Indira Vijaysimha
Why do most women opt for teaching as a career? Is it because it gives them the flexibility to perform their other roles as homemakers and caregivers while also doing a respectable job? This element of constraint accounts for the fact that many women would have taken up other career choices but ended up in the teaching sector. To empower women teachers and to bring equitable status, it is important that the teachers’ roles, their lives, their perception, their problems and voices are understood and heard. Only when women teachers are empowered , can education play a transformative role.

Chintan Girish Modi

Did you know of a bully as a child? Chances are you didn’t. But your child who is going to school today probably does. Bullying is becoming more and more common in schools even in India and after a couple of fatal bullying incidents a lot of schools are waking up to this fact. Schools are putting policies in place to prevent and discourage bullying. Teacher Plus interviews three schools to see what schools are doing to tackle this problem.

Divya Choudary
After tuition classes and coaching centres, we now have after-school learning centres that use contemporary digital technology to make the teaching-learning less hierarchical and more student-centric. These centres aim to foster inquiry, reasoning and keep students and teachers engaged in the learning process. This article takes a look at what happens at these learning centres.

Gopal Midha
What are lesson plans? Why are they important? Read a brief history on lesson plans and their importance. Also find guidelines on how you can develop your own effective lesson plans.

Kanchi Kohli
Where does the problem of environmental degradation lie? The land mass around us is fast diminishing, water wars are already agenda items of heated political debates and the world has warmed up to the idea of climate change. For each one of us, locating the problem of environmental crisis is crucial. Kanchi Kohli helps to give us an understanding of the issues at hand.

Teaching in a residential school–how different is it from teaching in a day school? What kind of spirit and attitude should teachers who teach in residential schools have? Are teachers who live on campus more stressed or satisfied at the end of a day? We set out to find answers to these questions and more.

Do teachers have a larger role to play in the classroom other than just teaching the subject? Can they find the time to talk to students about biases and differences? Prejudices, stereotypes, images of the ‘other’ run deep. There is no easy escape. There is, however, a constant need to question, evaluate, and challenge the status quo. This article highlights a few such interventions and appeals for an education that also has heart apart from intellect.

Every individual has an ego. Teachers do too. But more than any other professional, teachers, in particular, have to ensure that their egos don’t get in the way of their work because the consequences could be disastrous.

Is physical punishment an effective way of disciplining children? Is it an unjust and unfair assault on another human being? Or is it essentially a means of exercising control over another individual? There is no reason, whatever to justify the use of physical violence in a classroom or school. This article takes a look at the consequences of corporal punishment and what initiatives can be taken to make schools happy places.

One year after CCE was introduced, Teacher Plus visits some teachers to see how well they have coped with this new system of evaluation.

History is a subject that has been relegated to the backburner and therefore its teaching has been largely uninspiring. There is a need to restate and rediscover its relevance and the best place to start this is in the classrooms.

With the holidays fast approaching, Teacher Plus brings you a cover story to celebrate the holiday spirit. This holiday why not try doing something different and healthy? Read this author’s experience of starting her own hydroponic vegetable garden hopefully you will be inspired enough to start your own. Have a happy vacation.

The Andhra Pradesh government’s decision to make English compulsory at the primary level in all government schools has met with a mixed reaction from educationists. While this step may seem for the better, many are sceptical about how well it will be implemented in Andhra Pradesh and across South India. Some of the concerns are whether teachers are adequately trained to teach English and whether the focus on English will take away the importance of other subjects in school.

RtE 2009 has promised to revamp public education in India. But to realize the ideal standards proposed by the RtE there are several concerns that need to be addressed. Teacher shortage is perhaps the most visible and urgent hurdle that needs to be overcome. While tackling teacher shortage is a pressing need, it is only one of the many more concerns that currently paralyze public education.

Does the average Indian urban parent participate in his/her child’s education? Do teachers prefer that parents involve themselves in their child’s education? What expectations do the teachers have from parents? Studies have shown that teachers and principals should familiarize themselves with the facets of parental involvement that can help the most, so that they can guide parents on what steps they can take to become more involved.

Most school buildings in India remind one either of a hospital or a prison, both places of surveillance and authority. Schools though should be welcoming places where children can freely explore knowledge. The Centre for Vernacular Architecture is changing the way schools are being built

A major transformation is taking place in the field of education with top graduates and professionals stepping in to impart learning to the less fortunate. This movement called ‘Teach for India’ is making an impact in two cities in Maharashtra and promises to get bigger. However some questions and concerns still need to be addressed. Shaheen Mistri, CEO of TFI, in an interview, talks about her plans and her vision to ensure that all children receive an excellent education. Anu Aga, CEO of Thermax, explains why the human element is important in education, and is passionately committed to the cause of primary education.

Corporate intervention in the field of education is not new but of late there has been a change in the nature of their involvement in public schooling. All the major corporates in India have established not-for-profit organizations to carry out their educational programmes. While some hold hands with the government, other prefer to try and solve problems at the helm of the public schooling system on their own. Teacher Plus talks to the main corporate NGOs about their involvement in the education sector.

First day jitters and joys
As we began planning for our September issue, we were all sure that it had to …

The Cambridge Young Learners English (YLE) Starters Programme is the latest of the standardized tests. Unlike the GRE or IELTS, the YLE targets young children. Read this language trainer’s experience of training 6-8 year olds for the programme.

Ardra Balachandran and Deepti Bharthur

With a surge of pre-schools in India Teacher Plus takes a look at the role these schools have come to play in the society. What do parents expect from these schools? Are they playschools or preschools? Is there a difference?

Following the positive feedback we received for our special issue on mathematics teaching last summer (Teacher Plus, May-June 2009), we …

Sridivya Mukpalkar
What does curriculum mean to a teacher? Do teachers prefer one curriculum to another? Is curriculum an important factor in their decision to teach in a particular school? Teacher Plus finds out…

Chintan Girish Modi
Are grades better than marks? How are they any different? Will grades reduce the immense pressure on students to be seen as academically brilliant?

Here are the winners…

An issue, in the educational field, that draws strong opinions from people is the medium of instruction in schools. This article has the author strongly advocating the use of regional languages in primary school as the medium of instruction.

Teacher Plus brings out two theme-based special issues every year. The May-June issue, coming as it does during vacation …

The global environmental crisis is a serious problem and there is consensus that the problem needs to be addressed quickly. Education has a significant role in responding to the environmental crisis, but to be an effective solution education has to be re-oriented.

Are you tired, sick and depressed all the time? Do you find that you are less enthusiastic about teaching now from when you started your career? If the answer to these questions is a yes, then you might be experiencing symptoms of a burnout.

Interested in finding out what teachers do after they finish their day at school? Read this special feature that has five teachers talking about their lives after school hours.