Nivedita Mukerjee
Education consultancy for parents and schools
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue # 27 / January 12, 2021
How to solve a problem like Maria… remember that iconic song from one of the most favourite movies of all times, The Sound of Music? Well, over the years parents and teachers have been working with their children together to not just teach them new knowledge but also to learn life skills. A big one being conflict resolution, making and maintaining friends. As the pandemic continues to rage, one thing that our children miss most is their friends. As do we, as grown-ups. Here are some tips to make and maintain friends and also to resolve conflict amongst all ages, as and when they arise. Conflict between parents and children are now more often and intense with most of us living, working, studying at home for over a year now. Find some tips in Dorothy’s talk in the video of the week in this issue to help you mediate.
Please subscribe to my weekly newsletter with your email and enjoy reading it. Don’t miss young Saanvi’s essay in the student voice section on a sweet tale of friendship.
Three Images For The Week
Two Thoughts For The Week
“A true friend is someone who is there for you when he’d rather be anywhere else.” – Len Wein
“The truth is, everyone is going to hurt you. You just got to find the ones worth suffering for.”
― Bob Marley
One Video For The Week
Anybody can help resolve a conflict, says project manager Dorothy Walker. With three simple steps, she shares how you can use positive energy to solve conflicts between friends, coworkers, strangers, kids and beyond.
Dorothy Walker, PMP, is a certified Project Manager at Wells Fargo as well as mediator and facilitator. She is an advocate of conflict resolution and believes that everyone is capable of using positive energy to face challenges and resolve disputes in a more collaborative environment. Walker received her PhD in 2015, writing her dissertation on the effects of energy transference on interpersonal conflicts. She is also a painter, writer and poet, and is currently working with her husband on a book about relationships.
Student voice :
Eternal Friendship, by Saanvi Singhal of Grade 5.
Showcase:
Join our first workshop series for this year- Online Drama for Learning Certification- BATCH 5.
Register here- http://bit.ly/3hmr8GM
Invest your time for three consecutive Saturdays beginning January 16th, 4-6pm to equip yourself with essential drama tools. Help your students embrace socio-emotional development through drama-based learning. Hurry! Last few seats remain.
This is a weekly newsletter on education. Once a week, curated by me from amongst the articles, videos and long form articles that I read. Most of you would have been too busy to track trends in education, ponder on most relevant thoughts or deliberate on career choice, parenting or pedagogy. Find it all here.
For whom? Students, educators and parents
When? Every Tuesday
Where? my blog post, register with your e-mail id, it is free.
I have been a research scientist, a journalist and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and I write. With this weekly newsletter, I intend to share what I read, learn and experience while I engage with students, parents and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions and ed-tech organisations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv is a newsletter for you to subscribe and enjoy your learning journey with me. This week, it consists of: 3 images, 2 thoughts and 1 video.
If you have created any material, virtual or physical that you think can be reviewed and/or featured in this news letter, please feel free to write to me at : niveditamukerjee10@gmail.com
And Finally….
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3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue # 26 / January 5, 2021
Google will give you a thousand answers to your questions, but a librarian will give you the right one 🙂 What do you think? Here’s an entertaining Ted talk by a librarian of the role of today’s library and also my guest columnist this week shares her thoughts of running a community library and the role it plays. Here we are in a brand new year. I am planning to use the continuing non-commute-to-work time for adding some more reading time to my routine. What about you?
Three Images For The Week
For Teachers, parents and students. The holy trinity of education.
Two Thoughts For The Week
When in doubt go to the library.– J.K. Rowling
The only thing that you absolutely have to know, is the location of the library.– Albert Einstein
One Video For The Week
What do you think when you hear the word library? Are libraries obsolete in the 21st century digital age? Find out how libraries have transformed over the years and what this librarian believes to be the future of community libraries everywhere.
Readers advisory, reference service, programs and events – the librarians still do this and so much more.
Guest column:
Why do we still need a library ?
Let us understand the origin of library. Libraries were set up as part of reform movements in the late nineteenth century. The goal was to create a special collection of books for children to give a sense of a hopeful future. Public authorities wanted to introduce the joy of reading as well as foster literacy skills of children. The positive connection between literature and children came into formation somewhere around the 1890s (specifically, 1895) when the first set of children libraries was set up. Post the 1890s, public and private children libraries were set up along with primary and secondary institutions and the surge of children’s book publishing houses.
Library plays a huge role in building communities. Libraries aren’t just about books and information; they can also be special centers which have developed from specific community needs. There are myriad communities across the country that are made up of individuals and families for whom English isn’t their first language and this can sometimes be a barrier in daily life. However, the majority of public libraries help integrate non-English speakers into society by providing books in other languages, hiring librarians who are multilingual or offering bilingual book clubs. Libraries offer a whole host of programs like storytelling to book club to summer reading programs for young children and teenagers.
Neutrality and social responsibility are key values of libraries and the actual Librarians always try to provide balanced collections, in which the readers are free to pick and to build their own point of view. This neutrality is part of the unwritten contract between the readers and the librarians. Readers go to libraries to find a broader range of points of view than she can find by herself. To assume this social responsibility, which is to ensure that they provide a fair overlook on its topics, librarians must have the full choice to shape their collections.
Libraries have long been at the front lines of providing people with access to new formats for reading and new technology, whether when switching from scrolls to the familiar book format, to newer trends in e-reading.
Many people believe libraries to be a thing of the past due to the digital revolution and the rise of a gadget enamored society. The role of libraries as community centers is often undervalued leading to shrinking budgets and sometimes even closure. However, the increase of technologically mediated life is perhaps the reason why public libraries are important institutions for bringing together communities and providing a safe place in which individuals can gather to interact, learn and explore.
