Education
A problem of plenty?
In a country like India, where there are marked differences in society when it comes to accessibility to education, healthcare and much more, companies should invest in projects that aid them to give back to society.
CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) gives a strong sense of responsibility to corporates that they have to contribute towards the betterment of society. The funds under the CSR are to be utilised for social development, to improve the living standards of disadvantaged sections of the society. This is normally utilised by non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to improve the health, education, environment, rural development and to empower the youth with skills that can earn them jobs.
In 2018, the unused and unspent portion of mandatory CSR rose to 1,717 crores. The New Companies Act of 2013 mandates that publicly traded companies with Rs.100 crore in annual profit or Rs.500 crore in annual turnover need to give 2 percent of their profits for inclusive social action.
Companies will have to deposit their unused funds meant for corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities to a fund set up by the government for better utilisation of resources for public welfare, according to amendments to the Companies Act approved by the Cabinet on July 17, this year. The proposed amendment requires businesses to transfer the CSR amount allocated in specific years to a dedicated fund set up by the government if the company could not utilise it for three years. This would bring accountability to the CSR activities of businesses.
Ironically, there are a number of NGOs in India who are doing exemplary work in imparting education for all. While many do receive funding, these and other similar initiatives would benefit immensely from the unutilised CSR funding…
- Teach For India: They have a Teach To Lead project that encourages young college graduates and professionals to take up two years of full-time teaching sessions in under-resourced schools. In an effort to provide quality education to all, Teach For India currently works in five main cities of India – Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Hyderabad, and Chennai and is well equipped with some 700 Fellows who are working towards eradicating the high inequality present in the Indian education system.
- Make A Difference (MAD): Their Ed Support programme ensures children in shelter homes receive the quality of support and one-on-one attention required to bridge learning gaps and enable them to clear class 10 and pursue higher education. Currently, they have 1200 volunteers working hard to teach 4000 children in some of the major cities of India including Mangalore, Chennai, Bangalore, Mysore, Delhi, Dehradun, Kolkata, and Vellore.
- Pratham: Pratham is an innovative learning organisation created to improve the quality of education in India. Established in 1995 to provide education to children in the slums of Mumbai, Pratham has grown in both scope and scale, with programmes today reaching children and youth across the country. As one of the largest non-governmental organisations in the country, Pratham focuses on high-quality, low-cost and replicable interventions to address gaps in the education system. Working directly with children and youth as well as through large-scale collaborations with government systems, Pratham programmes reach millions of lives every year. Pratham's Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) approach has demonstrated a proven impact on children's learning outcomes and is now being adapted to contexts outside India.
- Navjyoti India Foundation: They have a remedial education programme that prevents vulnerable children from dropping out from mainstream education. Their education model provides holistic development through music, library, art and craft, life skills sessions, exposure trips, health, and hygiene. This is done through a service delivery system of 3S Model of:
Shiksha (Education) – Academic growth is basically loving for constant upgradation in academics and joyful learning. This love is reinforced through “doing” techniques to maintain their interest in education
Sanskaar (Values) – Early giving, sharing, sewa, gratitude, integrity, hard-work, discipline, sharing of joy, confidence building, sensitivity, awareness of the social evils, early awareness of their rights with responsibilities are imparted to strengthen the foundation of the children
Skills – This component enables the youth to identify, promote and enhance their inherent skill which comes so naturally to them, which could as well become a life vocation. The project operates out of the urban areas of Bawana resettlement colony located in North-west part of Delhi and rural areas of Sohna Block, Nayagaon (Gurgaon).
- The Akshaya Patra Foundation: Established in 2000 and headquartered in Bengaluru, the organisation addresses malnutrition and supports the right to education of disadvantaged children. Working on a public-private partnership model, it provides fresh and nutritious meals to children in government and government-aided schools as an implementing agency of the government’s midday meal schemes. Today, TAPF is the world’s largest not for profit run midday meal programme, serving 1.76 million children in 12 states. They aim to feed 5 million children by 2025. They have state of the art kitchens to scale up to their targets and on February 11, 2019, they commemorated the serving of 3 billion meals.
- Bodh Shiksha Samiti: Bodh Shiksha Samiti has evolved from experiences of collective action that helped establish a community school or bodhshala in Jaipur. The school was initiated in 1987 and has motivated India’s ultra-poor communities to transform their villages and slums into centers of educational excellence. It has pioneered the ‘common schools movement in India’, where schools (called Bodhshalas) are built, co-owned and co-managed by, mostly Below Poverty Line communities in areas untouched by the government education system. Its key strength lies in its emphasis on learning from varied community settings and classrooms and holding students, parents, and teachers in a tight loop of accountability and partnership.
