3. Qualities to be nurtured in school children

About the article

This is an assignment given to the trainees [of the present academic year 2008-09 of my college, Government College of Teacher Education, Trivandrum] to be completed during the Christmas vacation. Each trainee was asked to prepare a write up not exceeding hundred words with two paragraphs on a given topic. All the twenty two trainees were accordingly assigned a ‘quality’ each which they as teachers of the future would like to develop in school children.

First, they had to explain the topic (quality) and then they had to suggest ways of nurturing the quality in the pupils. The complete assignments were to be sent to me by email.

Once the college reopened after the Christmas vacation, the written work was handed over to the trainee chosen to be the online editor of publications [Ms Anju]. Two other trainees[Ms Devi and Ms Priya] too joined the editor to make necessary corrections. Once the corrected version was ready, I made a final correction and handed over the write ups to the respective trainees. This gave them an opportunity to see peer/ teacher correction of written work . Each assignment contains the title, two paragraphs and the name of the trainee who wrote the article.

The assignment: Qualities to be nurtured in School Children

Learn from great lives

Children have a tendency to imitate. They may imitate their film star, a sports hero or a singer. This tendency tells us that some persons can influence them. The teacher can make use of this aspect of the students. And given the fact that personalities can influence students, the teacher him/herself must possess a good personality.

Teachers should occasionally mention the achievements and contributions of great personalities in the class room. This will fascinate students. It will also help mould students into better citizens. Books dealing with the lives of great personalities like Gandhiji can be given to develop great values. Use of Visual Media to exhibit films on lives of great rulers like Asoka may be attempted. Study tours to places where great men like Tagore lived will give the students a sense of oneness with the noble lives. Even interviews with great personalities is a great help. -Abdul Latheef


Peaceful co-existence

The tem ‘co-existence’ means “to exist together in the same place or at the same time especially in a peaceful way”. The term is to be of greater significance in the present world where education is looked upon as the actual treasure of human life. An educational institution like school is a miniature form of society where the pupils from entirely different circumstances gather. They share and acquire knowledge through different sources. Their existence should be of a co-existence, that is, in a harmonious manner. That is what matters. If there is no peace and harmony there will not be any progress for the nation.

The teachers have an inexplicable role to play in molding the pupils into worthy citizens. The teachers who are also ‘social doctors’ can follow certain criteria for helping students to acquire a sense of peaceful co-existence: Extreme competitive type of learning which is mainly exam oriented should be discouraged. Students should be made
to realize that their existence as social beings assumes significance. Bright students should be encouraged to help the weaker students in learning during group work. Sharing mentality should be promoted among students. The teachers should check whether campus politics functions in a healthy atmosphere. Seminars and lectures should be conducted on very important days like Independence Day, Republic day etc. - Anju. S.R.



Team work

Team work is defined as a joint action by a group of people, in which each person subordinates his or her individual interests and opinions to the unity and efficiency of the group. It develops the ability to work towards a common vision and it enhances creativity as well as innovation in children. It makes the pupils participate wholeheartedly and develops the cooperative effort by the members of a group or team to achieve a common goal. It also brings forth the different ideas, confidence and feeling of sharing in children. Teamwork has got great importance in today's world.

Team work can be nurtured through simple social activities like encouraging team members to spend time together. Group bonding sessions which involve fun activities can be employed by the teacher to enable the pupils to get to know their team members. Group dynamics games can be designed by the teacher to reveal how individuals approach a problem and how the team works together. Psychological analysis of team roles and training too should be attempted by the teacher.-Cimy Asaf


Knowledge is power

"Virtue is an angel, but she is a blind one, and must ask knowledge to show her the pathway that leads to her goal"[Horace Mann] What helped mankind to establish total control over other races is our innate knowledge of ourselves and the world we inhabit. Without this knowledge we are nothing but equals to the animals that we look down upon. So the power of humanity rests upon our unique knowledge. “Knowledge comes by eyes always open and working hands; and there is no knowledge that is not power”[Ralph Waldo Emerson]
There is no secret behind rock-solid knowledge. No cheap miracles can do the trick but only a clear and straight approach. In the long run, knowledge pays rich rewards in our lives and the shortest path to it consists of 4 major points: Nurse our hunger for knowledge, Determine what we really need to know, Locate sources of information, Formulate knowledge for active recall.-Devi


Perfection through practice

Freitz was a great violinist. One day a woman came to him and said ‘’I would give my life to play violin like you,” Freitz replied, “I gave mine !”…This incident tells us how important practice is to achieve perfection. To acquire any skill we need practice. Like any other skill, learning also is a skill . Every skill is improved, modified, and perfected only through practice. Thomas Edison invented the bulb by repeating on his experiment an unbelieving number, 1000 times. So the fact remains that practice is the last rung in the ladder towards perfection.