There is no doubt: the era of printed books as the one and only media format for information and knowledge transfer is over. We are witnessing the triumph of digital media and e-books distributed via Internet. Libraries are highly challenged by new models of access to digital content. Publishers and distributors provide access via licenses. They don’t sell the material anymore: Licensing has replaced ownership in many cases. Some publishers even refuse to offer digital content to libraries; others have created licensing restrictions which put the traditional role of libraries in modern societies at risk.
Indeed the reflection goes much beyond the merely technical issues to question the very role of libraries towards the society and ask what the shift from printed books to electronic books might actually change with regard to this fundamental mission.
Libraries have always been thought of as a kind of “temple of books” … a place you can go to for peace and quiet, a place to read and think. They are intricate part of the fabric that pulls a community together. But if they are to be relevant in the future they will have to make space for themselves in the digital community as well.
Bhakti Shah
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This is a weekly newsletter on education. Once a week, curated by me from amongst the articles, videos and long form articles that I read. Most of you would have been too busy to track trends in education, ponder on most relevant thoughts or deliberate on career choice, parenting or pedagogy. Find it all here.
For whom? Students, educators and parents
When? Every Tuesday
Where? my blog post, register with your e-mail id, it is free.
I have been a research scientist, a journalist and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and I write. With this weekly newsletter, I intend to share what I read, learn and experience while I engage with students, parents and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions and ed-tech organisations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv is a newsletter for you to subscribe and enjoy your learning journey with me. This week, it consists of: 3 images, 2 thoughts and 1 video.
If you have created any material, virtual or physical that you think can be reviewed and/or featured in this news letter, please feel free to write to me at : niveditamukerjee10@gmail.com
And Finally….
This weekly newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue # 25 / December 29, 2020
Gratitude can take us from feeling sorry for ourselves to the feeling of joy. The year 2020 has made almost all of us reflect on what are the various aspects of our lives we take for granted… going to school, hanging out with friends, celebrating family events, a hug… and what thus we can be grateful for every day. As the year mercifully comes to an end, let us bring some more gratitude in our lives and teach it, show it, model it to our children and students. You will find many tips in today’s newsletter.
I thank each of you who have subscribed and shared this newsletter in the past months. It has made my efforts of putting it together every week very worthwhile and, rewarding. Thanks for generously contributing your articles, thoughts and comments. Keep them coming.
Wish you all a very joyous 2021.
Three Images For The Week
For Teachers, parents and students. The holy trinity of education.
![13 Most Popular Gratitude Exercises & Activities [2019 Update]](https://positivepsychology.com/wp-content/uploads/7-Ways-to-Foster-Gratitude-in-Children.png)
Two Thoughts For The Week
“The roots of all goodness lie in the soil of appreciation for goodness.” —Dalai Lama
“Be thankful for what you have; you will end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.” —Oprah Winfrey
One Video For The Week
What are you grateful for in your life? Take a moment, slow down, and think of three things that you are thankful for. Share it with someone.
Showcase:
This is a weekly newsletter on education. Once a week, curated by me from amongst the articles, videos and long form articles that I read. Most of you would have been too busy to track trends in education, ponder on most relevant thoughts or deliberate on career choice, parenting or pedagogy. Find it all here.
For whom? Students, educators and parents
When? Every Tuesday
Where? my blog post, register with your e-mail id, it is free.
I have been a research scientist, a journalist and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and I write. With this weekly newsletter, I intend to share what I read, learn and experience while I engage with students, parents and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions and ed-tech organisations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv is a newsletter for you to subscribe and enjoy your learning journey with me. This week, it consists of: 3 images, 2 thoughts and 1 video.
If you have created any material, virtual or physical that you think can be reviewed and/or featured in this news letter, please feel free to write to me at : niveditamukerjee10@gmail.com
And Finally….
This weekly newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue # 24 / December 22, 2020
When you look for it, you will find it. Joy. How do you know where to find Joy? It is the season for it and yet it is the year of the pandemic. Well, there is hope around the corner but even as we look out for hope, we might find joy lurking around us, find out how with Ingrid’s talk – Aesthetics of Joy – in this week’s newsletter. Have you subscribed yet? Just enter your email id here.
Three Images For The Week
For Teachers, parents and students. The holy trinity of education.
Two Thoughts For The Week
“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas…perhaps…means a little bit more!”
― Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
“How many observe Christ’s birthday! How few, His precepts!”
― Benjamin Franklin
One Video For The Week
Cherry blossoms and rainbows, bubbles and googly eyes: Why do some things seem to create such universal joy? In this captivating talk, Ingrid Fetell Lee reveals the surprisingly tangible roots of joy and shows how we all can find — and create — more of it in the world around us.
Ingrid Fetell Lee has devoted ten years to answering the question: “How do tangible things create intangible joy?” Drawing on research from the fields of neuroscience and psychology, her book, Joyful, and her website “The Aesthetics of Joy” explore the powerful connection between our surroundings and our emotions, and empower people to find more joy in daily life through design.
Joyful, her first book, was selected as a Next Big Idea Club pick and named a best book of 2018 by Real Simple, Elle, and Inc.
Teaching During the Pandemic Survey
This pandemic has impacted our lives in many ways, often immeasurable! One group that would see a long-lasting impact of this abrupt interruption to our lives is the school-aged children and their teachers! We are ReReeti Foundation for the Museums want to reach out to school teachers to understand how we can support them during this time. Teachers, please fill this short survey to help us help you! https://forms.gle/qfA1bmmqYWjSupjX6
Showcase: Got your Christmas gift sorted yet? Here’s a great one. Check this out.
