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.
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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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