Break that stereotype!

Hriday Ranjan

You are probably aware that if you are a teacher, your students have already fit you into a stereotypical profile. It is time that you surprise them by breaking the stereotype.

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Markers and moments of change

1829 – The use of English as the medium of instruction, and the training of English-speaking Indians as teachers as conceptualized by Lord Bentinck. Hunter Commission (1882) – highlighted the need for teacher education for the first time. Kothari Commission (also known as Secondary Education Commission) (1964-66) – Teacher training and teacher status were a major focus. It stated: “In order to make the professional preparation of teachers effective, teacher education must ‘be brought into the mainstream of the academic life of the Universities, on the one hand, and of the school life and educational development, on the other”. The commission also proposed increased pay scales for school teachers to be implemented in a phased programme over a period of five years. NPE (1986) – Emphasized better training and qualifications of teachers. It also aimed to encourage scholarships, adult education, and recruiting more teachers from SCs. The National Council for Teacher Education Act – NCTE, (1993) – Established with a view to achieving planned and coordinated development of the teacher education system throughout the country, the regulation and proper maintenance of norms and standards in the teacher education system and for matters connected therewith. SSA – Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (2000) – Called for an increase in the number of teachers to meet the goal of universal education. It also focused on recruitment of female teachers to encourage girl child education. Information and Communication Technology in Schools (2004) – The Centrally Sponsored Scheme “Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in School” was launched in December 2004. The Scheme currently is being implemented in both government and government aided secondary and higher schools. Support is provided for procurement of computers and peripherals, educational software, training of teachers, Internet connectivity etc. National Curriculum Framework – NCF (2005) – Teachers were encouraged to adopt constructivist learning pedagogy. Teacher education was also a major emphasis – both in-service and pre-service. Sixth Pay Commission (2006) – There have been six pay commissions in India owing to which the salaries of government teachers have improved gradually. National Curriculum for Teacher Education – NCFTE (2009) as approved by the NCTE, a curriculum framework was devised subtitled: “Towards Preparing Professional and Humane Teacher”. RTE – Right to Education Act (2009) – Corporal punishment made illegal; pupil-teacher ratio fixed; private tuition prohibited. Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation – CCE (2010) – CBSE schools mandated to adopt CCE as a means of evaluation. The CCE method is claimed to bring enormous changes from the traditional chalk and talk

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Posts from the past

Over the years, education has undergone a lot of transformation. Today it is more open, allows for a more varied experience and is considered more child-friendly. But what about one of the main pillars of education – the teachers? What is life like for them now? Is it different from what it was before? Does the teacher of this decade think and work like the teacher of the 50s or the 70s? We asked teachers from five decades to share their thoughts with us. Tell us how you think the decades compare with regard to the life of a teacher. 50s Rajeshwari Natarajan I began teaching at the age of 18. It was my father who encouraged me to enter this profession as he wanted me to experience life and have a career. In my days as a teacher we were expected to plan our lessons the previous week itself and have it approved by the headmaster or headmistress. Those were days when we didn’t have textbooks in the vernacular medium, so apart from teaching Hindi I had to read up geography and history textbooks in English and teach these to the students in Hindi. With all the constraints of those times I think the teacher-student relationship was more sacrosanct then than it is now. Teachers became one with the class and students then. If they were discussing the map of India, they would draw it on the field and show it to the students. Teachers would sit down with the students with their sarees tucked up and ready to dirty themselves. Teachers got to relate to the students and understand them and students got to experience learning. There was no divide between the student and the teacher. They were one. 70s Anuradha Subburaman I became a teacher because in my time teaching was supposed to be a respectable and comfortable job for women. But before I embarked on my career as a teacher, I did have the opportunity to work for BSNL. However since this job was in Bangalore, away from my home town, my parents decided that teaching was a better option for me. As a teacher in the 1970s, I had to learn new things every day, have notes of my lessons ready, prepare charts for the class the following day, be up to date in general Knowledge. After all, my students expected me to supply them with examples whenever a new concept was taught. I should mention that the parent-student-teacher relationship

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Slowly but surely

People keen on quality education have been clamouring for change for many years now. While it may appear that their demands are falling on deaf ears, change is actually taking palce albeit slowly.

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Learning to learn

Sharmila Govande

Every child has the potential to connect his learning at school to real life issues and find solutions to whatever problems that might arise. It is the responsibility of teachers to nurture this potential to think, reason, apply and solve especially in the primary school years.

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The idea of sharing and giving

Madhulika S and Deepti Gollapudi

This article talks about an empathy project initiated by an NGO that brings schools across Hyderabad city on a single platform. Titled Project Gift Compassion, it aims to overcome social barriers and facilitate the idea of sharing and giving among young and impressionable minds.

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