Gavin McCormack: But do these things make a school a GOOD school?

Gavin McCormack

Principal at Farmhouse Montessori School. BA(Hons) 6-12 Trained Montessori Teacher +30,000 connections (please follow)

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6429902615303323648

There are many schools around the world who have amazing furniture, their teachers look great wearing blazers and ties, there’s a painting in the foyer by a famous artist, the classrooms are quiet and all the books are ticked and graded and their marks in the standardised test, well they’re out of this world.
But do these things make a school a GOOD school? Not in my opinion. A school can be judged on one thing and one thing alone. And that is the quality of the learning (not teaching) that takes place within the school.
We all know that teachers can teach. They are professionals. But, the best teachers and schools allow their students to not only experience an inquiry-based, hands-on approach to learning, but they allow children to represent their findings in a way that suits them.
Today we studied leaves. This pair of students decided they’d like to venture into the playground, collect leaves, identify them and make a leaf book. From that, they intend to examine them under a microscope and look at the cell structure, and these children are only 8.
Could these be the ones who save the Amazon rainforest from extinction?
It’s only possible if we allow them the freedom to make the curriculum their own.
Have a great day everyone.

❤️

hashtag#education

चुनौती : एक सर्वोत्तम सीख - उर्मिला राठौड़

चुनौती शब्द से ही हमारे मस्तिष्क में एक विचार आता है जिसमें  रोमांच एवं परेशानियों से झकझोर देने वाली स्थिति का आभास होता है। जबकि देखा जाए तो ये चुनौतियाँ हमें अच्छे से उत्कृष्ट बनाने वाली विधियाँ  हैं। हम अपनी दिनचर्या में देखें तो प्रति क्षण हम विभिन्न समस्याओं एवं चुनौतियों से दो चार होते है। वस्तुतः हम इन सबसे भागने की कोशिश करते हुए भी हल कर बैठते है तो क्यों न हम इनका आगे होकर खुशनुमा माहौल बनाकर समाधान करें । हम अपनी चुनौतियों का हल ढूँढने के लिए अपने सहयोगियों से सहयोग लेते है । साथ ही रचनात्मकता तथा धैर्य रखें और बार-बार प्रयास करें।

शैक्षिक परिदृश्य में देखें तो एक शिक्षक प्रतिदिन छात्र सम्बन्धित समस्या जैसे उनकी जिज्ञासा का निवारण करना, विषय वस्तु को तर्कसंगत ढंग से समझाना, वातावरण के प्रति जागरूक करना , समसामयिक जानकारी से अवगत कराना, परीक्षा में उत्तम परिणाम  और उनमें नैतिकता को बनाये रखने संबंधित विभिन्न चुनौतियों का सामना करना पड़ता है। ये सब तभी संभव होता है जब एक अध्यापक नवीन विधियों एवं तकनीकियों द्वारा उनको समझाए।

छात्रों के मस्तिष्क उद्वेलन के लिए उनके समक्ष  परिस्थितियों को उत्पन्न करना बहुत आवश्यक है। जैसे-नवीन समस्याओं का हल खोजना , पाठ की व्याख्या करना,वर्तनी अभ्यास, वाक्य शुद्धिकरण, सहपाठियों या समूहों में बैठकर  प्रश्नोत्तरी तैयार करना, किसी स्थान और व्यक्ति  विशेष के बारें में जानकारी इक्कठा करना, समसामयिक  घटनाओं  पर अपने विचार व्यक्त करना आदि अनेक अभ्यास करने को दिया जाए जिससे उनका प्रायोगिक ज्ञान और अनुभाविक ज्ञान बढ़ सके।

इन सभी प्रयासों से छात्र धैर्यवान, विचारशील, जिज्ञासु एवं खोजी प्रवृति के बन सकेंगे और यही वर्तमान शिक्षा एवं समय की मांग है। चुनौतियों का हल करने का सर्वश्रेष्ठ उपाय है कि हम अतीत की गलतियों को सुधार कर वर्तमान पर ज्यादा ध्यान दे । जब हम अतीत और वर्तमान को जोड़ना सीख जाएंगे तब हम अपने ज्ञान को विस्तृत कर कर सकेंगे। हम कभी भी अपनी समस्याओं को लेकर नहीं बैठे वरना वो समस्याएँ हमें दबाव में डालती रहेगी और वर्तमान कार्य पर अपना प्रभाव डालता रहेगी |निरंतर अभ्यास से एवं अपनी अभियोग्यताओं एवं कौशलों में सुधार करके हम निरंतर प्रगति कर सकेंगे। कठिनाइयों व विपत्तियों से न घबरा के उनका सकारात्मक तरीके से सामना करना चाहिए।

उर्मिला राठौड़

द फैबइंडिया स्कूल ,बाली

Manisha Deora: Women Empowerment

In India, empowering women is very necessary as it brings gender equality. Men should not think that women are made only for the household work. They both should be treated equally. Women empowerment is also necessary for the bright future of the family, society and country because an educated woman can educate her whole family and thus the whole country. It is said that “if we educate a man, we educate a man only, but if we educate a women, we educate the whole family”.