This is a weekly newsletter on education. Once a week, curated by me from amongst the articles, videos and long form articles that I read. Most of you would have been too busy to track trends in education, ponder on most relevant thoughts or deliberate on career choice, parenting or pedagogy. Find it all here.
For whom? Students, educators and parents
When? Every Tuesday
Where? my blog post, register with your e-mail id, it is free.
I have been a research scientist, a journalist and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and I write. With this weekly newsletter, I intend to share what I read, learn and experience while I engage with students, parents and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions and ed-tech organisations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv is a newsletter for you to subscribe and enjoy your learning journey with me. This week, it consists of: 3 images, 2 thoughts and 1 video.
If you have created any material, virtual or physical that you think can be reviewed and/or featured in this news letter, please feel free to write to me at : niveditamukerjee10@gmail.com
And Finally….
“CALVIN:
This whole Santa Claus thing just doesn’t make sense. Why all the secrecy? Why all the mystery?
If the guy exists why doesn’t he ever show himself and prove it?
And if he doesn’t exist what’s the meaning of all this?
HOBBES:
I dunno. Isn’t this a religious holiday?
CALVIN:
Yeah, but actually, I’ve got the same questions about God.”
― Bill Watterson
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3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv
Issue # 23 / December 15 , 2020
Opportunities are unequally distributed. Performance and opportunities are connected. Social disparities result in unequal societies. How do we move on from providing equity to providing excellence despite it all?
Time for reflection. Especially in the current situation of school closures and difference in access to quality education. Data has shown that similar investments have resulted in different output in quality. How much a country spends is not as important as how that money is spent… Check out today’s issue to get some pointers. Many paradigms are being challenged in quality and equity.
How do you pay the teachers compared to other high paying jobs?
How does the media talk about the teachers?
How have our leaders convinced the citizens to value education, future of their children and society?
Placing value that all children are capable of success? Without segregating? Can parents and teachers both expect that each of their effort will result in personalising education with clear and ambitious standards? Recruiting, training, improving standard of teachers is key. An environment where teachers can grow. That enables them to figure out how they can deliver what the children need?
Three Images For The Week
Two Thoughts For The Week
One Video For The Week
How can we measure what makes a school system work? Andreas Schleicher walks us through the PISA test, a global measurement that ranks countries against one another — then uses that same data to help schools improve. Watch to find out where your country stacks up, and learn the single factor that makes some systems outperform others.
Guest column :
ACADEMIC ASSESSMENT IN COVID TIMES: UNRESOLVED QUESTIONS
We in India are already deeply mired into figuring out our lives and daily activities amidst multiple ‘Lockdowns’ and ‘Unlock’ directives. School level education has been the topic of serious debate and it has spilled across media channels, virtual platforms, and even the MHRD is facing a tough time trying to satisfy all parties. However the dust has settled and questions of cancellation of school fees, teachers’ plight, the novelty of online classes, and everything encountered at the initial stages has been dealt with. Even the two national boards, and the different state boards have published results taken partially prior to the first lockdown period.
So, when the virtual classroom is the new normal in our daily lives and schools are gearing up to take online assessments through all kinds of virtual methods, as per the adaptability of each school’s internal system, there are yet some unanswered questions that need immediate attention.
First, the switchover from pen and paper to online assessment is completely a smooth transition if we are only doing it for the Primary and Middle section students. But what is the correct way to assess students of senior section, namely of classes 9 to 12, which will be similar to the method of assessment that will be followed during the board exams, in this new and changed situation?
Second, there is no standardisation of these various online tests taken by different schools according to their structural fit. Hence how fair is it to take the scores of these tests as a clear assessment of the student’s merit?
Third, when in the middle of an academic session, teachers are rushing through Board batch syllabi, what is the clear cut directives regarding the method of assessments to be adopted and the common platforms which can be used to conduct the said assessments? Although the two national Boards have hinted vaguely that alternative and divergent methods of assessments are to be encouraged, there is no agreement on the pattern and type of tests to be adopted across schools.
Fourth, students from underprivileged backgrounds, who are unable to access the online classes are also not able to take any interim assessments given by schools. This is a dangerous marginalisation taking place which goes against the basic tenet of “Equality” as envisaged in our Constitution.
Fifth, what about students with special needs? What is the directive regarding their assessments? What about students in the NIOS stream? The 10th and 12th NIOS exams which were supposed to have taken place on 17th July 2020, as announced by the government, have been cancelled. The question arises regarding the fate of these candidates who could not appear for their exams. What happens to them and the next batch waiting in the wings?
It is perhaps not a time to wring our hands and keep mulling over the situation. It’s high time that the Education department thinks quickly and acts fast. Otherwise in a domino effect all batches of students of the next three years will be severely affected.
Showcase: Got your Christmas gift sorted yet? Here’s a great one. Check this out.
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This is a weekly newsletter on education. Once a week, curated by me from amongst the articles, videos and long form articles that I read. Most of you would have been too busy to track trends in education, ponder on most relevant thoughts or deliberate on career choice, parenting or pedagogy. Find it all here.
For whom? Students, educators and parents
When? Every Tuesday
Where? my blog post, register with your e-mail id, it is free.
I have been a research scientist, a journalist and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and I write. With this weekly newsletter, I intend to share what I read, learn and experience while I engage with students, parents and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions and ed-tech organisations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv is a newsletter for you to subscribe and enjoy your learning journey with me. This week, it consists of: 3 images, 2 thoughts and 1 video.