Primarily we should have a dream, a dream of perfection and then we should have a desire … a desire for perfection. So that our dreams turn into thoughts. These thoughts should be analyzed and a plan that suits our skills and our limitations should be devised.This thoughtful plan should be turned into ACTION !!!! ACTION!!!! PERFECTION!!! That is why Dr. A .P .J Abdul Kalam said :
Dream, dream, dream
Dreams turn into Thoughts
And thoughts turn into action!
And the repeated Action - Practice would lead us to PERFECTION
- Sr.Goretti


Action …Not words

Words and no deeds is no easy way to achieve one’s goals. Assume that one want to learn swimming. One cannot become a good swimmer just by talking about it or by reading books on swimming. One need to act and need to get into the water and practice. The quickest and most effective way to acquire an attribute or ability is to act. “ All great men were toiling upward in the night while their companions slept.” The price of success is the hard work and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves.

Most often children fail to give a try because they often fear that any wrong step on their part would invoke others’ laughter and negative remarks. Laziness and the perturbed vision about the thing also matters; they limit their goals in other words not giving it action. Children don’t even know what they can accomplish, and aren’t even aware of their potentialities. Here a teacher’s role is very significant in giving sufficient encouragement and motivation to prompt the students to come to the forefront and thereby developing optimistic thoughts in him. Parents too have much to do here. Encourage children to come out with their own innovations and make them realize their potential for excellence. A hand of encouragement and a pat on the back will definitely do wonders and a teacher can be instrumental in making the child an useful citizen. -Indu B.C


Communication skills

Communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or emotions by two or more persons. The objective of communication is to extend clearly the emotion so that the receiver accepts it and he is subjected to change, modification, correction or any other process that is needed to improve the situation . Communication skill involves continuity and co-ordinated effort with a vision . Mehrabian (1971) has stated that communication takes place 45% verbally and 55% non verbally.

A child should be given freedom to express his thoughts and feelings. Good speech is the result of good listening skills. The resourcefulness of the teacher is a major factor which helps the development of speaking skill among students.Discussion can enliven communication skill. Role play, Description, Narration, Information gap filling, Asking questions, Running commentary, Imagining, Reading aloud, Decision making, Reacting according to the situation are some of the speaking activities that can be practiced. If the teacher’s pronunciation, fluency, modulation of voice etc. are of good standard, the students will be motivated. Pupil – pupil interaction should be given more importance. To use language for oral communication, a lot of constant practice is required and habits are to be formed and internalized.-Kanthi


Advice of elders

The term education is a complex one with a variety of definitions. In the broadest sense it is the transmission of knowledge from one generation to another. Thus it becomes a product of experience and the advice of elders play a very crucial role. “Seek ye counsel of the aged, for in their eyes have looked on the faces of the years and their ears have harkened to the voices of life. Even if the counsel is displeasing to you, pay heed to them”, says the Persian writer Kahlil Gibran. Experience is the treasure that the elders have with them.

Children should find time to converse with elders and make them share there ideas. The most important and interesting fact is that the elders need not be well educated to share their thoughts, for wisdom comes through experience. They have the ability to put things in simple words. They often make use of stories and incidents from their own life. All we need to is to value their thoughts and make use of it in our own ways. Success will be ours.-Lathika Pillai


Co-operation not competition


Competition is the antithesis of co-operation. The desire to compete with others is a common impetus. But in a class room the spirit of co-operation should be encouraged rather than competition.

