Sharmila Govande The best classroom and the richest cupboard is roofed only by the sky – Margaret McMillan A young preteen couldn’t contain her excitement. While she enthusiastically told me about her trip, what caught my attention was the overall Read More …
Year: 2016
If the world be a school; then travel be the schooling
Ankita Rajasekharan Humans have been a nomadic species for centuries before cultivation and settlement came in. We followed the course of nature, moving places as seasons and sources of food changed. Each time, the movement being guided by the need Read More …
Tour logic and logistics
Mehak Siddiqui Be it training underwater like an astronaut or debating with the élan of a UN diplomat, learning the German language in Switzerland, or operating a rover on simulated Mars terrain, there is arguably no professional experience that is Read More …
Teachers in a leading role
When ‘teachers’ are the focus of attention in a mainstream Hindi film, it is time to celebrate even though some of the characters in the film are stereotypes. ‘Chalk and Duster’ is a simple film with a simple story but makes teachers feel good about being in the profession.
It’s more than just play
Sameera Sood
What is play? Why is it important for children and how is it different from work? Children love to play and explore their environment. It helps them develop intellectual and social skills. It is different form work in the sense that play is something one chooses to do while work is something one has to perforce do. Since play is the basis of language and cognitive development, teachers must ensure that children get adequate opportunities to play in school.
Teacher Plus at the kids fair
Two separate events and some enthusiastic children set the stage for a rollicking evening of fun. At the kids fair where Teacher Plus participated, Manaswini Sridhar and Deepa Kiran, resource persons, engaged the children in a story writing and story telling session. Both the sessions saw children in an upbeat mood as they enjoyed writing and listening to the stories. Some of the prize-winning stories are featured here.
A step up
Ragini Ramalingam
If you are interested in teaching English to underprivileged children or if you know someone who is not a teacher but would still like to volunteer, here is an organisation that can support you. Step up India , a Bangalore- based NGO enables skilled volunteers, not trained as teachers, to teach English in government schools in Karnataka. The programme and methodology is so designed that any volunteer can implement it at any point.
Let’s bingo again!
Manaswini Sridhar
Most students find history a boring subject to deal with because they are required to remember dates, when battles were fought, who was the victor or the vanquished and so on. But, if teachers could organise simple games to make this process easy for children, then history would certainly come alive. How about a game like Bingo? Try it out and find your students all fired up to answer your questions on historical dates!
Whipping up a yarn
Deepa Kiran
Everybody loves a good story and children especially, because storytelling is all about creating. Here are a few tips on how you can engage your students with a good story.
Re-imagining the learning landscape
Shikha Takker and Ritesh Khunyakari
How can the dominant view of a classroom be changed to recognise its worth as a valuable resource for learning of teachers and teacher educators? Classrooms need to be viewed not just as spaces for ‘practice’ but as a resource enabling learning. Both teacher educators and classroom teachers can nurture each others’ learning experiences by changing the way classrooms can be used.