If you have created any material, virtual or physical that you think can be reviewed and/or featured in this news letter, please feel free to write to me at : niveditamukerjee10@gmail.com
This weekly newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #22 / December 8, 2020
Have you incorporated brain breaks in your virtual sessions? Drink of water, yoga poses, quick song, a cartoon picture…
Many students find it very hard to sit for long time in the classroom, more so in a virtual classroom. Have you suggested what parents can do to provide some kind of flexible seating for their child’s study area? Besides the academic tools for learning, considering use of social tools seriously can help children work better, focus more and persevere through their learning journey. Check out today’s news letter for tips on home learning from an educator and parent and listen to the TedTalk of this very cool Principal who managed to do this with ingenuity.
Three Images For The Week
For educator, parent and student. The Holy Trinity of Education
Two Thoughts For The Week
“The principle goal of education in the schools should be creating men and women who are capable of doing new things, not simply repeating what other generations have done; men and women who are creative, inventive and discoverers, who can be critical and verify, and not accept, everything they are offered.”
―
“To understand a child we have to watch him at play, study him in his different moods; we cannot project upon him our own prejudices, hopes and fears, or mould him to fit the pattern of our desires. If we are constantly judging the child according to our personal likes and dislikes, we are bound to create barriers and hindrances in our relationship with him and in his relationships with the world. Unfortunately, most of us desire to shape the child in a way that is gratifying to our own vanities and idiosyncrasies; we find varying degrees of comfort and satisfaction in exclusive ownership and domination.”
―
One Video For The Week
To get young kids to thrive in school, we need to do more than teach them how to read and write — we need to teach them how to manage their emotions, says educator Olympia Della Flora. In this practical talk, she shares creative tactics she used to help struggling, sometimes disruptive students — things like stopping for brain breaks, singing songs and even doing yoga poses — all with her existing budget and resources. “Small changes make huge differences, and it’s possible to start right now … You simply need smarter ways to think about using what you have, where you have it,” she says.
Olympia Della Flora wants schools to think differently about educating students — by helping them manage their emotions.
She believes that it takes a village to improve schools and has found ways to engage multiple stakeholders in this work including students, staff, parents and community members. She believes that schools should seek ways to address and support the whole child when it comes to learning, addressing not only academics but also social and emotional outcomes.
What can you pick from this talk for your online classes? How can you identify your students feelings and then find appropriate coping strategies for those? Do share.
Guest Column
Noel Almeida, Education Specialist and Improvement Scientist
Schooling from home
“Technique is what teachers use until the real teacher arrives” – Parker Palmer
I have always felt called to teach and have had the privilege to teach many times in my life including home-schooling our daughter (Z) for a couple of years. So when the Covid lockdown kicked in, I thought to myself “I’ve got this. I’ve been there, done more than that”. I was wrong. As online classes and lockdown conspired to leave Z and us with many challenges. It was and continues to be hard to get a rhythm going, keep on top of what was taught so as to help beyond contact hours, and manage the emotional wellbeing of a teenager in lockdown.
Locked up teenager.
As online classes started our 15 year old – let’s call her Z – was locked down at home. I also have a job that requires me to work very closely with national leaders of education in India, and they listed similar challenges being faced by teachers. In discussions with top thinkers in EdTech including Prof Liz Kolb we arrived at a few guiding principles that should help if you are a teacher or a parent turned teacher.
PRINCIPLE 1: WHEN IN A HURRY GO SLOW
The tendency at the start and even now is that we must offer immediately all that school offered. This is simply not useful. In trying to do it all we overreach or get overwhelmed. The shift to teaching remotely or via digital means is a new and complex skill. As with any skill, first focus on mastering the essential moves. The essential moves here are understanding how your children respond to screen time and the hyper-focus required in a class, knowing how much content they can take in at one sitting, being able to deliver byte sized content that meets the “optimal” time, planning offline and online activities linked to the online content, and sensing and responding to emotional signals. Take your time to practice these every day while going slow on tech – you don’t need to master the most sophisticated learning management system. You need to learn by trying each of these steps what works and what doesn’t and that takes time.
PRINCIPLE 2: TAKE JUST ONE STEP AT A TIME
Rather than try to attempt the latest and greatest, look at the tools you and your child are familiar with. Even something as simple as a word processor, or video calls on whatsapp or zoom sessions that are recorded or even email can be useful in sharing concepts, getting “in person” time with the child, illustrating something via a doodle or a video or submitting an assignment (via a photo of work that is handwritten). Stick to what you have previously used in the “analog” days and increment by the littlest bit that is needed. This avoids overwhelm. When you are overwhelmed, your child picks it up and could get stressed.
PRINCIPLE 3: KEEP THE CHILD AT THE CENTER
As you progress through the day notice how your plans land on the child in terms of “demands” .. on their time and emotional energies. Plan a schedule that does not overwhelm on any particular day. For example when planning assignments spread them out so – that on one day there are perhaps assignments for just one subject. With digital comes the opportunity to also choose home-specific activities that the child and home care for, rather than a one-size-fits-all set of activities to bring a topic alive.
PRINCIPLE 4: GO ASYNC
The focus that online classes demand is intense. I know from our experience of digital learning at scale that the average time spent uninterrupted on a content is at the very extreme 10 minutes. So chunk it down and make a recording so children can access the content whenever they want and wherever they feel comfortable to study.
PRINCIPLE 5: KEEP IT LIGHT
Children are coping with the stress of such transmission as much as adults are. Keep the emotional state of the child in mind at all times. Are they experiencing stressors of one kind or another due to their home setting, or the absence of “in person” friends? Find ways for them to enjoy fun times as they would in school through the week or better yet through the day.
