Performance Scores Must Be Honest

Performance in a class is defined as a figure or letter representing the total number of marks awarded in an examination or competition and signifies a person’s score. Marks must be true and that for us is the biggest challenge today.

In our quest to maybe encourage the student to perform or show that we as teachers are delivering better and to build the brand of the school where parents feel their students deliver better... the marking system is used and I dare say abused. We have today a system where we do not wish to hold back or what some say 'fail' a student and deny the promotion to the next class. The merit list is made only from performance scores...yet the schools and colleges often fail to spot the budding talent. Is the performance score/marks the only way to help an individual deliver? Is it a true measure of the capacity and capability of the student?

What is beyond 100% marks?

When we motivate by giving marks or scores for performance, we also end up harming the ones who are given low scores. The losers in the marking system are perhaps many more than the winners. Yes, you are justified in saying that we do need a system/measure to judge performance and marks is one such way to measure the learning outcome in the individual. It is imperative that we look at the 'sanctity' of the system and not get carried away by the simple need to win people with false promises. Of late in my travels and meetings with school heads, I had a meeting with the head of a school and she was very honest to say 'we have to give marks to keep parents happy, if we are strict with marking, the student scores fall, parents than feel that the school is not delivering!'

We today have gone a step ahead and have started publishing dubious listings and performance ladder for schools. The annual listing, the much awaited media hype and the sensationalism is all harming the education process, more than helping. Good work itself outshines the 'good word' sold to us by media hype. We may come to the top of the mind recall by using the annual media listings, however like a newspaper the value of the listings is very short lived. End of the day, it is good work that will lay the foundation of growth and development of young people with character. Today, it seems 'business first' and like the yawning gap between haves and have nots, the so called meritocracy is really killing learning and doing more harm as it is often clouded with a business motive.

"Some schools are liberal in giving marks while others are not. Will I not suffer on account of strict marking by the school of my child?" ~ a traumatised parent

The hypothetical answer to this question - No student would suffer because of strict marking or benefit from lenient marking as the Marking Scheme for all Question Papers in all major subjects are being provided by the Board and the teachers are being directed to adhere to the Marking Scheme in each subject. However, to avoid such apprehensions CBSE (Central Board of Secondary Education, India) has also undertaken a systematic collection, analysis and moderation of ‘Evidence of Assessment’ by analysing sample answers scripts, anecdotal records, student portfolios and teachers’ records. This exercise ensures that school based assessment is of acceptable quality.

Like the CBSE, the other national and state boards too have a policy and use various methods to correct the bias if any. To err is human, and this is the anomaly and the challenge in itself. The methods of providing grades instead of marks does seem a better way... the debate will go on and on! What is most imperative is that the assessment method should not be prone to mere individual value judgements.

National Foundation of Education Research tries to explain 'What do test scores mean?'
Many people will remember test scores from their school days such as ‘7 out of 10’ for a primary school spelling test, or ‘63%’ for one of their secondary school exams. Such scores are readily understandable and are useful in indicating what proportion of the total marks a person has gained, but these scores do not account for factors such as how hard the test is, where a person stands in relation to other people, and the margin of error in the test score. As another example, in a school test such as mathematics or English, we would not know how well the pupil is performing against National Curriculum measures.

Standardised scores are more useful measures than raw scores (the number of questions answered correctly) and there are reasons why such scores are normally used. The measure of the spread of scores is called the 'standard deviation' and this is usually set for educational attainment and ability tests, and for many other tests. This means that, irrespective of the difficulty of the test, the students are given marks on a rationalised scale. This may help correct the individual bias in marking and is often preferred by the national and state level boards. Further the practice of external examiners, the random testing, the other secure methods all aim to remove the human bias. This happens at a later stage in the life of a student, what about he early years when the child is not a 'teacher's favourite' or not the most well behaved and is marked in very random manner?

On one hand marks may be a way to encourage competition, these on the other could also dampen the spirit of the low scoring students. The teacher must look at the method adopted very carefully and ensure that the marking is most honest, if this be the only way to measure the performance of a individual. There are countless stories of individuals who get poor performance scores, go on to succeed in life, become inventors, innovators and bring about a revolution in thought. The human mind is very complex, and this is the biggest challenge and will remain one always.

Another interesting debate evaluates "Should Student Test Scores Be Used to Evaluate Teachers?"
How much to credit—and blame—teachers for student performance is an issue that continues to confound the education field. To what extent is each student's progress directly attributable to the teacher's efforts? What other factors can determine a student's success? Is there a way to measure each factor separately, including the teacher's influence?

To clarify: We should focus on gains in test scores, not end-of-year scores. Any estimate of how much the student has improved while in the teacher's class must take into account the fact that students start at different points. We want to know how much a teacher contributes to student growth during the time students are in that teacher's classroom.