Noteworthy CSR projects that support the cause of education
1. Tata Steel Limited
- Nearly 6,500 children who had left their studies or never attended any school were admitted into government schools, under ‘The Thousand Schools Project’. Improving the quality of education in the government schools of Odisha is the focus of The Thousand School Project. It is being implemented in three backward tribal districts i.e. Jajpur, Keonjhar, and Sundargarh.
- Scholarships: SC/ST students coming from economically weak families in Jharkhand and Odisha are given away Jyoti Fellowship, to support their school and college education. Every year nearly 3,000 students are supported through Jyoti Fellowship. Likewise, through Tata Steel Scholars Program, 83 academically bright SC/ST students from low-income families are being supported for pursuing their professional courses from country’s top-notch institutions.
- As marginalised students cannot afford private tuition, the company through Preparatory Coaching helped nearly 5,500 underprivileged school-goers of classes 8, 9 and 10 to hone skills in subjects like English, Mathematics, and Science.
- School drop-out girls in the 9-14 years age group undergo an 11-month bridge course at Camp Schools run by Tata Steel in Pipla (East Singhbhum) and Noamundi (West Singhbhum) and are mainstreamed to formal schools like Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya or other Government schools. Over the last 10 years, more than 1,700 girls have completed education at Camp School and been inducted into formal schools.
2. Hero Motocorp Ltd
Hero Motocorp is a big hero indeed when it comes to emphasising education for the girl child.
- Hero is committed to supporting the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao initiative through CSR efforts focused at the girl child. They run a number of efforts for the cause through their ‘Hamari Pari’ initiative and one significant engagement was their association with the 'Selfie with Daughters' initiative of Punjab Kesari. The campaign spreads awareness about gender equality via mass participation of people across India.
- Team Hero runs regular drives to collect books, stationery, and other educational resources and distribute them among needy children. A part of the CSR spends also goes towards buying essential 'interactive' education material for programme beneficiaries like school bags. Employees also participate in this initiative and give their contributions by giving books during their book collection drive which are then given to needy students.
3. HDFC Bank
- Through ‘Katha Lab School’, they aim to provide holistic education to economically deprived children from all age groups. From vocational skills training to computer training to also catering to the needs of the differently-abled children, Katha has undertaken various measures to ensure the overall development of students' personalities. At present, they are engaging 400 beneficiaries in the state of Haryana through this initiative.
- With the intent to bring underprivileged children in mainstream education, they have collaborated with MelJol to introduce financial literacy among students in the states of Bihar and Chhattisgarh. They seek to encourage saving habits along with training them to think rationally and study effectively. At present, they are empowering 30,000 students.
- In the process of a child's education, a pivotal role is played by its educator. Through the Sri Aurobindo Society, they have reached out to train upto 2,00,000 teachers based majorly in rural Uttar Pradesh providing education to 2 crore school students in the state. The teachers were familiarised with the concept of innovation, thereby, encouraging them to implement 'Zero-Investment' innovative practices panning 40,000 schools in Uttar Pradesh.
- In response to the disaster in Jammu & Kashmir, they initiated a school rehabilitation programme in which they successfully renovated and restored close to 13 schools for underprivileged children. The project was completed in two years and impacted over 3000 students.
4. ITC
- Their Primary Education Programme aims to provide children from weaker sections of society in the organisation's factory catchment areas, access to education with a focus on learning outcomes and retention. Operational in 22 districts of 12 States, the programme covered 46,891 children during the year, thus taking the total coverage to nearly 5.60 lakh children. In addition, 162 government primary schools were provided infrastructure support comprising boundary walls, additional classrooms, sanitation units, and furniture, taking the total number of government primary schools covered till date to 1,644. To ensure sustainable operations and maintenance of the infrastructure provided, 351 School Management Committees were strengthened and 397 Child Cabinets and Water and Sanitation (WATSAN) Committees were formed in various schools with the active involvement of students and teachers.
5. Bharti Airtel Limited
- The Satya Bharti School Programme is the flagship initiative of the Bharti Foundation. The rural education initiative provides quality education to underprivileged children, completely free of cost, with a special focus on the girl child. The programme envisions transforming students into educated, confident, responsible and self-reliant employable citizens of India with a deep sense of commitment to their society. The programme’s reach is multi-pronged, encouraging the active involvement of the rural community, parents of students and other organizations working in the field of education in India. The Satya Bharti School Programme is being implemented with the intent to arrive at replicable and scalable components of quality education which may be adopted by the Government and other like-minded organisations. Reaching out to thousands of underprivileged children, the programme, through its focus on holistic development, aims to bring forth a new generation of citizens eager to usher in positive change.
CSR funds utilised in the right way can bring in a huge positive change and bridge the gap between the privileged and underprivileged sections of our society. Luckily, we have a number of organisations working consistently and selflessly towards the cause. Corporates investing in the right projects can result in the upliftment of the weaker sections of society giving them a fair chance at leading a good life. It is quite appalling to note that crores of rupees dedicated to CSR activities are going unused.