PRINCIPLE 6: USE TECH TO OFFER OPTIONS
The digital world offers many more options to make a topic engaging or to extend the concept beyond the textbook to the real world. A video with a set of engaging questions on a topic such as microorganisms can be far more powerful than a dry text. If you have the ambition there are even virtual manipulative kits (see the National Library of Virtual Manipulatives for mathematics available here) that allow a child to explore a concept in ways that only an expensive lab would allow.
And as my gym instructor says.. “above all.. love”.. for yourself, for the child, and for the subject to bring all three fully alive. May the force be with you.
Also published here .
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And Finally…
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv is a newsletter for you to subscribe and enjoy your learning journey with me. Most of you would have been too busy to track trends in education, ponder on most relevant thoughts or deliberate on career choice, parenting or pedagogy. Find it all here. This week, it consists of: 3 images, 2 thoughts and 1 video.
If you want to contribute an article, are organising an event, have a product that you think can be reviewed and/or featured in this news letter, please feel free to write to me at : niveditamukerjee10@gmail.com
This Newsletter is supported by :
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #21 / December 1, 2020
Are you a teacher struggling with online teaching? A parent figuring out home schooling? A student finding it difficult to cope with effective note taking? Here are some tips for you in this week’s newsletter. Don’t miss listening to Eduardo Briceño in the video of the week as he shares how each one of us can improve if we are able to differentiate our actions between when we are in the learning zone and when in the performance zone. How can we balance the two for achieving our goals and being the best we can be in almost anything that we set out for.
Read, enjoy, share and subscribe.
Three Images For The Week
For educator, parent and student. The Holy Trinity of Education
Two Thoughts For The Week
“Study without desire spoils the memory, and it retains nothing that it takes in.”
— Leonardo da Vinci
“If you think education is expensive, try estimating the cost of ignorance.”
— Howard Gardner
One Video For The Week
Working hard but not improving? You’re not alone. Eduardo Briceño reveals a simple way to think about getting better at the things you do, whether that’s work, parenting or creative hobbies. And he shares some useful techniques so you can keep learning and always feel like you’re moving forward.
Eduardo Briceño is a learner, leader, speaker and writer devoted to enabling a more learning-oriented world.
Guest Column
Nigar Rao, Educator.
Online teaching during covid-19 – An Essential Escapade!
‘Essential’ and ‘Escapade’ are oxymorons. One is for bare necessity and the other is used while talking of an adventure, which in our society is looked upon as luxury. However, both of these words have become terms used in conjunction for online teaching during this pandemic. These times, while cannot be called the best phase of our lives, it has come in with its very unique pros and cons. Being a part of the education sector, we teachers are honour bound to hold and raise the flags of optimism and adaptability. There seems no doubt that one side of this transition to online teaching is often perceived as an imposition, we know that in many ways it is paving the ways for a future we intended for.
In a country like ours where the internet infrastructure is reportedly not ready for the paradigm shift to online learning forced on us by the situation, it becomes a duty of all the educationists to put our heads together and analyse – if online teaching is actually a boon or a bane in the Indian context!
There has been a plethora of arguments both in favour and against online teaching, but the fact of the matter is that we do not have an alternative . Also, the fact check brings us face to face with the history of mankind standing tall to deadlier pandemics and holocausts than we are facing today when through it all the continuity of education was shielded. There’s no looking back on the point that learning should go on.
Pushing education to the back seat or not considering it as a priority is not quite the option. I would like to establish that education is the barest necessity of mankind. As John Dewey said.. Education is not way a preparation for life, rather education is life itself. Taking into consideration all glitches at the delivery end, hitches in reception and the poor internet infrastructure, it won’t be an anomaly to say that we have progressed towards the 21st century learning and teaching skills – skills we’ve been talking and dreaming about since more than a decade. Eureka! Here comes the good news. We have already moved on the way to inclusiveness with reference to technology. Changed content, different pedagogies, crisp lesson plans and altogether a new approach to teach is all that we have already achieved in a matter of six months. I am sure now that the silver lining is clearly visible, and when I say that this draconic dark cloud of Covid-19 has given a tangible hope to teaching fraternity, it definitely lays a solid claim. The shift from chalk and blackboard to screen and keyboard, teacher reincarnated as a real facilitator, teaching with whatever they had, however they could make it to work, has ultimately shown us the tremendous calibre of our educators and hence a promising future in reality.
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And Finally…
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv is a newsletter for you to subscribe and enjoy your learning journey with me. Most of you would have been too busy to track trends in education, ponder on most relevant thoughts or deliberate on career choice, parenting or pedagogy. Find it all here. This week, it consists of: 3 images, 2 thoughts and 1 video.
If you want to contribute an article, are organising an event, have a product that you think can be reviewed and/or featured in this news letter, please feel free to write to me at : niveditamukerjee10@gmail.com
This Newsletter is supported by :
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #20 / November 24, 2020
Have you ever lost sense of time while doing something? Chatting with a friend, playing a game, singing a tune… you must have then managed the 4 key factors of achieving Flow – Focus, Freedom, Feedback and Four percent challenge. This issue of 3-2-1 with Ms Niv is about engaging your self fully, enjoying yourself, crafting a learning environment for your students to be active learners – no matter what, and achieving satisfaction and happiness.
Read, enjoy, share and subscribe.
Three Images For The Week
For educator, parent and student. The Holy Trinity of Education
Two Thoughts For The Week
I am not a teacher, but an awakener.
– Robert Frost
They may forget what you said but they will not forget how you made them feel.
