TIPS - How To Crack Entrance Exams?

TIPS - How To Crack Entrance Exams?

An important goal of your test preparation is to help you to give the best possible account of yourself by effectively using your knowledge to answer the examination questions.

First, get rid of any negative attitudes towards the test. Your attitude is negative if you view the test as a device to "trip you up" rather than an opportunity to show how effectively you have earned.

Approach the test with self confidence :

Working through the book is a difficult job, and after you have done it you will be better prepared than the 90% of the people taking the book. Self confidence is one of the biggest strategic assets you can bring to the testing room.

Nobody likes test but some people actually permit themselves to get upset or angry when they see what they think is an unfair test. This can only hurt your score. Keep calm and move right ahead. Anger, resentment, and fear all slow you down and impair your judgement. Besides, every test you take, is a valuable experience that improves your skills.

Keep calm, there is no point in panic . If you have done your work, there is no need for it; if you have not, a cool head is your requirement.

At the last, this post should remove some of the fear and mystery that surrounds examination. A certain amount of concern is normal and good, but excessive worry saps your strength and keenness.

"be prepared emotionally"

Quality in Education..Addressing major concerns for schools

QUALITY IN EDUCATION

Addressing major concerns for schools

EXPERTS have a common consensus that quality and access are the major concerns for schools in the country that need immediate attention. Mohammad Hamid Ansari, Vice-President of India, while releasing a report on ‘Excellence in Schools,’ recently in the Capital, said: “The entire focus of governmental efforts in education has been on questions of equity and access.”
   He added: “At the same time, there are other questions that relate to the content and quality of education — Who teaches in these schools? What is the teacherpupil ratio? What is taught? How is it taught? Are the teachers adequately trained and are we training them in sufficient numbers?”
   Talking about the National Knowledge Commission (NKC) addressing some of these issues in its recommendations for school education, he said: “Their focus is on greater resources, decentralisation and flexibility. The tenth Plan data shows that school education suffers from lack of access, low participation, and from equity and quality issues. Official assessments also suggest that budgetary outlays are not transforming fully into programme outcomes.”
   The more the heterogeneity in a classroom, not only is there increased equality but also increased quality of education, opined Krishna Kumar, director, NCERT. He said: “Every child has different potential and this potential cannot be ignored. And learning can only take place in an inclusive set-up in a classroom, wherein a teacher is actually challenged to go beyond his/her abilities to teach when he/she has to address to multiple intelligences.”
   The report, released by Education Quality Foundation of India (EQFI), covered 90 schools in six cities, of which 60% were government schools. It offered an insight into the strengths of the schools and opportunities for improvement. It also emphasised on the need for identifying best practices in schools and sharing new teaching-learning practices, which will help to strengthen quality in schools. Examples of good practices being followed include teamwork; a democratic way of school administration; providing holistic education; and encouraging innovation and experiments by teachers and students.
   EQFI has also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas. The organisation is now in the process of assessing 567 Navodayas in rural districts of the nation.

Sunil Sharma

   Moderator

Dil Se Desi Group

&

www.dilsedesi.org

Multiple intelligence in classroom

Applying multiple intelligence in the class

 

 

WRITER OF THE BOOK MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES IN THE ELEMENTARY CLASSROOM: A TEACHERS TOOLKIT, TALKS ABOUT USING HOWARD GARDNER'S THEORY OF MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES IN THE CLASSROOM

 

 

HOWARD Gardner, professor at Harvard University, developed the theory of multiple intelligences in 1983. Gardner proposed eight different intelligences of human potential in children and adults. These intelligences are: linguistic intelligence; logical-mathematical intelligence; spatial intelligence; bodily-kinaesthetic intelligence; musical intelligence; interpersonal intelligence; intrapersonal intelligence; and naturalist intelligence. Many schools and teachers have started complying with the theory of multiple intelligences and try to base classroom activities around the theory. 

 

   But according to Susan Baum, author of the book Multiple Intelligences in the Elementary Classroom: A Teachers Toolkit and director of International Center for Talent Development, US, teachers make a mistake while applying the theory in classroom, which may lead to chaos. “When Gardner gave the theory to the world, it was not about teaching and learning. But teachers liked that theory because intuitively it felt good to them. It allowed them to feel that all children can learn and teachers just need to find the right way. They started applying the theory in classroom. But there were no guidelines on how to use that theory in the classroom and they adopted many different methods,” she says. “Some of them even started feeling that you need to impart a lesson in eight different ways. On one day, children would learn it linguistically on another day musically. They even created silly songs to identify musical intelligence without even relating to what musical intelligence is all about," she further adds. 

