Board exams in India are accorded a prominent position not only in students’ imagination but in the larger culture as well. When a child is appearing for the board exam, parents have sleepless nights. Teachers, under pressure to produce stellar result,…
As technology penetrates our lives ever more deeply, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects continue to be students’ preferred choice. Degrees in Finance, Law and Medicine are also sought after, as they lead to high-paying jobs. However, apart from…
Writer and educator, John Holt, has authored a number of best-selling books, including How Children Fail, a classic work that raises many more questions than it answers. Being a teacher himself, he has a ringside view of what schools purport to…
Part of ‘growing up’ as parents involve learning to deal with tenacious teens who simultaneously inhabit two spheres: the real and virtual. As adults, we may be dismissive of teenage troubles that stem from the online world. But as Emily…
Does your job excite you? Do you feel enthused to talk about your work? Or, is your job a humdrum affair that you perform to make ends meet? Alas, the third option will resonate with most people. A job, for…
Done right, oral exams can be a rewarding experience, as they offer many benefits for students Ihave had only two oral exams, both while defending a thesis. Unlike a gazillion other exams I have written in my life, my memories…
Though the pandemic drove home the point that classroom teachers and in-person instruction cannot be readily replaced by technology, education and digital devices are inextricably interwoven nowadays. The latest artificial intelligence (AI) entrant t… .
Whether negative or positive, the value of feedback lies in how it is received Whether it’s from an acquaintance, boss, parent or spouse, feedback is a quintessential double-edged sword. While we may glow in the gilt of appreciation and praise, negative comments…
Until now, in this column, I have covered non-fiction books written mainly by researchers and academics that I felt would resonate with teachers. This time, I review a delightful account of a little Japanese school girl whose life is turned…
Using the second or third person when talking about ourselves to ourselves offers a more distanced and less “egocentric perspective” about our situation Thoughts arise in us all the time. When we are focused on an activity, our thoughts may…
Aruna Sankaranarayanan is the author of Zero Limits: Things Every 20 Something Should Know. She was the Founder & Director of PRAYATNA, a centre for children with learning difficulties in Bengaluru & Chennai for 22 years.