise, therefore, making it urgent for the quality of teaching and resources to match the graph efficiently.

July 2018

20.4

Ironically, more than half of our population considers teaching as a ‘secondary profession’ just like they consider arts or humanities as the last resort for a student. Even if the education system is transformed overnight into an actual temple of learning, the scarcity of curious and passionate teachers will always remain the biggest hurdle. The potentially talented teachers who can change the sluggish education scene are never given the quality training they deserve and need to further scale up the quality of education in the country. Thus, the need of the hour has always been of skill-based teaching and education with emphasis on the cultivation and recognition of values in not just students and their parents, but also in schools and the teachers who are ultimately responsible for the effective quality of teaching in India. The parameters of assessment of the quality of education in the country needs to be washed off by an unwavering wave; prior to the assessment, it is imperative that schools organise a monthly SWOT analysis wherein the graph for strength increases steadily in contrast to its weaknesses, while the unavoidable threats are recycled into opportunities for the school as well as the pupils. With the world growing at lightning speed, schools act as the vehicles of change and if imagining a school that teaches practical skills, arts, empathy, compassion and other interesting subjects, makes you want to get up and rush to school and envision your life as a better one; then, why deprive our youth of an education that makes them crave the next sunrise that leads them to a place they can indeed call their Learning Temple!

Table Courtesy: Central Square Foundation

anticipation, curiosity and happiness to learn something new while each day we are encouraged to think, speak, explore the world and our true selves, and engage in subjects like respect, empathy and self-understanding, rather than suppress who we truly are. Imagine education that gives us the freedom to choose and decide whether we wish to take the ‘road less travelled’ or the ‘road most travelled’…An education system that teaches subjects of life and wisdom till primary or junior school before giving its students the fat books of sciences, arithmetic and languages, wherein scoring a higher grade equals success.

INSPIRATION

Against the Odds

These toppers are an

INSPIRATION! Anushka Panda CBSE Class 10

97.9% Suncity School, Gurgaon Anushka Yadav writeback@scoonews.com

very year, the education world witnesses diamonds who shine despite immense pressures. May 2018 was no exception as the CBSE and ICSE results of Classes 10 and 12 were declared, bringing forth moving and inspiring stories of students across the nation. These are real-life tales of courage, diligence and persistence as these youngsters faced tremendous odds to emerge out of the ordinary and become an extraordinary inspiration. Board results are an integral part of an Indian student’s life and the remarkable zeal of these differently challenged adolescents brings a message of hope and strength to build a promising future.

ScooNews presents a few such shining examples from among the many who beat the odds. Here’s saluting these young heroes…

With a total score of 489, Anushka topped the CBSE Board Examination 2018 in the differently abled category with 95 in English, 99 in History, 99 in Mathematics, 98 in Science and another 99 in Social Sciences, respectively. Even though muscular spinal atrophy made her extraordinary success challenging, her resolute spirit was crystal clear. “As a child born with a physical disability, I have faced lots of harassment in my day-to-day life, from public places to my areas of education. Yet I always keep my self-esteem high to achieve success, whatever difficulties may come with life,” she vouches. “We, at Suncity School, are very proud of Anushka,” avers Rupa Chakravarty, Principal, Suncity School. “The focus that she possesses is rare to find in other children. She is determined and does not allow any obstacle to overpower her. Her benchmarks are very high. She is an inspiration to all of us. What she has achieved, many other students would not be able to.”

A resident of Sector 67, Gurugram, Anushka loves playing chess during her leisure hours and aspires to become a software engineer. “I am thrilled on finding out that my hard work has paid off. It is really a big moment for me. I was really nervous before the results,” an elated Anushka declares. Sharing her mantra of success, she adds: “I was consistent in my preparation from day one itself. I would like to thank my school, which has been extremely supportive. Since I am a special child, my school ensured that I was provided with special infrastructure to write my examination.” Her parents are equally delighted by their daughter’s success. “I am proud of my daughter. Her excellent performance in the board examination is a testimony to her determination and perseverance,” says Anushka’s father, Anup Kumar Panda who works for a company at Bhiwadi. Her mother Archana Vashist Panda also works with a private firm in Gurugram.

July 2018

INSPIRATION

The taste of victory is sweeter for these young students who battled severe odds and won, writes Anushka Yadav

Sanya Gandhi

Somya Deep Pradhan

CBSE Class 10

97.9% Uttam School for Girls, Shastri Nagar, Ghaziabad Sharing the spotlight with Anushka Panda, even damaged optic nerves couldn’t dent Sanya Gandhi’s fierce courage. Rather, it helped her to stay away from social media, which she claims is a major distraction for students her age. Sanya studied meticulously during the day while spending the rest of her time relaxing and listening to music. She adds, “My parents never stopped me from pursuing anything I liked. My teachers have been very supportive. I cannot believe that I could get such high marks as I was aiming for 90% marks. Becoming the country topper is a dream come true!” Also an excellent singer, Sanya aims to become an IAS officer as she firmly believes that a strong country can be built by hard-working civil servants.