   According to Baum, it is more important to identify the intelligence of a child first and work to develop that talent. Baum suggests five effective ways of identifying and promoting the talent of a child. “The first is to ensure that we allow a classroom to be a place where children can display their strengths not a place that restricts them in displaying their strengths. We need to find which areas children are strong at and the areas that they are weak. For that teachers can have games in which students are encouraged to identify their likes and dislikes,” she explains.

   “The other effective way is bridging — which is to use strengths to bridge the gap between what they are not good at. For example, many students do not like expressing their thoughts through writing. Teachers can form opinion groups were students are asked to express their opinion verbally and once they know what they think about a particular topic, it would become easier for them to pen down their thoughts,” says Baum. 

   Teachers can also identify multiple intelligences in a classroom by involving students in authentic problem solving, feels Baum. “For example, a group of students were asked to solve a water problem in a nearby pond of a school. Some students tried to look at the problem analytically and some artistically,” she says, activities like these can help in identifying the strength of a child. 

   The other way that Baum suggests for using multiple intelligence theory more effectively is by trying to develop understanding of children in more than one way. She thinks presenting a case study of a place that changed over a period of time and how different students react to that change can help a lot in knowing what a student is good at. 

   The next step, feels Baum, after a teacher has identified the talent is to work towards developing and promoting that talent. “There was a girl who was good at writing poems. Her music teacher composed music for that poem and it became a song. They created CDs and sold them,” she recalls.

 

 

   Sunil Sharma

    Moderator

Dil Se Desi Group

            &

www.dilsedesi.org

Inclusive Education

Inclusion, in letter and in practice

 

INCLUSION MAY BE THE NEW MANTRA, BUT  THERE STILL REMAINS A WIDE GAP BETWEEN POLICY AND ACTION

   Inclusive education means that every child irrespective of gender, religion, socio-economic background or needs has a right to attend a mainstream school. Though the government claims to ensure education for every child, schools still lack an inclusive environment where students with different needs are made to feel welcome. 

   Though inclusion is the new mantra, the child's learning needs has to be at the centre of the philosophy. "Inclusion is about more than merely placing a child in a mainstream classroom. What matters is the right kind of attitude and support towards children. It is the right of every child to be educated, we are not doing any charity," says Syed Sallauddin Pasha, a disabled rights activist. 

   In letter, all the 11.8 lakh government and government-aided schools, under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, across the country have adopted an inclusive education (IE) approach. But in practice, most schools including the private ones follow an integrated rather than an inclusive approach, which means they have special educational needs department or resource centres within the school to assess children and accordingly provide extra learning support. 

   Agrees Subhash Khuntia, joint secretary, ministry of human resources development (MHRD): "Though a few private schools are following an inclusive approach, government schools are still lagging behind. So, we plan to release an inclusive education (IE) programme soon wherein it would be made mandatory for government schools to enrol a few students with special needs." 

INCLUSION IN LETTER 

According to Renu Singh, national manager (education), Save the Children, inclusion seeks to address the learning needs of all children, youth and adults with a specific focus on those who are vulnerable to marginalisation and exclusion. And according to a 2005 MHRD report, it is aimed at making all stakeholders in the system (learners, parents, community, teachers, administrators, policymakers) comfortable with diversity and to see it as a challenge rather than a problem. 

   On the other hand, Singh adds, the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCERT, 2000) has recommended inclusive schools for learners with special educational needs by making appropriate modifications in the content, presentation and transaction strategies, preparing teachers and developing learning friendly evaluation procedures. 

   And as for her definition to inclusion: "Making schools ready for 'all' children rather than restricting it to children with disabilities. Schools must address the needs of all disadvantaged groups like the girl child, street and working children, and tribal children and those with disabilities." 

GENERAL PERCEPTIONS 

When a group of students from class IX were asked what disability means to them, they related it to various physical and mental illnesses — those who are unable to express emotions, people who behave differently in society and even those who get irritated easily. They called children with such disabilities andha (blind), langda (cripple) and so on. 