While such student-achievement gains are imperfect measures, the same is true of all measures. The marks given by the teacher are sacrosanct, are looked as the ultimate reflection of a students ability. It is most important that the teacher be accountable and their ability too is reflected in the child's performance. Perhaps the answer lies in giving due weight-age to performance of an individual as well as the ability of the teacher to bring about an improvement in the quality of learning and not just a measure of teaching efficiency in a classroom. If a teacher delivers a lessons and the child is supposed to comprehend, am sure both play an important role and will influence the final marks in the class.

Strategies to Check Student Learning in the Classroom IOWA State University, Centre of Learning and Teaching has published a good read on Classroom Assessment Techniques. The simple way of assessing a person with marks is not really the best method, but is widely used as it is most practical and teachers per se are supposed to have the moral authority to deliver the value judgement.

Pic courtesy - The Fabindia School

If marks be the evidence of assessment, these must be most honest and this is where we as teachers need to be very careful.
When doing our corrections, we often have the pressure of time, the lack of ability to comprehend the answer the student wishes to convey, the external environment around us and even our mental makeup on the day of corrections!

You must reflect and do your best to be most honest, the performance mark must be used most judiciously to convey a message to the student as well as the family that puts in everything to help the child grow and succeed in life.

"This is the struggle of today's system. Everyone thinks he/she is an educationist. But no one bothers to bring enjoyment of learning to their students. The curse comes from the Appraisals attached to money rather than appreciation in terms of recognition. Marks have a way to build certain documents for schools, but they tie us up in knots when it comes to following methodology of awarding them.

CBSE has taught me one thing via corrections and that is to be at the child's side when it comes to correction. If we can come down to their level of teaching we should come down to their level of correction too.

Continuous Assessments are actually the bane because they have warped people's thinking. Objectivity is a far cry and teachers end up being confused rather than being clear because they are not left on their own to decide how to judge!

I agree with you that marking system gives out more losers than winners. Thank you for taking such pains to reveal the ugly as well as the fairer side of the system."

~ Deepika Tandon, Principal, The Fabindia School, Bali Rajasthan - 306701, India

Performance scores must be used as true motivator and not a mere measure. The joy of learning and succeeding must not be robbed by the process of marking. Yes, it is a great feeling to top a class, it is only one person who will top, is that the only way to run the race of life?

We must not simply see the scores at a point of time, but over a period of time and this is where we will find value and be able to develop a strategy to build individual performance. Value judgements in life are indeed clouded with bias and it is time the sanctity of the system is maintained. The real teacher will alone stand up and help the student grow in life, way beyond just gaining by high marks in a classroom. This will help make up for the lack of belief we have in the integrity of the performance scores.

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The author of the article Sandeep Dutt takes the onus of the content and the opinions expressed are his alone. You may please email the author on sd@ebd.in for comments if any. For more about the author www.sandeepdutt.com

Disclaimer: Images have been sourced with the help of Google User Content online and this blog claims no design or copyright please

Search For My Haven Of Freedom

If 'education is freedom with responsibility' it is about time we ensured the school environment provides the freedom to deliver education. The space is devoid of fear and favour, this alone will help in the personal and social development of our children.

Where The Mind Is Without Fear
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.

Rabindranath Tagore, the greatest writer in modern Indian literature, Bengali poet, novelist, educator, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913, has very beautifully eulogised freedom at school. The poem is read as a prayer in many schools and from me personally this is the 'haven of freedom' a school should be.

Image courtesy pasadenaus.org

Overall, schools are one of the safest places children can be. However, some schools have problems, such as bullying and theft, which make them less secure. These problems make students and educators feel less safe, and it makes it harder for students to learn and for teachers to do their jobs. There are still bigger challenges like shooting, kidnapping and using children as a means of meeting evil designs of terror groups. Our children are soft targets and when we have them at school we feel they are in a safe space or their haven.

Look at what is happening in the world around us, first the Pakistani Taliban bombed or burned over 1,000 schools. Then they shot Malala Yousafzai, the teenage advocate for girls’ rights. But on Tuesday the 16th of December, the Taliban took their war on education to a ruthless new low with an assault on a crowded school in Peshawar that killed 145 people — 132 of them uniformed schoolchildren — in the deadliest single attack in the group’s history.

"The tragedy that occurred in Pakistan, makes me reflect on some of our own attitudes to the issues highlighted by this ghastly event. As a Head of School, one nightmare that constantly haunted me was exactly the possibility of such an event occurring on my watch. At Welham Boys, I had, in fact, commissioned security analysts from Mahindra’s Security think tank to assess our risk situation and to suggest measures to tackle these risks.

What bemused me was the reaction of many parents, students and alumni. I was constantly accused of having “gone over the top”, of having reduced the school to a fortress or even jail, of having taken away the entire spirit of freedom that a school should exude. Moreover, it was not uncommon for angry parents and alumni to get into serious altercations with the guards who had asked them to fill in their particulars in the register at the gate. They considered this highly demeaning.