July 2018

96.8% Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Dhanpur Diagnosed with poor eyesight at the age of one-and-a-half, Somya has been undergoing surgeries since then as his parents refused to give up their hopes for his treatment. With an eye power of minus 13 (13), he spent 12-14 hours per day studying. Expecting a score of 95%, he was thrilled that he surpassed his expectation, giving credit to his parents and his teachers who supported and motivated him. He aspires to become a successful doctor someday and enjoys playing chess, painting and improving his orating skills during his free time.

Lavanya, CBSE Class 12 97.4% DPS RK Puram, New Delhi

With the third highest marks amongst the differently abled students, Lavanya is 40-43% visually impaired due to a genetic disorder she was diagnosed with when she was in Class 9. However, her determination and the support of her helpful teachers never allowed her disorder to become a barrier. She adds, “I never really expected to perform this well. Of course I was extremely happy to know that all my hard work had paid off. My teachers’ notes played a crucial role in my preparation.” She now aspires to pursue Psychology from Lady Shri Ram College at Delhi University.

Agam Dua, CBSE Class 12 90.6% DAV Public School, Ludhiana Agam’s journey with cerebral palsy illustrates an applause-worthy story of valour and dedication. Agam didn’t opt for a scribe and completed each exam within four hours. According to CBSE rules, students with medical conditions are given four instead of three hours to complete their exam. Agam rose above all limitations to achieve a high grade of success and his family’s pride in his achievements is there to see.

Salman Ahmed CBSE Class 12

90.8%

Sakshi Rathi ICSE

92.20% St John’s Universal School, Goregaon Sakshi lost her mother to brain haemorrhage in the middle of her exams. The day before her mother’s death she had given her History exam, while her Geography exam was approaching in four days after the unfortunate incident. Thanking her father and elder sister for their constant support, Sakshi excelled in the exams with flying colours. She shares, “It was hard for me to prepare for the exams but it was possible because of my family. It is a tribute to my mother.” Rising Above Amongst many students hailing from economically weaker sections of society, there were two students who stood out with brilliant scores in the 2018 board examination, making their respective families and schools proud.

St. John’s High School, Chandigarh A resident of Bapu Dham colony, a densely populated area known for antisocial activities, Salman chose to look at the rising sun and work hard for his board exams. This son of a private carpenter scored an excellent 90.8% in the Science stream.

Shehreen CBSE Class 12

80% Kundan Vidya Mandir, Ludhiana A native of Sultanpur, Uttar Pradesh, Shehreen showed extraordinary zeal despite the uncertain circumstances. Abandoned by her father as a child, along with her four siblings, Shehreen’s mother passed away due to a brain stroke in December 2017. As a result, she could not even appear for her pre-board exams and had decided to quit studies to return to Uttar Pradesh. However, her teachers motivated her to prepare for the board examination. The youngest of five siblings, she is the first to have cleared class 12 and aspires to complete her graduation from Uttar Pradesh.

July 2018

INSPIRATION

Prince Kumar CBSE Class 12

97%

Vedant Damani

Delhi Government School

95.02%

ICSE Vibgyor High School, Malad Vedant suffered a nasty accident at his home when he twisted his leg and fell, leading to pieces of a broken vase entering his elbow. He had to undergo surgery just a day before his History exam. However, Vedant managed to write all the exam papers by himself. To his credit, he kept his calm and did not panic before his exams, thanks to his vigorous prior preparations.

Saaket Basarkar

Son of a DTC bus driver, Prince Kumar made his parents proud when Manish Sisodia, Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, congratulated Kumar via Twitter for being the topper of Delhi Government School. Prince scored an impressive 97% in the Science stream with 100/100 in Maths, 99/100 in Economics and 98/100 in Chemistry.

ICSE

93.60% Universal High School, Thane In December 2017, Saaket was diagnosed with ocular myasthenia which means that the eyeball in his right eye droops and he is only able to see with his left eye. Despite this medical adversity, Saaket managed to score 98 out of 100 in Computers. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was strenuous for me to study with one eye, especially for a subject like Computers, which requires looking at the screen. I made sure that I took breaks in between,â&#x20AC;? he adds.

July 2018

TECH IT OUT

Boreal Tales Boreal Tales is a literary and artistic creation ecosystem designed specifically to motivate elementary school students to write. Vinay Singh writeback@scoonews.com

Whether making engaging presentations or motivating your elementary school students to write, here is a curated list of tech aids to add value, interest and easeâ&#x20AC;Ś

Using the hundreds of objects and characters provided with the game, students quickly create amazing stories using both images and words. Writing is completely

integrated in the game mechanisms and is therefore never a chore but an integral part of the fun of playing. Boreal Tales relies on the most recent studies in the field to offer an experience needing no prior abilities. http://borealtales.info/

Microsoft redesigns Office

Technology major, Microsoft has redesigned Office to make it simpler to use. Microsoft is reducing the size of the ribbon â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the toolbar that for so many years has been loaded with buttons. New colours and icons should make Outlook and the other Office apps more accessible. As part of the update, icons have been modernised so that their functions are more obvious. When working in a document, users can hover over comments to get them to change color, and on the Office website, they can hover over the name of a file to get it to virtually pop forward. The search box in the Office website and apps will automatically offer you suggestions of people and files based on your usage, and the search suggestions will vary by app. The Office revamp comes two months after Google unveiled a redesign for Gmail.

