My association with team ‘Teach India’ began in beginning of October 2013. It began with an orientation and interview with them telling us about the campaign and then asking us our outlook and aspirations from being part of this program.
I was very intrigued by this campaign as I had read about it in the newspaper and then heard the team tell us what they were aiming to do. After this interaction I waited impatiently for the next step—brainstorming session, which took place in end of October’13.
The team ‘Teach India’ was very open to new ideas and suggestions. High school students from various schools were there— Pathways, Tagore International, DPS- R.K. Puram, DPS-, Gurgaon, G.D.Goenka, and Mothers International. Ideas were thrown and batted around. A great sense of camaraderie and kinship was generated, which I’m sure few us had experienced before.
Suggestions of Teach India Clubs in each participating school (for creating awareness and continuity), starting a dedicated Newsletter for the campaign (for showcasing the progress & motivating), doing door to door motivation campaigns were few of the ideas discussed and accepted.
Student volunteers were selected for selected for media or outreach team or teaching team according to their own areas of interest.
I was happy to be part of the media outreach team. My charter was to cover the classes of English learning, motivating and spreading awareness amongst people (with the help of certain NGOs) about the benefits of learning.
In November I got the chance to visit certain areas of Tughlakabad and Merhrauli village with the NGO-SPYM.
Over a period of 2 days we were sensitized about the way of approaching, speaking and motivating the people to learn English at the nearby dedicated centers for the same. It was a novel experience as on my own I would never have had the courage to approach people and talk to them about such matters. Here, too I had the chance to meet students from other schools and work along with them as a team. It was an enriching experience as one met such diverse and talented people, from the Delhi University Professor and principal, the NGO members and children with skills balancing football, rotating top etc. Photographing and videoing all this was a fulfilling and satisfying journey.
This opportunity has given students like me a chance to be part of the media experience and know what all hard work goes on behind the scenes to report, to organize a campaign, to bring out a newsletter and to keep it all going.
So, all the high school students who read this, don’t waste your time, get going, and be part of Teach India. --- Have the guts to make a difference.
Education, if looked at beyond its conventional boundaries, forms the very essence of all our actions. What we do is what we know and have learned, either through instructions or through observation and assimilation. When we are not making an effort to learn, our mind is always processing new information or trying to analyze the similarities as well as the tiny nuances within the context which makes the topic stand out or seem different. If that is the case then the mind definitely holds the potential to learn more, however, it is us who stop ourselves from expanding the horizons of our knowledge with self-doubt or other social, emotional, or economic constraints.
While most feel that education is a necessity, they tend to use it as a tool for reaching a specific target or personal mark, after which there is no further need to seek greater education. Nonetheless, the importance of education in society is indispensable and cohering, which is why society and knowledge cannot be ever separated into two distinct entities.
“To learn is to teach and hence Teach India will produce intellectuals with a heart who have helped to enhance speaking english in India by nurturing minds.”
At Teach India, each one of us feels lucky. Incredibly lucky. We understand that it is just a matter of chance that we are where we are today. We didn't choose the family that we were born into, or choose the fact that our parents could afford to give us quality education. Every time we make a choice, we feel lucky. However, we cannot help but think …what if? What if these choices weren't available to us?
It is this thought that makes us work towards that one day when every individual in India will have a job in hand for a better standard of living. The family or the demographics that one is born into should not determine one’s destiny. We understand the importance of education but more importantly, we understand the value of each of those 320 million lives and the potential in every one of them that can be brought out by skill development. Imagine an India where every youth is standing on his own feet. That's what we're working towards - A day when the youth of our country gets the myriad opportunities of employment. A day when we will empower every human being with the power of choice. Because that's what every individual deserves. That's what India deserves.
