Unlearn teach better - All India Teachers Meet took a fun turn, as educators shared disruptive methods of teaching, to meet students mid-way

Unlearn teach better

The All India Teachers Meet took a fun turn, as educators shared disruptive methods of teaching, to meet students mid-way. Sohini Das Gupta enjoys a rare lesson

The auditorium was fairly dark, but you could spot the silhouettes of students and teachers nodding in tandem or breaking into collective laughter as the speakers’ anecdotes hit close to home. Seeing that the motive of the seminar was to help teachers adopt professional techniques that resonate with modern students, it seemed like an encouraging sign.

Bridge the Gap

At the All India Teachers Meet, organised by the National Education Society (NES) and the Saraswathi Vidya Bhavan (SVB) Group, the focus was on bridging the traditional mind-gap between teachers and students. To that effect, the customary do-don’t lecture was replaced with a relatable mix of classroom episodes, pop-quizzes and visual slides on bringing out the best in young learners. The advice that did come out of the interactive chatter was quite unusual.

Mistakes Aren’t All Bad

“As educators, we must stop stigmatising mistakes,” said Sumeet Mehta, Managing Director, Leadership Boulevard. “Teach kids to celebrate mistakes, learn from them and emerge wiser,” he continued, getting the attention of the students in the back rows. Some mistakes, such as sloppy, careless or repetitive mistakes, have to be rectified. Others—stretch mistakes (made when pushing yourself to do better) and a-ha mistakes (made in a hurry that result in a realistion of some sort)—need to be reflected onand closely analyzed, to find the trigger and resolve them. And then there are high-stake mistakes that could impact your life. The point being, not all mistakes are equal. While some deserve to be celebrated for the learning they bring, others need to be looked into more seriously. 

Intelligence is Malleable

“Many teachers presume that a class is divided into the smart kids and those less capable. They could not be more wrong,” said Sumeet.

He went on to insist that the idea is to change the ‘fixed filters’ with which adults view children. Every child, he explained, is born with the innate ability to learn, and the moment we label their potential, box them in as “bad at math”, “weak in English”, or “better at public speaking than at dancing”, we are inhibiting one area of growth or the other.

Attraction and Distraction 

Dr NS Neelkanthan, Professional Trainer, Oxford University Press, re-examined the existing problem of technology, especially cellphones, posing as “negative attractions” for students. He insisted that a distracted child is only a child attracted to irrelevant subjects, in the face of a void. This void is the lack of a clear goal, he observed, steering the discussion towards parental influence on impressionable minds.

Set Goals

“A goal is a positive objective to move towards,” he revealed. A question from the audience prompted the speaker to explain that a ‘goal’ does not have to mean competitive hyperventilation or unrealistic target-chasing at all. 

“Goals can be set right from childhood, preferably on a daily or hourly basis. Provide the child with simple, achievable goals–like doing their own dishes, or carrying a cup without spilling 

its content. If he does spill it, or break your precious tea-set, the lesson he takes away is infinitely more precious.”

https://fda.maharashtra.gov.in/And is the child to be rewarded if he achieves the set goal? “Of course! A hug, a good word or a simple outing, will cement the child’s faith in his effort and capabilities. Reward him—hopefully not with cellphones or junk food,” he winked. 

Build People Skills

Neelkanthan also spoke of the importance of building people-skills in students by allowing them an active, supervised foray into the “real world”. For the average teacher, he had two advisory words: “Brand Creation”. “Do they fear you? Do they love or respect you? You can decide this only by creating and maintaining your own brand. The students are only responding to your personal stimuli—you are being observed.”

How to Praise

Mehta caught many off-guard, when he said “Don’t praise the child or his good result”. Instead of using phrases like “You’re a smart kid” or “You’re good in English,” he suggested praising the effort behind the result. “I love how hard you worked for this English test”, or “You dealt with that problem very nicely,” will help the student identify his efforts and not some in-built power as the benefactor. This way, even if he fails the next time, he will know he hasn’t suddenly turned less smart.

Food for Thought

As the mixed group filed out of the auditorium, a student was overheard telling a friend how much she enjoyed the ‘workshop’. High praise indeed, as it’s not uncommon to find audiences dozing off at a typical ‘seminar’.

Source | Daily News Analysis | 25 November 2015

Regards

Pralhad Jadhav

Khaitan & Co