This question, how does place affect a person, was my research question heading into India. I teach in a very privileged area and school. Students are very well supported and they achieve at high levels. I know this affects students in different and important ways. For one, the culture of achievement is palpable in my building. This can be really good and quite difficult for students who may feel that they don't make the mark. I wondered about this in India as I had always heard that achievement in school and test scores and rankings were paramount to respect, happiness, success and more. I am not sure that my question could be answered in my short time there, but here are my observations and increased understanding after three weeks in India.
Schools matter! The school a student attends matters. The first school our group visited, was a government run, charity school. My first observation was that there seem to be so many kids in small classrooms without teachers. I learned that for some of the government run schools, absenteeism among teachers was as high as 25% daily. In the U.S. a substitute teacher will take the place of an absent teacher and although this is not ideal, it does beat leaving students completely unchecked and unsupervised. Students who miss out on the instruction and guidance of a daily teacher are likely to develop an apathy or less enthusiastic attitude toward learning. This fact alone, warrants attention to this area and I hope this issue will be addressed. We visited a private school for children of military families next. These students participated in a questions and answer session with use and they were so incredibly optimistic and excited about their future. Attending the panel discussion were two graduates of the Army School. Both students were home for the summer and they are both attending university in the United States. They felt confident and expressed an optimism that their education in India had not only prepared them for their college studies, but the environment of achievement and high expectations had inspired them to aspire to attending college in the United States. They both expressed a desire to continue their education abroad once they reach graduate school - they value education and see the connection between education, happiness and achievement. They clearly value education, receive a high quality education and are certain that they will continue this education beyond this school. My teaching placement, the Brilliant Stars School in Tripura, India, offered an even closer look at the value of engaged, vibrant teachers and families. These students LOVED school! The BSS philosophy is one of "joyful learning" and the students exude joy and excitement daily. I was met with students proud to share what they were learning and eager to receive feedback and critique from me. This level of confidence was greatly supported by the teachers and the overall atmosphere of achievement at the Brilliant Stars School. These amazing teachers were paid very little according to our principal and they could easily make more money in other schools or other professions. These teachers were clearly invested in this school and these students and their future. The students were working on a year long service learning project and they were very engaged in their learning. Our students have started a project to exchange video questions and answers with the students at BSS. We hope to offer a perspective that may inform their research and encourage more questions about change and social progress. Many attended school on Saturdays - voluntarily - as they loved the energy and the positivity at BSS! I know this is the case here at Okemos High School. Students feel engaged and empowered by their school and the support they receive from their community. My research, although very limited, confirmed that Okemos High School and the Okemos Community are not alone. Schools and communities all over the world affect their students in both positive and negative ways. The attitudes and expectations become deeply ingrained in the ideas, beliefs, goals and dreams of their students. I am not certain what will happen to all the students I encountered during my school visits. There is really no way for me to know, longterm, how they are affected by their "place" meaning their school and their community. But, this I know to be true: The positivity and excitement I saw at BSS and at the private Army school far exceeded that of the first school. This mood, atmosphere, and overall learning expectation was clear at all three schools and it could be seen in the faces of these students. Schools matter. Teachers matter. The tone, expectation, and excitement is contagious and if it is missing for the school and teachers, it will be hard for students to catch that excitement and be hopeful for their future.
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The people and connecting to them in meaningful and personal ways. People ask me to tell them what was most wonderful about India. This question is so easily answered as it is the people of India and the exchanges we had that made the trip worthwhile and will allow it to be worthwhile for my students.
A few people I met at Brilliant Stars that I hope to stay in touch with include Bisu, Vinod and Jiban. Bisu, our host teacher and principal of Brilliant Stars was such a kind and gracious host. I hope to maintain our connection and work together to connect our students. Vinod ask many times for materials to help his students become stronger writers and I hope to continue connecting in this fashion. Lastly, Jiban, a young teacher at BSS, asked me to connect him with our speech and hearing director so he might learn more about stuttering. I am working to connect Jiban with people who may have insight about this issue. As I prepared to head to India, I had read in books and on websites about all the colors I would see. This was so apparent almost immediately upon arriving. The women of India live in areas with great pollution and at times, wet and dirty conditions, yet they wear beautiful colors and in their own way, paint the villages as vibrant and colorful.
People will ask me what I saw while I was in India and there have been so many new sights, I am not sure which stories I will tell. The vehicles, roads and rules of the road come to mind quickly. I found travel to be both exhilarating and terrifying! And, I loved to see the different vehicles along the way. There were entire families on motorcycles, a cow in an auto rickshaw, and bicycles holding up an amazing collection of fruit or veggies. I was not able to get pictures of everything or every possible mode of transportation, but here are a few. Other sites that struck me as very different included the crops or agriculture. Tea and Rice were both big crops in the state of Tripura. The Rubber Trees were everywhere! We were able to stop and take a closer look during our drive. The trees are tapped in a similar fashion to tapping maple trees in Michigan. The taps allow rubber to flow into small buckets that are harvested and rolled into small, flat sheets of rubber. These are sold and they are a valuable commodity in this region. I also enjoyed the beautiful trees on the grounds of the Brilliant Stars School.
