March 2020 | `35
Vadamalai Media Group Publication
In this issue Tania Ghosh A-Level Physics Teacher Calcutta International School Kolkata
Ashwani Kumar Vivek Chemistry Facilitator for Cambridge Int. and IGCSE Sanjay Ghodawat International School, Kolhapur
Anuja Panwar Chemistry Educator MYP/IB DP Pathways School, Gurgaon
Preeti Pasricha Assistant Primary Coordinator C P Goenka Int. School
Comparing teachers’ status, salaries worldwide Can micro-credentials compete with traditional degrees and help in getting a job? Harvard and Yale come under federal probe How India’s colleges and universities are joining the Edtech wave How to educate future generation with AI becoming more useful and widespread Mitsubishi Electric extends CSR initiative to 5 Govt. schools around Chandigarh No room for lectures to first-year students of top universities in UK
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UNIQUE EDUCATION JOURNAL
April 2018 | `30
School March 2020
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Who can reform Indian education and reset Indian education goals?
FOUNDER LETTER
This seems to be an ideal world. The one we live in is the best of all possible worlds, right? So, educators have a duty and also a right to ask questions. Prof. Sukanta Chaudhuri, Professor Emeritus of Jadavpur University, Kolkatta has written a thoughtful piece in the Economic Times of 6th February, 2020. We like to request someone who may be near the PMO to bring this piece to the immediate attention to the Prime Minister himself. It won’t take more than, say10 minutes and so the PM can be drawn attention to this piece which elaborates and succinctly puts all the questions that might be agitating to educators, teachers, and students and why even the ones like State Governors who are now the Chancellors of the Universities. Unfortunately, as things stand in India the education system is not producing a greater India, instead we are all feeling like ponies, small men and women when it comes to what we read about the state of our education. Prof. Chaudhuri sums up so clearly what is wrong with our education system in which India doesn't find a mention even in the world’s top 100 universities. Every year thousands of students compete for very limited seats, be it in Delhi or in other cities. For instance, in Delhi, St. Stephen's college is fancied very much as the elite college but do you know that most students enter the college under several quota systems. It is a Christian denomination institution and as the government policy on reservations is such that the best not always gets in. Something like 20,000 students compete and how many can hope to get a fair chance? So too, universities the world over! Now, the Indian students flock to foreign shores where the chance of staying back for work for 2 years in UK, 3 years in Australia and for other lengths of time in the USA. Prof. Chaudhuri says that first – intellectual and honest must prevail and we must know that university staff, students are thinking people. They represent the collective intelligentsia. So, they might often disagree with bureaucrats and practical politicians. So, there could be conflicts of opinion. Everyday new problems crop up. You see that the latest Supreme Court judgment on eliminating criminalization of politics where the persons contesting elections with a criminal history must explain why he or she did involve in criminal issues, this must be uploaded on the website within two days. Such judgments might go against the wishes of ruling party. But we have to accommodate such divergent views. As for education we have to update the quality. At Oxford too, something like 20,000 students compete and something like 7,000 students only get in. The national Educational Policy didn’t take off. The innovative ideas only can make a university great. The current eruption of protests all over India and in the leading universities, some of the best 10 are the ones that came into the public attention, JNU, Jamia Millia, and others. No Indian university came in the top 300 world universities in the World University Rankings in the Times Higher Education(THE) World University Rankings. This must be our one goal. How Indian universities must aim for inclusion in the rankings. Then only other changes we might effect. So, there is genuine dissatisfaction after the higher education has become a mass-market.
V. Isvarmurti Founder & Chairman SCHOOL | Unique Education Journal | March 2020 | 3
State of Indian education
P5 Why study Humanities? There are three great benefits in studying humanities
P6 Humanics: A way to ‘robot-proof’ your career?
Ashwani Kumar Vivek Chemistry Facilitator for Cambridge Int. and IGCSE Sanjay Ghodawat International School, Kolhapur
NRI conundrum – lower levels of civilization by Kaustav Bhattacharyya
P8 Mitsubishi Electric extends CSR initiative to 5 Govt. schools around Chandigarh
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P22 P16
Hybrid learning How India’s colleges and universities are joining the Edtech wave
Preeti Pasricha Assistant Primary Coordinator C P Goenka Int. School
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P20
‘Techlash’ hits college campuses
P24 No room for lectures to first-year students of top universities in UK
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P26
EDITORIAL
State of Indian education We have to wait for an opportune time for things to change for the better The only latest news we read is that for instance, with 40 Central Universities there are reportedly 6,000 and odd posts of university professors, teachers whose posts are empty, remain unfilled! If you are interested in higher education (May God bless you!), then you have the problem (or headache?) to get to know the latest developments in the appointments of Vice-Chancellors.
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ducation budget is now 3.71%, dipped from 6.15% of the Union Budget between 2014 and 2017. Not just funds can improve education. Education can be improved only if we search for intellectual debate and freedom of expression for the and public intellectuals. Education has become big business in India. It is now becoming m o r e e x p e n s ive a n d a l s o m o r e questionable in terms of quality and job market. May be the education sector is also becoming more fast growing economic sector. The only beneficiary, it seems, are the education promoters. The sheer numbers would daunt anyone engaged in this sector. From the primary level onwards, education is also becoming so expensive almost everyday. The very pressure of numbers is such that even the States and Central Government are forced to take note of the public discontent and there are any number of education issues, from the fees fixed for the LKG to UKG and also the medium of instruction from the very beginning, at the LKG level itself and also the medium of instruction. The teaching of mother tongue is also becoming an issue. Even for admission for the LKG the capitation fees range something from one to two lakhs, if not more. That is one reason why very many new fancy names for the schools crop up. You can call them by any name, no more such traditional names like Montessori
The edge in admissions is that the new names, new promises and new franchisees and what have you. The daily newspapers carry any number of education ads, many times in a week you have full-page ads and in multicolor. And next to full-page ads, there are also ads for tuitions and also for various c o mp e t it ive e x a m s f o r va r i o u s competitive exams. Oh, then you have the American SAT and GRE, GMATetc.
In law, the State Governors are the heads of Universities, the Chancellors, they are supposed to be the appointing au t h o r it i e s , a n d t h e G ove r n o r s ' signature legitimises the appointments. Then, as we write, there are some ex-VCs languishing in jail (or, are they out on b a i l ? ) .W hy t h i s h a p p e n e d ? T h e appointment of VCs is guided by the search committee names. These search committees themselves are problematic.
Take one recent example of the Tamil Nadu Government exams for State government jobs! It is becoming a scandal of the first order and you have such juicy information about who played what role and every day arrests are made and the so-called accused are produced before the courts and sent to jail for a number of days. What a waste of time and energy and what a pass we have come to! Then there is higher education. Here every thing is in a mess! There are now separate ministers for higher education. Nothing wrong.
There are any numbers of illegalities. Only recently, as we know things in TN, some Governors have taken themselves seriously and appointed some names in a bureaucratic manner. One or two good names also have come up. But given the mess in which we have run into this sector we really need to radically constitute a new committee of competent persons who can also stand up to the new types of ruthless education entrepreneurs, whom we term as real adventurers(see the people who are now crorepathis in higher education as you can see them in the Southern States, it is next to impossible to reform this sector u n l e s s yo u a s s u m e s o m e e x t r aConstitutional powers! Education promoters amassed money and wealth through very many devious routes.
We do need ministers to tackle the mess i n h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n . G iv e n t h e complexity in imparting various degree courses, from professional courses, say in medicine and engineering to general degree courses in arts and sciences there is a whole new breed of e du c at i o n i st s , ad m i n i st r at o r s t o teachers, from Vice-chancellors to professors, a whole new generation of academics are now in great demand.
They are such diverse fields like films, even a Member of Parliament and also in many other fields like media, TV entrepreneurship etc. The final point we want to make is when India would retain its foreign degree seeking craze. The Universities in USA,UK,Australia and New Zealand are minting money by charging Rs.35 lakhs and above! May be we have to raise our hands in the air and say: Helpless in education reforms!
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Why study Humanities? There are three great benefits in studying humanities
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ne is the intrinsic fascination of what the humanities teach us about the world, about ourselves, and about society. Understanding the hopes and endeavours of our forebears illuminates our present: that is the gift of history. Learning from the stories we tell one another about love and grief, aspiration, the experience and passions of others, life’s complexities and promises: that is the gift of literature. Exploring, clarifying and evaluating our assumptions and beliefs, the ideas that shape our view of the world and the systems of thought by which we live: that is the gift of philosophy. These studies throw light on our world, giving us both a wide horizon of view and a deeper and richer grasp of what matters in it. The second is that these studies constitute an unparalleled training of the mind, which happens almost effortlessly as one goes through the intellectual adventure itself. To think with clarity, acuity and versatility, to acquire understanding with wide scope, to combine a breadth of knowledge with an ability to be precise and penetrating – these are the outcomes of an advanced education in the humanities, especially in the way that students and faculty here at NCH study them together, as colleagues in the enterprise, with the one-to-one essay-based tutorial as the gold standard for honing and deepening the powers of intellect. The third is the platform that the humanities give us for life. A good degree in the humanities is a platform for setting out on successful careers in a wide range of fields, where the humanities-fostered qualities of mind are in high demand. But we are not just our careers: we are also friends and parents, lovers and travellers, voters, socialisers, holidaymakers, participants and contributors to much besides; and above all we are life-long learners facing constantly changing challenges – and opportunities – in a constantly changing world. Studying the humanities is a platform to be good at all these things in all these ways, and thereby to be a true citizen of the world and its future. Professor A C Grayling Master of New College of the Humanities, London
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Is English a language of the oppressor?