Whilst all that these angry folk said may have been true, the question that deserves to be debated, is whether such measures (security cameras, explosive –sniffer dogs, visitors registering at the gate etc) were necessary. Many argued that If some terrorists wanted to hurt us , we , as a school could never stop them anyway. I argued that at least we could try, and in the process buy ourselves some time to get the children to safety, and summon help. Many felt that I was being “alarmist”.

Pakistan’s tragedy should perhaps make us stop and think. Given the times we live in, will we not have to get used to being ”inconvenienced” on various occasions and at various places? Yes, schools should ideally be free of all the accoutrements of “security”. But is that realistic or desirable these days? "

~ Dev Lahiri, former Principal, Welham Boys School, Dehradun, India

What can a parent do? What does a parent need to know? What should a parent look for related to school safety at their child’s school?

Ken Trump, President of National School Safety and Security Services, created a list of 10 practical things parents can do to assess school security and emergency/crisis preparedness from a parent’s perspective specifically for parents. Security and emergency preparedness measures should be balanced with strong violence prevention and intervention programs. Along with a well-disciplined and positive school climate, these elements of a comprehensive safe schools approach can play critical roles in making schools safe.

The school is the key environment for the personal and social development of a child, it is most imperative that we need to ensure that this 'ecosystem' has a sanctity of its' own. We lay emphasis on a green school, a clean school... the happiness of the child is at risk with the inherent need for security in the school campus.

Every school should have crisis teams that review their plans regularly, he said, and staff members who greet and challenge every person who comes to the door. They should have locked doors, safety drills and parents who know where to find their kids, just in case the unthinkable happens.

Schools need counselors, psychologists and officers building relationships with kids, because they are the best line of defense, Trump said.

Image courtesy - lymaraschool.org

'What really makes schools safer?' An article written by Jamie Gumbrecht, CNN goes on to state...Those who know the world of school security are already predicting what comes next: A strong reaction -- maybe an overreaction -- by parents, schools and legislators who want to take action. Politicians will be elected on platforms of school safety. Vendors will turn up with technology and security plans to sell. Schools will rewrite their crisis plans and run extra drills. goes further to ask, Is there no safe place?' "As they cut back on the human element, they've tried to compensate by leaning on and pointing to physical security measures, ... They love to say 'We have cameras.' "

Schools work to prevent problems through community building, fostering respect, inclusion, fairness and equity. We need to respect the school space if we want to have a civilised society. The history of human evolution is replete with violence and the urge to dominate by force. This psyche itself is a major challenge. Today beyond the threats from within like bullying, physical abuse, emotional torture... the external pressure, the paranoia that results are indeed highlighted by The Nobel Peace Prize 2014 being awarded jointly to Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzai "for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education".

The world has been shaken up with the brute violence like shootings in school, Boko Haram kidnappings, killing of innocent children by violence and design. Traditionally we looked at school safety from ensuring our children are 'accident safe' and their journey to school is safe too. Today the monster of terrorism and the brutal design of radicals has threatened the school space even more. The fear psychosis will not only push us to take recourse to policing and security but more than that will need counselling and great efforts to soothe the terror stricken minds of the children of the world.

The author Sandeep Dutt takes the onus of the content and the opinions expressed are his alone. You may please email the author on sd@ebd.in for comments if any. For more about the author www.sandeepdutt.com

Disclaimer: Images have been sourced from Google User Content online and this blog claims no design or copyright please.
Special thank you to Mr Dev Lahiri who so eloquently put down his thoughts and helped shape this blog post.

The Annual Day At School

Focus on the child's strengths. Emphasise and celebrate the child's "island of competence" ~ Pat Kozyra

The best way to have young people perform is to celebrate every achievement and encourage every step they take. From a toddlers' first step to a running child, there is a great deal of effort put in, likewise all students in every school do put in a great deal of effort in the calendar year, what better than the Annual Day to celebrate their effort. The Annual Day helps us showcase our ability to connect, to collaborate, to communicate and to create. This is really the essence of good education delivery at school.

Excellence in Study

Any man can help create a child but it takes a real man to love, cherish and raise that child.

This day is not merely a day to give away the annual prizes for achievement, it is also a day to gladden the hearts of the children, the teachers, the parents and the community. All stakeholders must be involved and get an opportunity to cherish the moment. Yes, with hundreds and sometime even thousands connected with one school it is a big challenge to give due regard and recognition to many deserving, to overcome this challenge we may have may consider many occasions to help young people participate and find themselves. The only way to build leadership is to help an individual find the suitable area of excellence.

Personal and social development of a young person is possible with due emphasis in Study, Service, Skill and Sport. Some schools even have separate days to celebrate the four key areas of delivery. Yes there is the Annual Sports Day and the Annual Prize Day (devoted to academics). We must celebrate the achievement of every individual, it is most important never to compare one child with another. The schools must provide opportunity to showcase diversity and engage as many students in a wide array of showcase opportunities. An example is a musical concert or the sports day, wherein a large number of students participate and are all rewarded not because each will win a medal, but simply each child will feel special to be a cynosure of some eyes and a favourite among her/ his friends and parents too.

