The Parental Gift

Everyone wants their child to be brilliant and excellent when it comes to academic performance. We want our child to be well mannered, disciplined and brighter than other children we know and to achieve this goal we spend a lot of time and money. However, we rarely think about their interests and as a result, want them to engross in their studies during all their waking hours.

Do we as adults work from the moment we wake up till the moment our head hits the pillow every single day? No, we most certainly do not. We go to our designated workplace and work for a specified number of hours. When we get home, we crave rest and relaxation. We want to lie down on the couch and pass the hours doing something that gives us pleasure. At the same time we badger our kids about their homework.

The children spend at least six hours in school; they work hard to learn something new every minute. As soon as they come home, we want them to finish their homework and the next morning, the cycle begins again. Aside from the workload given by schools and study pressure created by parents, some children also have to attend private tuition classes on top of everything else. Fair enough, our intentions are good but have we ever thought about what our children are going through? The unnecessary pressure on studies that we put on children might backfire and they might become victims of psychological problems.

One of my friends who has been working as a lecturer sends her six year old daughter to attend tuition classes early in the morning and the little one has to eat in a hurry to catch the school bus before 9.00 AM. Once the girl is back she has to bury her head in books for hours to finish all her homework. After putting them under such pressure, we then boast about the progress made by our children. Basically we measure their academic ability as their only strength. However, academic results themselves do not ensure a successful life, and too much focus on them can inhibit social development and confidence. I wonder why we pay such hefty fees to schools if we have to hire a private tutor for our children. If schools cannot teach students properly and if children cannot do their homework given by schools we need to rethink what the schools are doing to our children.

Putting too much pressure on children to succeed might be counter-productive and they can feel less inspired and more threatened. Parents usually do not realize how they are killing their children's childhood for the price of their own happiness by relating children's academic progress to every other aspect of their lives.

Research studies indicate that unnecessary academic pressure to be successful might haunt children. They’ll be terrified of not doing well and as a result, they will not actually learn and succeed like they otherwise would. If your child feels inadequate due to not achieving a certain grade, let them know that you are there for them and that a grade does not determine whether or not they are a good person. Let the children be children and let them grow at their own pace. As parents you can support them by providing them with a suitable environment so that their growth will not be obstructed.

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, Dec. 8, 2017 ) 

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Why Reservation?

The other day, one of my male colleagues asked aggressively, “Why do women need reservation everywhere? If you go to bus, there are ladies seats and in politics also there is special consideration for women. I don’t understand, why?” Yes, his question looks genuine; on the one hand we are advocating for gender equality and on the other, talking about reservation for women. These two concepts do not go together.

However, in the context of Nepal where there still exist so many cultural and family barriers for women to come out from their domestic role, women empowerment is as relevant as anything else.

The best platform to commence women empowerment is the education sector because without educating young girls, women empowerment will not be achieved even if there are many other means in practice.

Female teachers can play a key role in encouraging girls’ education. According to many research reports, female teachers are more important than male teachers for improving girls’ ability to go to school, stay in school, and learn effectively there. This is especially true in contexts where traditional gender norms make parents hesitant to send their daughters to school where they have to interact with male teachers.

The importance of female teachers in Nepali community schools was recognised as early as in the 1970s and different programmes were also put in place to increase their number at schools; but the problem was that even if their number increased they were reluctant to go to remote areas. As a result, with time there seemed to be oversupply of female teachers in the schools of urban areas and under-supply of the same in rural areas and this still has not changed much.

In relation to other levels, female teachers are demanded mostly at the primary level. It is believed that they are more loving and caring and they can play the role of a second mother figure in little ones’ lives. Their presence at schools helps children successfully complete their primary education. In addition, they can be role models to many girls.

While in countries like Nepal the argument revolves around increasing female teachers at schools the developed countries have a different issue. For instance, in his article “Male teachers needed in primary grades” Drew M. Mcweeney argues that many households in America are run by single mothers. Because of this the children of such parents lack a positive father figure and role model to whom they can relate.  So, more male teachers are needed particularly at primary grades who can provide the positive role model of a father figure for students who come from single-parent families. It is obvious that the girls from such countries do not necessarily need female teachers to get through their schooling or get empowered because in Western societies, girls and boys are given more equal treatment and educating girls is not a major issue.

Nepali girls may also reach that point one day but before that they must come out from the boundary of preset limitations. For this, female teachers are encouraged at schools so that girls can feel safe and comfortable. Women are being given reservations in politics and other sectors, even in public transportation. Once gender equality is maintained, no woman needs any reservation. At that time my colleague may find another topic to grumble over.

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, Dec. 15, 2017 ) 

[The pictures on this blog are posted here with permission from their owners or have been gathered from various sources on the Internet. If you are the copyright-holder to any of the photographs herein do not hesitate to contact me. They will be swiftly removed if desired so.]