– Carl Buechner
One Video For The Week
Have you been in the zone – where time stands still and yet it flies? While playing, making music, reading, writing, learning? if yes, then you must have experienced a state of ‘Flow’. What is ‘Flow’ and how can you create it for yourself or your learners? Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (pronounced Me-High Chick-Sent-Me-High) the legendary psychologist is known for his famous investigations of “optimal experience” when one experiences a genuinely satisfying state. In his book Flow, he demonstrates how it can be attained and not left to chance. How do you get into that zone which is somewhere between boredom and anxiety?
What are the factors that generate Flow? While you are studying? While you are teaching? While you are cleaning your home? Writing an email?
Focus (when there is no distracting thought or multitasking)
Freedom (when there is no self-scrutiny)
Feedback (constant flow of information in some form to let you know you are closer to your goal)
Guest Column
A LEARNER’S QUEST FOR AN IB CLASSROOM
Let’s ask ourselves an honest question, “Are IB classes really “UNIQUE”? Or it’s just hype created for an educational board because of its foreign origin and/or for the reason that students from elite backgrounds take admission in IB. What could be the reason for considering IB classes as unique?
I went on board in an imaginary time machine and revisited all the classes I had been experiencing in my career as an IB educator and administrator in the distant past. While enjoying my journey in the time machine, I found few compelling reasons for IB classes being distinct from other educational boards. Interestingly, educators in IB classroom not only focus on “LEARNING” being imparted BUT they ponder upon questions like:
- How is learning imparted within the four walls of the classroom – here I refer to the methodology – Is the methodology chalk and talk OR Sage on the Stage – “I know it all attitude” Or Meddler in the middle – driven by inquiry and passion for learning?
- Has the classroom learning led to “STUDENT AGENCY & SENSE OF OWNERSHIP” OR to an attitude of “DEPENDENCE” among learners which manifests itself in various forms and at varied times during learners life within and beyond school.
- Has learning translated into lifelong skills and knowledge for finding novel solutions to problems in familiar or unfamiliar settings OR it is confined to few concepts or problems being discussed/solved within the class?
- Has the learning in class led to empathetic human beings who love to work in groups and respect other individuals having diverse and even sometimes conflicting opinions OR to self-egotistical monsters who believe in “I’M RIGHT EVERY TIME”?
The reason that IB classes are breeding grounds for learners who develop skills of thinking, research, communication and self management along with social skills sets these classes apart. IB classrooms enable learners to imbibe the attributes of water that easily adapts itself and takes the shape of any vessel in which it is poured.
During my investigation, I also asked myself whether learners are enjoying their learning?
As we all know, neurons (carrying memories of classes, teachers, school and sometimes content) in the learners’ mind might become weaker and eventually memory may fade over the passage of time. However as we know, memories are not about EVENTS but about FEELINGS (which learners experience during the time spent in class). I was sure that the concepts and skills learnt in IB classes will never be forgotten as I observed the inquisitive, deeply immersed, thrilled and fully glowing faces of innocent minds in IB classes.
After quenching the quest for uniqueness of IB classes, I programmed my time machine back to the present times and arrived at the destination as a proud IB educator and a parent, observing and smiling at my little cute daughter, who is also an IB PYP student.
Happy Learning!
Abhinav Awasthi is the DP coordinator at Ebenezer International School Bangalore and has been associated with the IB since 2007. IB has given wings to his passion. He cherishes the dream of being an IB educator. Therefore, the article is an attempt to motivate learners and parents to embrace the IB.
Showcase
And Finally…
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv is a newsletter for you to subscribe and enjoy your learning journey with me. Most of you would have been too busy to track trends in education, ponder on most relevant thoughts or deliberate on career choice, parenting or pedagogy. Find it all here. This week, it consists of: 3 images, 2 thoughts and 1 video.
For whom? Students, educators and parents
When? Every Tuesday
Where? my blog post, register with your e-mail id, it is free.
If you want to contribute an article, are organising an event, have a product that you think can be reviewed and/or featured in this news letter, please feel free to write to me at : niveditamukerjee10@gmail.com
Please like, subscribe, share, comment. See you next week.
This Newsletter is supported by :
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #19 / November 17, 2020
Why do we get stuck in the feeling of being right? What does it feel to be wrong? Do we grow up thinking that people who do things wrong are lazy… irresponsible… dim wits? Check out this week’s Tedtalk from a wrongologist. How do the key areas of our brain process learning? Is there an advantage in learning in an integrated way or should we teach subjects discretely as most of the schools do now. Read this week’s guest column. And finally… don’t miss a laugh at the end of it all.
Three Images For The Week
For educator, parent and student. The Holy Trinity of Education
Two Thoughts For The Week
‘The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.’ –Alvin Toffler
‘It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.’ –Harry S Truman
One Video For The Week
Most of us will do anything to avoid being wrong. But what if we’re wrong about that? Wrongologist Kathryn Schulz makes a compelling case for not just admitting but embracing our fallibility. She is a staff writer for the New Yorker and is the author of “Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error.” Being wrong v/s realising being wrong… to feel about being wrong. How does it become a practical problem? A social problem?
Guest Column
Snehalata Ramachandran, Educator.
Thematic or Integrated Learning
Connection and relationships play a huge role in life. The ‘web of Life’ clearly shows that all living things, one way or the other are part of the web – may be food chain, balance of eco system or wellness in the world.
Similarly in thematic learning – many ideas, information, concepts, skills and subjects can be wonderfully integrated. This allows the learners to explore and get better understanding of their surroundings to resolve concerns. Their learning is associated with real life experiences which enables coherent and holistic learning and of course leading to a sense of empowerment, as it does not confine them to information provided in the text. Through research, the excitement and interest is on the high, which makes the learners delve into the topic and find numerous connections, many that they didn’t know existed! It gives way to natural way learning-competency based and is less fragmented.