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here is still a controversy over the use of English in Ireland, a fierce nationalist country in this world. See the language of Swift, Shaw and Wilde, all Welsh-born and yet made lasting contribution in English language. The intransigence of some Northern Irish Unionists has certainly caused many problems over the last 110 years; but it is now Sinn Fein that is being unreasonable by insisting on the introduction of an Irish Language Act as a condition of its return to Stormont (report, December 16). According to the last census, only 0.2 per cent of the population of Northern Ireland use Irish as their main language in the home. There cannot be anyone in any part of Ireland who cannot understand English nowadays, and putting up bilingual road signs and having every document published in both languages is a colossal waste of time and money. While I would support the teaching of any native language to those who wish to learn it, granting Irish equal status in Northern Ireland makes no more sense than reintroducing Latin to record English court proceedings. As long ago as 1886, the Society for the Preservation of the Irish Language received a despairing letter from a teacher in Letterkenny who complained that the pragmatic parents in his area all wanted their children to learn only English. The English that is spoken throughout the Irish nationalists as the language of the oppressor; but the Normans who conquered England and then Ireland spoke no English. English is in fact a language that has developed over the last 900 years primarily in England and Ireland, and it belongs to us both equally – as the works of Swift, Shaw and Wilde have amply demonstrated. Source: The Hindu
Can micro-credentials compete with traditional degrees and help in getting a job?
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icro-credentials are bite-sized chunks of education, acquired either online or bootcamp certificate or apprenticeship from a traditional university. The skills gap means companies are increasingly considering candidates from non-traditional paths. Could targeted, bite-sized chunks of education help you get a job? In 2011, Scott Young took on a challenge that perplexed many of his peers. He would attempt to complete an MIT computer science degree without enrolling in the elite Boston-based University, using free materials that MIT posted online. Young built a curriculum using recorded classes, did the necessary assignments and exams mirroring the constraints and conditions (to the extent possible) that MIT students were subject to. He graded everything himself, using the solutions and marking schedule that MIT made available. In the end, he ‘completed’ the equivalent of what an MIT degree might look like without paying any tuition fees. His only expenses were the required textbooks. Young already held a bachelor’s degree in business, as he explained in his 2012 TEDx Talk. But several years into his career, he knew he wanted to study computer science. Yet he didn’t want to commit to a four-year degree; if a degree was like eating a five-course meal, he wanted his education ‘a la carte’. Young’s approach to education might be an anomaly, and it’s important to note that he undertook the project out of curiosity rather than as a training mechanism for a programming career; he did not obtain an ‘official’ MIT degree. Yet as the cost of a university education continues to balloon, many wonder
whether the return on the investment is worth it and if there might be alternative paths to job success. Enter microcredentials. While higher education and human resources experts all have slightly different interpretations of what they are, many agree that the concept has emerged in response to the skills gap caused by new technologies. Essentially, micro-credentials are bite-sized chunks of education, whether an online course, bootcamp certificate or apprenticeship from a traditional university, specialty provider or online learning platform like Coursera, EdX or Udacity. Many individuals already use microcredentials to broaden their skillsets. Still, some have suggested that in the future, a prospective employee might be able to ‘stack’ these credentials together in place of a university degree. The idea is that it would be more accessible and provide a more affordable – perhaps more targeted – path into employment.
Digital transformation and the growing skills gap Simon Nelson, CEO of FutureLearn, a UK-based learning platform that partners with universities to provide massive open online courses (MOOCs), believes that micro-credentials arose out of three global “macro trends”. One is the rapidly growing demand for highquality tertiary education in developing societies, while the second is the digital transformation that has taken place in many industries. This change is “exacerbating the traditional skills gap”, says Nelson, and universities aren’t providing the training for the “range of new skills that are in high demand”. The third factor is the digitisation of the higher education sector, he adds. It’s no longer enough to obtain a degree; having
a career now requires people to upskill continuously, yet “people can’t take the time out of their lives to attend physical establishments”. Sean Gallagher, the founder and executive director of Northeastern University’s Center for the Future of Higher Education and Talent Strategy, says that global economic expansion in the technolog y fields has “really highlighted the fact that there is a gap between the supply of people in the workforce coming out of university with skills and credentials to fill the gaps employers are looking for”. This isn’t unique to developed markets like the US and the UK; such gaps can be seen in the Malaysian education system, for example, as well as Latin American economies like Colombia. ‘We need more connections and discussions between industries and universities, where on-the-joblearning is part of the curriculum’ – Noam Mordechay, VP of Enterprise Innovation at AI-driven hiring platform Gloat In the US, where there is currently an e x t r e m e l y t i g h t l a b o u r m a r ke t , employers are increasingly looking beyond college graduates. Shawn Thorne, partner and co-head of product, data and technology practice at global talent management firm True, says he’s b e e n a s ke d b y c l i e n t s t o t a r g e t c a n d i d at e s f r o m n o n- t r ad it i o n a l backgrounds. “I think that these microcredentials are a piece that companies use in order to advance their candidate pool,” he says. Source: www.bbc.com Read more at: https://bbc.in/38CJdLt
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Humanics: A way to robot-proof your career? How to educate future generation with AI becoming more useful and widespread The World Economic Forum suggests many white-collar jobs, like accounting, will be at risk from future automation, while the OECD says low-skilled jobs will be most vulnerable and there’ll still b e a st r o n g c o r r e l at i o n b e t we e n education and income. Either way, skills are becoming outdated faster than ever before. “A generation ago, the half-life of a skill was about 26 years, and that was the model for a career. Today, it’s four and half years and dropping,” says Indranil Roy, the head of the Future of Work Centre of Excellence, set up by global consultancy Deloitte.
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o prepare for a future where AI w i l l l i ke l y d i s r u p t e n t i r e industries, some say we’ll have to rethink how we educate future generations. As artificial intelligence becomes both more useful and more widespread, workers everywhere are becoming anxious about how a new age of automation might affect their career prospects. A recent study by Pew Research found that in 10 advanced and emerging economies, most workers expect computers will do much of the work currently done by humans within 50 years. Workers are clearly anxious about the effects on the job market of artificial intelligence and automation. Estimates about how much of the workforce could be automated vary from about 9% to 47%. The consultancy McKinsey estimates up to 800 million workers globally could be displaced by robotic automation by 2030. Some jobs will change dramatically, while others will disappear altogether.
Future-proofing your career is less about picking a safe job and more about constantly updating your skills throughout your career, according to Northeastern University president Joseph Aoun, who wrote Robot-Proof: Higher Education in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.
So if automation makes the job market a little like a game of musical chairs, is there a way to make sure you’re still employed when the music stops? Can education help you robot-proof your career? He says education needs to change dramatically if workers are to adapt to this new environment. His solution, which he calls humanics, has three basic pillars: Technical ability: understanding how machines function and how to interact with them. As both artificial intelligence and robotics become ever more capable, machines will step into roles once monopolised by humans. Some employees won't last, but others will find themselves working with machines, and probably being vastly more productive as a result. Workers with grounding in coding and engineering principles will be better placed to thrive in this new kind of workplace. Data discipline: navigating the sea of information that's generated by these machines. Workers will need data literacy to read, analyse and use the almost bottomless troves of information that are increasingly guiding everything from major business decisions to stock picks to purchasing decisions. And the human discipline: "which is what we humans can do that machines for the foreseeable future, cannot emulate.” Aoun says this includes creativity, cultural agility, empathy and the ability to take information from one context and apply it to another. In educational terms, this means less emphasis on the classroom and a greater emphasis on experiential learning.
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Aoun says the rapid pace of change isn’t necessarily a negative, but it does mean yo u’ l l p r ob ab ly n eve r o u tg r ow homework. It also means universities will need to shift their focus towards lifelong education and training midcareer workers.
