Monday Blues: Damn the cheerleaders

What if you are not included in the team of your aspirations?
Why should you bother?

Everyone has a dream team, a team with a lot of idealistic thoughts and perceived additives which you always want o be in. Now that is a whole lot of perception and chance you want to take to mold yourself to suit/fit into that group

Look for what is special in you. What is good for you. What is the one thing you can excel in. What is the one thing  you are good at. Now that is done. Screw the naysayers, screw the world.
where you might not even matter to anyone. Would you change yourself to match/dance to someone else's music and tunes? I don't think that is something you should be doing.

Don't give a damn and start your own training. Train hard. Train well. Train scientifically. Train unapologetic. Your goal is to win and win over yourself.

Ignore the cheerleaders, they never get to play the game. Be the player. Be the game. Form your own team.

See this image I found online.

Education is fun... if you want it to be

Me and MY kids

(I write this on the recommendation of Vamshi Krishna and am indebted to him. It didn't occur to me that I should simply pen my feelings regarding this but when I did, it felt very nice)

"Didiiiii, Didiiiiiii.......hum aa jayein?" [Sister, sister....can we come?]

Every Saturday and Sunday, the doorbell of my home starts ringing since 4:00 PM. The time when I teach these kids is 5, but they are always so high on energy and excitement that it doesn't really matter what the needles in the clock say. Probably coz they feel, if they get that extra time with me, I can show them some videos on my laptop or talk to them about their careers.

Before I start, let me introduce these kids to you. They are (starting from the eldest) Pooja, Soni, Anshu, Komal, Shikha, Nisha, Anu, Amit, Shivam, Mukesh and Bitto. The 7 sisters (pooja to anu) belong to the same family (yeah, we all know why). Their father is a tailor and mother works as a maidservant. while Shivam to Bitto belong to another family. Their father is the Chowkidar (colony security guard). Amit belongs to a different family. I don't know what his father does because his occupation keeps changing. Amit works at a shop from 10 in the morning to 4 in the evening (7 days a week). And yes, Amit is mere 9 year old. So basically, I teach 3 families.

So how did I meet these kids?

There is a huge tree outside our home on which these kids had put a Jhoola (swing). They used to play on it when I used to come back, they would smile at me and I used to smile back. One day, while I was returning, I randomly asked one kid..."Padhai karoge? Agar main padhaaon to?" (will you study, if I teach you?) And in 10 mins there were 8 kids at my door.

So, did I have to convince my parents?

A big YES. The sentences I got to hear were" You can't teach", "they will get attached to you", "Don't act too benevolent, you anyway have no time for home", you leave at 7:30 in the morning and come back at 9:30..when will you teach?"...followed by a big NO. My mother was still soft but papa and dadi were very clear. Do you know what melted their hearts? The smile of these kids.

As I went back to the gate to shoo them away, my father and grandmother saw them from our balcony. The kids looked up and said "unclejee, namaste...hum padhne aayein hain". And the job was done (btw, my father is like a coconut...harsh on the outside and too soft inside)

So, how do I feel?

I don't feel anything....but I just looooove spending time with them. As I teach them on the blackboard, they randomly get up to write something on it. Not because they want to show their knowledge but they want to hold the chalk and write on the blackboard. Komal is always standing next to the blackboard. When I scold her to get back to her seat she says..."Didi..pleeeeeez. Mujhe yahaan acha samajh aata hai" :D:D

My class is dominated by girls, and Oh! they DO dominate the boys big way. There are some stories (which are too odd/painful to narrate here) I have heard from their innocent mouths which make me shiver. But all in all, my class has recitation and currently we are studying division. It's a hard task to teach them multiplication tables but they oh-so-love watching animated nursery rhymes on my laptop. They once showed me the dance on desh rangeela. The song describes India with its various colors and watching them dance on that song made me feel nice (when was the last time you danced on a patriotic song? :D:D )

Every weekend, when they come and go, they enthuse me with such energy that my mother tells me calm down. I am jumping around with them, laughing like them and telling mom what all the kids taught me today. (like having "OM" sign tattooed on your hand saves you from evil spirits) :P:P

So, why exactly am I doing this?

Frankly speaking, I got tired. Tired of so much of artificiality, competition, comparison. I wanted to be happy... just happy. Not the happy where my neighbours think I am happy or my mother thinks I am happy. Not the happy who shops for branded clothes and then grins at the mirror (though on second thoughts I wont mind that). And not the happy which you get sitting in a big car thinking about the job you've bagged. Tomorrow, if everything is taken from me.... My job, my branded stuff, my status.... I will still remain. My beliefs, ideals, thoughts, experiences will still remain. Me and my kids love each other. There are so many times when Nisha or Shikha have held my hand and said "Didi....aap humein bahut ache lagte ho" (Didi, we really like you). Trust me, when a 7 year old tells you this, your day gets made. And I am lucky to hear this every weekend. I have given them books, pencils, erasers and sharpeners. My boyfriend (and soon to be fiance) encourages me a lot and has also provided financial help and I respect him for this.

I don't know what will happen when I leave from here. Who will teach them and whether they will become a doctor or pilot like they want to become. They had once asked me, when will I get married...and when I get married, will I keep coming on weekends to teach them. I had no answer. All I could say was, keep your spirits high and don't let anyone tell you that you're inferior. If you work very hard and study hard, you can become anything you want to. All I hope is, they do achieve their dreams. Amen.

Push mediocrity

Here is why you should question if your professor isn't up to the mark. Seth's post on Pushing back on mediocre professors


College costs a fortune. It takes a lot of time and it takes a lot of money.