Co-operation can be nurtured through a democratic atmosphere in the class. Students can be involved in group discussions, role play, group projects, healthy debates and other group tasks. The class room activities should be process oriented rather than product oriented. Group work can be encouraged by giving prizes to the best group. In short, children should be taught that it is through co-operation rather than conflict that their greatest successes will be derived.-Leena


Learn from other’s experience

Man is a social being who acquires a lot of experience from his milieu. To a certain extent, it is the society in which he lives that makes him resourceful and capable of leading a successful life. He evolves moral values both from his life and others’ life experiences. Through his social interactions he gains the norms of life. The do’s and don’ts of a social being is also learned from the society itself.

The teacher should not attempt to teach the values of love, patriotism, patience, tolerance, sympathy, generosity etc through books alone. The Media should be put to good use. For example after listening to the news of a 14 year old child who jumped into a lake to save his friend from drowning, the student will get the value, that the life of others is also as important as his own. The Taj Hotel official who lost his wife and children while rescuing others and Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan who sacrificed his life during Operation Cyclone can ignite patriotic feelings of children. -Mary Risa


Sharp memory

Sharp memory helps us to remember right things at the right time and avoid wastage of time.

In order to nurture sharp memory in children, they must be taught the power of concentration and to avoid distractions while doing a particular task. They must be taught to have a healthy balanced diet and avoid stale, fast food items. Yoga and meditation need to be made a part of daily routine. During free time they can be made to play memory games. -Priya.K


Prudence

Prudence is one of the inexplicable qualities children require to succeed in life. Children may have the ability to save money. Saving money is a good thing while spending money lavishly is not a fair thing.

The Sanchika plan was introduced in schools to help nurture in children the good habit of saving money. Children can ask their parents, elders, neighbours and friends, how they are saving money. By reading books or newspapers and watching films children can acquire some sort of information about the skilful handling of money. Its also worth teaching the significance of proverbs such as:
“Be just before you are generous”, “Cut your coat, according to the cloth”, and “A penny saved is a penny gained.” - Resmi. R

Avoid Complexes

The word ‘complex’ means number of dissimilar parts intricately related. It is a mental stage, which is the result of past experiences or suppressed tendencies. In Psychology it is an abnormal mental stage. For an individual to succeed in life, avoiding complexes is of great importance.

It is an accepted fact that individuals differ in their ability, interest, capacity, aptitude and other personal quality. In a class room, a teacher has to teach different students who come from different backgrounds- social, economic and hereditary. This means there is every possibility of developing complexes. For successful class room transaction a teacher has to prevent complexes from developing. The teacher should make the pupils think positively and stress moral qualities like love, sacrifice, self-control, truthfulness co-operation, uprightness, tolerance etc. By organizing and giving leadership to pupils in group work, project, camps, social work etc. developing of complexes can be prevented. -Saiju


Healthy Thinking

A healthy person is an asset to the nation. Health, both physical and mental, has an important role in education. They are equally important but a little more preference goes to mental health. ‘A sound mind in a sound body’, is not a mere saying. In order to maintain this, all including schools, families and society should take initiation. It is worth remembering that, health is the greatest of all possessions.

Children can gain physical health through regular exercises, developing a sense of neatness, good habits and by taking nutritious food. By giving confidence, happiness, love, kindness, encouragement, care and opportunity for creative thinking, we can help the children to gain sound mental health. -Saji . A.K


Books are our best friends

Francis Bacon said “ Reading maketh a full man”. Happy is the man who acquires the habit of reading when he is young. Such a person secures a life long source of pleasure, instruction and inspiration. Books are not just our friends, but our guides too, which inspire us to go further in life. For instance when we feel disturbed, we can read the Holy Bible which gives us relief. It gives peace to our mind and increases our concentration. It gives us knowledge, which is considered to be the world’s greatest treasure.

Just as a child needs a balanced diet, a child’s mind also needs a balanced diet which means reading a variety of knowledgeable books. In the initial stage, elders should have to help children to collect the right book. We can quiz the children on the author, theme, character,language etc. Paintings and reading competition can be conducted and winners can be given prizes. Teachers can share his/her experiences on reading. To develop reading habit preparation of synopsis of books, writing of book reviews etc can be assigned as tasks for students. - Sr. Selin E.V


Receptive to new ideas

Human mind is dynamic in nature, everyone likes changes or new ideas. New ideas will promote logical thinking. New ideas provide opportunities for mental and physical development of the pupils. Pupils get practical awareness of how to behave in a society or in a community.