Adobe Spark Adobe Spark for Education is a simple but powerful creativity, presentation, and storytelling tools available to schools for free. If you are looking to create narrated videos, printed materials, graphics, or writing assignments that students can quickly and easily turn in, Adobe Spark is the solution for you. Adobe Spark can be used on desktops, laptops, iOS devices, and Chromebooks. https://spark.adobe.com/home/

July 2018

TECH IT OUT MoxieReader MoxieReader recommends books to students based on reading level and interests and has a strong social component to encourage conversation and interaction about books and reading. This tool can motivate students through a team-based game system that connects individual reading to peer team members and their teachers. At the same time, MoxieReader provides goals for students and supports teachers and reading coaches with alerts if any of their students need extra support.

Haiku Deck Haiku Deck allows you to create a quick and easy slide deck online (or via an iPad app). The goal is to make the presentation engaging, not an informational overload, and Haiku Deck has the tools to make it happen. Using Haiku Deck is very simple: You enter a few keywords of text onto a slide, and the app searches a database of over 35 million Creative Commons images that suit your subject.

MoxieReader makes reading more exciting and interesting for kids. It also makes the tasks related to increasing reading proficiency easier for teachers and parents. The Teacher Dashboard lets teachers manage their use of MoxieReader and view details of their studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; activity. In the Teacher Resource Center there are resources ready to use in the classroom during Independent Reading activities and to support the use of MoxieReader.

https://www.haikudeck.com

http://www.moxiereader.com/

TYTO Online Tyto Online is a studentdriven Next Generation Science learning tool â&#x20AC;&#x201D; in a video game. Learners explore phenomenon-driven quests that ask questions like why Himalayan rabbits' fur has different colours even though they all share the same genes.

Extempore Extempore allows instructors to obtain and assess authentic speech without having to schedule face to-face time with each student. Instructors can now create an activity on the Extempore website, selecting a set of parameters for each question, depending on the learning objectives. When configuring a final exam or any other form of summative assessment, for example, the teacher may limit the time the student has between reviewing the prompt and answering the question The Extempore app also allows the instructor to decide whether students can re-record their answers. For practice assignments or for any other form of formative assessment, on the other hand, timing restrictions can be more flexible.

Students have their own customised character that represents them and earn rewards in the game as they progress. TYTO Online uses role-playing to enable deep learning with gameplay that is itself the learning. https://www.tytoonline.com/

https://extemporeapp.com/

Workplace by Facebook

Workplace by Facebook, a work chat and communication platform that looks just like Facebook, is now free to use for the staff and volunteers of education providers and nonprofit organisations, the company recently announced. The application is designed to look and function just like Facebook, with the same ability to post status updates, create groups, read and like updates in a News Feed, share photos and live video, and deliver real-time translation powered by artificial intelligence. No limit has been placed on the number of employees or participants an educational and nonprofit organisations using Workplace can include.

July 2018

TAKE2

READ

5 CLASSIC & TIMELESS NOVELS FEATURING INSPIRING TEACHERS THESE TEACHERS ARE TRUE EDUCATORS WHO TRANSFORM THE LIFE OF THEIR STUDENTS

Vinay Singh writeback@scoonews.com

All these novels feature a teacher as the compelling central character and are as inspiring and relevant as when they were first published.

To Sir, With Love by E.R. Braithwaite The focus of the narrative is upon Rick Braithwaite's first year as a teacher at Greenslade Secondary School on London's lower East Side, a rough, lower class area of the city. How he brings the class around and imparts lessons for their future forms the crux of the story.

July 2018

TAKE2

READ

Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco It took a very special teacher to recognise little Trishaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dyslexia: Mr. Falker, who encourages her to overcome her reading disability. If only every struggling child had such a teacher.

Matilda by Roald Dahl

Sahara Special by Esme Raji Codell

Scorned by her own parents, the young protagonist, Matilda, finds solace in the company of her schoolteacher, the sweet and supportive Miss Jennifer Honey, who supports her academically and emotionally when no one else sees her value.

Sahara has never had a teacher like Miss Pointy, the new fifth-grade teacher. Through Miss Pointyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unusual teaching, storytelling, and quiet support, Sahara finds the courage to overcome her fears and shows her true self.

Anne of Green Gables & Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery In Anne of Green Gables, her teacher, Miss Stacy, has unorthodox and liberal teaching methods that others criticise, but she becomes a much-needed role model and mentor for Anne. In the second book, Anne begins her job as the new schoolteacher and the real test of her character begins. Along with teaching the three Rs, she learns how complicated life can be.

July 2018