The pedagogy in thematic learning can be so varied – it can be individual, pair or group work, where they have an opportunity to discuss, accept and appreciate other’s ideas, make presentations too. Social skills and confidence building is also taken care of. Group activities and discussion enable students to participate and reach on a shared perspective of the theme- collaborative learning at its best. This also helps in creative exploration of the subject through understanding and discourages rote learning. Many skills – such as research, decision making, risk taking are honed, giving way to creativity and invention. Learners with conviction dare to be different, moving away from flock mentality.
For a better understanding of thematic learning, I’ll chose the topic ‘water’ and share how the various subjects can be integrated. Explore the water bodies in the locality and find out how water reaches houses. The importance of the water bodies and responsibility of keeping them clean can be discussed. Through real life experiences the properties and uses of water of water can be derived. Estimation or litres-millilitres can be taught in Math and students can visit a store and check out the products too. Students can write poems, slogans or compositions in language-English or the local language. It allows literacy to grow progressively with expansion of associated vocabulary, sentence writing reinforced gradually and smoothly. Adding a tune to their own poem or doing a rap is lovely way to weave in rhythm and music! Art and science will be in sync when they do ‘marbling’ or sit around a water body and watch the teeming life around it to get the first- hand knowledge of eco system or even symbiotic relationships and capture it on paper! Awareness of the theme will give way to make informed choices and ingrain responsibility.
The infinite thoughts, ideas can be harnessed to make learning a joyful experience of wonders, wondering, wandering and adventures…..with so many permutations and combinations ….spoilt for choices – to let an active learner reach for stars.
Showcase
And Finally…
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv is a newsletter for you to subscribe and enjoy your learning journey with me. Most of you would have been too busy to track trends in education, ponder on most relevant thoughts or deliberate on career choice, parenting or pedagogy. Find it all here. This week, it consists of: 3 images, 2 thoughts and 1 video.
For whom? Students, educators and parents
When? Every Tuesday
Where? my blog post, register with your e-mail id, it is free.
If you want to contribute an article, are organising an event, have a product that you think can be reviewed and/or featured in this news letter, please feel free to write to me at : niveditamukerjee10@gmail.com
Please like, subscribe, share, comment. See you next week.
This Newsletter is supported by :
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #18 / November 10, 2020
Inclusion is in the air and not just in America. There comes an inflection point when it is not just a good to have credo in a school or work place but when it is imperative to have empathy with fellow beings. When we seek solace, we seek support and feel the strength in equity, diversity and inclusion. This is the time for us to embrace it more than ever. The pandemic has shown that we are vulnerable no matter how strong we are and we seek and value our connection with friends, family, workplace, nature, community workers for our well-being. We are connected. And we need to enjoy and protect the entire web of life to live well.
This week I have for you a mom writing about bringing up a child with special abilities, a special educator with a belief in the special abilities of every child, a heart warming story of a concert pianist who was born deaf and with autism. Hope you enjoy this news letter as much as I did putting it together for you.
Please share your thoughts and subscribe to get this newsletter every week in your mail box.
Three Images For The Week
For educator, parent and student. The Holy Trinity of Education
Two Thoughts For The Week
“Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can’t practice any other virtue consistently.”
― Maya Angelou
“Have no fear of perfection – you’ll never reach it.”
― Salvador Dali
One Video For The Week
Born three and a half months prematurely, Derek Paravicini is blind and has severe autism. But with perfect pitch, innate talent and a lot of practice, he became a concert pianist by the age of 10. Here, his longtime piano teacher, Adam Ockelford, explains his student’s unique relationship to music, while Paravicini shows how he has ripped up the “Chopsticks” rulebook.
Guest Column
Swimming in an Inclusive Pool of Diversity
Anita Eipe
The more we are aware of the diversity that exists in our communities, the more we realise the disparities in the equitable access to resources. With the current pandemic situation, parents are confined to their homes and are intimately involved in their children’s lives. Without house help and with schools closed, parents and their children find themselves in a situation that is strange in many ways. Some are surprised pleasantly, and some are not. Some wish for more and some wish for different. Many realise that our education system lacks tolerance and is very low on empathy and inclusion.
It is important to understand the term Inclusion in education, before discussing it. Inclusive environment is a term which expresses commitment to educate each child, to the maximum extent appropriate. It means, making learning accessible to every child, equitably. Inclusion also means an environment free of discrimination, be it social, religious, economical, physical or in any other form.
Now that we understand what an Inclusive learning environment should be, we also realise that our schools are far from inclusive. But do we dare to believe it is possible? If yes, then what would the inclusive school look like?
Let’s go visit a swimming pool. When we walk in there, we see this large rectangular pool filled with cool blue water. It is shallow on one end and deep on the other. The depth gradually increasing as we move from the shallow to the deep end. Then we see steps on all four sides of the pool. There are railings or a ledge that one can grasp onto on all four sides of the pool. Look around the pool and we see many floater and tubes kept readily available for anyone who may need them. Most pools also have a lifeguard or two around always. This to me is a perfect model of an inclusive environment.
How is it that a swimming pool can compare to an Inclusive learning environment? At a pool, everyone comes to learn to swim. Everyone learns at a different pace. Everyone has a personal goal with the common goal to learn to swim. Some are in the beginner’s stage and need the support of a coach or a friend and during that time they stay in the shallow end. Some have learnt and need to practice, so continue to stay at the shallow end but swim along the breath of the pool. As they get more confident, they continue to swim the breaths but get further towards the middle of the pool. And then there are those who have learnt, are confident and now work on improving their style and speed. These swimmers swim the lengths. Everyone has their own style of getting into the pool. Some take the steps in and some slip in over the edge and some dive in. Each choosing what works best for them.