“We’re constantly becoming obsolete. And in some ways that’s an enormous opportunity for us all to re-educate ourselves and update ourselves. Those that are able to do it will be able to flourish,” he says. Aoun worries that the tertiary education system currently isn’t equipped for this new reality. He says many universities are f ar too focused on four-year undergraduate courses and academic research. Source: www.bbc.com Read more at: https://bbc.in/2HzVPai
Third of non-EU University students in UK come from China
More than 120,000 Chinese students enrolled at British universities in 2018-19
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he number of students from China at British universities increased again last year, with the latest figures showing that recr uitment of Chinese students outstripped those from other countries. Th e Hi gh e r E du c at i o n St at i st i c s Agency’s breakdown of students in UK higher education last year showed that the number of students from China rose ab ove 1 2 0,0 0 0 f o r t h e fi r st t i m e, accounting for more than one in every three non-EU students. While the number of new students coming from EU countries rose by 2% despite the political turmoil over Brexit – the numbers from outside the EU rose by 10%, with those from China alone rising by 13%. The figures underline the sector’s reliance on tuition income from overseas students. Since 2014-15 the number of Chinese students enrolled in the UK has risen from about 89,500 to more than 120,300. Students from India increased from about 18,300 to more than 26,600 in the same period, while Italy, France and Germany each sent more than 13,000 students to the UK in 2018-19. For some of England’s most prestigious institutions, international students have fuelled their expansion. The London School of Economics now has more fulltime undergraduates from outside the UK than from inside: 2,380 from the UK, including just 15 from Scotland, and 2 ,630 from international and EU countries. At University College London
(UCL) and Imperial College, undergraduates from the UK make up only a little more than half of the total enrolled. Chris Skidmore, the universities minister for England, said the figures showed that the country’s institutions were able to attract students in a competitive i n t e r n a t i o n a l m a r ke t . “ I a m de l i ght e d t o s e e a c o nt i nu e d increase in both EU and non-EU students, and we want to grow the number of international students to 600,000 by 2030,” Skidmore said. “Our universities thrive on being open, global institutions, which is why we’re allowing international students to remain in the UK for two-years post-graduation.” NonUK students now account for more than 485,000 of the 2.38 million higher education students at UK universities. The figures also showed that the increase in students awarded top degree classes has come to a halt, following several years of rapid growth at some institutions that raised concerns among policymakers. The HESA statistics found that universities awarded firstclass degrees to 28% of graduates in 2019, a figure little changed from 2018. In 2015, universities awarded first-class honours to 22% of graduates. Last year, a further 48% received upper second-class (2:1) classifications, down from 50% in 2015.
But Gavin Williamson, the education secretary, said universities needed to remain vigilant that they were not succumbing to grade inflation that wo u l d h a r m t h e i r i n t e r n a t i o n a l reputation. “It’s something that we’ve had countless conversations about, both with the sector but also with the Office for Students. We are going to reverse that trend. We are not going to tolerate that continuous drift of grade inflation,” Williamson said. Kirsty Williams, the e d u c a t i o n m i n i s t e r f o r Wa l e s , applauded the rise in the number of students from Wales in higher education following her government’s overhaul of student support. “I’m particularly pleased with the increase in postgraduates, by more than 1,500, which play an important role in supplying talented researchers and innovators to help grow our economy,” Williams said. The figures also reveal that UCL has finally overtaken the University of Manchester as the UK’s largest mainstream higher education provider, with more than 41,000 students enrolled on degree courses, compared to Manchester’s 40,000. The University of Leeds overtook Birmingham to become the third-largest mainstream provider, while the Open University remains the largest provider of higher education overall, with more than 122,000 students.
Source: www.theguardian.com Read more at: https://bit.ly/2Pg5d7o
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Mitsubishi Electric extends CSR initiative to 5 Govt. schools around Chandigarh
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itsubishi Electric is an electric and electronic equipment company working towards a sustainable society. As a responsible corporate citizen, Mitsubishi Electric India realises the need for sustainable development. The company is working towards accomplishing its CSR objectives through various initiatives such as Clean Drinking Water program for government schools, health awareness, skill development competition etc. This year, the company included areas adjoining Chandigarh city in the CSR plan as well. It is the company’s endeavour to align CSR initiatives around Government policies for benefit of the society. Chandigarh is one of the greenest and cleanest city of India. The city is also known for its well planned infrastructure and Mitsubishi Electric would like to be a part of the growth story of the city and it’s adjoining areas like Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar, Panchkula etc. and will support social initiatives in addition to the strong business network presence it already enjoys. Mitsubishi Electric India has decided to extend support to five Government Schools around Chandigarh including Government Primary School, Papdi; Government Elementary School, Chachumajra; Government Primary School, Matran; Government Primary School, Zirakpur and Government Middle School, Zirakpur in SahibzadaAjit Singh Nagar. The water ecosystem installation included water RO, water Cooler, water tank and water drinking bay for the students. The inauguration of the Clean Drinking Water facility was done by KatsunoriUshiku, Managing Director, Mitsubishi Electric India Pvt. Ltd. Around 12 employees of Mitsubishi Electric India and 15 NGO volunteers joined in the inauguration ceremony at the school. Addressing the initiative, by KatsunoriUshiku, Managing Director, Mitsubishi Electric India Pvt. Ltd. said, “We would like to support the school going children with necessities at their schools. It is our aim to be a partner in development of India through our philanthropic activities. We have covered five government schools in adjoining areas of Chandigarh with drinking water installations. We will extend our support in the coming years as well, thereby working to maintain a healthy ecosystem.” Source: www.indiacsr.in
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Over 6K teachers’ posts vacant at central universities Last year, govt assured it would ll posts in 6 months
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s many as 6,688 academic posts in 40 central universities continue to lie vacant, notwithstanding the government’s assurance to Parliament last year, of filling up all the vacant posts of teachers in the central universities “within six months”. The central universities together could fill up just 934 posts out of over 7,000 vacant posts of teachers as on January 1 even as Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal had asserted in the Lok Sabha in July last year, that all the vacant posts will be filled up within six months. “We will fill up all vacant posts of teachers on a war footing. (Lok Sabha) members’ concerns are genuine. How can an institution serve its purpose when it does not have enough teachers. Now there is no legal hurdle. We will fill up all the vacancies at earliest,” the minister had told Lok Sabha while replying to a debate on the Central Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2009 on July 12. He, however, put the onus on the central university for filling up of the vacancies, maintaining that both his ministry and the University Grants Commission issued repeated instructions to fill up the vacancies on a priority basis. Source: timesofindia
India makes progress in teaching youths the skills for future educational institutions which will begin by March 2021.
Shortcomings The 2018 WEFFI report had highlighted the shortcomings in India’s education system emphasizing upon its inability to utilise the opportunity of internationalising its higher education system. “China, India and Malaysia, for example, all have a great appetite to internationalise higher education systems” points out Rajika Bhandari of the Institute of International Education had said, as quoted in the report.
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ndia has raided five ranks in the Worldwide E ducating for the Future Index (WEFFI) 2019, as per a report published by The Economist Intelligence Unit. The index ranks countries based on their abilities to equip students with skillbased education. The report analyses education system from the perspective of skill-based education “in areas such as critical thinking, problem-solving, leadership, collaboration, creativity and entrepreneurship, as well as digital and technical skills.”
Improvement across teaching and socio-economic environments
India ranked 35th on the overall index in 2019 with a total score of 53, based on three categories – policy environment, teaching environment and overall socio-economic environment. The country ranked 40th with an overall score of 41.2 across categories in 2018. “A m o n g t h e w o r l d ’ s l a r g e s t economies, the US, UK, France and Russia all fell back in the index, while China, India and Indonesia took steps forward,” the report said.
In 2019, India scored 56.3 in policy environment falling from a 61.5 score in 2018. India’s score of 52.2 in the teaching environment category and 50.1 in the socio-economic environment category increased significantly from 32.2 and 33.3 in 2018 respectively.
Policy changes in education The report, however, attributed India’s growth to the new education policy introduced by the government. “India has made particular strides in the policy environment, with a new national education policy published in early 2019 that explicitly mentions future-oriented s k i l l s s u c h a s c r it i c a l t h i n k i n g, communication and entrepreneurship.” the report said. India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in the Union Budget 2020, had highlighted a New Education Policy to be announced soon under ‘Aspirational India’ that will focus on “greater inflow of finance to attract talented teachers, innovate and build better labs.” The policy will focus further on skill-based education. FM had promised allocation of 99,300 crore to education and 3,000 crore for skills. The Ministry had also proposed to start degree level full-fledged online education programme along with apprenticeship embedded degree or diploma courses in 150 higher
B u d ge t 2 0 2 0 a l s o p r o p o s e d n e w additions to its study in India programme. “India should be a preferred destination for higher education. Hence, under its “Study in India” programme, Ind-SAT is proposed to be held in Asian and African countries. It shall be used for benchmarking foreign candidates who receive scholarships for studying in Indian higher education centres,” Sitharaman had said in her speech. A decentralised education system is a n o t h e r s h o r t c o m i n g o f I n d i a ’s education policy according to the 2019 report. “Well-intentioned policy goals relating to future skills development often do not get filtered downward, a hazard in economies such as the US and India that have large, decentralised education systems,” the report said. Finland was at the apex of the index, with strengths across each category followed by Sweden. The report and index were commissioned by the Yidan Prize Foundation. Source: www.thehindubusinessline.com
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Comparing teachers’ status, salaries worldwide
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or the second time, the Londonb a s e d Va r ke y Fo u n d a t i o n brought out the Global Teacher Status Index. Compared to their previous one in 2013 that contained 21 countries, the second edition added 14 countries including India. The major issues addressed throughout this survey are about the degree of respect for teachers in relation to other professions, the social status of teachers, do teachers want their children to teach and the correlation between their pay and performance.All over the world, parents drop their children at the gates of schools, dreaming about what they m i ght ac c o mp l i sh a f t e r ye a r s o f schooling. They entrust teachers with the duty of nurturing their wards’ educational development and their future pathways.
Nowadays, the trend has changed. Those in other profession argue that teaching is no more a noble or an attractive job. Is it true?The question is better answered when teachers ask their students if they want to choose a career in teaching or not.
