Mere secular knowledge devoid of deep roots in moral and spiritual values would lead to the creation of lop-sided individuals who are clever and skillful - 'rich' in technology but poor in humanity. (Atmavikas: A Self-Development Journal for Class IX, published by Ramakrishna Mission, Belur Math, Price Rs.70/-)
Friday, July 27, 2007
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Tirukkural on Education-1:
" Lore worth learning, learn flawlessly
Live by that learning thoroughly." (Tr. by Yogi Shuddhananda Bharati : Pub. by Shree Shenbhaga Pathippagam, Chennai)
"Acquire a sound knowledge of things that should be learnt, and then act accordingly." (Tr. by C.Rajagopalachari)(Pub. by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Mumbai-400 007)
Words of Wisdom-1:
Education is not the amount of information that is put into your brain and runs riot there, undigested, all your life. We must have life-building, man-making, character-making assimilation of ideas. If you have assimilated five ideas and made them your life and character, you have more education than any man who has got by heart a whole library - Swami Vivekananda
Monday, July 23, 2007
Self-Education and Self-Perfection
Man's creative potentials are unlimited and inexhaustible. One never comes anywhere near the peak of one's capacities and one's brain usually performs up to a negligible fraction of its potential. While nature has generously provided each person with colossal credit, we draw from it less and less, being too lazy for the kind of intellectual gymnastics that can propel our capacities to the level of true talents and geniuses... No person is without talent. A person's education is said to have achieved its goal if the person in question has matured enough to have the strength and will to carry on educating himself for the rest of his life and to know to do so. Self-education is strenuous and requires continuous self-perfection. For genuine self-perfection, there must be a specific goal that a person sets for himself. The more lofty and noble the goal is the greater service it does to the individual and the society.(From 'Realize Your Potential' by V.Pekelis: Published Mir Publishers, Moscow)Life is a Learning Experience
Sri Ramakrishna held learning as a continuing process. One can discover nuggets of wisdom ANYTIME in life. There is no reason that one should stop or suspend learning new things in life. He said, "As long as I live, so long do I learn."....Most of us associate the process of learning with formal education - going to a school or college, attending classes, appearing in examinations, and obtaining a certificate to that effect. Learning thus comes to an end.
... But life is designed differently. It is meant to make us grow; to make us wiser. Never was it designed to stagnate... life itself is a teacher. As someone said, "Life is a tough teacher; it gives examinations first, and lessions AFTERWARDS."
There is an inherent urge in all human beings to know, to evolve, to enjoy the bliss of fulfilment. 'The goal of mankind is knwoledge,' said Swami Vivekananda. 'Pleasure is not the goal of man, but knowlege. Pleasure and happiness come to an end. It is a mistake to suppose that pleasure is the goal. The cause of all the miseries we have in the world is that men foolishly think pleasure to be the ideal to strive for. After a time man finds that it is not happiness, but knowledge, towards which he is going. (For the full article: The Vedanta Kesari, January 2007 (Editorial: 'As long as I live...')
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Reading Habit
Sir, This is with reference to the article titled, Power of the printed word, by Valsa Balaji, about the importance of reading habit (Education Page, The Hindu, Mar.19, 2002).
Before the advent of the TV, both the young and the old found enough time to read. Apart from teachers, other professionals used to spend their leisure time in reading both English and vernacular literature.
English medium schools insisted upon extra reading from their students. But all these have become a thing of the past. Now, reading habit has lost importance as both the young and the old are glued to the TV! As far as the educational institutions are concerned, coaching students for the examinations seems to be the be-all and end-all of our educational system.
As the author had put it, reading deserves greater importance at all levels, especially in the lower classes. A reading session should form part of the daily time-table in the school, wherein teachers encourage the students to read aloud.
This exercise would go a long way in improving the pronunciation and intonation, besides giving a good idea about the classic that they read. (From a Letter from Mr.S.Janakiraman, Gandhigram, to the Editor of The Hindu - Date: Lost)
Before the advent of the TV, both the young and the old found enough time to read. Apart from teachers, other professionals used to spend their leisure time in reading both English and vernacular literature.
English medium schools insisted upon extra reading from their students. But all these have become a thing of the past. Now, reading habit has lost importance as both the young and the old are glued to the TV! As far as the educational institutions are concerned, coaching students for the examinations seems to be the be-all and end-all of our educational system.
As the author had put it, reading deserves greater importance at all levels, especially in the lower classes. A reading session should form part of the daily time-table in the school, wherein teachers encourage the students to read aloud.