Now I see the swimming pool as a model of an inclusive learning environment that has the scope to include so many diversities. What makes it possible? Is it maybe that the focus is on enjoying the learning? Yes even the swimmers doing their lengths can be seen goofing around with their friends sometimes. Would this be possible in schools if we shifted from being result oriented to focusing on making learning joyful? Some would be great at academics and would pursue that line of career? Some would discover they were great at innovative and creative thinking and pursue maybe research or entrepreneurship? Some would discover their abilities to work well with people and end up being team leaders or teachers? The possibilities are endless. The best would be the dignity and self-worth with which everyone would pursue their life’s career and challenge themselves to live to their potential.
Now what I forgot to mention is that baby pool we find near the main pool. It is shallow and meant for those who are not ready for the big pool. The baby pool represents the special needs center that all schools must have. This is where a child receives individualized attention to get ready for the main class. Some may get over their fear of water or the crowds and get into the main pool some day just as some children who initially struggled get to join the main stream class because of effective early intervention programs. There are also those who may continue to stay in the baby pool. They will learn to paddle and keep their head above water. Learn they will, even though it may be limited.
This is the inclusion model. With the right attitude and the desire for it, inclusion is possible. If we have a ready model in one field, we can replicate it another. When we make every student a successful learner, schools will churn out confident and happy individuals and our world will be a happy place with more to celebrate and less to worry about!
Inclusion is only possible when we move our focus from the result to the joy of the journey of learning and living.
Anita Eipe is a special educator by profession and the Managing Trustee of Samatha Learning Center (www.samathalearning.com) Bangalore. She offers schools support to make inclusion possible for them. Samatha works on the principle that everyone can learn and everyone has an ability which has value. Anita believes in being the change she wants to see.
Parent speak
My take on inclusion
Moushumi Das, mom of 2 boys and an educator
Inclusion apparently is an amazing concept but rare in our country. And life gave me an opportunity to raise two children with different needs, one regular and the other with special abilities.
One went to a special school and the other in a regular one. Both learned from each other and so did I. Accepting a younger sibling with special needs is what my older one learnt early in life. And the younger one felt proud of an older sibling who was fun to be with.
The entire process was to unlearn and relearn. Accepting that milestones will be slow but sure to come gave an immense pleasure without pressure. As a teacher teaching in a regular school I met parents who compared their children with each other. Tra la la – I never had to! Each one of them were different in their own ways. Can share an amazing example: Aniket, my elder eats to live, just fills in when hungry – no complain. But Jijo lives to eat – no fish? No chicken? Ohhh…. Eating but no fun.
In all the schools that Jijo went to, we had a great time pitching in with ideas, games, birthday parties, annual programmes. And Aniket felt that it was important for his friends to meet Jijo and get to know him. Result? Absolute fun and fantastic inclusion.
As a parent I made it a point to take Jijo out in supermarkets, movie halls, walk in the parks, travel by train, aircraft, bank, post office, police station, roadtrips and the like. And I saw how the child adapted himself in all kinds of surroundings.
Inclusion begins in family and then flows out in the society. Despite several hurdles, one thing I have learnt is that each individual is different. And everyone needs to be treated with love and respect. As for me – variety is the spice of life and I enjoy every moment!!
Student Voice
Inclusion or Diversity from a student?
Kashvi Goil, student of Grade 7
Inclusion in a general classroom is an education in which students with and without differences learn together. Inclusion secures opportunities for students with disabilities as they might not find a classroom to study with students with and without differences together.
Now if we talk about Diversity, diversity also means to group a diverse group of people with different cultural backgrounds, personalities, athletic abilities, religious beliefs, genders, sexualities, appearances, etc.
Now why is student inclusion and diversity important?
The answer is, so that the students learn more about different cultures and abilities of other students and feel more comfortable and confident to interact with wider ranges of people. Student diversity is also important as, if students interact with a diverse group of students they will be able to appreciate and celebrate the differences between them as each difference makes each person unique in their own way, rather than acting discriminatory towards a different group of people.
What do you think of having friends with different abilities
Aryaman Jain, student of grade 7
Friends are like stars, you don’t always see them but you know they are always there. They are exceptional in some things but are poor in some. But having friends with different abilities is a very fortunate thing to have. If you are stuck in a thing, you can ring them at any time and they will be ready to answer all your queries. Friends having different abilities can teach you the things in which you are poor. Which would help us in succeeding in our lives. Even if they have something poor in them which is good in us we can help them in that field. This type of friendship makes our personality more kind and helpful. Not only friends but even having family with different potentials would make our character and nature towards people more pleasant. In our school the sports day is held on the basis of inclusivity. Like if my friend is not good in sports but good in art then he/she can help the team to gain points by making a beautiful flag or banner. This is why having friends with different qualities help.
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And Finally…
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv is a newsletter for you to subscribe and enjoy your learning journey with me. Most of you would have been too busy to track trends in education, ponder on most relevant thoughts or deliberate on career choice, parenting or pedagogy. Find it all here. This week, it consists of: 3 images, 2 thoughts and 1 video.
For whom? Students, educators and parents
When? Every Tuesday
Where? my blog post, register with your e-mail id, it is free.
If you want to contribute an article, are organising an event, have a product that you think can be reviewed and/or featured in this news letter, please feel free to write to me at : niveditamukerjee10@gmail.com
Please like, subscribe, share, comment. See you next week.
This Newsletter is supported by :
Nivedita Mukerjee 