Women should be given equal opportunities in every field like men and they should not be discriminated. Women cover almost half population of the country, it means that if women are uneducated, the half of the country is uneducated which brings poor economic condition. Women should be given more freedom and should have equal rights like men, so that they can become independent.

Nowadays, women are competing men by doing all the work together like household work, working in offices, etc. They become independent and can serve their whole family. Women empowerment means empowering women to take their own decisions independently.

Women must be educated and they should be given more freedom. It is very important for a democratic country. So let them involve in the development of our country.

Manisha Deora.

Educator, The Fabindia School, Bali

हर समस्या का समाधान होता है

हर मुश्किल का हल होता है,

आज नहीं तो कल होता है। 

जब तक समस्याएँ नहीं होगी तब तक उनका समाधान संभव नहीं है। कुछ लोग समस्याओ से दूर भागते हैं, जिस कारण से वे हमेशा किसी न किसी समस्याओं से घिरे रहते हैं, लेकिन दूसरी ओर बहुत से लोग ऐसे भी होते हैं जो समस्या का हल चुटकियों में निकाल लेते है, ऐसे लोग कितनी भी  मुश्किल आ जाए उसका सामना डट कर करते हैं। जब तक समस्याएँ नहीं होगी शायद तब तक नयी खोज भी नहीं होगी क्योंकि खोजों का कारण ही समस्याएँ है। इसलिए हमें समस्याओं से डरना नहीं चाहिए बल्कि उसका सामना करना चाहिए। 

पेटक कबाकी  के अनुसार जिस दुनिया को हम अपनी  इन्द्रियों से देखते हैं वह वास्तविक दुनिया के मुकाबले बहुत अलग है, जो हम अपने सार के माध्यम से देखते हैं।  हमारी इन्द्रियाँ उपस्थिति की दुनिया को समझती हैं।  हमारा सार अस्तित्व की गहरी परतों को समझता है। सार की दुनिया को समझने का पहला कदम समझने के अलावा कोई लक्ष्य नहीं है।  'समझना' परम लक्ष्य होना चाहिए।  तभी हम समस्याओं को हल कर सकते हैं। 

सुरेश नेगी 

द फैबइंडिया स्कूल, बाली 

www.fabindiaschools.org

The State Of India’s Education System

The Fraud of Indian Education, 16 Jul 2018Pragati Staff

This is Episode 77 of The Seen and the Unseen, the weekly podcast hosted by our editor,  Amit Varma.
About Pragati
Pragati is an online magazine that provides commentary about current affairs and public policy. We believe that the national interest is best served by safeguarding individual liberties.
Some of the themes we care about: economic freedom, realism in international relations, an open society, a culture of tolerance and an emphasis on good governance.
For more, read our relaunch editorial by Amit Varma: ‘The Return of Pragati.’

Also check out: The Profit Motive in Education: Episode 9 of The Seen and the Unseen (http://www.seenunseen.in/episodes/2017/3/13/episode-9-the-profit-motive-in-education)

The Right to Screw up Education: Episode 19 of The Seen and the Unseen (https://www.thinkpragati.com/podcast/the-seen-and-the-unseen/1462/right-screw-education/)

Data on School Closures (http://nisaindia.org/data-on-school-closures)

Our Unlucky Children -- Amit Varma (Jan 2008)(http://indiauncut.com/iublog/article/our-unlucky-children/)

Annual Status of Education (ASER) Report 2017 (http://www.asercentre.org/Keywords/p/315.html)

The Aggregate Effect of School Choice -- Karthik Muralidharan & Venkatesh Sundararaman (https://academic.oup.com/qje/article/130/3/1011/1931887)

A political economy of education in India: The case of UP -- Geeta Kingdon & Mohd. Muzammil (http://ceid.educ.cam.ac.uk/publications/OPI_KingdonMuzammil20081.pdf)

Teacher Absence in India: A Snapshot (https://academic.oup.com/jeea/article-abstract/3/2-3/658/2281517?redirectedFrom=fulltext)

The Fabindia School to host the LFIN Retreat 2018

We would like to invite you to join us for the 3rd Annual Learning Forward India Retreat, to being hosted by The Fabindia School from 8th to 11th October 2018. The goal of the retreat is to foster professional learning and social interaction for empowering Educators to work for better learning outcomes. The program will include an agenda for professional learning and discussions, as well as other informational and social events.
#MyGoodSchool #LearningForwardIndia #HappyTeachers #LFINRetreat18

Learning Forward India Retreat 2018: 7-10 Oct 2018

LFIN Retreat  2018 - 18072018 Program Highlights
- Click here to open the document, please

Kavitha Devda: Understanding A Child

One of the things that we work on is to understand our child's mind. We should find out about the simple things that tell us what our child likes or dislikes, what makes him laugh or cry, and what motivates him. Here the social change and emotional development play an important role during childhood. Parents have their own way of interpreting their child's abilities and skills or lack of those. When you don't understand your child, you may misinterpret or misjudge him. 