Traditional Rajasthani dance sequence performed by students at The Fabindia School - video courtesy Wide Angle Films

Experts in the field of education and child development tell us that building self-esteem is the key to successful living. Self-esteem is both a prerequisite and a consequence of academic success, and a dynamic relationship exists between self-esteem and skill development. Self-esteem is how we value ourselves, how we see ourselves, and how we feel about our achievements. (Winners believe in themselves!) Children don't invent a low self-image for themselves. They learn it from adults, mostly parents. Parents and teachers of children must note that having a good self-esteem is also the ticket for making good choices about their mind and body. If young people think they are important and much appreciated, they will also become leaders if their group or community. The Annual Day and such events will show that sincere interest can be more effective and meaningful than praise.

Excellence in Skill

Events at school like debating competitions, sport matches, skill exhibitions, excursions must have parents as invitees and even encourage them to participate. In many schools the alumni and the parents get an opportunity to participate and get involved with the school community. All stakeholders must be part of the celebrations, in particular the annual day celebrations or even the prize giving. The events must have a youth icon or an impressionable person to speak to the students as they are always in search of role model in life. When we choose a chief guest or role model we must find people who have excelled in study, service, skill and sport.

Remember:

1. Children's self-esteem will be determined by the conditional acceptance they receive from others and the unconditional acceptance they receive from the parents and their teachers. The child's self-esteem is determined by success in four areas:

Social (acceptance and friendships) - grows by participation in events and activities.
Competence (in a skill area) - gives new areas to excel to each individual.
Physical (clothing, appearance) - need to be appreciated.
Character (effort, generosity) - is celebrated by participating in service, sport and activities

Compliment people... magnify their strengths, not their weaknesses.

Adapted from Boosting Your Child's Self-Esteem by Robert D. Ramsey

1. Post the child's drawings and schoolwork in prominent places. That's what the soft boards, charts and other spaces in the school / home are for!

2. Help the child to remember the good times and the good things they do. This celebration will be the essence of the personal and social development of the individual student.

3. Don't stop giving the children accolades and cheers, because you think they are grown up, getting old for display of affection is indeed a fallacy. We are never to old for a pat on the back in front of an audience!

4. Always share with your child what the teachers say with others. Silence in mentioning and celebrating the child's achievement is not good.

5. End each year in the school by reviewing the past twelve months of the individuals and their accomplishments.

Excellence in Sport

The Annual Day is a time to showcase creativity. "Creativity lies at the heart of what it means to be human. Creativity is not just about arts or certain people. We all have the capacity for creative thinking - for generating and extending ideas, suggesting hypotheses, applying imagination and looking for alternative innovative outcomes.

"Creativity seems to be a capacity that is separate from intelligence, and the ways these combine can lead to very different learning styles and levels of achievement. Children scoring high on intelligence tests are not necessarily creative. We must therefore celebrate creativity of every child and find as many days in school as possible.

The annual day celebrations of any school bring out the essence of cultural diversity and rich heritage of the country. This is why we must celebrate the Annual Day and more at the school.

Value each child as a individual with unique strengths, needs, interests, and skills.

We will be most delighted to share the accomplishments of children in your school and family in The Bagpiper monthly newsletter, please to email the same to Mr A N Dar amarnath.dar35@gmail.com

~ Thank you to Pat Kozyra for the thoughts and inputs for this article

Excellence in Service

The author of the article Sandeep Dutt takes the onus of the content and the opinions expressed are his alone. You may please email the author on sd@ebd.in for comments if any. Sandeep is the former National Director of The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award ( IAYP in India).

Like us on Facebook www.Facebook.com/Ebdedu

For more about the author www.sandeepdutt.com

Connect with Sandeep Dutt on Linkedin www.linkedin.com/in/sandeepdutt

References:

1. Tips and Tidbits for Parents and Teachers - Pat Kozra

2. Personal and Social Development - vision document of The Fabindia School
3. Video courtesy Wide Angle Films

Disclaimer: Images have been sourced with the help of Google User Content online and this blog claims no design or copyright please.

The Art Of Writing At School

In this world of electronic delivery the art of writing could be the casualty!

We are in an era of instant communication and connecting more, the need to be comprehensive in our writing is loosing ground. SMS language, abbreviations and slang are corrupting the art of writing very rapidly. Business at the speed of thought, sometimes even pushes us to share information without thought and editing.

True, This! —

Beneath the rule of men entirely great

The pen is mightier than the sword.
Behold

The arch-enchanters wand! — itself is nothing! —

But taking sorcery from the master-hand

To paralyse the Cæsars, and to strike

The loud earth breathless! — Take away the sword —

States can be saved without it!

~ The sentence (if not the idea, which had been expressed in various earlier forms) was coined by English author Edward Bulwer-Lytton in 1839 for his play Richelieu; Or the Conspiracy.