In a country like India, where there are marked differences in society when it comes to accessibility to education, healthcare and much more, companies should invest in projects that aid them to give back to society. It is indeed heartening to note that as per the recent law, the unused funds won’t go wasted. However, it is not enough to know that they won’t go wasted. They need to be put to use where they are needed most.
Together, we can bring in the change.
Winter in North India no longer carries the gentle chill of nostalgia. Instead, it drifts in cloaked in smog, acrid pollution, and despair. Each year, as the air quality index (AQI) hits catastrophic levels, the nation seems trapped in a vicious cycle of reactive measures and inadequate solutions. Schools close their doors, children are forced into online classes, and life is put on pause—all while the question looms: are these measures too little, too late?
This week, Delhi and its neighbouring states plunged into yet another public health emergency. The AQI in the capital breached the “severe plus” category, with readings of over 500 in certain areas—levels that are equivalent to smoking 49 cigarettes in a single day. For context, smoking in Bangalore’s air, while not healthy, is currently considered healthier than simply breathing in Delhi.
{Image- Jammu, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (PTI)}
Amid this crisis, schools and universities have been forced to shift to online classes yet again. The Supreme Court has intervened, universities like Jamia Millia Islamia and Delhi University have issued notifications, and government schools have suspended physical classes. These decisions, though necessary, feel more like desperate attempts to contain the damage rather than addressing the root cause of the crisis.
As educators, policymakers, and parents, aren’t we hypocritical? We preach yoga, mindfulness, and physical wellness to our children while they breathe in air laden with PM2.5 and PM10 particles—air that clogs their lungs and hinders their growth. We promote “wellness periods” in schools and discuss the importance of holistic development, yet we do nothing to ensure that the very environment they live in supports their health and well-being.
Every child has the right to a safe and nurturing space to learn and grow, but what are we truly offering them? Masks, air purifiers, and lessons on resilience—tools to survive rather than thrive. What kind of childhood is this, where outdoor play becomes a luxury and clean air a distant dream?
The scientific community has repeatedly warned about the devastating impacts of prolonged exposure to polluted air, particularly on children. Their developing lungs are more susceptible to damage from particulate matter, which can lead to chronic respiratory diseases, reduced lung function, and an increased risk of cardiovascular conditions later in life. A study by the Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health estimates that pollution caused nine million premature deaths worldwide in 2019, with air pollution being the primary culprit.
In India, the numbers are staggering. Children exposed to high levels of air pollution are more likely to suffer from asthma, cognitive impairments, and even stunted growth. Beyond the physical toll, the psychological impact is equally alarming. Living in a constant state of environmental crisis breeds anxiety, stress, and a diminished sense of safety—all of which are detrimental to their overall development.
The Return to Online Classes: A Missed Opportunity
If air pollution is to be the “new normal” in North India’s winters, then why have we abandoned online education so completely? The pandemic forced us into virtual classrooms, but as soon as the immediate threat subsided, the system was discarded without much thought to its long-term utility. Teachers, untrained and unprepared, are now expected to conduct meaningful lessons online, while students struggle to adapt to an environment that they haven’t engaged with meaningfully since 2022.
This raises an important question: should online education remain a part of our academic framework, even when circumstances don’t demand it? Incorporating regular online classes—perhaps one day a month—could help students and teachers stay familiar with the format. It could also serve as a contingency plan for emergencies like the current pollution crisis, ensuring continuity in learning without the chaos of sudden shifts.
Moreover, training teachers to connect with students effectively in virtual environments is crucial. Simply moving the classroom to a screen is not enough. Teachers need tools, strategies, and support to create engaging and impactful lessons. Without this, online education remains a hollow exercise, benefiting no one.
Every winter, the same questions resurface: why do we wait until the AQI crosses hazardous levels to act? Why do policies remain reactive rather than preventive? And most critically, why do we continue to normalise this situation for our children?
The blame lies not just with governments or industries but with society as a whole. From unchecked stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana to vehicular emissions in urban centres, the web of responsibility is vast and interconnected. Yet, year after year, the measures taken are temporary, insufficient, and often misplaced. We treat the symptoms, not the disease.
What kind of message are we sending to our children? That their health and future are expendable? That the environment they inherit will always be an afterthought? As the smog thickens and the world debates solutions, the reality for millions of children in North India is bleak. They will grow up breathing poison, and the long-term consequences are unimaginable.
As I watch this crisis unfold, I am filled with a deep sense of worry for the children of today and tomorrow. What kind of world are we leaving for them to suffer in? If we don’t act now—boldly, decisively, and with genuine commitment—we risk condemning them to a lifetime of struggle in an environment that is hostile to their very existence.
The time for half-measures is over. We owe it to our children to build a future where they can breathe freely, dream fearlessly, and live fully. The question is, are we ready to rise to the challenge?