The general view is that a negligible percentage of people may agree to choose this as a future career by choice. To put it in other words, h ow m a ny t e a c h e r s w a n t t o en c o u r age t h eir own k id s t o become teaching professionals?
It is a great responsibility on the shoulders of teaching community worldwide but the question is: Is it reflected in their social position and compensation? People across the globe are unanimous in saying though it is a superficial statement, “Teaching is a lofty or noblest of the noble professions”.
The Global Teachers Status Index (GTSI) of 2018 thoroughly examined these points and drew certain conclusions. The following are some of the findings of GTSI 2 0 1 8 . Ac c o r d i n g t o t h e GT S I , teachers have the highest social s t at u s i n C h i n a f o l l owe d b y Ma l ays i a , Ta iwa n , Ru s s i a , Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey, India, New Zealand and Singapore. It is interesting to note down from the survey that Indian teachers are ranked eighth in their social status.
One of the definitions of the word “noble” is possessing outstanding qualities include honesty, magnanimity, patience, intellectual courage, character and integrity, humility, a positive attitude towards teaching and the synergy of care and share and concern for students. In other words, “teachers are mentors by example”.
The bottom 10 countries where teachers are least respected (from least respect to higher) are Brazil, Israel, Italy, Ghana, Argentina, Czech Republic, Hungary, Uganda, Spain and Colombia. It is very clear that teachers in Brazil and Israel are the least respected.
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Do teachers want their children to teach? The GTSI-2018 also focused on finding out if that teachers demand their children to prefer teaching as a career. The survey report reveals that in countries with a higher level of respect for teachers, like in China and Malaysia, more than half responded that they would encourage their children to pursue teaching as a career. In the case of Brazil and Israel, less than 20% want their kids to take up teaching as a career. Here, the Russian case is different. Though in Russia, teachers are well r e s p e c t e d , m a j o r it y o f Ru s s i a n s responded that they would least prefer their wards becoming teachers in future. Why do some countries respect their teachers more than others? Everyone is of the view that to improve the quality of education, the role of teachers is supreme. In Finland and Singapore, teachers are recruited from the cream of qualified graduates. These two countries are marked as the best school education system providers in the world. S i n g ap o r e r a n ks fi r st i n P I SA (Programmes for International Student Assessment) which is a major international comparison of pupil’s performance accepted by UNESCO to compare the 15 year old or Class 10 students’ performance worldwide.
Source: www.deccanherald.com Read more at: https://bit.ly/3bLwpV4
Hybrid learning How India’s colleges and universities are joining the Edtech wave
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ver the last half-decade digital products have made their way into schools, colleges and universities. Still, not at the expense of their offline presence, and just as an additional measure. Yet, edtech is creating a strong link between what happens in the classroom and outside the classroom. From the days of open-air schools in the 18th century to the modern world of edtech apps, the Indian education system has been turned on its head. India has the world’s largest population of over 500 Mn in the age bracket of 5-24 ye a r s a n d t h i s p r ov i d e s a g r e a t opportunity for the education sector. At the same time, there is a huge supplydemand gap, thus opening gates for online education startups.
A h i g h l y s ke we d t e a c h e r student ratio of 1:32 and the dearth of quality education in Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns has led to the growth of edtech in India to a market size of close to $2 Bn (by 2021).
It was only 20-25 years ago that modern education knocked on the doors of the Indian education system with online learning and more. Even so, the existing e du c at i o n syst e m i s st i l l l a rge ly d o m i n a t e d b y b r i c k- a n d- m o r t a r institutions. Over the last half-decade, smart boards, tablets, SaaS tools and other digital products have made their way into schools, colleges and universities, so it’s important to see what how the relationship between the offline and online world of education will take shape in near future.
Colleges, Universities going online
Within India’s biggest colleges and schools, the online education wave started with the onset of smartboards. However, over time, the increase in digital literacy among students forced traditional educational institutions to build deeper connections. To some, this is through a web presence, while others are experimenting with apps. At the same time, many universities have now started offering online courses both at the local and global level as well as creating in-house job portals to help with placements. Still, not at the expense of their offline presence, and just as an additional measure. For instance, the A m it y G r o up n ow o f f e r s de g r e e programmes online with the University Grants Commission’s new regulation. India’s higher education regulator allowed universities to offer lectures that are recorded or delivered through videoconferencing and discussed in an online discussion forum. E-learning content can be used in place of textbooks and with Amity including a provision for self-assessment. Jaipur-based IIHMR University plans to expand the teaching module through the digital segment and has collaborated with resources that can help them provide this. “There are a few courses and modules including quality assurance which are imparted digitally in our university. IIHMR University looks forward to more such courses in
the future,” said the university’s president Dr Pankaj Gupta. Ask.Careers, the online learning and counselling platform run by ThadomalShahani Group complements its franchised network of colleges and schools including the ThadomalShahani Centre For Management (TSCFM). Students can download Ask.Careers course apps for banking, digital marketing, BBA, MBA and more, and access the course content for free. However, for a diploma or degree, they need to sign-up through the app for classes at a TSCFM centre near them.
Is online education on right track in India? Digital tools and technology have drastically changed the face of media, retail, finance among others and it’s time for India’s education sector to be similarly disrupted. D iv ya Ja i n , f o u n de r a n d C E O o f Safeducate, believes India’s youth population falls into one of three categories: uneducated, unemployed, or unemployable. The skill development startup offers training to young workers in the logistics sector. It claims to have upskilled 80K workers in 150 centres around India. “As developmental economists have been warning for years, India needs to urgently take care of these problems. Source: inc42.com Read more at: https://bit.ly/2SFH8c9
SCHOOL | Unique Education Journal | March 2020 | 13
Talking to
Tania Ghosh A-Level Physics Teacher Calcutta International School Kolkata
Why Physics?
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s. Tania, please give us a sneak peek into how you opted for the teaching profession. From the beginning, I haven't been a brilliant student but I was one of the high achievers in school. I found it very easy to articulate concepts to my friends who found certain subjects ver y difficult. I could very easily translate something very difficult in simple terms. I had cousins also coming to me with Science-related difficulties. Having said that, I did not really have this profession in mind. I wanted to do research and get into that path. But I think this was destined and I found this coming to me very naturally. Fo r m e, b r e a k i n g dow n d i f fi c u l t terminologies and concepts for easy understanding and linking it to practical life, comes naturally. After my Masters in Physics, I tried my luck in the corporate sector. But, I guess education was my calling and I knew I was good in teaching, learning and imparting scientific knowledge. So, I took a conscious decision to quit my corporate job and I got into teaching. I got my first job in DPS Ruby Park and then later at Calcutta International School, where I currently work.
Whenever I went to my book shelf, I always found myself taking out my P hys i c s b o o k a n d f o u n d it ve r y interesting at any point in time. I find Physics very logical and never had to blindly memorise what I was learning or remember things in a sequential manner. It came very naturally to me. I think I am at home with logic. I am a person who is always game for challenges. So, even if you threw a very difficult concept at me, I would take the challenge head on. Understanding something and putting it to use gives me an amazing sense of achievement.
Do you think any of your te a c h e r s p e r h a p s l e f t a n impression about Physics on you? Not in terms of the subject per se.
Back in those times, tuition was for those students who were weak. It wasn't a mark of status like it is today. Today the mentality, more or less, is if you don’t go for tuitions you are doing something wrong. I owe it to my teachers for giving me holistic education. There was no need for going to a third person to understand something. My teachers have always encouraged me for approaching them. Supratim Bhattacharya a friend of my cousin was the one who actually inspired me to take up Physics
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When in class 9 and 10, I used to approach him with doubts I had. He inspired me to think of Physics in a lateral and easy way. I would actually give him the credit of pulling me into this stream.
What are some of the challenges you face when you teach Physics? Students come with a mind-set that Physics is very tough. With no offense to anybody, I think teachers have taught Physics in a very bookish manner. Physics is an abstract Science and it is also a science of practical life. You cannot teach Physics by reading it out from a book. You have to associate it with practical life and talk about imagination. You have to ask children to close their e ye s a n d i m ag i n e c e r t a i n t h i n gs happening. That kind of skill needs to be inculcated in students. During my initial years at Calcutta International School, I had started writing a blog on practical life stories related to Physics. In class, I introduced the concept of drama for teaching Physics. I gave them a concept and points on the concept and asked children to write a play about it. I asked them to try and manipulate a story in such a way that you can showcase a particular concept of Physics in your daily life. I have also asked them to create posters.
My middle school coordinator has commented that my classes always seemed to be an art and craft class. It didn't look like a Physics class at all. So things are almost hands on all the time. With these techniques, I think I was successful in erasing the traumatic mindset from the middle schoolers when I used to teach them. Currently, I teach A-level - equivalent to grade 11 and 12. I teach the A-level, IGCSE and a little bit of middle school as well.
To do well in A levels you must understand each and every nuances of a concept. IB and A levels look towards evolving innovators.
What are your thoughts about the different kinds of curriculum we have today?
1. The Feb-March one is for India, strictly because the students who need to get into Indian Universities have to get their results before a particular time. 2. The May-June one is what we prefer our students appearing for and there is also. 3. The October-November one.