"The pen is mightier than the sword" means a person can cause people to change their opinions (e.g., to fight a war) and on a large scale, whereas a sword can only change a person's opinion by force and then often only results in the person's death.

Writing has character, a physical form and conveys emotions far more effectively. The written word is an art form in itself and is very personal too. With the proliferation of the electronic and print media, who knows the hand written word may be extinct in the near future itself. With touch and voice pushing us to new frontiers with gadgets, we may even end up with a paperless world in some years ahead. This will indeed be a heartbreak for the romantics, the writers and the creators of the cursive writing form.

The term handwriting encompasses both printing and cursive styles and is separate from formal calligraphy or typeface. Because each person's handwriting is unique, it can be used to verify a document's writer, the deterioration of a person's handwriting is also a symptom or result of certain diseases.

Education at school starts with the learning of alphabets and building up the art of writing. We all will remember how we first started our learning with the single letters, then the joining of alphabets, the formation of sentences and moved on to the writing statements and expressions.

The most prolific experience for me in person - our English class teacher forcing us to write a Thought for the week. This was even bigger challenge for me than to learn how to write. It made me think, have my imagination go wild, scribble and cross out and finally have a simple and eloquent hand written piece ready for my Monday morning English class. Yes, we did not have the tools of word processing and perhaps spent a lot of time thinking and imaging, this is why the quality of our writing was much better and perhaps more original too.

In my secondary school years our House Master would push us to keep a journal and write a Daily Log. This was indeed a great way to reflect, learn time management and best of all in a very subtle way it helped us improve our art of writing. Today the ubiquitous Calendar Apps keep our logs and reminders!

While at school, we had to file reports of our school outings and mid-term excursions with sketches and photos incorporated. Essays and writings of people are today curated in museums all over the world and perhaps when we go back to the archives in our schools we will be most delighted to find some of our very own original writings. Believe me, this will be your most treasured moment!

Today in the world of 'cut and paste' often the Art of Writing is the casualty. When I sit down to write my blog every 10th day of the month, I find that more than concentrate on my writing I end up browsing. When we quote with reference it is research and not copying, this is perhaps what takes us away from the original way of writing and doing deep research, thinking, scratching our heads and coming up with eloquent prose.

As the world becomes increasingly digital, writing becomes more important. This is especially true for non-writers. If you work in an office, the majority of your communications are made with text by email or IM. Whether you like it or not, your ability to exchange ideas, collaborate with others, and ultimately succeed, hinges on the ability to write effectively.

K. Stone has laid out a process to help us write faster, better, and easier. To follow up, here are 10 timeless tips from www.pickthebrain.com to help you improve style and substance, straight from the pens of humanity’s finest authors.

1. Cut the boring parts
2. Eliminate unnecessary words
3. Write with passion
4. Paint a picture
5. Keep it simple
6. Do it with love
7. Learn to thrive on criticism
8. Write all the time
9. Write what you know or what you want to know
10. Be unique and unpredictable.

Any change in the world must be brought about by the power of expression and writing is indeed the most powerful form of expression. It is original, thought provoking and when used effectively will be the change in itself. How do we do this? Here you will find some examples and how the art of writing is encouraged at an institutional level.

How to encourage the Art of Writing?
Beyond the simple need to write an essay or do home work, the school may want to set up a Literary Club or a Literary Society. This will bring together young people with passion, with peers in action writing will definitely become very exciting. Have a writers workshop at school, send out entries for essay and writing competitions at the inter-school or national level. Use the internet to set up blogs and have students participate in online events and literary chats. Simple still start publishing a School Weekly or share information in groups. Am happy to share The School Weekly of The Fabindia School, hosted on the blog www.bateduction.com as an example. It took the community near 100 weeks to finally start enjoying working for the weekly, today the students look forward to Mondays, the day of the The School Weekly.

In this media-barraged world, writing skills, turn of phrase and succinctly put together information are of great importance. At The Doon School the art of writing pays a catalytic part in learning. The Doon School Weekly (DSW), written and edited by the boys, has been in existence since 1936 and is much awaited at Saturday morning breakfast. Prayas and Arpan (Hindi) and The Echo (a biannual science publication) are written, edited and published by our boys too. The Yearbook, the School List, and The Doon School Information Review are other key publications.

From websites like Worddraw.com you can download Microsoft Word School Newsletter templates (please note Microsoft Word is registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation and worddraw.com is not associated with Microsoft). There are many tools and software programs available for free, a simple school newsletter can be done by using any average word processing software today. GoogleDocs itself is a good tool for self publishing.

The New School in New York, is a vital force in creative writing—in New York City, the nation, and the world. This School's commitment to supporting all aspects of the writer’s life is unsurpassed. Coursework emphasises literature as a living art, rather than a historical artefact. The instructors resist critical narrowness and approach the creative process from the inside out, bringing form to inspiration. Students are guided through the writing process from first draft to publication.