   Teachers fare no better. When asked the same question, some talked of the 'mentally-challenged' while others described it as an unusual illness. Besides, parents are reluctant even to accept their child as differently-abled and continue to harbour high expectations. 

GENERAL PRACTICE 

"We enrol a child with special needs as long as he/she doesn't disturb the class or attract the attention of other students' parents," says Sita Laxmi Vishwanath, principal, Amrita Vidyalayam School, Chennai. She admits that she once cancelled the admission of a class II child because he was 'hyperactive'. "The problem lies in the fact that such students don't follow instructions and don't sit in one place, especially when it comes to writing. They make a mess of everything," she adds. 

   Sanskriti School in Delhi, too, follows an integrated approach. While they mainstream students for all extra-curricular activities and recreation, when it comes to academics, students are taught separately in their learning centre. Informs Bitti Oberoi, director, learning centre, Sanskriti: "We have 60 students with special needs who can be handled in a structured environment. Most of them have learning disabilities and cannot cope if put in regular classrooms. But, if a child is capable enough or is trained with time, then we do mainstream him/her." 

INCLUSION IN PRACTICE 

Anupriya Chadha, IE consultant, says: "The whole idea is to make the system 'child-centred' and a school can be called inclusive only if it can address a range of services that a child needs, besides his/her physical placement." She believes many schools shy away from mainstreaming children after enrolling them. She adds: "In practice, there are just a handful of private schools which are following an inclusive approach." 

   Loreto Day School-Kolkata, for instance, is following an inclusive approach. They have enrolled children ranging from child labourers, street children to even those with special 

   needs among others. Informs S M Cyril, school principal: "Nearly 50% of our students are from varied backgrounds and they are well integrated into our mainstream classrooms." 

   Elaborating on why the school has just one special educator, she says: "We don't consider these students as different and hence, the entire education takes place in regular classrooms. However, some students who need additional help are given extra classes everyday for an hour." 

   She adds further: "Once a week, 150 children from the school, including those who are vulnerable to marginalisation and exclusion, are sent to villages to teach." 

   On the other hand, Springdales School-Pusa Road, follows an 'inclusive-integrated' approach, according to the school's principal, Ameeta Mulla Wattal. She adds: "We have around 20% children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. We mainstream them in regular classrooms and also provide them with mid-day meals and clothing besides recreation. Also, during admissions we give extra marks to children from different linguistic and regional backgrounds. So, our school has integration (inclusion) at all levels." 

   The school also has students with special needs. "We have an inclusive education centre with two special educators where children can get extra help and coaching if they can't follow. For instance, if a child is not good at mathematics, he/she can opt for music studies and so on," adds Wattal. 

   Laxman Public School also follows a similar model, according to principal Usha Ram. She informs: "We have around 70 children with multiple disabilities. Besides, we have over 100 children with learning disabilities including those from different socio-economic backgrounds, who have been mainstreamed into our regular classrooms." The school claims to have 20 special educators. She adds: "We have been following this practice for the past 14 years and the only additional help required by these children is in language skills, which we impart after their regular classes." 

   Likewise, Shri Ram School, Vasant Vihar, has also enrolled 40 children with special needs. Samira Panigrahi, its special needs co-ordinator, explains: "A team of our teachers formulate an Individualised Education Programme for each student in consultation with their parents, which specifies the learning goals that are to be achieved by the student over time." 

FINER DETAILS 

Elaborating on the vocational skills imparted, Panigrahi says: "Some activities are conducted separately so that we can improve their skills. These activities include art and clay modelling, yoga and physical education. At the junior level, intensive input in development of visual and auditory perception, inferential thinking, language exercises and motor skills development is also carried out." 

   Similarly, Rita Kaul, principal, Millennium Schools, opines, "We need to accept a child the way he/she is and show that we care." Kaul's school currently caters to eight students with special needs. Echoing similar views, Annie Koshi, principal, St Mary's School, adds: "Inclusion enables a diverse environment in a classroom. And thus, allows children to be empathetic and be able to understand the world around them." Her school has children with special needs and those from various socio-economic backgrounds who are mainstreamed into regular classrooms. 