I believe that through our national curriculum we are still looking towards creating factory workers and employees. We are still looking at creating people who think only in a particular way. So, it is more of how compliant you are; you must be a conformist to do well in the national curriculum. You have to think in a p a r t i c u l a r m a n n e r, a d d r e s s questions in a particular style. There is very little room to think out of the box and very less chance of doing something out of the suggestions or out of the last 10 years question papers. So, if you just go through the past 10 years’ papers, you kind of get an understanding of how to get a 95% or above. Nowadays, everyone gets a 95% or above which never happened during our times. In A-levels and IB, they give you a scope for a creative start. The concepts are given and the questions are never repeated. So, having clarity on the concept and subject is imperative in order to arrive at the answers. Each question is different and even if you do 200 years of past papers, hypothetically, you couldn't predict the next question that would appear in your board exams. So, attaining clear cut clarity of the concept is of utmost importance when it comes to IB. I think, in India, our problem is our population and because we want jobs this is how it has always been. There is want for guaranteed jobs. I understand that bit as well. But, if you want to be successful and creative, you have to have the risk of failure.
Is there a difference in the way the IB curriculum is delivered across the globe? It is the same paper that everyone attempts. You can appear for your A level examinations 3 times in a year.
So, the May-June and Oct-Nov versions happen worldwide and it is in a percentile form - not percentage. In the May-June version, Indian students do very well because we Indian teachers tend to give them a whole lot more than what the syllabus demands. That is how we have been taught and it subconsciously filters through. Also, Indian parents are very alert and sharp about what their children should do. That is an additional support our students get. Indian parents are very conscious of the fact that it is a race. People who take up Physics in A level are mostly very thorough with their work. They have a point to prove and if they want to go abroad as well, they have to be best of the best. The Feb-March version is only for Indian students and so we don't really have a yardstick to compare results globally.
Is it a huge shift for teachers when they have to shift from CBSE to A-Level teaching? If you have been teaching CBSE for a very long time, then unlearning the ways of teaching is often a challenge. We see it all the time. I, thankfully, shifted to this curriculum very early in my career. This school resonated with my teaching ideas. Gratefully, my way of thinking and the school's way of teaching and learning were absolutely in sync. So, I am lucky. I have to mention my Principal Dr Munmun Nath who is a visionary and I am lucky that we think alike. She always encourages taking chances.
If somebody teaches CBSE and ISC curriculum for a long time, unlearning and opening up windows and doors to the structured way of thinking would be a challenge. But, if you have it in you and you take it up very quickly, it works. You can get set in a monotonous path if you are into the CBSE and ICSE teaching curriculum. There are very few projects and out of the box challenges in CBSE and ICSE. But, here it is all about out of the box challenges and looking at a concept in a very different way. At A levels or IGCSE, we aim at making students skills-ready - not content ready. Content is just a click away these days, but how you approach it and the sustainable quality defines if you are a futuristic person.
Let us talk about the Science Club. Science Club, I think, 2-3 years back was proposed by a girl. Then there was another brilliant student who got through Cambridge written exams for Physics but fell short after that because he didn't really have the opportunity to do anything other than what is in the curriculum. Contact: Email: taniadoel@gmail.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/taniaghosh-147130128 Read more at: https://bit.ly/38NeprG
SCHOOL | Unique Education Journal | March 2020 | 15
Talking to
Ashwani Kumar Vivek Chemistry Facilitator for Cambridge Int. and IGCSE Sanjay Ghodawat International School, Kolhapur
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rom a research assistant at CSIR CIMFR, Mr. Ashwani Kumar Vivek plunges into the world of education and falls in love with the profession. Today, he is a Chemistry f ac i l it at o r at S a nj ay Gh o d awat International school.
Having studied at the Army Public school and at other schools, what is your biggest takeaway from there in comparison with other CBSE schools? Yes, prior to my Grade 10, I was in a CBSE School. Then, owing to the fact that my father was in the army, after 10th board exam from Cambrian Public School, I went to Army Public School for 11th and 12th. And I passed 12th CBSE board exam in 2011. The teaching is almost the same in both schools, in my opinion. It is the environment that is different.
I don't find such things in any other schools. I had friends in other CBSE and ICSE schools. When I talked to them about joining defence services, I understood that they only had the option of Engineering running in their heads. They were only focussed about earning money or moving to other countries. Another thing about studying in the army school is the discipline and patriotism it sets in you.
At the army school, when we were in Grade 12, every month/week we had visitors at our school who held different posts in the armed force. They used to motivate us to join the army, navy or air force. We were so motivated that all 60 students in my Science batch attempted the NDA exam. It is not about who cleared it and who didn't. But, every student attempted the exam.
What motivated you to opt for teaching after your internship programme? While working as a project assistant at CSIR - CIMFR itself, I realized my affinity for the environment that a school or a college provides. Then, it dawned upon me that I should try teaching. I wasn't 100% sure but I decided to try.
What motivated you to opt for Chemistry? When I did my Grade 12, most of my friends were going for Engineering. I also wanted to do Engineering but realized that I wanted to do it only because my friends were doing it. I also realised that I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do. For one year I studied CA, law etc. and I realised that that was not what I wanted to do. I got so bored that I decided to get out of it. That is when I realised that no matter what; I never get bored with Science, especially Chemistry.
Tell us about your stint with CSIR - CIMFR.
When you join CSIR - CIMFR as a project assistant, you join for a projectbased internship that lasts for 6 months. If you are still interested after 6 months, they extend your internship for another 6 months. I didn't want to extend my internship programme because I got what I wanted within the first 6 months itself. One disadvantage about CSIR - CIMFR is that you have to visit the site often, which was not my cup of tea.
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In India, we do not give enough focus on teaching. We give it a secondary status. It is looked upon like a profession open to those who couldn’t place themselves anywhere else. H o n e s t l y, b e f o r e I j o i n e d t h e profession, even my mind-set was also partly that way. But when I got into it, with all the challenges I face every day I realized how futile that thought was. The experience is really good. Another reason people don't opt for t e ach i n g i s a l s o du e t o s a l a r y constraints. But nowadays even that factor is diminishing. You can make money with this career too.
How long have you been teaching? Officially this is my 2nd year. However, when I was doing my Masters and Graduation, I was teaching at coaching institutes as well. I joined this school in April 2018.
What is your strategy to make classes interesting and learning enjoyable? People say that teachers should plan a lot of things before coming to class. Honestly, plans do not work all the time. Once you are inside the class, you sense the class’ enthusiasm level. Depending on that, I decide how to take my class.
How does your previous job at CSIR - CIMFR help you in your current profession? Honestly, at CSIR - CIMFR, they regularly recruit people with a Chemistry background. After we are selected, you go through 1-week training about what we are supposed to do and how to do certain things. I wouldn't say it is pure research. We have to work under a leader. Our purpose was to find the total moisture content in the coal sample so that we can predict the actual rate of the coal. People tend to sell low quality coal at high rates or good quality coal at low rates. Because of this, there was a third party implementation responsible for finding the actual moisture content in coal. That was my job and I was in charge of Govindpur site. When I applied for a teaching post, I had no experience in it at all. Unofficially, I had taught but I didn’t have experience on the records. Gratefully, the principal here was very generous and perhaps I got through owing to the CSIR - CIMFR experience. I think CSIR - CIMFR gave me an edge to get this job.
What are your thoughts on the Times Higher Education World University Ranking wherein Indian Universities are always ranked low? We h ave t o ch a n ge t h e t e ach i n g methodology which is due. We have to move from lecture based teaching to active learning process where the learner is involved in the classroom teaching. We have to change our approach towards classroom teaching so that learners can develop critical thinking approach.
Then only we would be able to produce curious minds which would lead to the scientific achievements. And it can only happen if we train children to think out of the box since childhood. The same learners when go to college with their curious mind and out of the box thinking ability will be able to contribute to the scientific community. And eventually the ranking will also improve.
Do you think CBSE and ICSE should trim their syllabus? I don't think that they should cut down on syllabus.
Sometimes, I show them videos or take them outside. I ask them to research on topics that seem easy. For example, if petroleum is the topic and I understand that it is not hard for them to understand, then I give them research work for say 10 minutes. I then ask them to tell me what they understand based on the research they have done. Likewise, I change my style constantly. If I stick to the same methodology, it won't work. There are times, when I go sit in the class and I ask them to tell me about whatever topic they are interested in speaking about. So, I keep switching methods.
Most people label organic chemistry as being very tough as there is a lot to remember. What are your thoughts?
After I passed grade 10 and transitioned to grade 11, I was shocked to see the syllabus. The content was massive. Coping up with the syllabus was a struggle. It took me ample lot of time to understand how to deal with the syllabus. I think CBSE and ICSE should look at how that disparity between grade 10 and 11 can be minimized.
I don't think so. When I was a student I used to love organic chemistry. Organic chemistry is easy to study and equally easy to forget. This is because there are so many things to remember. But inorganic chemistry is easy to retain once you understand and learn it. That is why in most of the curriculum you will see organic chemistry being taught at the end of the syllabus.