My time spent this month on behalf of teach india has been an unforgettable journey. Even though I was not teaching but knowing that i was a part of the whole program was an honor. Knowing that You could still make a difference in a persons life for betterment i.e secure and stable future, better job and more self esteem. I was a part of community mobilization in which i took surveys of the support staff in my school (Modern School) and went to various Basti's for conveying what teach India is all about. When taking the survey of my school support staff i could see the eagerness and curiosity build within them to learn English and try for a better job. After a couple of days we visited an NGO known as SPYM from which we went to various basti's. The whole experience of going door to door , conveying our message and interacting with people of different age groups was incredible. Some people required more convincing than the rest but many of them were interested to be a part of this program. Children in school were eager to join this program and many of them were a part of the survey. Telling these people that we were going to help them learn english for a better and brighter future instilled hope in many of these naive faces. These are those people who have the capability to achieve great heights and just required a push in the right direction to do so. Of course knowing that the program was free of cost reduced the burden of these people. A common Response i got from many of the parents was that "I want my children to learn english so that they can have a better future as in todays world english language is a necessity " . Thats when I tried to do my best to assure all these concerned parents that teach india is one such program that provides a better future for their children. The number of forms i filled up didn't matter much to me but what truly matters to me is that at least one person out of the many i spoke to gets inspired by teach india and makes a difference in their lives . When this has been accomplished my work as volunteer would then be complete , until then whenever a new cycle begins i hope i can be a part of it because all in all as much as we tried to inspire people at times they inspired us and it was a fun ,interesting and an amazing journey!
The Teach India experience was so unique and memorable that it gave me a bagful of memories. I didn't aim for success, I just did what I loved and believed in, the other things just fell into place naturally. I can never forget my first day with them. It felt like a 2-month-long nightmare. Today, I understand how wrong and judgmental I was. I remember this one incident, when one of my students, Radha didi, told our principal, Mrs. Madhulika Sen, in fluent English, to 'be careful of the wet ground as it was raining'. There is no better feeling in life than to see your hard work and efforts taking shape, where success is always an incentive. They inspire you, they entertain you, and you end up learning a ton even when you don't even know it. I'm so proud of them, for grasping all that I could've taught them and succeed through each passing day. I love my learners and I thank them to have been such a wonderful part of my life. Lastly, quoting Henry Ford, 'coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; and working together is success.
My classmates and I heard about the Teach India programme through our school. A representative from the Times of India office, explained to us enthusiastically about this programme which would teach the cleaning staff of our school spoken English.This seemed like a great opportunity, however she also warned that the programme would take a lot of time and hard work. It included a week long teacher training course for us during the summer vacations and then two hour long staybacks every alternative day after school to teach the learners. This seemed like a daunting effort, and only three of my classmates and I decided to go ahead and participate in this programme.
We started the teaching course in our vacations. It taught us about how group activities, eliciting, games and other alternative methods of teaching needed to be used in our classrooms. We were also told that we had to use only English in the classroom and explain the meaning of more difficult words by defining them with easier words. We were slightly worried about this predicament which disallowed us from using Hindi at all in the classrooms however were told that this was the most effective way of making learners fluent in English. The teaching course was altogether a great learning opportunity and a lot of fun as the teachers weren’t staid but friendly and enthusiastic.
The month of August began, and it was finally my turn to teach the learners. I packed my bag with my teacher’s course book with its mapped modules and sub-units and received the Times of India Teacher’s kit from school. As the day proceeded I became preoccupied with school work and almost forgot about my stayback. When the last bell rang and all my friends packed their bags to go home I remember feeling tired and actually regretting the fact that I had a stayback. I ate my packed lunch in an empty classroom and felt weary and lonely.
At 2; 30pm sharp I proceeded to the classroom where the learners had already assembled. I walked into a classroom full of pleasant smiling faces. They were the ‘nameless’ didis and bhaiyyas of our school who keep records of attendance registers, take care of the children in the junior school and clean up meticulously after us every day amongst their many chores. They wished me with a cheery unanimous, “Good afternoon, ma’am!” and I suddenly felt energized. These women and men had worked all day and yet, weren’t even a little fatigued. They seemed fervent and eager to learn. I quickly wiped all the signs of tiredness off my face and smiled brightly back at them. They confidently gave their introductions as I tried to memorize their names. We then started off with our course for the day. They were quick to learn and actively participated in all discussions.
As the days proceeded I began to look forward to these classes. We began to know and like each other, with some of the didis calling me ‘bittoo’ as a term of endearment. We have covered topics like prepositions, adjectives, communication over the phone and the next module is e-mail writing which they all ardently look forward to. They all have big dreams; some want to stop doing manual work and become involved in the higher-paying jobs like keeping records of the fees of the students of the school, some want to be able to help their children with their English homework, some want to become waiters at big restaurants, others want to become hotel managers while some just believe that fluency in English shall provide them with the respect they deserve in society.