Khan Academy, the global nonprofit dedicated to providing free, world-class education, has launched its AI-powered tool, Khanmigo, free for all teachers in India. Starting this Children’s Day, educators can access this innovative teaching assistant at no cost, in both English and Hindi, through Khan Academy’s platform.
Khanmigo, designed to enhance both teacher productivity and student engagement, functions as an AI-powered teaching assistant and student tutor. By streamlining tasks like lesson preparation, generating curriculum-aligned assessments, and creating concise chapter summaries, Khanmigo allows teachers to focus on personalised learning experiences for their students.
Highlighting the importance of this initiative, Swati Vasudevan, Managing Director of Khan Academy India, shared:
“On this special occasion of Children’s Day, we’re thrilled to make Khanmigo available to all teachers across India at no cost. At Khan Academy, we believe teachers are the key to unlocking each child’s potential. By providing Khanmigo, we’re empowering educators to create impactful and tailored learning experiences. Our aim is to break down barriers to technology access, enabling teachers to inspire and support India’s children in achieving their full potential.”
Supported by Microsoft’s investment, Khanmigo is part of Khan Academy’s global rollout, now available in over 40 countries. Indian teachers can create an account on the Khan Academy platform to access this resource and benefit from its features, including interactive student tutoring and classroom management tools.
Khan Academy also emphasises that the implementation of Khanmigo remains a work in progress. Teachers and students are encouraged to engage with the tool thoughtfully, fostering digital literacy, critical thinking, and responsible AI use.
This launch marks a significant milestone in Khan Academy’s mission to expand educational opportunities through technology, making quality resources accessible to educators and students across India.
The Guthli Ad Fest 2024 launched in spectacular fashion at the iconic St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai. Day 1 was filled with high-energy sessions, insightful discussions, and inspiring interactions. Kicking off the day, Pratish Nair introduced the vision behind Miles and Miles SoBA (School of Branding & Advertising), explaining how their collaborative approach blends creativity with empathy. Nair emphasised that their unique curriculum, which includes scuba diving and Himalayan trekking, aims to equip students with life skills that go beyond the traditional classroom, fostering resilience, teamwork, and self-awareness.
The event began with a warm welcome and inauguration, followed by a captivating tribute and a fireside chat featuring advertising legends Piyush Pandey, KV Sridhar, and Prasoon Pandey, moderated by Devaiah Bopanna. Their discussion shed light on their journeys, offering a rare glimpse into the minds behind India’s most iconic campaigns.
The day continued with Cyrus Broacha, the 90’s poster child of Indian advertising, delivering a light-hearted yet insightful session, followed by Tanya Nambiar’s presentation on how emotional bonds can be forged using the power of voice.
The afternoon saw Shirsha Thakurta delve into the art of visual storytelling, followed by a hands-on workshop led by Dr Prateesh R Nair, who demonstrated how advertising can be used as an engaging tool in classrooms. A panel discussion with Miles SoBA students and a thought-provoking session by Josy Paul on creativity in classrooms wrapped up the day.
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Day 2 promises even more excitement, with an Ad Acapella, fashion shows, excellence awards, and a lot of fun activities to look forward to. Stay tuned for more!
CLIL or Content and Language Integrated Learning is a relatively new and underutilised pedagogical approach to language learning. It is a generic term referring to the teaching of a curricular subject through a foreign language. The basis of CLIL is that the teaching-learning is carried out in a language that is not the mother tongue of the students. The end objective remains to learn the second language while the content is extracted through other subjects which the students already study as part of their curriculum. It is a dual-focused approach in which both the content and the language are learnt simultaneously.
The CLIL Methodology
The successful implementation of a CLIL programme relies on the collaboration between language teachers and content teachers. Each is an expert in his or her field, so they need to share both their respective ideologies and materials.
A content teacher is someone who teaches a subject — for example, biology, history, or art. This does not mean just teaching the subject in the English medium. These content teachers are not experts in language acquisition or pedagogy as they are experts only in their respective subjects. Content teachers also depend on the support of the language teacher to diffuse the elements of the language into their subject matter. Thus, both types of teachers have to work in close conjunction with one another to make CLIL successful.
A language teacher is principally responsible for teaching English (or another language), but in the CLIL programme, he or she also supports the content teacher by introducing relevant vocabulary and functional language related to a given subject. This is a more powerful approach to learning a new language as it focuses on the authentic use of language rather than learning it through decontextualized content fragments, memorising grammar rules, or the cramming of curricular subjects.
Let us take the example of a history lesson. The content teacher explains the Civil Disobedience Movement through pictures, demonstrations, and using the textbook in English, and if necessary, the students’ first language. In parallel, the English language teacher might teach students the grammatical structures used for explaining the past tense (simple past, past progressive, and past perfect), the language to describe cause and effect (because of, due to, results in), and word forms (empire, emperor). In summation, the student has learnt both the concept of the Civil Disobedience Movement and can articulate or explain it using appropriate grammar and terminology.