Playing host to an extraordinary calendar of events—readings, panels, book releases, and awards—The Writing School in London, is an active participant in today's cultural dialogue. The school cultivates a writer's life that's always growing, that is active in the evolution of the literary experience. Here's How The Writing School Can Help You - The Writing School will teach you how to write creatively and how to market your work. You can succeed as a writer. The Writing School teaches you how to write using their unique time-tested approach. You'll develop the skills to earn money from your writing.

Music and films today are not distributed with the same method and medium as in the last century, today books too are changing form and all this is perhaps a pointer that writing as a form may not be so personal anymore, however the Art of Writing will always exist as this is the most powerful medium of communication for us.The medium of distribution may change, but the power of the written word in any form will never be diluted.

Join us in promoting the free flow of ideas and thoughts between the school children and young people please.

TO ENCOURAGE THE ART OF WRITING AND SHARING GREAT IDEAS

WE HOST SCHOOL NEWSLETTERS FOR FREE

THE SERVICE IS NOT FOR ANY COMMERCIAL PURPOSE AND SCHOOLEDUCATION.COM DOES NOT CLAIM ANY COPYRIGHT OF THE MATERIAL HOSTED ON THE WEBSITE PLEASE.

All India Schools Newsletter

The Bagpiper

Welcome to send the Newsletters from you school to us by email on schooleducation@outlook.com

Like us on Facebook www.Facebook.com/Ebdedu

For more about the author www.sandeepdutt.com

Connect with Sandeep Dutt on Linkedin www.linkedin.com/in/sandeepdutt

References:

1. Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skill

2. www.urbandictionary.com

3. Images Courtesy: www.urbandictionary.com (pen and sword)

4. www.doonschool.com

5. Read more at http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/art-of-writing/#5aUVVraDivbrCtw2.99

6. Gaustave Flaubert quote image form sites.google.com via image search
7. School Newsletters - http://www.sdutt.com/p/to-encourage-art-of-writing-and-sharing.html

Disclaimer: Images have been sourced with the help of Google User Content online and this blog claims no design or copyright please.

Schools must provide Knowledge and not mere Information

Learning at school must light the 'lamp of knowledge' in each one of us.

Knowledge is a familiarity, awareness or understanding of someone or something, such as facts, information, descriptions, or skills, which is acquired through experience or education by perceiving, discovering, or learning. Knowledge can refer to a theoretical or practical understanding of a subject. It can be implicit (as with practical skill or expertise) or explicit (as with the theoretical understanding of a subject); it can be more or less formal or systematic. In philosophy, the study of knowledge is called epistemology; the philosopher Plato famously defined knowledge as "justified true belief", though "well-justified true belief" is more complete.

Knowledge acquisition involves complex cognitive processes: perception, communication, and reasoning; while knowledge is also said to be related to the capacity of acknowledgment in human beings. ~ Wikipedia

“We are no longer in the dispensation of age and experience. We are in the era of knowledge and information. Information leads a true leader and a true leader leads others.”

― Israelmore Ayivor

Our Education process is more towards imparting information and encourages rote learning. Rote learning is a memorisation technique based on repetition. The idea is that one will be able to quickly recall the meaning of the material the more one repeats it. Alternatives to rote learning include meaningful learning, associative learning, and active learning. This is where we must value the power of knowledge and work towards the development of the knowledge base and empowering our young people with thinking ability and acquisition of skills for life.

“Ideally, what should be said to every child, repeatedly, throughout his or her school life is something like this: 'You are in the process of being indoctrinated. We have not yet evolved a system of education that is not a system of indoctrination. We are sorry, but it is the best we can do. What you are being taught here is an amalgam of current prejudice and the choices of this particular culture. The slightest look at history will show how impermanent these must be. You are being taught by people who have been able to accommodate themselves to a regime of thought laid down by their predecessors. It is a self-perpetuating system. Those of you who are more robust and individual than others will be encouraged to leave and find ways of educating yourself — educating your own judgements. Those that stay must remember, always, and all the time, that they are being moulded and patterned to fit into the narrow and particular needs of this particular society.”

― Doris Lessing, The Golden Notebook

Knowledge must help an individual grow his vision and thinking, look at the pyramid on the left, here information is way down. Data (information) today is available in large volume and the ability to comprehend big data to help us grow our intellect is what we need to help develop. While information may be easy to find and assimilate, the learning process at school must help us to be analytical and empower us to find the leadership within.

Knowledge has to help us put together a strategy and this will be the best value for our education curriculum to deliver. Schools must change to help us be empowered with the ability to think and move away from being mere processors of data. The CPU of a computer processes data to deliver us the precise bits and bytes we need, this is how our brain must function. The lamp of knowledge must help throw light that travels a long distance, to show us the way ahead in life. There is the need to find the sharpest of the rays to reach the level of learning that grows the inner self. The sharpest of the light rays will always travel the longest distance and this is the way to look at the rays of knowledge too. The experimental method used to teach must involve manipulating one variable to determine if changes in one variable cause changes in another variable. This method relies on controlled methods, random assignment and the manipulation of variables to test a hypothesis. The child must demonstrate the ability to assimilate and deliver, and not merely 'rote and roll out.'

