Directly Speaking

By - Lakshmi di

Dear Parents,

My story is not very unique.

Most adults will recognize this story. It is neither fantasy nor imaginary but a lived-in reality.

My story can drive home a point for our future course of choices and action.

I call it “the passing on wisdom”. I am old enough to do that.  I am called an “expert” in educational systems and institutional building process.

Here it goes……….

I studied to become a medical and psychiatric social worker. I was supposed to work in medical settings or mental health settings, helping people help themselves.  Instead, as all adults do, I grabbed the first job I got and developed a liking for what was given as a job profile to me. Thus my career with school counseling began in 1984. This demanded I learn new things ( less of unlearning, though). I had to understand the funda  “bread and butter’ of my organization ( that of education) and forced to acquire new skills in teaching, training and documentation. Then I studied to become Human Resource Manager, specializing in Intercultural management and worked on parallel tracks to manage minds, train people for cultural adaptation and develop modules for people management.

Now, here I am, in my new avatar as someone leading a school, working with a team envisioning, philosophizing,  developing   a school with a difference.

Once again, I had to learn many new things – acquire new skills, knowledge and attitude. It ranged from legal frame work, educational requirements, interfacing with government officials , understanding new technology ,adopting  new methodology, new theories in teaching and learning, architecture that suits the school setting, child –friendly classroom design etc. The list is endless.

In hind sight, I realize that the only thing that I have kept with me through education is the readiness to learn new things. Most of my theories are challenged by my team mates or are out dated or do not work in this system.

I am required to constantly look for what works here, with this team, with this climate and environment and our chosen path. I am required to constantly examine my own beliefs and ideological frame work; I am forced to adapt ;  I am compelled to grow.

Why am I sharing my story?

This is what I hear from all quarters of life – irrespective of what sector you are employed in.

Those of us who are in the art and science of education must realize that there are very few things that would be more important than creating lifelong learners. As knowledge continues to advance faster and faster, any degree of formal education, no matter how good, is going to serve us only to a point. There is no way we can survive with “reproduction ability” alone. Within few years, we are going to be learning so many new things.

So really, our ability to learn, sieve through volumes of information, pick out the relevant ones and  apply it aptly to life challenges  are some  of the most important outputs of the educational system.

CBSE Chairman, Shri. Vineet Joshi was in Pune   recently   to inaugurate the Pune Chapter of Sahodaya Complex.

He specially asked for a face to face session with parents of CBSE schools, for   a typical FAQ mode so that the parents hear from him the context in which CBSE is pushing some bold initiatives and reforms.

Member schools collected few questions beforehand from their parents and   PTA members to present to the Chairman  so that he could be prepared with  the responses.

The questions   largely focused on the anxiety parents   experience and related to CCE,  Junior College Admission process in Maharashtra etc.

CCE related questions were not so much directed to understanding the objective or its intent. Parents were worried about the outcome – the scores or the lack of it and how it will affect the competitive, performance spirit in our kids.