Teaching Styles

I think we are all familiar with the teacher-centred teaching style that is still widely used in the Nepali education system. It is an authoritative teaching style where teachers transmit knowledge to students who act as passive listeners. What generally comes to mind when one says “learner-centred teaching style”? Obviously, learners are the focal point in learner-centred classrooms. So, they must be actively engaged in the teaching-learning activities, right? While students are active, all the teaching content and activities are under the control of teachers in such classrooms.

As long as the curriculum is controlled by teachers, how can the lessons be learner-centred even if students participate in teaching learning activities? They simply become recipients of teachers’ knowledge and wisdom. Research suggests that teacher-centred learning actually prevents students’ educational growth.

In contrast to the teacher-centred teaching style, the learner-centred teaching style encourages learners themselves to take charge of their learning; which is why it is better to say learner-centred learning style rather than labeling it a teaching style. Learner-centred lessons are focused on how students learn instead of how teachers teach. The learner-centred approach reflects and is rooted in constructivist philosophy of teaching. Literature says that constructivism is based on learning by doing and creating own knowledge rather than depending on teachers for this.

An example of learner-centred methodology would be Montessori Method, according to which teachers are supposed to provide children with appropriate environment and children choose what to learn, when to learn and how to learn. On the basis of teachers’ deep observation of students’ interests and learning pace curriculum will be developed; it is more individual-based rather than being one-size-fits-all kind of curriculum. In this way, learner-centred method is all about self-learning and exploratory learning. If this sort of learning is instilled since the very beginning, students can become life-long independent learners.

Based on these indicators, can we say that Nepali education system is learner-based? Until now, it can be seen as being very examination oriented. Even in primary level students are encouraged to study set and same content so that they can answer the examination questions in an excellent manner. Students’ individual learning needs are not addressed in almost all of the cases.

Yes, if some teachers use activities that clearly encourage students to take part in the learning process actively, such as group work, pair work or different types of games, their lessons seem to be learner-centred at the surface level but in fact they are not. It is because the teachers take a lead role to decide what to teach and how to teach. 

If we really want our children to be independent and inquisitive learners they must be provided with opportunities where they can learn from their experiences, perspectives, backgrounds, talents, interests, capacities, and needs. As literature suggests, moving from teacher-centered to learner-centred teaching style, five areas should be considered for change. They are the choice of content, teacher’s role, responsibility for learning, process of assessment, and power relationship between teacher and learners. Learners must have ownership of their own learning, contribute to the design of curriculum, and the responsibility for some levels for instruction too. Then only can we claim of practicing learner-centred teaching.        

 (Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, Dec. 1, 2017 ) 

[The pictures on this blog are posted here with permission from their owners or have been gathered from various sources on the Internet. If you are the copyright-holder to any of the photographs herein do not hesitate to contact me. They will be swiftly removed if desired so.]

Expression Of Love

A pair of doves come around the charpoy where my mother-in-law is sitting with her ailing body and follow some pigeons and sparrows. It is her daily routine to feed those birds. She has a container filled with some rice, maize and mustard seeds and she scatters the supply when the birds come near to her. Since it is hard for her to move around with a weak and aging body, it is her pastime to feed these birds and a calf. When other members of the family are away she talks to them as if they understand her language.

So was the case with the 90 year old lady Maryam when she had no one around her to listen to her stories of how she escaped from Iran to Australia on charge of being a Baha’i follower. She used to feed Magpies that came to her front yard, murmuring a mixture of Persian and English words.

This is not something that can only be seen with women that are running their final laps; I also found a middle aged lady who was deeply in love with her cockatoo. She said that she had been keeping the bird for the past 25 years and she was boasting of the longevity of the bird as it outlasts the total love life of her five lovers. “This birdie, my Wallie, knows all my secrets. She knows who I was with for how long and how I got dumped and for what reasons.”

Unfortunately, I got a call one day at midnight from that friend of mine. She was wailing and she said in her

trembling voice, “My Wallie died.” I was perplexed to hear that. Though I said some words of comfort to her I was not sure what to do after that. The lady with the bird did not come to work for three days and I with other friends raised some money to buy a bouquet and a card to be delivered to her home. It was hard for me to understand how a person can be in love with a bird so much.

After a week or so, she asked me to visit her home to see the funeral site of her loving bird. She led me to the backyard of her home and a large flower vase was filled with flowers where she had laid her Wallie. With a choked voice, she mumbled some words and I added some to show my support.

The third example may be quite exceptional in our context but the similarity I found among my mother-in-law, Maryam and my cockatoo-loving friend was that people cannot survive without expressing their love. At a young age, they generally have their children around them and it is not difficult for them to pour love to them. As time passes, children grow up and start leaving home to explore the world so that they can build their own families, their own lives.

 Once the house full of children’s incessant noise becomes quiet; to get rid of loneliness the ageing people who are left behind may turn to animals or birds for love. This may make it easier for them to cope with the reality that even though their children are not with them forever they can survive by finding a way to express their love.

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, Nov. 24, 2017 ) 

[The pictures on this blog are posted here with permission from their owners or have been gathered from various sources on the Internet. If you are the copyright-holder to any of the photographs herein do not hesitate to contact me. They will be swiftly removed if desired so.]