Classroom experiment

Rawal, who has been teaching Class XI and XII students at government schools for over 25 years, has been awarded thrice by the NCERT 2002, 2004 and 2007 for her experimental methods. 8220;My classroom should be filled with not just my voice. It should have the voices of my students as well,8221; says Rawal, who began her 8220;journey of novelty8221; in 1986, when the National Policy on Education stressed on the individuality of students and advocated that they be recognised as active partners in education.

8220;The policy offered the perfect solution to my frustration in trying to get students interested in my subject8212;perceived by most to be dull,8221; she says. And so she decided to look beyond the textbook. She began with cutting out political cartoons published in newspapers and placing them in the context of business management. One such cartoon dates to 1997 and shows Congress leaders in a ship that8217;s sinking and cracking open. While the Congressmen in it are all falling over each other, Sonia Gandhi stands tall and looks far ahead through binoculars.

8220;I used this comic strip as a management lesson. If a firm has no clear leadership and is overtaken by chaos in its management system, it will fail to achieve its objective,8221; says Rawal, most of whose students come from low-income households living in slums. 8220;These students are too bogged down by domestic issues to concentrate on a lecture. When you give them some activity like drawing a sketch on what8217;s being taught, they8217;ll be able to concentrate and retain what they8217;ve learnt,8221; she says.

Come 2000 and Rawal took another cue to innovate from the first edition of Kaun Banega Crorepati. She organised a classroom version of the reality show 8212;8216;Kaun Banega Safal Prabandhak8217;. While she played the host, the student scoring the highest in the fastest-finger-first round occupied the hot seat. 8220;It was a hit among my students and they were motivated to work hard on their subject,8221; she says. She has also developed a digital version of the game on Microsoft Powerpoint which students can self-play as revision of their lessons.

Last year, even as SRK was regaling TV audiences with his wisecracks on Kya Aap Panchvi Paas Se Tez Hain, Rawal was educating her students with 8216;Kya Aap Prabandhan Mein Tez Hain8217;. She had also made a classroom edition of Janata ki Adalat, calling it 8216;Accountant Baba Ki Adalat8217;.

Technology has opened up more ideas for Rawal, who did not know how to operate a computer till she enrolled for a program that NCERT had started in collaboration with Intel for teachers in 2003. Intel8217;s website has included Rawal8217;s technology-aided learning techniques among its stories on how teachers all over the world are using computers to educate. NCERT8217;s Class XII Business Studies textbook, too, includes some of her innovation such as the business crossword puzzle.

So, what is Rawal working on now? 8220;Now that I am an administrator vice-principal at Rajkiya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalay, I better apply the management lessons I taught my kids and perhaps innovate there too.8221;