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→4. “Mujhe bhi bholne ko chance diyo yar” _19th March 23
Language is not a barrier to learning. But, it should be considered as a means to learning.
Language is not a barrier to learning. But, it should be considered as a means to learning.
=== 5. Behavioural issues among children ===
=== 5. Empathetic teacher (Manjula madam)_20th March23 ===
In Bangalore's Jayanagar South 3 block, there is only one small school. Around 125 students are taught by 4 teachers in that school. One of the four teachers, Mamatha (name changed), is exceptionally good in her subject matter and is also amazingly active and compassionate. Science, math, English, and Kanndada are some of the subjects she is taking classes for different classes. Extremely well-liked and respected by the children, Mamatha did lead their classes with enthusiasm. She is the one who consistently shows up to all of her school's meetings and training sessions, and she is a very interested to learn new things.
School has rooms for extracurricular activities, but they are filled with unwanted materials, such as the storeroom. When we approached her about setting up a computer lab in the school, she only cleaned that room and arranged infrastructure for placing computers in two days, with the help of 2-3 students.
She sometimes allows children to use the computer lab during her periods. She provided a space for children to explore their understanding through hands-on activities and experiments, and students actively participated in this.
Nearly 2-3 months of her academic year were lost because she was unable to attend any classes due to a health issue. On those days, she was missed by the students and other teachers. When she returned to school, her schedule was incomplete, and she wasn't ready to skip any lessons, so she looked into creative teaching strategies and methods. She planned to use technological tools like a projector, speaker, and computer to support her teaching. With our support, she explored some technical elements in her classroom.
The school has a projector, but it hasn't been used for teaching in the past. She explored how effectively a projector can be used to teach English lessons and other subjects as well. She learned how to download videos and audios, and she uses some video lessons to explain concepts to children so they can understand them better. Additionally, in order to finish the syllabus, she is taking extra classes, and in the meantime, she encouraging students to engage in extracurricular activities by giving them practise for group dances, songs, etc. among other things.
She is the one who came forward and said "aithu madam hogona nan barthini nim jothe nediri(Okay, I will come with you, lets go)" even though she was completely engaged in school activities when we discussed with her about 3 students having learning difficulties and suggested there is a need for some diagnosis for them at the NIMHANS. She coordinated the parents of the children, explained the challenges they faced, and introduced us to them. The teacher visited NIMHANS with the parents of the 3 children in order to get the children diagnosed and to take part in psychological counselling. She gave all support to us to take the children to the hospital when ever doctor suggested and she said “Don't worry about classes or exams; I'll take care of everything and arrange the exams when everything is finished.”
=== 6. Behavioural issues among children ===
Students of class 7 are playing a dice and colouring game in a 100-grid, where one wins when they reach 100 first. However, one student, Abhi (name changed), starts multiple arguments when his peers got higher scores or he got lower scores. Abhi has difficulty interacting with his peers and teachers, and often reacts aggressively with vulgar words and displays non-cooperative behaviour. Other students have tried to reason with him, but they give up after a while. In this instance, they let him make up his score and did not pay him much heed while they continued to play as per the rules.
Students of class 7 are playing a dice and colouring game in a 100-grid, where one wins when they reach 100 first. However, one student, Abhi (name changed), starts multiple arguments when his peers got higher scores or he got lower scores. Abhi has difficulty interacting with his peers and teachers, and often reacts aggressively with vulgar words and displays non-cooperative behaviour. Other students have tried to reason with him, but they give up after a while. In this instance, they let him make up his score and did not pay him much heed while they continued to play as per the rules.
• How can we build collaborative / cooperative skills among the children?
• How can we build collaborative / cooperative skills among the children?