The CLIL Framework
The framework of CLIL is based on the 4Cs i.e., Content (or the subject matter), Cognition (the process of learning and thinking), Communication (the process of interacting and using the language), and Culture (developing an understanding of the language). So, CLIL teaching is not only a matter of learning how to teach both content and language, but also how to integrate them. In this aspect, it is very different from immersion or content-based instruction techniques of language acquisition as it emphasises the need to harmonise language and content-based learning rather than prioritising one over the other.
According to Marsh et al. (2001), students cannot improve their content knowledge and skills without learning the language, because the subjects are discussed, constructed, evaluated and embedded in the language. The basic aspect of learning any language or developing fluency in it is to acquire as much vocabulary as you can. Vocabulary can be divided into three parts: Basic vocabulary, academic vocabulary, and discipline-specific vocabulary. CLIL involves learning to use language appropriately while using language to learn the subject adequately.
In every CLIL lesson plan given by the University of Cambridge, ESOL examinations it is repeatedly insisted that “Every subject has its content obligatory language which means a subject-specific vocabulary, grammatical structures, and functional expressions”. For instance, a chapter on ‘Plants’ in Grade 3 Science would have vocabulary such as ‘photosynthesis’, ‘stomata’, ‘sunlight’, etc which are domain-specific for science for that level. Therefore, each chunk of content associated with CLIL has a specific vocabulary and the teacher has to relate his/her teaching with the newly learnt vocabulary with the old one, which is also the preliminary step in the CLIL approach.
The Final Word
The objectives of CLIL are varied, but among the most relevant ones are to improve the educational system, to establish the necessary conditions that will allow students to achieve the appropriate level of academic performance in curricular subjects, to develop intercultural understanding and to hone their social and thinking skills. Moreover, CLIL prepares students for the globalized world by increasing their motivation to learn foreign languages and cementing their intercultural competence.
As an approach, CLIL has been very successful in countries such as China, Malaysia and Thailand in promoting content learning and language acquisition. In India too, CLIL is gaining currency slowly and steadily but needs some more research, the willingness to adopt, and flexible implementation. Some initiatives have been taken in this direction. For instance, CLIL@India a 3-year project co-funded by the European Union was a consortium of 7 Universities from India and Europe dedicated to developing a new model of bilingual education by introducing Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) as an innovative pedagogical practice in the Indian education system to preserve the nation’s multilingualism.
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References:
- https://bridge.edu/tefl/blog/what-is-clil/
- https://www.onestopenglish.com/clil/what-is-clil/501038.article
- https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/clil-lesson-framework
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Authored By- Sanjhee Gianchandani
Sanjhee Gianchandani is an English language curriculum designer and editor with a Master’s from LSR, University of Delhi, and a CELTA from Cambridge. She has authored grammar books, edited over 100 academic and literary works, and specialises in English language teaching (ELT) pedagogy.
Starting from the 2025-26 academic year, the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE), which oversees the ICSE and ISC board exams, will introduce substantial changes to its academic framework. These reforms align with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and aim to impact over three million students across India, as reported by The Times of India.
Robotics and AI in Curriculum
A significant aspect of the reforms is the inclusion of robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) in the curriculum for Classes XI and XII. For younger students, elements of AI and coding will be integrated into their computer science courses, ensuring these technologies are taught in a simplified and engaging manner. The objective is to familiarise students with emerging technologies from an early age, equipping them with skills for the future.
Introduction of Competency-Based Exams
The CISCE will also introduce a ‘holistic progress card’, a 360-degree evaluation system to assess students’ development across academic and non-academic domains. This approach will provide a comprehensive view of student achievements beyond traditional metrics.
Changes in the board exam structure are also on the horizon. From 2025, 25% of exam questions will be competency-based, focusing on critical thinking and core skills rather than rote memorisation. This percentage will increase to 40% in 2026 and 50% by 2027, promoting deeper understanding among students.
Digital Assessments and School Improvement
To enhance educational standards, the council will roll out digital assessments for students in Classes III, V, and VIII from 2025-26. These assessments aim to identify students who need additional support or those excelling beyond their grade level. Additionally, a school improvement plan will be introduced, encouraging high-performing schools to partner with state governments to enhance the quality of education in government institutions.
The overarching goal of these reforms is to foster a balanced, skills-oriented learning environment that prepares students for real-world challenges and opportunities.
