Neerja Singh
In a world where personal freedom and choice have become the priority, we have many young people coming out to openly discuss gender related issues they are dealing with. Just as these teenagers need all our support and understanding to lead normal lives, their parents too need to be supported through this process. Where do schools come into the picture here and how?
Year: 2023
Learning principles that work magic
Aruna Sankaranarayanan
All teachers want their lessons to be engaging and effective. All teachers want to help transform their students into lifelong learners. All teachers want to inject problem solving and critical thinking skills in their students. But how? How learning works is a book that offers teachers answers to just these questions.
The library as playground
Alia Sinha
Adults and play? Imagine a group of adults indulging in silly games. A funny sight indeed. But play helps you loosen up, awaken your senses, and opens you up for fresh new possibilities — all qualities that are necessary when you teach and learn.
The makers of history
Sheel
Does history happen as a matter of course or is it influenced by people’s decisions? Does this mean that history needs to be presented in ways that encourage serious reflection on the part of students/people about their own actions or inactions? How can students engage with history in a more productive way? The point to note here is that history has to be based on multiple accounts and not just one narrative and it is important for people to be more than just silent spectators.
The future of the past
Anjali Karpe
Why should history be studied? Why does the past matter? How does it affect the present and can it be a guide to the future? History teachers may not find answers to these questions in the curriculum thus making it harder for them to inculcate in students an interest in the subject. Therefore teachers must deliberately plan to stimulate student thinking, help them ask the right questions and form balanced opinions so that they can connect the dots and arrive at a better understanding of the world.
History’s Silent Half
Kadambari Misra
How can teachers change the narratives that are prevalent about women in history? Is there a way stories can be retold so that they inspire others as well? Here is an account of how a designer and an art director, with her immense fascination for the women in history began a project to re-enact their stories and created different avatars of herself which she found profoundly empowering.
NEP 2020: Artistic imagination and the creative quotient
Dr. Arshiya Sethi
The introduction of the Arts in Education programme as part of NEP 2020 is a huge step towards making education holistic, integrated, enjoyable, and engaging. Apart from this, Arts integrated learning is also a part of NEP 2020 and a conscious thrust to joyful learning. History lessons which were a list of endless dates and events and had to be learned by rote can now be taught using ballads or songs of that era, students can also be exposed to regional art schools to learn more about the history of regional kingdoms. But before all this, syllabus makers and pedagogy experts need to work in tandem to create appropriate lead-ins for different subjects and levels.
Shaping mindsets through historical thinking
Anchita Dasgupta
While the history syllabus at the school level is vast and covers several topics over a period of four years beginning from the Indus Valley Civilization, there is not much depth in the lessons taught. Teachers are in a hurry to complete the syllabus and students rote learns to secure marks in their exams. In the process, historical thinking is compromised—a skill that is yet to be introduced in our classrooms. The need to contextualize our history, to nurture an appreciation for its contemporary relevance and to question injustices of the past and its relationship with the present is passed over for hollow academic success. Students graduate high school with near-perfect exam scores without distinguishing fact from opinion and primary from secondary sources.
Tech challenges in the history classroom
Aashique Ahmed Iqbal
In a society that is driven by financial forces and technological developments what is the possible value of history? Can technology be utilized to convey the importance of history? What is the possible contribution of technology towards the enhancement of the value of history and acquiring a sound historical and critical understanding of both the past and the present? Unless teachers acquaint themselves with two latest technologies – the smartphone and AI chatbots – that are posing imminent challenges, they might find themselves marginalized in a highly technical landscape.
One story or many narratives
G Gautama
What is the history that should be taught in schools? Given that some facts are accurate and some not, that some views encompass a wider view of the world and others a narrow set of concerns, born of either survival issues or perceived threats, how is the question of what history should we ‘teach’ in schools to be resolved? The decision of what we include in history, and which version, is not an easy question.