May be these are the dreams which fuel their passion to learn the subject, maybe these are the dreams that make some of the women seat their little daughters at the back of the classroom and stay back after their working hours, may be these are the dreams which disallow them from feeling exhausted after long hours of physical work. As I wrapped up my extra class on Independence Day, I said a silent prayer for the true independence of these bright minds from the chains that bind them in their own country…
My grandfather Capt.Balasubramanim is a phenomenal man. I have nothing but sheer respect and love for him. These feelings are not just limited to sharing of the same bloodline, but also because of his perseverance, determination, mind and spirit to achieve. Seizing every opportunity that he could get, the man born in a slum is now one of the richest men in Mumbai. Being the eldest son of a widowed maid who bared 9 children, the responsibility of putting food on the table sooner or later was dumped on his shoulders. Studying day and night under the radiance of street lamps, my grandfather joined the Air force then the Air India and now has his name in the Smithsonian Museum for his outstanding contributions towards aeronautics and aviation. Looking back, it's hard to believe that my own grandfathers first job was as a garbage picker. The reason I bring up this story is because I believe that Teach India is for people like my own grandfather. It is for people looking for opportunities, looking for ways to learn and flourish. It is for people who are ready to seize any opportunity, no matter how minimal that life is ready to throw at them.
A few days ago, while asking my supervisor for some success stories through Teach India, she almost immediately blurted out a story about a boy who joint Teach India, completed the course and was recruited by Pizza hut as a receptionist and within a year has become the manager of the restaurant. Stories like these are quite inspirational and give me hope that Teach India will end up helping a lot of people!
Another way that Teach India has managed to be successful is because of the promotion of education for the girl child. Most of the communities we visited already had people attending Teach India classes in the past hence their impression about our organisation and aspiration was mostly positive. Because of previous success, more families were determined to make their GIRL CHILD (especially in Muslim Communities) join Teach India so that they could be provided with equal opportunities as their sons.
If the success of Teach India can help improve lifestyle and mindsets, then I think that the Times group is doing a phenomenal job! In addition, The past month has also made me realise my duties as a privaleged citizen of society and has given me a reality check. I am really honoured to be part of such a reputable cause and hope that it thrives in achieving its goals.
“I am not a very confident person which along with my love for teaching is the reason I volunteered for Teach India. Through this programme I not only got an opportunity to teach employable skills but also in return, gain a little confidence. When I look at my class of fifteen students, naturally, I am daunted. Nevertheless, I introduce myself and start off with a chain drill, where one student asks the students next to them their name and where they live. Soon, all of them, and me, are more comfortable. I ask them why they want to learn English and two of them, Sakshi and Prerna, say (after endless prodding) that they want they are here because they like the language; but more than that, they want to be able to show their friends that they can speak a different and sophisticated language.
Later, as I monitor groups of two and three, several students ask me how to ask questions in English, so I proceed to talk about question words, eliciting the difference between ‘what’, ‘how’, and ‘when’. I fumble a little with explaining the difference between ‘should’, ‘would’ and ‘could’, realizing that I’ll have to do grammar translations for a while, but in the end, I seem to have got through to most of them. Sakshi and Prerna, sitting right at the back of the class, barely answer any of my concept- checking questions- so I try to motivate them with a confidence that I don’t believe I have. However, when the class ends, a student thanks me and says I taught well. Sakshi is the last to leave and asks me, ‘Would we come tomorrow?’ Prerna, who overheard us, corrects her, “’Would’ nahi! ‘Should’” I smile and say yes, feeling happy about my first day.”
“Today I took my first Teach India spoken English class and it went very well. Initially I was very nervous as to whether or not I'd be able to do justice to the program and teach the learners in an effective way. However, all my fears proved unfounded. The learners were more nervous about the classes than even I was, and gradually, as all of us started with the introductions, we became comfortable.
The first class of the course is meant to achieve mainly that. Guided by the 'Teacher Notes' book, I encouraged them to overcome their apprehensions about speaking in English and even though some learners were very shy, I could see them try to break out of their shell. All the students were able to understand English when I spoke to them in the language, but they were having trouble in forming proper sentences and were very forthcoming about their problems. This made it easier for me to help them in ways that would benefit them. As they told me about their reasons for joining these classes and why they wished to learn English, I realised just how enthusiastic they were and it showed during I was teaching too. I'm really looking forward to more classes.”