I was impressed with what I saw at an Amity school in Noida. In the Maths area there were some excellent and fun brain teasers and puzzles put together by the teachers and kids quite a few of which stumped a “late 40 to early fifties ” bunch of IIT folks ( I was one of them).
One room was devoted to Nanotechnology. Not my field but it was all presented in a fun way that stimulated learning . I now know the difference between nano and pico technology and why peackock feathers do not lose color.
Some of the kids presented their exhibits in a rehearsed and coached manner but done quite well.
It is nice to see innovation in teaching at the school level.
My son grew up in USA and as parents when we visited India we got quite concerned because he seemed to know much less than his peers. When we returned to USA I visited his third grade class and returned quite reassured that it was just a different system. In third grade he had to write a report on whales ( what do whales eat, who eats/kills whales etc. ) with a bibliography and present it. Other students had to listen, question and they were judged on their class participation and on their own work. The presentations were recorded and the teacher plus students gave feedback on improvements.
If you have ever wondered why a lot of people in USA are very good at presentation then you now know they start very early.
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Sanjay:
The “Venture Jobs” page needs to be split into separate smaller pages i guess. See below:
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Could not post this comment on that page since the page never loaded fully.
Gopi
What I read from these comments is that there is a lot of room from improvement and problems in teacher compensation/recognition.
There also is a problem in college level education being archaic.
It is good to articulate some of these issues but I remain optimistic that the forces of change that will cure these have been unleashed. This may be wishful thinking and India has often flattered to deceive.
It is very easy for all us to state the problems but much more difficult to become part of the solution.
Well, Ravish’s point is somewhat extreme. There are teachers who are dedicated to their professions as well.
I’m from a private school (MSVV) and even there, from that time, I had big issues with the educational system. Later on, as I began teaching in college, I realized that there are issues at both ends- for instance, abroad, teaching is a very respected profession. Here, well, a teacher is only one step above a peon, or a clerk, as far as respect and pay scale is concerned.
I teach because I am very passionate about it. I find it difficult to imagine how I would get by solely on a teacher’s salary. Or how anybody could, really. A KV teacher would earn, what, 7-8K a month? I can quite understand why there is a sort of apathy that sets in after a period of time.
The other issue is dynamism. In most institutions, especially government ones, it is not surprising to have a course remaining the same for many years, even decades on end. A good example would be the Delhi College of Art where I studied for a year, where as I understand it the syllabus hadn’t changed significantly in over 30 years! Can you imagine the numbness that sets in, having to teach exactly the same thing over and over again?
Problems at all ends. A huge infrastructure, without the means to actually support it. Administration and teachers who don’t much care, students who don’t much care, parents who go frantic trying to get their kids admitted and even more frantic when results don’t really show. A system overall that is based on rote, rote and more rote. Is it surprising that the overall mood is of bleak despair?
One thing though- I would like to point out that both our President and the Prime Minister seem to have recognized this problem, and the strides that have been taken in the last few years represent a quantum change in the attitude of the government. At least there is recognition of the problem on official levels, to whatever extent. There’s hope yet…
Sending kids to school in India is no less than a nightmare. The education system is totally corrupt and to the worse… teachers beat hell out of the students.
Many children daily suffer this outrage from teachers. Most are beaten brutally, some are even beaten to death… others are forced to suicide. Some teachers & principals even rape and molest young girls.
What are these devils going to teach our kids?
I wonder what a human will do with maths teasers unless he do he don’t have any moral or social values.
What is a kid supposed to do with trigonometry if he do not know how save his life in case of a calamity. Don’t you think elementary is supposed to be development of a good human being than teasing his mind with maths puzzles?
There are a few good schools in the country. But because of limited seats and greedy schools, parents are required to shell out a fortune to get their child admitted in a good school.
I’ll say Sanjay is fortunate enough to send his kids to school in US.
That’s a good point. I realized this this year from my daughter – she’s still just in Kindergarten, but they really start that early. For Americans it’s kinda natural, but for us parents-educated-in-India, it’s different (and I find it better).