Journalism of Courage
This 127-year-old Marathi medium school for girls is noted for its high quality of education as well as extra-curricular activities. The teachers make sincere efforts to take learning beyond the mugging up of textbook chapters. Geography is the study of the earth,its processes,dimensions and contents. How can I teach my students all this inside the four walls of a classroom? asks Godambe Shailaja,a Geography and English teacher at the school. To teach her students rock formation and metamorphosis,Shailaja recently organised an exhibition of rare rocks which were generously donated to the school by renowned geologist Milind Deshpande.
Different types of mica,vesicular basalt,fossils,agates,chalcopyrite,galena and other types of rocks were shown to the students of Stds V-IX. Our Geography Club students also made a power point presentation about rocks, says Shailaja. Passionate about her subjects,Shailaja believes that children must see things with their own eyes,do their own research and have fun while they learn new things. We didn’t even know that there are so many different types of rocks in the world. It was amazing to see and touch them. Our knowledge about these rocks is more than what the textbook offers, says Vaidehi Kulkarni,a student of Std VIII and president of the students’ council.
Science becomes fascinating for the students as they learn the principles of Buoyancy,Aerodynamics,Newton’s Law of Motion and concepts of jet engines and air powered rockets,gravity,ballistics and futuristic technologies through multi-media demonstrations at the Star Trek programme which is a part of the Mission Apollo initiative. The students also get a chance to mingle with students from other schools from the city and share their ideas and experiences during this programme.
History through rangolis is a marvellous idea that is followed in the school. Students make rangolis that depict events with historical significance like the Jallianwala Bagh massacre,assassination of General Rand and more. The rangoli exhibition is organised annually on Kranti Day. When you invest your time and energy into something,you connect to it on a deeper level. You will never forget it, says Sontakke Shailaja,principal of the school. Self learning is the best learning and this is what we encourage in our institution, she adds.
A Krushi Mela is organised by the teachers who visit the village farms and collect different types of crops to put on display for the students. All these activities are possible because our teachers are enthusiastic and they go that extra mile for their students. The students in turn are very dedicated to their studies and respect all the efforts that their teachers take to make learning burden-free and easy for them, says Sontakke. The school is now looking forward to their Shaleya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan,the annual Marathi literature festival wherein celebrated writers are invited to the school to interact with the students in the first week of January.