=== 6. Attitudes towards the opposite sex ===
=== 7. Attitudes towards the opposite sex ===
“Agalla mam, thu avl pakkana nan ninthkolalla, nan illi evn pakka nilthini” (Not possible, ma’am. I am not going to stand next to her. I will stand next to him instead) – This is what Dhamu (name changed), a student of class 7 told his teacher, and started questioning the teacher’s decision to make girls and boys stand in an alternating manner. When the teacher tried to explain that girls are also his peers, and when he can interact with the women in his family, he can do the same with his classmates, but he replied,
“Agalla mam, thu avl pakkana nan ninthkolalla, nan illi evn pakka nilthini” (Not possible, ma’am. I am not going to stand next to her. I will stand next to him instead) – This is what Dhamu (name changed), a student of class 7 told his teacher, and started questioning the teacher’s decision to make girls and boys stand in an alternating manner. When the teacher tried to explain that girls are also his peers, and when he can interact with the women in his family, he can do the same with his classmates, but he replied,
=== 7. A case study on dealing with disciplinary issues ===
=== 8. A case study on dealing with disciplinary issues ===
As a part of some post-baseline sessions, a story-reading session was planned for grade 6 at one of the schools under TIIE. These sessions, where images in the story are displayed using a projector, and the audio plays along, are well-liked by students across schools and grades, and all students were excited to see what the story was about.
As a part of some post-baseline sessions, a story-reading session was planned for grade 6 at one of the schools under TIIE. These sessions, where images in the story are displayed using a projector, and the audio plays along, are well-liked by students across schools and grades, and all students were excited to see what the story was about.
• What can NGOs such as ours working in school do to address these issues?
• What can NGOs such as ours working in school do to address these issues?
=== 8. A blurry future? - Case of a child with eyesight problems ===
=== 9. A blurry future? - Case of a child with eyesight problems ===
It is a regular school day at a government school in South Bengaluru. The teacher writes something on the blackboard, encouraging students to pay attention and respond. A little later, she shares a worksheet to assess what students have learnt. However, amidst the eager responses and student chatter, one child is distracted. Pritam (name changed) is struggling to understand what is being taught in class. He squints to focus on what is written on the blackboard but is unable to understand the letters. He tries squeezing one eye shut and bringing the worksheet within 2-3 inches of the other eye. This helps a little, but before he can decipher all the questions, the class is over and the worksheets are collected back. Pritam doesn’t perform well in this test.
It is a regular school day at a government school in South Bengaluru. The teacher writes something on the blackboard, encouraging students to pay attention and respond. A little later, she shares a worksheet to assess what students have learnt. However, amidst the eager responses and student chatter, one child is distracted. Pritam (name changed) is struggling to understand what is being taught in class. He squints to focus on what is written on the blackboard but is unable to understand the letters. He tries squeezing one eye shut and bringing the worksheet within 2-3 inches of the other eye. This helps a little, but before he can decipher all the questions, the class is over and the worksheets are collected back. Pritam doesn’t perform well in this test.
• How can we strengthen our existing systems to avoid cases such as Pritam’s from escalating and resulting in long-term damage? How can awareness regarding applicable government provisions and schemes be raised among the parent community?
• How can we strengthen our existing systems to avoid cases such as Pritam’s from escalating and resulting in long-term damage? How can awareness regarding applicable government provisions and schemes be raised among the parent community?
=== 9. Learning challenges brought on by a long learning gap ===
=== 10. Learning challenges brought on by a long learning gap ===
“ma’am avanige akshara ne baralla!” (He doesn’t even know the letters!)
“ma’am avanige akshara ne baralla!” (He doesn’t even know the letters!)
• What can be done to avoid such cases from happening in the future?
• What can be done to avoid such cases from happening in the future?
=== 10. Language as a barrier to learning and classroom interactions ===
=== 11. Language as a barrier to learning and classroom interactions ===
Language barriers in the classroom are ubiquitous in a country that has over 19,500 spoken languages. Such diversity brings its own set of challenges, but from an educational perspective the results are especially disastrous. UNESCO estimates that 40% of school-aged children don’t have access to education in a language they understand. Following are the cases of such children in government schools in Bengaluru whose home languages are different from the school’s medium of instruction and they need to learn a new language to understand their teachers and peers.
Language barriers in the classroom are ubiquitous in a country that has over 19,500 spoken languages. Such diversity brings its own set of challenges, but from an educational perspective the results are especially disastrous. UNESCO estimates that 40% of school-aged children don’t have access to education in a language they understand. Following are the cases of such children in government schools in Bengaluru whose home languages are different from the school’s medium of instruction and they need to learn a new language to understand their teachers and peers.