On one of our final days in the beautiful state of Tripura, we took a little trip through the country side. Our host, Bisu, explained that when he wanted to "get away" from things once in a while, he would hire a car and head out to what he called a "tribal" market. He also explained that it is probably not appropriate to call the market or the people "tribal" and it is best to describe it as a fresh market in an area with many indigenous people.
The visit was interesting for many reasons. First, when we parked our car and began to walk through the market, we received many looks of confusion or surprise. Our host explained that many of the residents may not have seen Americans in person in the past. We had experienced this in Tripura already and we offered selfies whenever possible. The fish area offered many interesting smells and sights! Customers bought fresh fish and eel and they were efficiently weighed and sliced up on the spot! I am sure the fish was great and our host bought a couple for his mother. We saw women weighing, wrapping and selling fresh vegetables as well. I can understand why Bisu enjoyed this market. All looked fresh and delicious! Visiting the Taj Mahal is one of those "bucket list" things for many. I had not necessarily dreamed of visiting, but I will admit that I was very excited about seeing this amazing site. Our guide gave us a quick history which included a few of these facts:
The Taj Mahal was commissioned by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan. It was built over thirty years to house the tomb of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. The Taj sits on 17 acres and is surrounded by a guest house and a Mosque. Reflecting pools mirror the beauty of the buildings. The marble is well maintained, incredibly durable and the design is intricate in awe inspiring ways. I felt like I was expected to be wowed by the romance and dedication elements of the story, but I found myself wondering about the people who toiled, suffered and died to build this awesome structure. What happened if someone made a mistake and laid a piece of marble in the wrong direction? The pieces are put together like a puzzle and surely mistakes were made. I learned a bit about the descendants of Taj workers. There is an incredible marble store in Agra and eleven families handcraft tables, dishes, elephants and more from the same marble that was used to build the Taj. We were shown the sales book or register and it appears that many famous people have purchased marble from these families. I could not walk away without a couple of pieces for my home. I chose a small white piece with blue and green inlay and a larger black piece with white and orange as the primary colors. I hope to think not of the emperor or his privileged wife when I look at them, but of the hard work and dedication of the families who toiled to create something so beautiful. Food and feeding people can say so many things. In India, I was fed well. My hosts from the Teacher Foundation and at Brilliant Stars Schools, made sure to expose me to the best that India had to offer in the way of eats. In Bangalore, we visited four restaurants beyond the hotel. We shared a family style meal with a variety of curry dishes early on. Surprisingly, the chicken was not too spicy for me. I tried all the chicken dishes and I found the butter chicken to be the least spicy and the best choice for me. Next, we visited a restaurant featuring the foods of Rajasthan. This meal was long and visually pleasing, but it was entirely too spicy for me! I tried many dishes, but I ended up heading to the restroom four times before we left as I had taken in so much water in an attempt to cool down the heat in my mouth. We also had breakfast at one of the oldest restaurants in Bangalore. We had freshly squeezed grape juice, an amazing pancake like dish and eggs and potatoes. Once again, the food was very flavorful and a little on the spicy side, but I enjoyed hearing the history of the restaurant and sampling their most famous dishes. Once I arrived in Tripura, I was able to eat more. Our wonderful cook for the week, Suprea, made dishes especially for me. She toned down the heat and I was so happy to finally be able to fill up before my mouth was officially on fire. My favorite dish from Suprea was an onion and potato dish. She made this daily with different types of breads which were used a shells or "buns" for the potato and onion deliciousness.
Bangalore School Visits
I visited two schools in Bangalore. I was at each school for only a couple of hours, so I am reluctant to make snap judgements or sweeping generalizations about all I saw and more importantly, all I did not see. My initial impression was one of surprise at how different the schools seem to operate as well as a bit of sadness brought about by the difference in their buildings and resources. We first visited one of the oldest schools in Bangalore which is run by a charity for students who may not be able to pay tuition. Many students will spend their entire school career at the same school. The students were excited to meet with us and they posed for selfie after selfie. We loved their energy and we would have loved spending more time just chatting with them. The teachers were clearly working hard to meet the needs of their students, but they shared with us that many challenges and obstacles impede their progress. As in America, poverty is often a barrier to success. Another obstacle American teachers know well is the intrusion of government officials with little or no training in the area of education. Teachers were quick to point out that what they are ordered to do is often not in the best interest of the students. Lastly, I was a bit taken back by the lunch time monitor who walked around with a stick. He seemed to “poke” students with the stick if they were not behaving in a he preferred. I could not make sense of the “rules” or where mistakes were being made, but he was quick to “poke” for what seemed like typical kid behavior to me. Next, we visited an Army Public School and public in India means private. This building and the grounds surrounding it were quite lush compared to the charity school. The students were incredibly well spoken and offered great questions and responses during our panel discussion. We met two recent grads who spent the last year in the US at a university. It was clear that these students are confident they will be going on to college/university and that they will be future leaders. We often see differences in schools in the US, but it is rare to see such stark differences within just a few miles of each other. It is true that all students in India are offered the opportunity to attend school, but there are a variety of types of schools and levels of success within those schools. “Change is the end result of all true learning.”
