Jaipur Literature Festival – Part 1 - The Kumbh of Literature

It was the morning of 17^th Janaury, 2014. I was in Jaipur and it was the first day of the Jaipur International Literature Festival. It was my second year at the festival and I was beyond excited.

So many ways the Jaipur Literature Festival changed my life!

Conversations with Educators – Part 7 - What do Companies look for in Graduates?

I am in a meeting with the director of training of a college in Chittorgarh. We were conducting some training sessions for students there. He shared with me some thought provoking observations.

Further Training right after college

He told me how most companies spend a lot of money to train the employee in the first and second year. This was done right after college. Many of the college graduates were not ready for the job with the theory-based approach of most colleges. Why was an additional two years of training needed? What were the students being thought at these colleges if they were not job ready for the technical vocational course they opted for?

Sometimes only the larger corporate entities could afford this training. Examples of training courses included use of industrial machinery and latest technology with regards to the job.

Conversations with Teachers in India – Part 6 - A heated discussion

This was in Chittorgarh, Rajasthan. I was working with an institution there, for some training sessions for the students.

Every Teacher has a wealth of
 knowledge we must tap into

A former IAS officer, was one such individual. We had several heated discussions over meals on that trip. Most of the time I was just listening. The individual had so much knowledge about such a large variety of issues. 

We discussed Subhash Chandra Bose and his role in the freedom struggle. We spoke about the political history of our country and all the parties that were part of it. He narrated stories of meetings with top politicians and leaders of the country. He shared his thoughts on books and movies that had an influence on him. The discussion got so heated and intimidating at one point, that I felt like I was part of the group and ideologies that he was against. I also found out about a,

Conversations with Educators – Part 5 - Teachers, Students and Possibilities

A balanced education and beautiful little children

A Teacher- Student Conversation about Education is Vital. It cannot be one way.

This post is about some notes and insights from an educational conference in Lucknow in 2013,where I tried to initiate this conversation between students and teachers.

Conversations with Educators in India – Part 4 - Mrs Sunita Gandhi and the Global Classroom Program

Conversations with Educators in India – Part 4

Mrs Sunita Gandhi (Founder- Global Classroom), was delivering a talk about the Future of Education at a conference in Lucknow.

She spoke about the need for educational reform. She mentioned how we are trying to fix an age old education model. She also stated how different part of the world have developed and worked on different educational models

I noted down some interesting observations after listening to Mrs Sunita speak. They were:-

Conversation with Educators in India – Part 3 - Schools and Stories

A School called Life

I was at the Ed Leadership Conference in Lucknow in 2013. During Lunch on the second day, I got to interact with a principal of a school that was called ‘Zindagi’ (life) and two young entrepreneurs in the education field based out of Mumbai. We spoke about spirituality, our experiences in the education and also discussed alternate models of education. At the end of the day, I approach some of the speakers and thank them for their talks. I also get to meet other educators. 

Conversations with Educators – Part 2 - Lucknow, Finland and Teacher's Without Borders

There were some very interesting keynotes and panel discussions lined up for the first day of the 7^th Ed Leadership Conference in Lucknow in 2013.

After breakfast and registration of the participants, the conference was off to a great start with a musical performance by students of the school.

The Philosophy of City Montessori School 

Teachers at the CMS School, Lucknow