Why teaching isn't the best methodology for learning

As everyone celebrated Children's Day in India on November 14th, it took me back in time when I was in middle school. I distinctly recollect that mathematics wasn't exactly my strong suit. Pursuing the search for ‘X’ didn't appeal to me while I greatly enjoyed my time in the science lab and playing throwball on the school ground.

Fear of Mathematics

But surprisingly, all this changed in high school when Geometry and Algebra became my favourite subjects to the point that I scored full marks in two consecutive exams and loved solving tougher problems and puzzles even after school. The biggest factor contributing to this change was the new teacher- Motwyn Sir, the teacher who started teaching us math. The theorems and corollaries that earlier appeared dry and difficult were now fun to learn. Even today you will find a strong correlation between a student’s favourite teacher and subject; the contrary is true as well.

What did the teacher do to change things? Surprising, he didn't teach us much, I recollect. Yes, you read it right.

He did NOT believe in teaching students but rather helping them to understand, to communicate their findings, and to learn from each other. The impetus in the classroom was not to give us notes and solve the sum but to talk to us about the ways we thought the problem could be tackled and encourage all students to participate in the discussion. We never moved forward until every doubt was solved.

Unfortunately, in most schools, the focus is still on teaching, memorising, and rote-learning. Very few institutions appreciate the benefits of allowing the student to develop an original thinking, reasoning, and analysis. This problem is not only found in our Indian schools but also in higher academic institutes.

The question we need to ask is – Do we want to create crammers or innovators?

But if cramming gets you 90% marks on that school report card, parents and the school really don’t bother to reflect on this. This gains importance only in later life when young college students or graduates are compelled to debate, give their opinion, and solve real-life problems and those who can’t think critically suffer.

Today, I am on the other side of the classroom. Teaching students myself as a CACR volunteer and project head for computer literacy project that aims to bridge the technology divide in India. When I interact with students from municipal (inner city) schools in Mumbai, I keep the same principle in mind – not to merely teach students but listen to them and encourage them to ask questions and think.

Having taught students under this project for the past 2 years, I can say for sure that the students are more capable of learning new things on their own and from each other than we can imagine. For instance- Despite coming from low-income households that don’t have access to computers, these students picked up the content pretty quickly for children who were exposed to technology the first time. When we returned to take sessions after vacations, the quick learners had already taught a thing or two to their classmates and brought them up to speed.

Now with the advent of self-learning software, virtual education, and free e-learning materials widely available on the web, the teacher’s role in classrooms has changed from teaching the students to motivating them to learn new skills and encourage experimentation.

A teacher plays a pivotal role in a student’s life to lay a robust foundation for future tasks and challenges she/he will face. It is about time all the stakeholders -the education system, parents, students and teachers recognise this and pave the way to give society thought leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators, risk-takers, artists, sportsmen and the like. Together let us create a system of innovative learning, not just teaching.

Education should mould minds

The article first appeared Here on LinkedIn Pulse and has been reproduced by author's permission. 
+Richa Singh is member of CACR a Non-profit working in areas of education and healthcare in government schools of Mumbai 

Image: http://www.mcny.edu/student_serv/lecblog/math-phobia

Video Tutorials: Possible future or an illusion?

We have read countless time that the basic problems facing public/municipality school is lack of empathy/support from Government and teaching staff. Government is always facing shortage of resources -Teachers, school buildings, study aids, etc 

The obvious solution found a few years back was using video tutorial. The advantage of it was you do not require a teacher or internet facility on your computer. It was an answer awaited by all children whose parents’ were not in position to sent them for private education. The technique was low-cost and effective.

CACR volunteers use Video Tutorials to teach English 

But has this idea brought out the required change or relief to these common woes? You could say in a small measure they have helped, but looking at the larger picture it probably has a long way to go.

The basic problem this idea faces:

• No room for computer lab in schools. Certain classes in government schools are being closed down due to insufficient number of students, there is still no provision for a computer lab in many public schools of India 
• A mandatory law that every school should have a computer lab with fully functioning computers and a computer teacher assigned is a must. A large population of educated Indians is unemployed and it’s time to accommodate them into public schools thus providing them an employment opportunity and resolving the teaching staff situation. Even retired or handicapped people should be given an opportunity for teaching positions.
• Maintenance of computers is another issue. In those schools where a lab is provided with the necessary software and a maintenance contract, still many of the computers are inoperable. No maintenance is done and no sign of future actions to get it done are in the to-do list. Neither the government nor the required school personnel are accountable for it.
• How to operate video tutorials? Students are definitely not born with an internal manual on how to operate computers or video tutorials. The only advantage the current and future generations have is their ability to grasp computers and other electronic gadgets like smartphone/tablet at faster rate than their parents.

E-Learning via Video Tutorials 

           Few solutions could be -getting into a five year contract with the I.T. firms (who have made India famous in the world of IT)who  will solve the problem of maintenance and provide regular updates to software. A special audit team should be created by the Government for random checks in school regarding student welfare, day-to-day operating problems in schools and computer labs functioning.

Students learn basic IT skills via Video Tutorials

           So, what we essentially need is a teacher for some period of time to teach them basics and an access to computer lab to practice it on regular basis. Practice is what is needed to make these students masters in their game and for a possibility to use more video tutorials to expand their knowledge. These same students can in turn help their juniors who are on a novices to  the world of computers.

Once these bottlenecks  are removed, we will have a bright future for the BMC (inner city) schools and its students. All we need is participation from all the stakeholders – parents, Government, teachers, volunteers and public to give their time and effort to this endeavor.

-JZ is a engineer and a  volunteer with +Citizens Association For Child Rights a non profit working in public schools on India to improve the standard of education and well being