I often think about this quotation by Leo Bruscaglia, a special educator, when I am teaching. Will my students remember this lesson, this novel, this project next year or even years later? Does it matter? Am I using their time (and my time) wisely? Even before I arrived at Brilliant Stars School in Tripura, India, I was impressed. I watched a couple of videos about the school and I corresponded regularly with Principal, Sir, Biswajit Sinha. These students and teachers were engaged in projects and learning that would last long past the end of the school year. Identifying problems and designing innovative and creative solutions is at the heart of their curriculum. Change is their bread and butter, their stock in trade. In order to get to BSS, I took a 4.5 hour flight and then a two hour very bumpy car ride. I drove through what looked like a lush, green jungle at times and at other times, small, but vibrant villages. How could educators who live in such a remote area be so progressive? I am still not sure I could answer that question, but I do know that I would put these teachers up against the very talented OHS teachers any day! In small classrooms with no air conditioning and intermittent electricity, these teachers brought the magic. I observed engaged and eager students. I observed teachers discussing growth mindset, joyful learning and other ways to meet the needs of every learner. I observed group work, the use of technology, and student centered discussion. I watched students present beautiful powerpoint projects while their classmates gave meaningful suggestions for improvement. Most importantly, I witnessed true joy. During a day long PD session, I was asked how I use joyful learning at OHS. I realized that although I think about the emotional health of my students, I was pretty perplexed by the question. I gave a rambling answer about enjoying my job and my desire to get to know my students as people along the way. It turns out that there is a whole philosophy called “joyful learning.” The idea is to bring a playfulness, excitement, wonder and love to the classroom. I certainly witnessed this in every classroom I observed at BSS. This year’s project, chosen by students at BSS, is gender equality. Students will research this issue in their community by reading, surveying and studying the topic. They will come up with a plan for creating more equality and then they will put this plan into place. True change will occur in this community because of talented educators and joyful and engaged students at Brilliant Stars. In a little less than 24 hours, I walked on three different continents and travelled from Michigan, USA to Bangalore, India. On the two international flights, I was struck by the number of languages spoken by the flight attendants and I was in awe of how easily they toggled between various languages to assist passengers. I realized that global education is not just a fad or a passing trend, but it is inevitable. If one can walk on three continents in one day, connection and collaboration will surely follow.
Our first session once we settled in was with Chiranjiv Singh who has served in many central and state government positions. He is the former Ambassador of India to UNESCO and retired as the Development Commissioner of Karnataka and Chief Secretary to Govt. of Karnataka. He shared so much about the history of India and answered our many questions. He shared information about: Languages: India has 15 official languages printed on its currency. There are many beyond the 15 as well. India is one country, but the languages, religions, traditions, cultures, etc. vary from place to place. Caste System: Although the caste system has "officially" ended in India, it is still in place on some level. Change takes time and colleges and universities have taken measures to offer seats to lower caste citizens to facilitate change. Arranged Marriage: 90% of marriages are arranged in India. Mr. SIngh explained that they could more accurately be termed arranged introductions. Parents introduce children to a possible mate and if the children are not pleased, they will often introduce them to someone else. Almost all marry within their caste. Clean India: I had heard that the streets of India would be littered with garbage and unfortunately, this was very true. Mr. Singh explained that this is due to the change in the caste system. In the past, the lowest caste was responsible for cleaning/removing all waste. India has a new campaign called "Clean India" and it aims to install more dust bins and educate school children about the need to keep India clean. Cows: The cow is still protected in most parts of India. The Hindu religion forbids the killing or eating of beef so they are seen wandering the streets all around town. I was told that I would be shocked by the poverty and awed by the colors and beauty of India. Both were true in my first few days in India. |
Jane PhillipsJane Phillips is a teacher at Okemos High School in Okemos, Michigan. In the summer of 2017, she travelled to India with the U.S. State Department as part of the Teachers for Global Classrooms Program. Archives
August 2017
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