This exercise would go a long way in improving the pronunciation and intonation, besides giving a good idea about the classic that they read. (From a Letter from Mr.S.Janakiraman, Gandhigram, to the Editor of The Hindu - Date: Lost)
Eyecatchers-1: 'Role of a Teacher' (A letter to the Editor of 'The Hindu')
Sir, - In ancient times, a school was meant to be a place of leisure where the inherent divinity and talents of the child was nurtured, leading to the emergence of a fully integrated individual. This was done not only by imparting secular knowledge but also by fostering a spirit of self-enquiry. This meant that a person was to come upon knowledge not only of the outer but also of the inner world of the self, a state of self-knowledge. Only one who lived a life based on self-knowledge would come upon the religious life. But such a situation does not exist in the modern day context. The coming of the Enlightenment and the relentless march of science and technology has created a crisis in the relationship between the sacred and the secular. The balance between these two must be restored if this crisis is to end. It is in the schools that this balance can be restored. There should be a paradigm shift in the way the world looks at the role of the educator. The teacher must change from being a mere transmitter of knowledge and become a facilitator, creating right conditions for the student to find his own way, allowing the flowering of the integrated and complete individual. This completeness is what is unique to each and every individual. Unless we achieve this completeness, there is a real danger of the human beings going over the abyss. This is the challenge of the new millennium.
- A Letter from George Joseph, Coimbatore, to the Editor of The Hindu dt 18.3.2003
Bringing out the best
To hear a student say, "I had a wonderful teacher" is the greatest honour a teacher could ever receive.
"The best books are yet to be written, the best paintings have not yet been painted; the best governments are yet to be formed; the best is yet to be done - by you". This was the exhortation of John Erskine, one of the world's best teachers. He was a versatile man of his time - an educator, concert pianist, author of 60 books, head of a school and a popular and witty lecturer. But it was not all these credits that made him an impressive teacher. It was his dynamic enthusiasm by which he convinced his students, that they were unique and the world was theirs to explore and conquer.
The best teachers are those who impart to their not only the necessary subject knowledge, but also the encouragement to keep going without giving up. It is the teacher who has the greatest influence on the life of a child. Teachers play an important part in helping children feel good about themselves. A simple positive comment from a teacher will go a long way to give confidence. "You have a magnetic personality. You are a joy to me and I know you will go far in life" - was a comment written in the high school yearbook of a not very bright student. But it was the key to change the student's entire outlook, which made her live up to the teacher's comment in later life.
A 14-year-old boy had worked hard, all evening to produce an excellent essay, but when his teacher read it, she refused to accept it. She said, "This is not your own work." The boy was expecting an excellent grade and he lost all interest in the subject and the teacher. Many years ago, a professor had his Sociology class go into the poorer areas of the city to get case histories of 50 boys. They were asked to write an evaluation of each boy's future. In every case, the student wrote, "He does not stand a chance due to his environment and lack of ability."
Another Sociology professor, 25 years later, came across the earlier study. He had his students to follow up on the project, to see what had happened to these boys. With the exception of a few who had moved away or died, the students learnt that most of them had achieved more than ordinary success as professionals, businessmen and officials.
The teacher and students were astonished and decided to pursue the matter further. They were able to locate them and asked, "How do you account for your success?" In each case, the reply was, "I had a wonderful teacher". They sought out the teacher who was still alive and asked her what magic formula she had used to turn these boys into achievers. The teacher replied, "It's really very simple. I loved these boys and I made each of them feel special."
If every adult could say, "I had a wonderful teacher", the world would be a better place.
"The best books are yet to be written, the best paintings have not yet been painted; the best governments are yet to be formed; the best is yet to be done - by you". This was the exhortation of John Erskine, one of the world's best teachers. He was a versatile man of his time - an educator, concert pianist, author of 60 books, head of a school and a popular and witty lecturer. But it was not all these credits that made him an impressive teacher. It was his dynamic enthusiasm by which he convinced his students, that they were unique and the world was theirs to explore and conquer.
The best teachers are those who impart to their not only the necessary subject knowledge, but also the encouragement to keep going without giving up. It is the teacher who has the greatest influence on the life of a child. Teachers play an important part in helping children feel good about themselves. A simple positive comment from a teacher will go a long way to give confidence. "You have a magnetic personality. You are a joy to me and I know you will go far in life" - was a comment written in the high school yearbook of a not very bright student. But it was the key to change the student's entire outlook, which made her live up to the teacher's comment in later life.
A 14-year-old boy had worked hard, all evening to produce an excellent essay, but when his teacher read it, she refused to accept it. She said, "This is not your own work." The boy was expecting an excellent grade and he lost all interest in the subject and the teacher. Many years ago, a professor had his Sociology class go into the poorer areas of the city to get case histories of 50 boys. They were asked to write an evaluation of each boy's future. In every case, the student wrote, "He does not stand a chance due to his environment and lack of ability."
Another Sociology professor, 25 years later, came across the earlier study. He had his students to follow up on the project, to see what had happened to these boys. With the exception of a few who had moved away or died, the students learnt that most of them had achieved more than ordinary success as professionals, businessmen and officials.
The teacher and students were astonished and decided to pursue the matter further. They were able to locate them and asked, "How do you account for your success?" In each case, the reply was, "I had a wonderful teacher". They sought out the teacher who was still alive and asked her what magic formula she had used to turn these boys into achievers. The teacher replied, "It's really very simple. I loved these boys and I made each of them feel special."
If every adult could say, "I had a wonderful teacher", the world would be a better place.
Courtesy : Young World, The Hindu, 7.9.2002
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