Lack of awareness about child’s development can often lead to a poor judgment of children. Parents are more than just providing comforts for their children. Therefore, they are providing their child with a sense of security. One of the simplest ways to understand their children is observation. Show interest in what your children are doing or saying. Observe their actions and expressions, and temperament when they eat, sleep, and play. Keep in mind that your child is unique and may have a personality that stands out, even as he grows. To avoid comparing your child with other children, as it adds stress to their parents, it also makes the child feel inferior.

"A child is born neither good nor bad but Master of his destiny".

- Kavitha Devda, Educator at The Fabindia School

School Coach: the role defined

A school coach—sometimes called a school-improvement coach—is typically an individual hired to advise a school on how to improve its academic program, instructional effectiveness, and student performance. While a school coach acts much like a consultant, the use of the term “coach” is usually intentional—i.e., it’s meant to distinguish the school coach’s role from those of other professional educational consultants. While the specific role and responsibilities of school coaches may vary widely from school to school, there is some degree on consensus on what a school coach is, and is not, within the education community. For example, school coaches are usually mission-driven or expertise driven, as opposed to project driven, in the sense that they bring a particular educational perspective, belief system, instructional expertise, or advocacy role to their job. School coaches are often hired specifically for this reason: they are committed to helping schools achieve a specific goal, such as increasing educational equity (an ethical or social-justice goal) or expanding and improving the use of new learning technologies in the classroom (an instructional or programmatic goal).

While school coaches may be independent contractors, many are employed by nonprofit organizations or universities, and they may be hired by a state agency, school district, or school or by an outside organization or foundation. In many cases, school coaches are employed as part of a state program or grant-funded school-improvement project. School coaches may work on a fee-for-service model—i.e., they provide narrowly defined services on a short-term contract that may be renewed annually or every few months. Yet it is also very common for school coaches to be contracted for a multiyear commitment as a school undertakes a comprehensive restructuring of its academic program.

In some cases, school coaches are described as “critical friends”—a common education term that refers to fellow professionals who are understanding, supportive, and empathetic but who are not hesitant to speak candidly about problems and provide constructive criticism about what needs to change. In this way, school coaches are similar to athletic coaches: they are experienced professionals with specialized expertise who advise, train, and mentor the team and who are not hesitant about making individuals put in the practice and hard work necessary to succeed.

School coaches are often former educators and school administrators who can understand the workings and internal politics of a school from an educator’s perspective, although some have previously worked in other professions outside education, such as psychology, business, or communications. Coaches typically have expertise in skills such as group facilitation, interpersonal dynamics, public speaking, and conflict resolution, and they often help educators communicate, collaborate, and solve problems more productively and cooperatively. In some cases, though, a school coach will provide “coaching” on a specific issue, such as training teachers in specialized instructional techniques.

Another variation on the school-coach role is the on-staff coach—a full-time or part-time district or school employee who provides coaching services to educators in a local school system. While on-staff coaching may take many different forms, and job descriptions may vary widely, these positions are often created for educators with highly specialized experts who are tasked with delivering professional development to teachers. Two common positions, for example, are literacy coaches and learning-technology coaches; the former helps teachers improve the quality of reading and writing instruction in all subject areas, and the later trains teachers in how to use new technological devises and products as instructional assets.

While there are no formal credentialing organizations for school coaches, many organizations around the country offer training, resources, and support networks for school-coaching professionals.

https://www.edglossary.org/school-coach/

Soham Anand: 'Right' to become something!

The problem with today's young generation is their falsely intense belief in their geniousness and  insanity to become something, be it at the cost of sacrificing  all morality and ethics. Their 'Right' to become something, in term of material wellness, with total disregard to value behaviour is what is threatening and scary.

Their  real life is often the life  they do not live. Our young generation live a borrowed life, not theirs. The conflicts and strives, the disappointments and disruptions are the direct outcome of this borrowed life style.

The spirit of compassion and empathy has no place in their scheme of things, even if it is on the surface. Scrape the surface little deeper and you see callousness and unimaginable crudeness. Lust and greed has overtaken all the finer qualities and graces of life.