In Cambridge, I teach grade 9 and I see the content which gets taught in grade 11 CBSE/ICSE. I think, with conceptual learning, the transition from grade 10 to 11 can be made smooth. Also, the massive content disparity can be minimized.
I passed out in 2017-18. That is not a long time ago. So, I still go back to what issues I had when I was learning, while teaching my class. So, I keep relating back to what all I did, what I missed, etc.
I don't support when people say that syllabus needs to be cut down.
Do you feel the pressure of getting students to perform in their exams?
What are your tips on covering huge volume of syllabus? That is something that should be managed with an effective lesson plan. Time management is a crucial skill that teachers need. The Cambridge syllabus is short and precise. It is not as huge as the CBSE. CBSE is pretty vast. But, I would still vouch for the CBSE syllabus. It is just that you should be great with time management - teachers and students.
Most CBSE and ICSE schools focus mainly on grades unlike most international schools. Contact: Email: ashwanivivek03@gmail.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashwa ni-kumar-vivek-ab9ba263
Read more at: https://bit.ly/38PYbhs
SCHOOL | Unique Education Journal |March 2020 | 17
Talking to
Anuja Panwar Chemistry Educator MYP/IB DP Pathways School, Gurgaon Hence, I had to do a lot of research to complete the assignments given to me. It was more like an assignment-based learning instead of the lectures approach.
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aving completed her postgraduation from the University of Rajasthan, she picked up a teaching job to teach 12th grade students. Little did Ms. Anuja Panwar know at that time that that was the path she was meant to be in. She enjoyed teaching. Tides changed, she got married and had to travel to the UK. Where she got the opportunity to study further. “While I was studying at the University there, I saw the possibility of a different kind of learning and teaching. The experience was completely different. I then got into Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) and I really enjoyed the programme. It was a very different approach towards teaching. Then, there was no looking back.”
W h a t was t h e i n te re s t i n g approach that got you inspired?
I found that CBSE followed the same syllabus that I studied in my school days – there wasn’t any difference at all. Neither I nor my daughter was very h ap p y ab o u t t h e s ch o o l a n d t h e curriculum. So, we moved from there and came to Gurgaon. Here, I joined Shikshantar School - an ICSE school. At that point in time, I didn't know of many IB schools here in India. ICSE curriculum was again a very different approach for me. ButI was slightly happier with ICSE than CBSE b e c au s e I f e l t t h a t t h e y h a d a n application-based approach. ICSE gave me a little bit of flexibility in my teaching methodology and in assessing my students etc.
I realized how different it was to explore things yourself. If you couldn't figure out something, you could approach tutors. The tutor would then take it further from there. It was more of an i n q u i r y- b a s e d l e a r n i n g . I t w a s refreshingly different. This was way back in 1994-95.
Then, I moved to Shri Ram School, another ICSE school, and was with them for nearly 4 years. But, none of these schools gave me the space to apply all the experience I had gained while I was abroad.
Did you then come back to India?
Why were you not able to apply those techniques that you had gained from your prior experience?
No. Once I completed my computing course, I did my PGCE. After that, I got a job offer in the same technical college from where I did my PGCE. I then started teaching computing there and did that for about a year. Then, we moved to Sri Lanka, where I couldn't join work owing to personal reasons. But I did teach children as a private tutor at my place. In Sri Lanka, they had this trend of sending children to a local school till grade 10, then admit them to an international school catering to an IB/Excel Board. After which, they would go abroad to study. So, I was helping children from home and got them ready to join an international school. Once my daughter turned 3, I joined a school called Colombo International School.
The teaching procedure followed over there wasn't about somebody just standing up in front of the class, writing things on a board and telling the class how things are. The experience was different.
After you got back to India, did you notice any difference in way things were done here?
It was more about asking the class questions so that we could think and build our knowledge bank. I was learning computing there which was not my subject at all.
Upon my return I joined Oakridge International School in Vizag - I was made to understand that it is going to be an IB school. But at that time, it was a CBSE school.
Yes, absolutely!
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The ICSE curriculum is very restricted. It takes a very syllabus-oriented approach. There is a defined set of things dictated to children to be studied. I did create few lesson plans and activities for middle school children, for instance grade 7; enabling them to inquire, explore and then learn. But then, we were always pressed against time to complete the syllabus. The culture was more about the results that children fetch in grade 10. It was all about preparing students for grade 10 exams from lower grades itself. That is something that frustrated me.
Somewhere it is hidden that when propene is burned it gives a temperature of up to 6000 degree Celsius. So students need to identify and figure out that propene can be used instead. Another example is asking: If there are two unlabeled cylinders - one contains propane, and another is propene. How would they figure out which one is propene? They do the bromine test to figure out propene and hence, they will design a lab experiment, the whole process, hypothesis, variables etc. They come up with a solution through inquiry and exploration. In the process, I am also testing them by giving them a situation - a real-life situation. It is not a straight-forward question.
Have things changed at all? It hasn't changed at all. They have become slightly relaxed about a few things like the volume of syllabus that needs to be done in grade 8. But grade 9 has become a very syllabus heavy year for children so that in grade 10, their syllabus gets completed by December. This way, in February they are all set for their final exams. And, so there is very little time. At times I feel that parents have become less pushy – but, not all. But there is a slight change shaping in that space. Currently, I am working with the IB curriculum, which gives me a lot of flexibility. I also have a structure I need to follow but creating a lesson plan, executing it and what do I make of it is completely on me. What I like about IB is that units are looked through a lens of global context while using certain key concepts and some related concepts. In the IB model, we also get to discuss with children what they want to learn. Fo r i n s t a n c e , t h e u n i t c a n b e addressing global context such asglobalization and sustainability or science and technical innovation, etc. We can check with students what they would like to learn about in that unit and we can see how differently we can explore that unit, which I feel, equips children with better skills.
That way they can: 1. Think clearly 2. Decide for themselves 3. Become open-minded During discussions, different thinking processes come up and they begin respecting each other's perspective and learn from each other. IB opens up a forum for lot of discussion and inquiry, which I feel, is a great thing. As educators, I feel, instead of teaching them content we should be teaching them skills so that they are better prepared for college, where no one really asks how one learns the content. If you are skilled, you are equipped to learn.
Also, we have criteria-based assessment and so it becomes very interesting. I have taught IB before but here, I am teaching MYP also which is for the first time. I have come to realise that MYP is much more interesting and creative. It keeps alive the learning journey of a teacher and that is the beauty of it all.
How do you find the time to keep yourself updated?
A lot of research goes into teaching IB. Also, by being creative and being aware of the things around you, you can learn a lot.
A s a t e a c h e r, i s i t m o r e challenging to teach IB as compared to CBSE/ICSE? For me, it is the other way around. I am a person who constantly thinks and keeps getting ideas. For example, if we are teaching organic chemistry in grade 10. In CBSE, I would be asking them what isomers are and what the isomers of different compounds are, etc. and that would be it. But here, the same type of questions is presented differently. For example: Imagine a situation in the lab, wherein they run out of acetylene while doing some welding work. Now, propene can also be used for the same purpose. I would give some information about propene - not for only for propene itself but lots of other homologous compounds.
Contact: Email: panwar.anuja@gmail.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anujapanwar-b93b0220/ Read more at: https://bit.ly/39VH6CR
SCHOOL | Unique Education Journal | March 2020 | 19
Talking to
Preeti Pasricha
Who is your inspiration when it comes to the teaching field?
Assistant Primary Coordinator C P Goenka Int. School
There hasn't been any inspiration as such. I was simply following my inner voice. I wanted to become a teacher since a very small age.
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eam coordination and leadership, being a great listener and empathy are skills that coordinators require and that is what Ms. Preeti Pasricha brings on the table. She has to her credit a Master’s Degree in Commerce, a Bachelor’s Degree in Education, a Post Graduate Degree in Psychotherapy and Counseling, a Diploma in Early Childhood Education, and an MS CIT focused in Educational L e ade r sh ip a n d Ad m i n i st r at i o n , General from The South Indian E d u c a t i o n S o c i e t y ’s C o l l e g e o f Commerce and Economics. In short, she has been focused in being in the education sector and shaping it for the better.
Ms. Preeti, what got you to decide this line of profession? Since a very early age, I have not known a more noble profession than teaching because it lays the very foundation for generations to come. I have always wanted to become a teacher and to be honest, I wish I take my last breath when in an educational institution.
How, in your opinion, should teachers conduct themselves e s p e c i al ly i n t h e p r i m a r y classes? Teachers should be great listeners. We should always remind ourselves that we are dealing with little human beings and should respect the fact that they too have a voice. Be kind and humble to your students giving them the attention they deserve. I believe, with active listening and understanding anyone can be moulded for the better. We can lead them to wherever we want, by first listening to them because without knowing what they have to ask and say, we won't be able to guide them.
Tell us about your role at C P Goenka International School, as an Asst. Primary Coordinator. I oversee the instructional programs in a c a d e m i c s . Wo r k w i t h o t h e r administrators and teachers to deliver the best learning experience to the students. I advise and mentor teachers
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and measure the effectiveness of their teaching techniques. I communicate with parents about students and help foster greater parental involvement.
Do you take classes at the school? No, I don't teach currently.