Education
Aditya Birla World Academy Hosts ‘The Happy Place’ an Interschool Festival to Drive Awareness on Mental Health
In a collaborative effort between Aditya Birla World Academy (ABWA) and Mpower, an initiative of Aditya Birla Education Trust the Happy Place Interschool Festival was successfully held to raise awareness about mental health, with this year’s theme being The Mindful Megabyte – Digital Wellness. The event saw participation from over 200 students across various schools in Mumbai across boards, engaging in a variety of creative and expressive competitions, including Solo/Duet Singing, Art, Photography, AD-Film Making, Drama, Slam Poetry, and Dance. Each event centered around the theme of digital wellness, focusing on the impact of technology on mental health and well-being.
The Happy Place Interschool Festival, introduced by Aditya Birla World Academy (ABWA), is built on the belief that mental health awareness is a crucial aspect of a child’s holistic development. At ABWA, students benefit from a robust mental health and emotional well-being curriculum that supports resilience alongside academic excellence. Under the leadership of Mrs. Neerja Birla, Founder and Chairperson of Aditya Birla World Academy and the Aditya Birla Education Trust, this vision has flourished. A passionate mental health advocate, Mrs. Birla firmly believes that mental health awareness and support should be accessible to all students, empowering them with the tools they need to thrive.
As an extension of this vision, the Mindsmatter program has reached 25 schools and over 40,000 students across India in the past year, with 318 teachers trained and 67 mentoring sessions conducted. The program has positively impacted behavior, self-esteem, and academic performance, with 83% of participants reporting improved communication skills and 61% noting reduced stigma around mental health.
For the last 6 years, The Happy Place Interschool Festival has expanded beyond ABWA, engaging students from schools across Mumbai to raise awareness on mental health through creative activities. This festival sustains the conversation on mental health, offering students a thoughtfully curated platform to explore these critical themes, express themselves creatively, and build empathy. Through themes like Digital Wellness, participants reflect on their emotional health, fostering a balanced and mindful approach to life.
Mrs. Radhika Sinha, Principal of Aditya Birla World Academy (ABWA), “highlighted the importance of such initiatives, stating, “The Happy Place interschool festival is not just a competition, but a mindful space for students to engage in conversations about mental health while expressing their creativity. The focus here is not only on winning but also on creating an environment where students can explore topics like Digital Wellness that are highly relevant to the challenges the youth face today. These activities help drive awareness, fostering a sense of empathy and mindfulness amongst our students.”
The competition’s theme, Digital Wellness, reflects the growing influence of technology in the lives of young people. While digital platforms provide numerous opportunities for connection, learning, and creativity, they also come with risks such as overuse, social media addiction, cyberbullying, and sleep deprivation. Striking a balance between the positive and negative impacts of digital media is crucial for the well-being of today’s youth.
Parveen Shaikh, VP Operations at Mpower, highlighted the urgent need for digital wellbeing support amidst the growing mental health crisis: “In today’s digital age, the constant use of technology is significantly impacting mental health, particularly among young people. Studies reveal that 1 in 5 individuals experience symptoms of mental health conditions, with excessive screen time and online pressures contributing to this rise. Alarmingly, 50% of mental health issues begin by the age of 14, and 75% by age 24. By focusing on digital wellbeing and creating awareness around healthy tech habits, we aim to provide timely interventions that encourage young people to seek help and maintain a balanced, mentally healthy lifestyle.
Research on digital wellness suggests that excessive use of digital devices can negatively affect mental health, particularly among students. Studies show that prolonged exposure to screens can lead to anxiety, depression, and social isolation. Initiatives like The Happy Place Interschool Festival play a significant role in bringing these critical discussions to the forefront, encouraging students to reflect on their digital habits and make informed choices.
As this year’s competition concludes, the collaboration between ABWA and Mpower continues to raise awareness on crucial mental health issues, ensuring that students are empowered to lead balanced, mindful lives.
Education
Department of School Education & Literacy Proposes October Activities to Honour Senior Citizens
In observance of the International Day of Older Persons, celebrated annually on 1st October, the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, in collaboration with the Department of School Education & Literacy, has proposed a series of activities throughout October 2024. These initiatives aim to instil values of respect, care, and empathy towards senior citizens among students, fostering intergenerational bonding.
This month-long celebration focuses on connecting students with the elderly, emphasising the invaluable contributions, wisdom, and dignity of older generations. With life expectancy rising globally, and older persons expected to outnumber youth by 2030, the importance of fostering respect for senior citizens is more relevant than ever.
Educational institutions have been encouraged to observe Grandparents’ Day, featuring activities like storytelling and interactive games. Schools may also host pledge-taking ceremonies, where students and staff commit to respecting and supporting the elderly.
Morning assemblies or language classes will offer opportunities for students to recite poems and shlokas that emphasise respect for elders, drawing from India’s cultural heritage. Schools will also facilitate interactions between students and senior citizens, allowing for the sharing of stories, historical discussions, and the exploration of traditional crafts.