When a professor assigns you to send a blogger a list of vague and inane interview questions ("1. How did you get started in this field? 2. What type of training (education) does this field require? 3. What do you like best about your job? 4. what do you like least about your job?") I think you have an obligation to say, "Sir, I'm going to be in debt for ten years because of this degree. Perhaps you could give us an assignment that actually pushes us to solve interesting problems, overcome our fear or learn something that I could learn in no other way..."


When a professor spends hours in class going over concepts that are clearly covered in the textbook, I think you have an obligation to repeat the part about the debt and say, "perhaps you could assign this as homework and we could have an actual conversation in class..."


When you discover that one class after another has so many people in a giant room watching a tenured professor far far in the distance, perhaps you could mention the debt part to the dean and ask if the class could be on video so you could spend your money on interactions that actually changed your life.


The vast majority of email I get from college students is filled with disgust, disdain and frustration at how backwards the system is. Professors who neither read nor write blogs or current books in their field. Professors who rely on marketing textbooks that are advertising-based, despite the fact that virtually no professional marketers build their careers solely around advertising any longer. And most of all, about professors who treat new ideas or innovative ways of teaching with contempt.


"This is costing me a fortune, prof! Push us! Push yourself!"

Too comfortable

When making a choice people tend to pick the one that is easier than what can be more challenging. Obviously the rewards are proportionate to the kind of effort you put in. Or is it the other way round? Sometimes you need to listen to your heart and not what your mind or body says. Sometimes its better to listen to what your parents, mentors, friends and well wishers say. I need to agree here that they may give you a different insight than what you might be thinking.

Mentoring is a tough job to do. You got to make it dawn on the person that his(er) decision is not the right one. All this while you need make sure that (s)he isn't offended. You may be hated for what you do and (s)he might even hate you for what you are doing but if its best for the other person... go ahead and do it.

Easier choices vs tougher ones is a debate that goes on. The fact that people exist to guide you though you may not like it says you have people thinking about you.

A rude awakening

No matter how 'big'/'old' you become there is always a need for improving. Many times people get carried away and do things that is demeaning to their stature and is least expected of them. In such situations its good to have a friend/mentor to give you a dressing down, a rude awakening to the reality. So don't think the other person is jealous of you or cannot understand you. As the saying goes, "A good friend hurts to help but an enemy praises to ruin."

Its never too late to learn.

Education

Nine tenths of education is encouragement.

Anatole France

Its all about time

For years the salary of teachers has been pathetic in India. They are posted in godforsaken places, hostile conditions where they battle not just weather and lack of basic amenities but also local goondaism, cultures, beliefs and still wage a battle for educating the children. Yet, they are paid peanuts. The Joint Action Committee of Teachers’ Organisations (JACTO) called upon teachers in Andhra Pradesh to boycott classes, exams and evaluation of answer sheets. They have few demands which the government is denying from the last 3 years and they didnt protest in this way. But now they are sure of getting their demands.

The reason for this is that the elections are up in the next year and no party wants to mess with teachers now. Any displeasure to the teachers would mean the booth incharges will be hostile and you know what happens then. I think the move by Jacto came at an excellent time and hence they would succeed.

What an idea, Sirji!

Creative?

Many people are good at preaching. Some can beat anyone in the way they mesmerize you. But when it comes to application they don't follow a word. It is just like a child getting zero marks in the 'creativity exam' just because she painted her mango purple. You are expected to go and change the world, write business models, create miracles in the world but in the exams you are tested for some old principle that you are supposed to learn byheart and reproduce in the exam like a dumb parrot. When you don't let me think out of the box, forget out of the box, you don't let me THINK and still expect me to go and create the businesses of the future?

My question to all parents and teachers is: Don't you think I should be let out of the cage and then I would understand the concepts better?

Just think. I mean out of the box. Can you?
Pic

Chalk Walk & Talk

Prof. Pratip was recounting his interaction with the students and this crossed my mind. The traditional teaching process involved 'Chalk Walk and Talk'. Students were content with the process and were genuinely interested in what the teacher said. But now the situation is different. It is much more than the three 'alks'.

I have been a student in both the systems and have been a good one (listen, note, read and question). The teacher is now expected to read much more than the basic textbooks, have more information than what is available from cover to cover. The appetite of the students is unending. The teacher is also expected to have come prepared to the class, ready with the answers to all the queries and add value to the student. Mere repetition of what is in the book is not accepted. The teacher also is expected to have good communication skills, knowledge, decorum and what not. The respect towards the teacher is not just for the age or profession but for the intellectual capacity.

Same applies to the salesmen and the marketeers. You need to know more than the consumer and be one step ahead, always. The day you loose the race you are out! Keep yourself updated, knowledgeable and stay focused. Information overload in the Internet age makes you outdated before you say 'Manoj Night Shyamalan'

So on your mark...

Teacher's Day

Today is Teacher's Day in India. I thank all the people who were instrumental in teaching me, showing me things and making me what I am today. All learning begins at home. My mom, who is my first teacher and sacrificed her promising career for me, my Dad who is my pillar of strength, school and college teachers, people at work and many more fall in here. I learnt and un-learnt. Many a times it was easy to learn, sometimes it was not, some times it was very unpleasant but I did.

I have had the privilege of working with many people, both who were interested in helping the student and those who were not. There were teachers who treated their students as their children, sometimes even more. There were teachers who spoon-fed, who gave you the goal with no map, goal with map and user manual and so on. Many varieties, many talents, approaches, beliefs, styles, passions, natures and psyches. Let me make it clear here that I have learnt from each one of them and am still at it.

My Dad says, "A soldier defends the country from the outside, a teacher from the inside." How true.

Thank you one and all for being there.