Barbara Schieffelin Powell is an international educational consultant in curriculum development, teacher education and evaluation. She has helped deliver The Fabindia School Leadership Development Project and has been instrumental in helping deliver the mission and vision of the School. The Fabindia School has experienced a leadership change, encountered the resistance to efforts to improve teaching performance, and began the process of moving away from “by-hearting” to more active learning. Early efforts at improving teacher performance, such as goal setting and classroom observation, were first vigorously resisted. The Principal began with a careful program of classroom observation and discussion with teachers. Teachers were exposed to examples of more active learning by visiting other schools.

The Fabindia School helped teachers and students to:

Identify and build on their strengths
Discover their leadership potential
Become self-directed and collaborative learners
Become contributing members of their communities

Although the teachers helped develop this vision, they have had not yet adopted attitudes and practices that embody the vision. The monthly teacher training workshops are structured to help teachers identify their strengths and become self-directed and collaborative learners. Creating a different school culture which engages teachers in a vibrant and ambitious learning community is an essential and painstaking process which only evolves over time.

“We still have a long way to travel, but we’re on the road” states Barbara S. Powell. After two years it should be clear (if there was any doubt) that building a professional culture in a school consists not of a quick fix (like a pill) but of a complex effort to change the culture within which teachers work. It is often slow work and hard work, but we have made progress and look forward to the next stage. Generating widespread organisational change requires a comprehensive approach.

Collaborative learning is a situation in which two or more people learn or attempt to learn something together. Knowledge can only be built by collaborative learning and not by rote. Information delivery is a process while knowledge assimilation is true learning. In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna used the term ''Lamp of Knowledge", and true knowledge is which destroys the darkness of ignorance. We may start the journey of learning with information, but must work to light the lamp of knowledge.

Tell us what you think students are learning at school – not in terms of academic content, but in terms of “life lessons” and “soft skills.” Are you learning, for example, how to follow directions? How to interpret text? How to cooperate and collaborate? How to be open to new ideas? How to think critically? What skills do you think you will most need to succeed in career and life? Share with us your thoughts and add comments to this article.

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Reference:

1. Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skill

2. The Free Dictionary online.

3. Images Courtesy: blog.heartland.org (Knowledge is Power), blog.virtualadmin.ie/ (Candle and book)

4. Barbara Powell Fabindia Leadership Development Project Report 2013-14

5. To find out what Fabindia is doing to help deliver quality affordable education, welcome to visit www.fabindiaschools.org

Disclaimer: Images have been sourced with the help of Google User Content online and this blog claims no design or copyright please.

Personal and Social Development at School

The best way to deliver quality education and bring about the personal and social development of an individual is by empowering young people to follow their passion.

The education process today is built on the 4S approach - Study, Skill, Sport and Service. The CBSE, CISCE and most of the national boards, are now adding skills and activity beyond the class room to their curriculum. Each of these four dimensions of learning are equally essential for helping young people find themselves and be the leaders they aspire to be.

Study is applying the mind to learning and understanding a subject (especially by reading). The dictionary definition of study ~ noun, plural studies 'application of the mind to the acquisition of knowledge, as by reading, investigation, or reflection'. This really is one aspect of growth for a young person at school.

A good school must work to help provide the best ecosystem for the personal and social development of an individual. This will only happen when we focus beyond studies, we need to lay equal emphasis on Study, Skill, Service and Sport.

Skill aims to encourage the development of personal interests and practical skills. Music, Crafts, Arts, Nature, Communication, Hobbies, Indoor Games, Vocational skills and Performance skills are some such examples. These interests are typically of a non-physically demanding nature and may be hobbies, vocational or job-related.

"Skill is the learned ability to carry out a task with pre-determined results often within a given amount of time, energy, or both. In other words the abilities that one possesses. Skills can often be divided into domain-general and domain-specific skills. For example, in the domain of work, some general skills would include time management, teamwork and leadership, self motivation and others, whereas domain-specific skills would be useful only for a certain job. Skill usually requires certain environmental stimuli and situations to assess the level of skill being shown and used". ~ Wikipedia

There are various forms of skills that the schools should help deliver Labor skills, Life skills, People skills, Social skills, Soft skills, Hard skills are some such examples.

Service or Community Service or Social Service as we may call it, has been an integral part of The Doon School since its inception. The first Headmaster, Mr. Arthur Foot believed that “the boys should leave The Doon School as members of an aristocracy, but it must be an aristocracy of service inspired by ideas of unselfishness, not one of privilege, wealth or position.” For decades since then, this has been one of the foundation principles of the school. Over the years The Doon School has accumulated an enviable record of service. The school boys have always lent their helping hand, across India, to people affected by the worst hit earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides and floods. For instance, during the 1991 Uttarkashi earthquake, when all communication lines were down, the school’s HAM radio club joined hands with the state administration and aid-providers to set up channels of communication with the base station.