Students will be encouraged to engage in community service projects with senior citizens, strengthening intergenerational solidarity. Mentorship programs, where seniors share their expertise in arts, culture, and vocational skills, are also proposed, benefiting both generations.
These initiatives, rolled out across States/UTs and educational institutions, are designed to promote care and concern for senior citizens, creating a society built on mutual respect and understanding.
Education
Ministry of Education Hosts Two-Day STARS Workshop to Strengthen School-to-Work Transition and Assessment Systems
The Ministry of Education’s Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSE&L) organised a two-day knowledge-sharing workshop under the Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States (STARS) project in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, from 30th September to 1st October 2024. The workshop aimed to foster a robust educational ecosystem that prepares students for the challenges of the future workforce, focusing on the school-to-work transition and strengthening assessment systems.
The workshop was inaugurated by Uday Pratap Singh, State Minister of Transport and School Education, who highlighted the importance of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 in shaping the overall development of children. He stressed the role of the STARS project in transforming the education system.
Day 1 featured key discussions led by Sanjay Kumar, Secretary of DoSE&L, who underscored the need to bridge the gap between education and employment. This was followed by panel discussions moderated by Vipin Kumar, Additional Secretary of DoSE&L, where speakers explored the integration of skill education into school curricula and the promotion of multidisciplinary learning, internships, and apprenticeships under NEP and the National Credit Framework (NCrF).
Further, Dinesh Prasad Saklani, Director of NCERT, emphasised the importance of collaboration between departments and aligning the curriculum with industry demands. Usha Titus, Managing Director of the Additional Skill Acquisition Programme in Kerala, led a session on the role of psychometric assessments and career counselling in preparing students for the workforce.
On Day 2, Vipin Kumar discussed the need to improve current assessment models, followed by presentations on psychometric analysis and innovative assessment practices by educational leaders, including Smt. Idzes Angmo Kundan and Jonas Bertling.
The workshop concluded with key takeaways from Vipin Kumar, who highlighted strategies for enhancing assessment systems and improving school-to-work transitions to ensure a better future for students.
(With inputs from ANI)
As an educator, I embarked on a fascinating journey with my students to explore the unit “How We Organize Ourselves.” Our approach was rooted in Project-Based Learning (PBL) principles, designed to foster a deeper understanding of complex concepts through hands-on experiences. This article will delve into our collaborative learning process, highlighting the integration of technology, critical thinking, and creativity.
Provocation and Inquiry
Our journey began with a thought-provoking exercise in the “messy library,” where students were tasked with rearranging books using various systems, such as genre, color code, language, or alphabetical order. This activity sparked critical thinking, encouraging students to think creatively and develop problem-solving skills As they shared their experiences, they naturally incorporated vocabulary related to systems, voting, disagreements, rules, and strategies, laying the groundwork for future connections.
Gallery Walk and Comic Strips
The next step was a gallery walk, where students engaged with comic strips depicting different forms of government. By analyzing the images and dialogues, they began to grasp the underlying concepts and connect them to their previous library experience. This visual approach facilitated a deeper understanding of how governments function as systems
Tech Integration and Infographics
To further explore the democratic form of government, students conducted research and created infographics using Canva. This tech integration enabled them to effectively communicate their thoughts and analyze the features of democracy in various countries Their presentations not only showcased their understanding but also encouraged critical thinking about the differences in governance across nations.
Language Curriculum Integration
As we transitioned from democracy to monarchy, the language curriculum was seamlessly integrated. Students received case studies of 10 different monarchs and, through reading analysis and evidence-based claims, developed a deeper understanding of these systems. By presenting their findings through mini lessons, they gained confidence in their comprehension and re-examined the diverse approaches of monarchs in handling their countries’ situations.
Independent Research and Comparison
To solidify their understanding, students conducted independent research on another form of government using the 5-step research process. This exercise allowed them to dive deeper into the concept of various governance systems and create personalized notes to reinforce their knowledge. As an assessment task, they compared and contrasted different forms of government using a comparison chart, leveraging their previous experience with infographics and graphic organizers to organize their thoughts systematically.
Strategic Planning and Critical Thinking
Throughout this journey, strategic planning and clarity of critical thinking skills enabled students to organize their understanding in a more effective manner. By analyzing and evaluating information, they developed a deeper comprehension of the various forms of government
Taking Action: Creating a New Government System
With a solid foundation of knowledge, students took the next step by forming their own government system. They crafted their own constitution, preamble, and even experimented with combining two forms of government to create a new one. This hands-on experience empowered them to think critically and creatively, applying their understanding to real-world scenarios.
Therefore, this integrated and project-based learning journey not only deepened students’ understanding of governance systems but also cultivated essential skills in critical thinking, collaboration, and creativity. By embracing a student-centered approach, we can empower young minds to become active participants in shaping their own learning experiences.
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This article is authored by- Arushi Sikri, IB PYP Educator, Prometheus School, Noida
Let’s focus on the importance of quality in education and the significance of learning to give.