   Informs Vandana Puri, principal, Salwan Public School and a special educator: "We have 22 visually-impaired students studying in regular classrooms. We also have 28 students enrolled with us from economically weaker sections. The moment students don their uniforms, they are all equal." 

   According to Asha Singh, reader (department of child development), Lady Irwin College: "One's attitude and sensitivity towards the issue is of prime importance. We can't help just by physically accepting the child. There should be some amount of flexibility for them as well. For example, a visually impaired child should be made to sit in the front row so that he gets adequate light as well as attention." 

   A few government schools are also doing their bit. Navyug School, for instance, has included seven visually impaired students in its classrooms. Elaborates Neelam Kaushal, school principal: "Students accept their peers and help them willingly. But besides sensitising students, we conduct workshops for teachers as well, which is equally important."

Sunil Sharma

   Moderator

Dil Se Desi Group

&    www.dilsedesi.org

Education for underprivileged

‘Right time for forging partnerships’

IN order to make education accessible to underprivileged children in the country, G4S, an international security solutions group, has announced the setting up of a school in Pappankala, West Delhi. The school will soon be offering education, free of cost, to 300 children aged one to 10. From July this year, it will help those who do not have the necessary means to study.

The school will offer education, uniforms and transportation to children from slum areas in and around the West Delhi region, informed David Hudson, regional president (North Africa, Middle East and South Asia), G4S. The Hope Foundation will look after the school's management. There are many schools and schemes that the Indian government also runs to provide education to such children. However, the problem lies in convincing such families to send their wards to school

According to Hudson, "India as a country has now started giving great value to education. Our experience with such efforts in different cities has shown that people from deprived sections now demand education and this is the right time for the private sector to operate with the government." To further this public-private partnership model, the government, in order to streamline underprivileged sections, has also tied-up with G4S to train 1,75,000 scavengers in security services. The company will now train the same for a period of three months.

"The efforts are targeted at not just training or teaching but towards changing the psychology of a class that has remained backward for centuries. Our experience in training people from the underprivileged section has shown that once they complete such programmes they emerge with different personalities altogether. Hence, even if the school will provide education till class V, we are hoping that it would give them the boost they require," stated Hudson.

The company will also sponsor the training of two children from the country to participate in the 2012 Olympics. One is a tribal archer from Bihar and another a shooter from Hyderabad.

Sunil Sharma

Moderator

Dil Se Desi Group

Mobile School

Educative Street-smart coaches

LEARNING ON WHEELS:

The mobile schools are equipped with the latest teaching aids
For those who cannot afford to go to regular schools, mobile schools provide a valuable alternative.

THEY are keen to study but don't have the resources. They live in difficult circumstances like red-light districts, construction sites and traffic signals. They are the street children, who can now study, work on computers and play games at their convenience.

MOBILE SCHOOL

With the government launching two 'Chalta Firta' (mobile) schools, for children living in difficult areas of the city, many can now experience education at their doorstep. The buses have been introduced as part of a new scheme under the government's flagship programme — Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, aimed at the universalisation of elementary education. These yellow buses are well-equipped with the basic infrastructure of a classroom along with the latest teaching and learning aids such as VCDs and learning kits. The 'mobile schools' are being operated on a public-private partnership after a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the department of education and two NGOs — the Salaam Balak Trust and Butterflies. Says Beena Sheth Lashkari, founder secretary and director, Door Step School, Mumbai: "This concept was introduced in Mumbai in1998 and has since been replicated all over the country." Elaborating on Doorstep, she says that the introduction of audio-visual equipment is a source of great attraction for children. Besides, resource bags containing equipment for basic scientific experiments and puzzles that circulate between project areas are an added bonus. Adds Lashkari: "The modus operandi is to conduct a class at a time and place convenient to the group of children being catered to. Emphasis is laid on language and mathematical skills needed in one's day-to-day life. The basic aim is to help the children in being able to read and understand a newspaper, fill in relevant forms as and when required and express themselves through writing."

ROUGH TERRAIN

On a similar note, numerous brightly painted RTV vans carry the 'Tamasha Road Show (TRS)' from one traffic signal to the next. The vans represent the 'School on Wheels' initiative launched by the NGO Katha. Filled with fun-learning material, the roadshow attracts children to a learning environment through theatre, songs, dance, puppetry and even computers. "Under TRS, we are working with street children at 10 selected road crossings, where five teachers and two mentors conduct regular classes," informs Amrita Talwar, networking officer, Katha.