Pupils can acquire information and new ideas by listening and reading. Reading has a vital role in getting new ideas. Reading news papers, periodicals and books relating to current affairs will provide a lot of things which are needed for the pupils. Pupils can also acquire new ideas by watching news and important programmes on Television, and also by hearing news and other educational programmes through radio. They can gather a lot of information from television channels like Pogo, Animal Planet, Discovery etc. They can enrich their ideas by visiting places of historical importance. The School library can also provide opportunities for getting new ideas. Teachers should also conduct field trips for improving the ideas of their learners. - Shahina Beevi


Integrity

Integrity is an important quality that helps children to succeed in life. If a person fails to acquire it he will fail in his life.

Basically children can acquire integrity through their parents. Children have an inherent tendency to tell lies and steal things to get whatever they like. In this situation a mother and a teacher can be a role model to acquire integrity. A teacher can facilitate children to acquire integrity in class room activities through skit, drama, Value Education, prayers, use of multimedia and by making them read books on the lives of eminent personalities.-Sheeba

Grab opportunities

An opportunity is an invitation to success. It is said that no opportunity seek for us, but we have to seek for them. Grab opportunity at any cost. Never allow losing of a great opportunity.

You should open your eyes and ears to the world so that you can find a number of opportunities waiting for you. It is up to you to decide whether an opportunity is suitable for you or not. Then you have to work hard with a steady mind to win the aim. Also remember that the time is limited. Strike while the iron is hot... surely success will be yours. -Shiji


Don’t be copy cats

Among the qualities essential for success in life, presence of individuality possess a conspicuous place. Being a copycat is something unfair. When a person mugs up the ideas and thoughts of other persons, he loses his own identity. One can absorb the positive aspects in another individual, but the presence of individuality must be there. His mind, thoughts, ideas etc must be his own. Standing out in a crowd is something great.
Teachers can play a crucial role in the development of a child’s individuality. Right from the beginning when a child shows something of his own style, it must be welcomed with open arms. He must be encouraged and appreciated. The teacher must not limit the imagination of the child by providing spoon-feeding mode of teaching giving capsule answers. Instead the teacher has to help her students to come out with original ideas and opinions. The teacher must treat every child equally and must respect them as individuals. A good teacher also has to identify the particularity of the child before her. -SimiA.S.


Set goals in life

A goal can be defined as something that gives some meaning to one’s life. A life becomes meaningful only when a goal is achieved. Life is simply a journey from birth to death. During this journey every individual has to achieve something of his own. A positive person is always rated on his achievements in life. Achievement in life depends upon the goals we have. Having some goal fulfils one’s dreams of life.

The teacher should encourage the students to set a goal in life. We have to make them aware of its importance and make them work hard to achieve that. This would help to grow up as a responsible individual until the goal is achieved.
-Soumya Mohan.A.M


Importance of optimism

Optimism is an important quality to be developed in a person. An optimist always expects good things to happen or things to be successful. He can always face all the problems especially, an individual problem at an harmonious level. A sustainable and mature personality can be developed through an optimistic view. Optimism is the key stone of our progress. It helps us to manage programmes or take initiative to do something. Self acceptance, self esteem, self respect, humility etc. are the ingredients of optimism.

We can help children nurture an optimistic outlook by making them:
retain a stability in life, sustain a balanced mind, envisage a happy life and develop an ambition in life.-Sr. Suby M.D.


Value of Personal Experience

The child’s mind is not a “Tabula Rasa”. Even before the child goes to school he acquires the basic knowledge on all subjects from his society. In the case of language learning the child acquires experience by imitating the speech and actions of his elders. This type of learning is more powerful than any other type of learning. Every child has to face different situations in his life and this gives a lot of experience and confidence which enable them to face new situations.

Teachers should as far as possible try to provide direct experience while providing learning experiences and encourage them to reflect on it. This would not only result in better comprehension but also develop in the child the ability to draw on personal experiences. In fact the teacher should constantly try to widen his/her student’s experiences consciously by providing more innovative and challenging circumstances. - Suja