The best way to deliver quality education and bring about the personal and social development of an individual is by empowering young people to follow their passions. The education process today is built on the 4S approach – Service, Skill, Sport, and Study. The CBSE, CISCE, and most of the national boards are now incorporating skills and activities beyond the classroom into their curriculum.
Each of these four dimensions of learning is equally essential for helping young people find themselves and become the leaders they aspire to be.
Service is the numero uno of the 4S
Mahatma Gandhi said, “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”
Service, also referred to as Community Service or Social Service, has been an integral part of The Doon School since its inception. The first Headmaster, Mr Arthur Foot, believed that “the boys should leave The Doon School as members of an aristocracy, but it must be an aristocracy of service inspired by ideas of unselfishness, not one of privilege, wealth or position.” This principle has remained a foundational aspect of the school for decades. Over the years, The Doon School has amassed an impressive record of service. The students have consistently extended a helping hand across India during major earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides, and floods. For instance, during the 1991 Uttarkashi earthquake, when all communication lines were down, the school’s HAM radio club collaborated with the state administration and aid providers to establish channels of communication with the base station.
All boys at The Doon School must complete mandatory hours of social service. The school runs a Panchayat Ghar where students teach underprivileged children. Over the years, the school has adopted villages, working with villagers to construct houses, community centres, school buildings, sanitation systems, energy efficiency systems, and self-employment projects, including small-scale irrigation systems. Apart from village development, the school is actively involved with the Raphael Ryder Cheshire International Centre and the Cheshire Home.
Socially Useful Productive Work (SUPW) was introduced as a subject in Indian schools, where students could choose from various vocational education activities—embroidery and knitting, gardening, cooking, painting, carpentry, and other crafts and hobbies, as well as community service for senior students (Class IX onwards). This subject was introduced in 1978 by the Ministry of Education to promote Gandhian values and the educational ideas of Mahatma Gandhi. While many private schools have discontinued the subject, it remains an ancillary but mandatory part of the curriculum in schools affiliated with the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE), which conducts the ICSE and ISC examinations. It is also taught in some Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools, including all Kendriya Vidyalaya and Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya schools.
Skill
Skill development aims to encourage the growth of personal interests and practical skills. Music, crafts, arts, nature, communication, hobbies, indoor games, vocational skills, and performance skills are examples of such activities. These interests are typically non-physically demanding and may be hobbies, vocational, or job-related.
“Skill is the learned ability to carry out a task with pre-determined results often within a given amount of time, energy, or both. In other words, the abilities that one possesses. Skills can often be divided into domain-general and domain-specific skills. For example, in the domain of work, some general skills would include time management, teamwork and leadership, self-motivation and others, whereas domain-specific skills would be useful only for a certain job. Skill usually requires certain environmental stimuli and situations to assess the level of skill being shown and used.” ~ Wikipedia
Various forms of skills that schools should help deliver include labour skills, life skills, people skills, social skills, soft skills, and hard skills.
Sport
Sport is not only important for children’s health but also enhances learning achievement, resilience, and psychosocial and motor development. Children who engage in sports from a young age are more likely to continue doing so as they grow older. School-based sports programmes can lead to noticeable positive changes in teens’ behaviour and outlook. When students participate in sports, they can benefit not only physically but also socially and mentally!
Sport should encourage young people to improve their personal physical performance through training and perseverance in activities they enjoy. Physical activity is vital to young people’s holistic development, fostering their physical, social, and emotional health. The benefits of sport extend beyond physical well-being, and the educational value of sport should not be underestimated.
Round Square and International Baccalaureate (IB)
Round Square is a worldwide association of schools across five continents sharing unique and ambitious goals. Students attending Round Square schools make a strong commitment to personal development and responsibility, beyond academic excellence. The Round Square approach promotes six ideals of learning: Internationalism, Democracy, Environment, Adventure, Leadership, and Service. These are incorporated into the curriculum across all member schools, providing opportunities for student and teacher exchanges, community service projects, and conferences.
The International Baccalaureate (IB) offers four programmes for students aged 3 to 19, helping develop the intellectual, personal, emotional, and social skills necessary for living, learning, and working in a rapidly globalising world. The IB aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable, and caring young people who contribute to creating a more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.
Study
Study is the process of applying the mind to learning and understanding a subject, especially through reading. According to the dictionary definition, study refers to ‘the application of the mind to the acquisition of knowledge, as by reading, investigation, or reflection.’ This is just one aspect of a young person’s growth at school.
A good school must provide the best ecosystem for the personal and social development of an individual. This can only be achieved when we focus beyond studies, giving equal emphasis to Study, Skill, Service, and Sport.
This article is also published in the Good Schools India Journal.
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Authored By- Sandeep Dutt, Founder, The Good School Alliance
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