All boys of The Doon School have to complete mandatory hours of social service. The school runs a Panchayat Ghar where the students teach the underprivileged children. The School has, over the years, adopted villages and worked with the villagers in the construction of houses, community centres and school buildings; sanitation systems; energy efficiency systems; self-employment and small scale irrigation systems. Apart from village development, the school is actively involved with the Raphael Ryder Cheshire International Centre and the Cheshire Home.

Sport is not only important for children's health. It also enhances learning achievement, resilience and psychosocial and motor development. Children who do sports from a young age are more likely to go on doing so when they are older. School-based sports programs can bring out noticeable positive reactions and behaviour in teens. School-based sport can be an important part of your child’s overall educational experience. When students participate in sport, they can benefit not only physically, but also socially and mentally!

Sport should encourage young people to improve their personal physical performance through training and perseverance in what they much like to play. Involvement in physical recreation should be an enjoyable experience, regardless of physical ability. Physical activity is vital to the holistic development of young people, fostering their physical, social and emotional health. The benefits of sport reach beyond the impact on physical well-being and the value of the educational benefits of sport should not be under-estimated.

Round Square is a world-wide association of schools on five continents sharing unique and ambitious goals. Students attending Round Square schools make a strong commitment, beyond academic excellence, to personal development and responsibility. The Round Square approach promotes six ideals of learning: Internationalism, Democracy, Environment, Adventure, Leadership and Service. These are incorporated into the curriculum throughout all member schools. Access to the Round Square network affords member schools the opportunity to arrange local and international student and teacher exchanges on a regular basis between their schools. Pupils get an opportunity to participate in local and international community service projects and conferences. Tasks tackled through the community projects include building schools, classrooms and community centres; building clean water systems for remote hill-tribes or creating and maintaining trails in National Parks. Local materials are used, and teams always work with local people ensuring that they take ownership of the work once it has been completed.

The International Baccalaureate (IB), offers four programmes for students aged 3 to 19 help develop the intellectual, personal, emotional and social skills to live, learn and work in a rapidly globalising world. The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect. To this end the organisation works with schools, governments and international organisations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment. These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.

Socially Useful Productive Work (SUPW) is a subject in Indian schools where students can choose from a number of vocational education activities - embroidery and knitting, gardening, cooking, painting, carpentry and other crafts and hobbies, and clubbed community service for senior students (class IX onwards). Students learn to work as a team and to work with skill and deftness. It was introduced in 1978, by the Ministry of Education to promote Gandhian values and educational ideas of Mahatma Gandhi. While most private schools barring a few have dispensed with the subject, it remains an ancillary, but mandatory part of course curriculum in schools affiliated to the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE), which conducts two examinations in India: the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) and the Indian School Certificate (ISC). It is also taught in some Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools, which includes all Kendriya Vidyalaya and Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya schools.

The Fabindia School's mission is to provide access to high quality education for boys and girls at the rural level using English as the medium of instruction. The school views primary education as a major stepping stone towards social mobility, equality and employment opportunities. At this school there is equal emphasis on study, skill, service and sport: the school has instituted four Trophies for Excellence in Study, Skill, Service and Sport (the 4S approach). Saturday at school is the Activity Day, on this day regular study / academic pursuit is dispensed with in favour of service, sport and skill. To make up for the loss of the mandated study hours, the school has added one hour to the timetable from Monday to Saturday.

Public Schools subscribe to the philosophy that children should be exposed to a general all-round education and emerge as good secular citizens of India. Schools must develop the minds of the children and also their physique, their skills, their personality and leadership traits and create a sense of fellow feeling with their less fortunate brethren, if they are to be good citizens. Many such schools lay equal emphasis on Study, Skill, Service and Sport as this alone helps young people find their true potential.

Marks do not leave marks, but 'karma' (deeds) will leave footprints on the sand. Build you school curriculum in such a way so as to empower the students and help them make a mark in life.

Like us on Facebook www.Facebook.com/Ebdedu

For more about the author www.sandeepdutt.com

Connect with Sandeep Dutt on Linkedin

Reference:

1. Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skill

2. Slideshow developed for the Bhadrajun Artisans Trust by SchoolEducation.com

3. The Free Dictionary online.

4. Images Courtesy: radfordpl.org (Sports), google.sites.com (Service), academic.cuesta.edu (Study), gymbobuzz.gymboreeclasses.com (Skills)

5. The Doon School website (www.doonschool.com/student-life/supw-social-a-community-service)
6. Round Square International website (www.roundsquare.org)
7. Bhadrajun Artisans Trust website (www.bateducation.org)
8. Learning for Life - The Duke of Edinburgh's Award
9. www.iayp.in - International Award for Young People
Disclaimer: Images have been sourced with the help of Google User Content online and this blog claims no design or copyright please.

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