Do you train teachers? Yes, we train them weekly. We call teachers subject-wise and train them on a weekly basis. The training covers what they should be doing in the following week, we discuss about how they should be delivering their lectures and what activities should be done. We train them how to groom the children.
What teaching strategies do you follow and how do you ensure that discipline is maintained inside classrooms? We start the training by understanding what activities should be done in the class and we have appreciation charts in the class which promotes discipline. We have class monitors and we appoint the naughtiest child as the monitor of the class. This really works.
What is the importance of circle time in the primary years? Circle time is the time given to children to voice their opinion without their
parents being around to instruct them. A common misconception is that while giving instructions to children like sit properly, wash your hands, don't watch TV etc., we think we are talking to the children. But that is not true. Children do not perceive it as talking. It is not a conversation. During circle time, we listen to them and validate their opinion. This is an exercise for them to be heard and for them to understand that their opinion matters. We tell them the good and bad sides of their opinion/ideas so that they know that we are listening.
How do you deal with the shy children? We have weekly assemblies. We give shy children major roles to perform during the assembly. We make them talk during assembly time. We give them the opportunity to talk about events going to happen in the following week. We do role plays in class, etc. I believe that any person on earth when they feel they are important, they start speaking out.
How often do you interact with parents?
Once a month. We have student review meets (SRM) at school. We also get several emails from parents expressing their satisfaction about the way the school is performing.
Do you think it is important for teachers to extend their responsibility towards children even outside the classroom? I think everyone should be responsible for children whether inside or outside the classroom. It is not just a call of duty but a matter of responsibility as well. The more you extend your wings, the more people you can gather underneath it. We also have a counsellor who has been given the title of parent-student coach. For children who need extra help and more time, parents, teachers and the child sit together with the parentstudent coach and understand the child and the parents. We work accordingly.
How important is inculcating a reading habit? It is highly important. In fact, we have a book club in school for teachers as well. That shows how much of importance we give to reading. We conduct DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) for children every week.
What do you think parents love about your school? hey love the individual attention that we give to each and every child and the way the children are nurtured with love care and through knowledge.
Do you see technology driving effective learning?
I think it has its own pros and cons. It has a 60% positive side to it and 40% cons depends on the misuse of the child which children tend to do when they have a technological gadget in hand. Technology has made things faster and it is good for children to learn it. Yes, we have smart boards in all classes plus each child has a personal laptop in the ICT lab.
But, we also conduct regular workshops for children and parents regarding children exposed to social media, etc. We also suggest child-friendly websites that they should be using. We strongly recommend using child lock and minimal usage of gadgets by children.
Contact: Email: mpsons.pp@gmail.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/preetipasricha-884451b2
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Personal Column NRI conundrum – lower levels of civilization by Kaustav Bhattacharyya
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eturning Indians or the proverbial émigré are often a perplexing character who lead rather culturally Indian lives in Western shores but are completely at unease or uncomfortable in the physical setting of India; which includes the social in terms of hierarchies, infrastructural, cultural in terms of manners and geological in terms of weather and pollution levels. There is a conundrum which is apparent to any Westophile or specifically Anglophile Indian deeply influenced and interested in the treasures of the Western ‘civilization’, that these Indians or NRIs are highly steeped in Indian dietary habits, tastes of music and reading, love of arts and yet completely miserable in their native land as far their existence ‘rituals’ are concerned. This particular class of educated global Indian often cite Naipaul’s idea of ‘Wounded Civilization’ as a template for understanding what ails India which triggered my deep stirrings about the delineation between ‘Kultur’ or Culture and ‘Zivilisation’ or Civilization in German intellectual discourse.
According to Ferdinand Braudel who deftly deals with this dichotomy in his book on ‘History of Civilization’ sets the tone when he describes as ‘Civilization’ having ‘a double meaning. It denotes both moral and material values.’ Here we have the incredible example of Karl Marx who apparently made a distinction within the idea of Civilization between the infrastructure (material) and the superstructure (spiritual) - the latter, in his view, depending heavily on the former. Well I am not surprised at the Marxist accent on the material or infrastructure element and we all are aware as to how his protégés perceived the Orient as ‘backward’ and ‘regressive’. Here we have a tongue-incheek remark by Charles Seignobos: 'Civilization is a matter of roads, ports, and quays' which ridiculed the idea of Civilization that this has anything to do with Culture with a capital C. Perhaps t h e h i s t o r i a n E u g e n e C av i g n a c summarized it when he defined that Civilization was 'a minimum of science, art, order and virtue'. Let us now turn to those scholarly Germans during their glorious epoch of scholarship and learning for some illumination; the intellectual thinkers A . To n n i e s ( 1 9 2 2 ) a n d A l f r e d Weber(1935), postulated ‘civilization was no more than a mass of practical, technical knowledge, a series of ways of dealing with nature.’ In the German mind ‘Culture, by contrast, was a set of normative principles, values and ideals — in a word, the spirit’ positing it higher than the superficial civilization. It is wonderfully encapsulated in a remark by the German historian Wilhelm Mommsen: 'It is humanity's duty today [1851] to see that civilization does not destroy culture, nor technology the human being.'
L e t ’s fi r s t d e fi n e t h e s e t e r m s s p e c i fi c a l l y s i n c e Na i p au l ’s interpretation of ‘India’ as a wounded ‘civilization’ seems to be having a lifeforce of its own and appeals to NRIs even in the 21st century.
Hence we have established that when we speak of India as a ‘wounded’ civilization it is clearly a lower primordial level of human achievement affecting our basic existence as a society. I would hasten to add that this in no way diminishes the importance or significance of good toilets, good roads and clean railway stations bereft of stains and stink.
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India most certainly needs to work on attaining those treasures or benchmarks to be recognized as a global power and a decent society in the global high table of nations. However we need to emphasize that when we speak of India as a civilization which is wanting is clearly about a lower primordial level of human achievement or Civilization affecting our basic existence as a society. Hence we need to emphasize that when we speak of India as a civilization which is wanting by the ubiquitous returning Indians we are speaking about the first 2 orders of human civilization and nothing grander or loftier. At this stage I wish to make a pertinent and cogent p o i nt s p e r t a i n i n g t o t h i s In d i a n diasporic angst. Many of these Indian émigrés were not being profound in terms of their u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f We s t w h i l e contrasting India with their adopted homelands since most of them stop at the second floor or etage of Western civilization. As anyone who would have experienced the horrid narrow insularity of cultural existence of these NRIs in terms of their appreciation of Haute Culture like savouring the tunes of a Mozart of Beethoven or even stomping with the Island hymns of ‘Auld Land Syne’ or Edgar Elgar’s rousing music. Rarely our diaspora friends and relatives would entice us to visit art galleries or museums and in fact contrarily in my case it evoked deep concern and surprise as to how an Indian professional can be indulging in a paid seminar on French Enlightenment art of Francois Boucher. I recollect a harrowing experience of watching a film on the French Revolution with a
charlatan who posed as a great Westernized person due to his sartorial habits and kept drawing disgusting parallels to his Indian region’s politics of faith. Just to rationalize and exonerate myself from any implicit cultural elitism and snobbery, the well-educated, urbane, cosmopolitan Indian is far more of a connoisseur of Western music and arts and good films while living in India. The crowds at piano recitals of Chopin, British classic film festivals, jazz concerts can only furnish evidence that many of us do understand the higher strata of Western civilization despite the perceived ‘dreary’ existence of material conditions. Let the whining returning Indian or the émigré be gently reminded of the fact t h at In d i a m ay b e a ‘ wo u n de d’ civilization within the first two floors of that edifice but we are well aware of the higher floors of that understanding of Western civilization. I can assure my friends that at that higher stage we are a splendid civilization despite all our social ills but first one has to learn to appreciate the finer aspects of Western civilization to appreciate the nuance of Indian civilization and culture to transcend the daunting reality of material existence. Mr. Kaustav is an independent scholar and researcher interested mostly in Indo-UK encounter and the sociological impact on independent India. Kaustav holds a PhD from Cass Business School, London.
The man teaching 300 million people a new language
Duolingo, the world's most popular language-learning app giving free language education to everyone.
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uis is the co-founder and boss of Pittsburgh-based Duolingo, the world's most popular languagelearning app,has more than 300 million users around the globe. The BBC's weekly The Boss series profiles different business leaders from around the world. This week we speak to Luis von Ahn, cofounder and chief executive of language learning app Duolingo. If anyone ever doubts the positive impact of immigration tell them about Luis von Ahn.A 41-year-old from the Central American nation of Guatemala, he went to the US in 1996, aged 18, to do a maths
degree at Duke University in North Carolina. After that he studied computer science at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. Luis went on to become a computer science professor, specialising in "human-based computation", which in very simple terms is how humans and computers can best work together to solve complicated tasks. For his pioneering work in that field he was awarded the US's prestigious MacArthur Fellows Program award. This is colloquially known as the "genius grant", because you are said to have to be one to get it. Source: www.bbc.co.uk Read more at: https://bbc.in/37F0iTZ
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‘Techlash’ hits college campuses Facebook, Google and other major tech firms were every student’s dream workplaces but not anymore!