The maddening rush, the shrill noises, deafning crescendo, to become something, is so painfully loud that the less fortunate one are left behind to struggle and die.

Stepping on someone's toe to climb the ladder of success doesn't evoke any regret or repentance, rather it is the done thing. Today's spirit has less to do with compassion and sympathy, more with deodorants and perfumes.

Maree Scully: Changing from the Inside Out

“Should I invest money in coaching or put it towards new clothes?”  The person who asked me this question had just finished describing her need to overcome a longstanding and destructive personal habit.

While it’s always tempting to add to our wardrobe, a new look on the outside will never bring inner growth and desired change.  We often misunderstand how growth and heart transformation take place.  We think that perhaps with more discipline and stronger willpower, we can do this on our own.  Sometimes that does work!  But there is a healthier way to grow and change.

Recently I was watching a documentary on ‘Breaking the Food Seduction’ and the doctor mentioned as a throw-away comment that it is not possible to change our eating habits on our own.  He mentioned that a little bit of group support makes the difference between success and failure.  A group that meets regularly and shares successes, stories, and challenges, will change their eating habits and their lives!

Some years ago I read the book ‘How People Grow’ by Dr’s Townsend and Cloud.  The overwhelming thought that I came away with is that God designed us to grow in the community – with loving supportive and accountable relationships.  It was never intended that we run this journey of life on our own, yet we have somehow perfected it through our tendency towards keeping up appearances, busyness and building walls to keep others out.

One of the things I love about coaching is that it enables people to grow and change in a supportive, safe, loving, accountable relationship.  The coach works with you on a journey of self-discovery. To this end, he or she will challenge you and ask you difficult and maybe uncomfortable questions.  The coach creates a safe place for you to reflect, think deeply, and arrive at a point of greater awareness that results in a commitment to change. 

Even good friends or colleagues don’t always hold each other accountable or intentionally encourage growth.   Maybe you have colleagues with whom you can be transparent and who may be willing to ask you ‘What progress are you making in that area of leadership?’  Why not give them permission to ask?  Let’s stop trying to change and grow on our own.  Find people, whether it be a coach, a friend, a colleague or a mentor, to journey with you, to support and challenge you in your leadership growth. 
This morning I read an article by Laura McCamy on ‘6 things people who are good with money always splurge on’.  She quotes a personal finance expert as saying that coaching can be a good career investment for entrepreneurs and employees alike. "Whatever is hard for you and challenging for you, investing in a coach to help you with that," she said, is a worthwhile investment.  Coaching is an investment in your growth.

Let’s not stay stuck on the inside while sporting our new wardrobe on the outside!
Maree Scully
coaching4growthltd@gmail.com
www.coaching4growth.co.nz

Experiential learning to develop empathy

Ishu Chauhan: Caring

Caring is a good trait to have. What is caring? Caring is when you do a good deed for someone because it is the right thing to do. When you care for someone, you make a difference in the world with kindness. I believe that caring for others is wonderful and noble.

The experience that stands out for me about caring was when my mother had a severe backache. It was in 2011, she had a severe pain in her back and because of that, she was unable to do any household chores. I used to help her in going to the washroom, taking bath etc. At that time I was in Ahmedabad and was having my board exams. It was the time when I understood that what does caring for others means.  As she continued to recover, I was always there for her.

I was filled with joy knowing that I helped my mother. I was really proud of doing that because it was a way to care for others. Caring goes beyond taking care of family members and friends. Caring is being compassionate and supporting people as they go through tough times. Caring is helping others at the time of needs. Caring is a good trait for everyone to have and the world will be a better place if we care for one another. So let’s find out a few moments of caring for others, that will become great moments for them.

Ishu Chauhan, The Fabindia School www.FabindiaSchools.Org

सुरेश सिंह नेगी: क्या लिखूँ

क्या लिखूँ

निर्दोष शिशु की जिज्ञासा

या बालक की खेल लालसा

प्रौढों का अथक प्रयास लिखूँ

या वृद्धों की आस लिखूँ

सबका अपना-अपना लक्ष्य लिखूँ

या भविष्य का नक्श लिखूँ

बुद्ध का मौन या महावीर का केवल्य लिखूँ

राम का आदर्श या कृष्ण का कर्मयोग लिखूँ

इस ब्रहमाण्ड का शून्य लिखूँ

या कुछ अन्य लिखूँ

मैं लिखूँगा अवश्य

लिखूँगा, मैं एक कक्षा की पौध लिखूँगा

जो लिखेगी भविष्य का इतिहास

समय की रेत पर छुयेगी मेरे हर विषय को

क्योंकि मै एक शिक्षक हूँ।

Suresh Singh Negi

The Fabindia School

www.fabindiaschools.org