FULLY EQUIPPED

Under 'The Education on Wheels' project, started in 2006 by the NGO Deepalaya, teachers use flash cards, art and craft activities, games, storytelling, role-plays, ice-breaking exercises and educational CDs to hold their students' attention. The bus is equipped with facilities such as a TV, DVD/VCD, music system and even computers. The aim is simple — to attract and retain out-of-school and working children. The concept of 'mobile schools' provides a complete solution to the space restrictions in slums, and therefore allows more utility. The ultramodern set-up in the bus improves its motivational quality and other basic facilities. It is an innovative approach to joyful learning.

BEYOND EDUCATION

Further, 'A school on wheels,' being run since 2000 by I-India, an NGO, offers nutrition, sanitation, medical care and recreation in addition to education. Also, efforts are made to pull out students of their daily routine of living in slums and they are motivated to go to formal schools. Says Prabhakar Goswami, director, I-India: "Our target group includes runaway children, street and slum children, child labourers, ragpickers, beggars and those working at tea stalls and dhabas, among others." He adds: "Besides providing books and other teaching material, we also provide toys, basic sanitation and healthcare material like tooth paste and antibacterial cream to children. Also, an ambulance and nurse, regularly go with the buses to distribute medicines."

Sunil Sharma
Moderator
Dil Se Desi Group

Building as Teaching Aids

School Infrastructure as Learning Aids

After the success of Taare Zameen Par, which showed how a school’s infrastructure can serve as an effective learning aid, Delhi’s education department is all set to launch a project called BaLA

Building as Learning Aid (BaLA), also an acronym for a girl, is an innovative way of looking at a student's relation with the school. The project, to be launched by the Delhi government on January 23, focuses on using the existing school infrastructure as a part of the learning process and in making education indispensable to everyday life. The project also addresses inclusive education in mainstream schools.

WHAT IS BALA?

The fact that one's physical space could serve as a resource in the teaching-learning process is being explored seriously by the project. The school buildings and their constituent elements such as floors, walls and ceilings have been treated innovatively so as to help simplify the learning process. The first series would see transformation take place within the confines of a classroom, while the latter would be aimed at integrating studies with the infrastructure outside the classroom. This is how the school would function, once the first phase of the BaLA initiative is implemented.

BLACKBOARD

Blackboards stretched across the length of the classroom's four walls will replace the traditional blackboard. These boards will also take into consideration the height of the students. "On one wall, calendars will be painted with a black grid wherein children will perform their activities. The border along the calendar could also be used to depict the seasons. This would make learning the seasons and months much easier," informed V P Singh, additional state project director. Further, classes will be painted in various colours to help those who find identifying colours difficult.

DESK

Every desk will have a scale painted on it to integrate measurement in a child's day-today life. "Students could enjoy measuring their lunch boxes and books by using the desk scale and learn at the same time. Some desks would even have the desk's actual weight painted on them," stated Reena Ray, secretary, directorate of education.

DOORS

BaLA will also make learning geometrical angles a lot simpler. Students who have to study angles in their curriculum will find the 'Door Angle Protractor' painted on the classroom's entrances. The angles will be aligned with the swing of the door. "Students will know the exact angle at which the doors are opened as the corresponding angles will be painted on the floor," added Singh. Symmetrical shapes of geometry, traditional motifs, illusions and other patterns will also be painted along the vertical divisional line separating the two parts of the doors.

FANS

All the colours of the rainbow will be found on the ceiling fans. However, students would be surprised to find that when the fan rotates only white would be visible. This would help teach students the concept of VIBGYOR and that white light comprises seven colours.

FLOORS

No textbook can, perhaps, integrate learning and fun the way games painted on floors can. "A 6/3 grid would be painted on classroom floors. The note besides it reads - identify even, prime and odd numbers and students can jump only diagonally and towards the left to identify the same clan numbers but not to the right. This makes it both, fun and simple," added Ray. According to Ray, the objective is to help students with learning difficulties without making them feel different. "By the time students reach higher classes, they will be well versed with mental mathematics and their basics will be absolutely perfect." Besides, these innovative teaching techniques would benefit all learners.


Sunil Sharma
Moderator
Dil Se Desi Group