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n 2006, Google bought YouTube for more than $1 billion, Apple was preparing to announce the first iPhone, and the American housing bubble began to deflate. Claire Stapleton, then a senior at the University of Pennsylvania, faced the same question over and over: What did she plan to do with that English degree? She flirted, n o n c o m m i t t a l l y, w i t h Te a c h f o r America. Then, a Google recruiter came to campus and, Ms. Stapleton said, she “won ‘American Idol.’” The company flew her out to Mountain View, Calif., which felt to her “like the promised land” — 15 cafeterias, beach volleyball courts, Zumba classes, haircuts and laundry onsite. But for Ms. Stapleton, now 34, the real appeal in a job at Google was what seemed to be a perfect balance of working for income and according to one’s conscience. Naturally, she said yes to an offer in the corporate communications department. “There was this ambient glow of being part of a company that was changing the world,” Ms. Stapleton said. “I was totally googlyeyed about it.” More than a decade later, college seniors and recent graduates looking for jobs that are both principled and high-paying are doing so in a world that has soured on Big Tech. The positive perceptions of Google, Facebook and other large tech firms are crumbling. Many students still see employment in tech as a ticket to prosperity, but for job seekers who can afford to be choosy, there is a growing sentiment that Silicon Valley’s most lucrative positions aren’t worth the ethical quandaries.
“Working at Google or Facebook seemed like the coolest thing ever my freshman year, because you’d get paid a ton of money but it was socially responsible,” said Chand Rajendra-Nicolucci, 21, a senior at the University of Michigan. “It was like a utopian workplace.” Now, he said, “there’s more hesitation about the moral qualities of these jobs. It’s like how people look at Wall Street.”
Investment Banking, but Worse The growing skepticism of Silicon Valley, sometimes referred to as the “techlash,” has spared few of technology’s major players. In 2019, Facebook was fined nearly $5 billion by the Federal Trade Commission for mishandling user data. Amazon canceled its plans for a New York City headquarters after residents, union leaders and local legislators contested the idea that the behemoth should receive $3 billion from the state to set up shop. Google, in 2018, faced internal protests over its plans for a censored search engine in China and handling of sexual harassment. (High-ranking Google employees have stated that the company never planned to expand search into China, but also that plans for a China project had been “terminated.”) The share of Americans who believe that technology companies have a positive impact on society has dropped from 71 percent in 2015 to 50 percent in 2019, according to a 2019 Pew Research Center survey. At this year’s Golden Globes, Sacha Baron Cohen compared Mark Zuckerberg to the main character in “JoJo Rabbit”: a “naïve, misguided child who spreads Nazi propaganda and only has imaginary friends.”
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That these attitudes are shared by undergraduates and graduate students — who are supposed to be imbued with high-minded idealism — is no surprise. In August, the reporter April Glaser wrote about campus techlash for Slate. She found that at Stanford, known for its competitive computer science program, some students said they had no interest in working for a major tech company, while others sought “to push for change from within.” BelceDogru, who graduated from Stanford with a degree in computer science last year and is completing a master’s program at the university, said: “There has definitely been a shift in conversation on campus.”
Source: www.nytimes.com Read more at: https://nyti.ms/2V83EfD
Indian IT salary in US higher than average pay
Harvard and Yale come under federal probe for hiding at least $375 million in funding from foreign countries such as China and Saudi Arabia
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arvard University and Yale University are the targets of a new federal investigation, an ongoing probe that claims schools across the U.S. have failed to disclose some $6.5 billion in foreign funding. The Department of Education, in letters to the two schools demanded records detailing any foreign contacts with a number of foreign countries and entities. 'This is about transparency,' said U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos in a statement. 'If colleges and universities are accepting foreign money and gifts, their students, donors, and taxpayers deserve to know how much and from whom. Moreover, it's what the law requires.’ Section 117 of the Higher Education Act requires American Title IV-eligible colleges and universities to report gifts from, and contracts with, any foreign source that exceed $250,000 in value and to disclose any foreign ownership or control, twice each year. Department officials accused the schools of actively soliciting money from foreign governments, companies and nationals, who are known to be hostile to the U.S. and potentially seeking to steal research secrets and 'spread propaganda benefiting foreign governments,' according to a document reported by the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the probe. The department also noted that although foreign cash appears to flow to the nation's richest universities, 'such money apparently does not reduce or otherwise offset American students' tuition costs.’ Harvard and Yale told the Journal that they are working on responses to the Education Department.
ome in the US project Indian IT as sweatshops exporting armies of low-wage tech workers. That has influenced the country’s immigration policy, especially under US President Donald Trump. So, when Trump visits India later this month, IT industry body Nasscom intends to disprove that. And one data point seems to be particularly powerful — Indian IT companies are estimated to have paid an average compensation of $96,300 to its US employees in 2018, higher than the average wage of $94,800 that IT professionals get in the US, according to data from American research firm IHS Markit Research. The Indian IT story is also compelling from the US jobcreation standpoint. In 2018, Indian IT employed nearly 1.8 lakh people in America and supported an additional 3.4 lakh jobs across the US economy. So, a total of over 5 lakh direct and indirect jobs. IHS Markit Research said job creation in the US by Indian IT companies grew at an average annual rate of 3.8% from 2016 to 2018, faster than the 2.6% average annual employment growth of the industry of which it is part of. Nasscom said there are also major misconceptions around visas. “Traditionally, the feeling is that Indians have taken a lion’s share of visas. But if you look deeper, you will see the bulk of the visas go to MNCs operating from India. The India-based tech firms have not been getting (many) visas. At the (US) administrative level, someone is assuming that what the MNCs are doing need to be supported, but not the Indian tech companies. All we are saying is, create a level playing field,” Nasscom chairman Keshav Murugesh said. The top seven India-based companies are said to have received only 2,200 new H-1B petitions for initial employment in FY18, less than 2.6% of the 85,000 annual limit for companies. The US is estimated to have a shortage of 7.5 million STEM talent as of April last year. Many in the US tech industry feel immigration is the only way to deal with it.
In a letter to Harvard posted on the DoE website, the department asked the school to disclose any records of gifts or contracts involving the governments of China, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran.
IHS Markit Research’s data showed Indian IT companies added $57.2 billion directly to the US GDP in 2017, a figure higher than the GDP of six US states.
Source: timesofindia
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No room for lectures to first-year students of top universities in UK Desperate’ institutions offer overflow rooms and YouTube live streams instead of a seat in front of a lecturer
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tudents at prestigious universities have been turned away from overcrowded lectures and told to watch classes online or in overflow rooms. The Observer found that students paying £9,250 or more in Manchester, No t t i n g h a m a n d L a n c a s t e r, h a d struggled to get a seat in lectures. Manchester University maths students in a 600-capacity hall were given slips with a link to a YouTube live stream and told they could “sit in a coffee shop” and watch. They were also given the option of sitting in a separate overflow theatre to watch the stream, without being able to participate or question lecturers. L a s t O c t o b e r, t h e Un ive r s i t y o f Nottingham advertised a £9.65-an-hour role for a temporary worker to monitor the overflow live stream for first-year law students. In November, psychology students at the University of Lancaster were sent to overflow rooms and given the option to watch lessons on their laptops because lecture theatres were f u l l .O ve r fl ow r o o m s t y p i c a l l y accommodate large audiences when well-known figures give public lectures.
All the named universities said that overflow classes were a short-term arrangement to cover busy periods at the beginning of the academic year. S o fi j a (wh o de cl i n e d t o g ive h e r surname), a student at the University of Manchester who attended the maths lecture, told the Observer that she saw p e o p l e b e i n g t u r n e d a w ay. T h e economics undergraduate decided to stop going to the class because it was so difficult to concentrate. “Even if you were in the lecture and got a seat, it was literally impossible to pay attention,” she said. “I’ve got an anxiety disorder, which gives me some sensory issues, it was 100% impossible for me to pay attention or learn anything. I did not go to the lectures, I had to watch them online.”The National Union of Students, which represents higher education students, said that packed lectures were a result of “desperate” universities being forced to bring in as much tuition-fee income as possible. In a separate example of overcrowding, a physics lecture at King’s College London, one of 24 universities in the elite
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Russell Group, was reportedly so busy that students were told to “cram” in, with some standing at the back. Julio Figueroa, an international student from Mexico who pays more than £25,000 a year to study at King’s College London, said that he had to take his own chair into a physics lecture on at least two occasions. “We are in a Russell Group university, I feel like this shouldn’t happen,” he said.There is no evidence of the university running overflow lectures, and it said it had no knowledge of students taking their own chairs into lectures. Universities UK, which represents higher education providers, said it was important that all students could access lectures. “Universities will be mindful to ensure this does not compromise the quality of teaching or disadvantage students not attending in person. There is no indication of common or continuing issues with students being asked to join overflow or online lectures against their wishes,” a spokesperson said. Source: www.theguardian.com
Vol No. 15 Issue No. 3 March 2020 RNI.No.KARENG/2006.25784 No. of Pages 28 (English - Monthly) Postal Reg.No.KRNA/BGE/647/2018-20 Licensed to post without Prepayment License No: WPP-202 Date of Publication: 4 March 2020 Posted at Bangalore PSO, Mysore Road, Bangalore-560026 on 9th or 15th of every month