Reflections...: December 2010

Friday, December 31, 2010

RTE in India by 2015 - a mission (im)possible

“The Right of Children To Free and Compulsory Education” (RTE), an act passed in the year 2009. Though It has taken such a long time for our political leaders to pass a bill as essential as this, it is welcomed whole-heartedly. The important point to ponder about is how far it is being implemented, and what role we; as responsible citizens can play to help in achieving the target to have every child complete primary school by 2015.

Several norms have been prescribed under the RTE act; to be adhered to by the government, schools, teachers, parents, and the community at large. Some of them are:

All children between the ages of 6 and 14 have the right to free and compulsory elementary education at a neighbourhood school
No direct (school fees) or indirect cost (uniforms, textbooks, mid-day meals, transportation) to be borne by the child or the parents to obtain elementary education
The government will provide schooling free-of-cost until the child's elementary education is completed
Schools shall constitute School Management Committees (SMCs) comprising local authorities, parents, guardians and teachers
The SMCs shall form School Development Plans and monitor the utilization of government grants and the whole school environment
Compulsory inclusion of 50 per cent women and parents of children from disadvantaged groups in SMCs
Ensuring child friendly whole school environment through separate toilet facilities for girls and boys and adequate attention to health, water, sanitation and hygiene issues
Two trained teachers to be provided for every 60 students at the primary level
Specific provisions for disadvantaged groups, such as child labourers, migrant children, children with special needs, or those who have a disadvantage owing to social, cultural, economical, geographical, linguistic, gender or such other factors
Families and communities have a large role to play to ensure child-friendly education for each and every one of the estimated 190 million girls and boys in India who should have been in elementary school today

The reason for the controversial title is to emphasise that whether this dream turns into a reality or not, is solely in our hands, and each one of us can contribute – in a small, but significant way. The AWAAZ DO campaign initiated by UNICEF is doing its part in spreading the good word around.
(I have come this far in my life owing to the good primary education that I was blessed with, so it is high time I return the favour to society)

Want to know what you can do? There are an umpteen number of ways to help, and to start with, check this out-

http://www.awaazdo.in/

UNICEF is playing an instrumental role in bringing together relevant stakeholders from government, civil society, teachers' organizations, media and the celebrity world to make this RTE act into a reality, and achieve.

To know more about what has been achieved so far in India under the RTE act, follow the links below.

A few stories around Education on the UNICEF India site:

Bringing Child Labourers Back to School in Bihar
http://www.unicef.org/india/education_6455.htm
Masti Ki Paatshala Curbs Dropouts
http://www.unicef.org/india/education_6245.htm
Children enjoy learning in Activity Based Learning Schools
http://www.unicef.org/india/education_6022.htm
Isolated Islanders Support Schools to Educate Their Children Closer to Home
http://www.unicef.org/india/education_5429.htm
Community radio connects, educates and entertains in rural India
http://www.unicef.org/india/education_5964.htm
ADEPTS – An innovative strategy to improve educational performance through teacher support
http://www.unicef.org/india/education_4831.htm
Storybooks to help marginalised children bridge language barriers
http://www.unicef.org/india/education_5962.htm
Headmasters train to become better Managers
http://www.unicef.org/india/education_4671.htm
A Braille version of the CRC spells out rights for the visually impaired in India
http://www.unicef.org/india/education_5911.htm

Videos around education on the UNICEF You Tube Channel:

Thursday, December 30, 2010

A Welcome visitor!

The SUN!! True, today at around 12.15 pm, I was really thrilled to catch a glimpse of the sun, hardly to be seen here these days.

And, at that moment I was reminded of a hymn that we used to sing in school. It has a lot of in depth meaning, and it is just a right one to start the new year with.

Life and light and joy are found
In the presence of the lord:
Life with richest blessing crowned,
Light from many fountains poured -
Life and light and holy joy,
None can darken or destroy.

Bring to him life’s brightest hours,
He will make them still more bright;
Give to him your noblest powers,
He will hallow all your might;
Come to him with eager quest,
You shall hear his high behest.

All your questions large and deep,
All the open thought of youth,
Bring to him, and you shall reap
All the harvest of his truth;
You shall find in that great store
Largest love and wisest lore.

Then when comes life’s wider sphere
And its busier enterprise,
You shall find him ever near,
Looking with approving eyes,
On all honest work and true
His dear servants’ hands can do.

And if care should dim your eyes,
If life’s shadows come a pace,
You shall find him ever nigh
In the glory of his face.
Changing sorrows dark as night
Into morning, clear and bright.

I believe, that faith in the ultimate power above us, be it of any religion or country will change all our sorrows into happiness, and make our mornings clear and bright.

I wish all my readers
A VERY HAPPY & PROSPEROUS
NEW YEAR 2011

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

10 points to those who guess the location right

I’m no big quiz master… but I couldn’t resist myself from showcasing this to the world… snapshots from a place I visited very recently.
I do hope that it keeps you guessing till the end…

Here is a rock garden… with water cascading down into the pond.

Okay…. so, so much for the ducks, could it be….. ?

Anybody noticed a small shelter for the rains in the vicinity?

Orchids for the flower vase?

We indeed make nature dance to our tunes – a collection of Bonsai plants.

A walkers’ paradise?

Must be enthralling at night!?

This should be “CLUE” enough – ring a bell?!!
And, yes it is the…….
Semmozhi Poonga, in Chennai. I bet Chennaiites must have made early guesses. If not, it is high time you guys took a turn at Cathedral road. It is a must-see for nature lovers and anybody else who need a break from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Even within a few days of its inception, this botanical garden has added itself to the very many places worth visiting in Singara Chennai.

The place really looks stunning especially with the rains helping it keep its colour a lush green. And informative too, with the name tags for a few plants. There is a large collection of different shapes and forms of plant species, water fountains, rock gardens, ponds and streams, ducks… and even a spot dedicated to kids.

I would surely like to show off all my photographs, but I hope these few ones were rather tempting, urging you to go have a look for yourself.

Hats off to the administration, for here we have witnessed the perfect example of how with a little planning and a hell lot of green plants, an age old drive-in restaurant could turn into a bountiful landscape.
And that’s Chennai for you…!!

Sunday, December 19, 2010

My first WINTER… (what if I were in the North Pole?!!)

The temperature is averaging 15°C… and I am shaking.

Believe it?

Surely, native Delhiites are not going to agree with me, dismissing this to be an exaggeration. But true, to get past each day this winter season has really become a Herculean task for me. Sometimes, I wonder what if I were in the North Pole now? Would I live to see the centre of the Pole? Or freeze to death at the perimeter??! Wild thought actually… and then I correct myself thinking that in my case, surviving Jammu’s winter itself is a big question, so why care taking my imagination up to the North Pole!!

A Blog forgotten….!!

After almost three months, I remembered starting to blog online. Life at IARI, New Delhi has kept me that busy? Of course not…. Winking smile I have been too lazy to even think of anything else but food and sleep apart from my classes. So, today is sort of a revival maybe!