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Educating girls: Community must participate
‘Language makes a man civilized’
Campus NotE
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Learning in Singapore It was truly a ‘Uniquely Singapore’ experience for the Air India/The Tribune Rank and Bolt Award winners (2006-07) who were taken on a visit to Singapore recently. Indeed, there was a lot to learn from a country like Singapore which is no larger in terms of area than big cities in our own nation. It is a garden city with lush green, clean surroundings coupled with the hospitality of the locals who always greeted us tourists with a shy, yet an amiable smile. The space-management is marvelous and in various respects, it reflects architectural intelligence. The greens please the eye and the horrifying sight of overflowing filthy litter bins is beautifully absent. “As the cars move smoothly down the road, one can hardly spot the cops. Yet, the lawful decorum prevailing everywhere is praiseworthy. In our stay of five days I made an astonishing discovery —I didn’t hear a single car horn. Everyone gave way to others—be it anywhere, on the road or in a college corridor. Kindness and consideration for fellow beings unanimously prevailed. The trip to Singapore has not only filled our minds with extravagant memories but has also inculcated in us a sense of responsibility towards our nation”, said an inspired Aaditi Sinha, the Rank winner from Haryana. These Rank and Bolt awards, for students and teachers respectively, have been instituted by the Air India in collaboration with media partners in all the states of India. The Tribune was the media partner for Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh. Singapore was chosen as the destination for the five-day visit because of its model citizenship and good governance. All the state award winners and representatives of the media partners were taken on this trip. For some people, this was their first trip abroad. As Indians touring out, everyone felt the warmth of being with their own kind, while looking forward to new experiences. Singapore was amazingly beautiful and all of us wished that we could explore more and live up to its pulsating lifestyle. We also hoped for such innovations in our life in our nation as well. The visit was an excellent opportunity to interact with the people in the ‘lion –city’ and go sight seeing some of the tourist places that are reckoned to be the best in the world. “We gathered knowledge, experience and shared ideas with participants from all over the country. I have come back with a much stronger commitment to my self, my students and community. I now aim to continue to worker hard and carry forward the torch of innovation in teaching skills”, said Ms. Chanderkanta Silhi, the Bolt winner from Punjab. Dr. Sharad Sinha, the Bolt winner from Haryana further added: “I was completely bowled over by the cleanliness, orderliness, the civic sense embodied in the Singaporeans and other nationalities residing there. We have learnt a great deal in being environment friendly.” The tour seemed to be short for the awardees who went around enjoying every moment to the hilt. They visited places like Sentosa, National University of Singapore(NUS), Singapore Press Holdings, Singapore Science Centre, Merlion Park, Botanical Garden, to name a few. Dr. Arun Kumar Sharma and Sanjeev Attari, the Bolt winners from Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh respectively were highly impressed with the system of education in Singapore and wished for greater avenues of educational interaction so as to incorporate those teaching methods in their modus operandi as well. The awardees were also taken to the Indian High Commission in Singapore where the High Commissioner, Mr. Alok Prasad, was gracious in answering the questions put up by the young Rankers and the older Bolts. The National Rank winner Chau Myaseng Thoomten from Arunachal Pradesh was awarded a certificate of appreciation by the Indian High Commissioner. Chau urged His Excellency to help eradicate the evil of drug addiction in his village Lalung, in Arunachal Pradesh through combined and firm efforts from both the Central and state governments. This visit to Singapore, watching disciplined Indians in Singapore, would surely help the awardees instill in them a developed sense of orderliness at home, school/college and neighborhood coupled with true facets of active and responsible citizenship. A classic example of cosmopolitan mix of society at its best. That’s Singapore! Ruchi Sharma won the Rank award from Chandigarh and Akhil Razdan from Punjab.
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Educating girls: Community must participate The learning experience of a child is at the heart of education. Encouraging girls to attend school regularly has become the priority of the government. Education itself is a very important indicator of development. Apart from improving the basic skills, education widens the horizon of a woman. It increases a woman’s autonomy, giving her a chance to voice her opinion and look after the children’s welfare. Education is useful in making a woman confident in deal with the outside world. It is not an uncommon sight in the rural milieu to see girls dressed up in clean salwar-kameez, carrying a basta of books to school. Motivating girls to remain in school till they complete primary education is an issue which is discussed much. Educating girls has advantages at all levels and it is the most important investment any country can make. Educated girls have healthier children with a higher survival rate. They keep their houses clean, dress up their children in good and neat clothes and provide healthy and nutritious food to the family. Education helps them to be confident in order to travel by buses, face teachers, doctors and nurses when the situation demands. An educated woman also manages the household budget well. The question is not of getting girls to attend school. The main aim of any programme or committee set up to promote primary education should be to ensure that girls stay on in school till they complete primary education. With the starting of a school in the village or somewhere nearby, there has been a greater willingness on the part of the parents to send their girls to school. There has been a general recognition of the need to get girls educated, but some parents are not too keen to encourage their girls to take to higher education. In such cases like these, retaining girls in school till the primary level becomes important, especially for those children for whom primary school is the limit of their formal education, the type and quality of education provided needs to be good. Demotivated teachers, an unsafe environment, learning practices that are not coordinated with the local community lead to a fast dropout rate. Onset of puberty, sibling care, increased workload at home limit the girls in terms of space and time and are responsible for the increased dropout rate of girls from school at the primary level. It must be understood here that girls’ education is more than just an educational issue. It is deeply influenced by poverty, traditions, conventions, purdah ideology, legal system and discrimination. Parents are apprehensive of sending their daughters to coeducational schools. The practise of female seclusion results in parents being unwilling to expose their daughter to male influence. A large section of society feels that highly educating a daughter is mere wastage of money. They are of the view that if money is spent on education, financial crunch will be faced while arranging a dowry as well as a match for her. The idea of education is not to equip a woman with degrees, but to ensure that she is confident in running her household efficiently. She should be self-assured when she takes her child to the doctor for his inoculations, serves her family healthy food and dresses the children in clean clothes. She can also generate a higher income and contribute towards the increased educational attainment of the younger generation. The benefit of primary education can be highlighted through the example of Gurmej Kaur of Khuranj village in Ferozepore district. Gurmej, a young widow, has studied till the primary level. She works as a peon in the village dispensary and brings up her three daughters and one son single-handedly. All her children attend school regularly. So, education also equips women for emergencies like widowhood and separation. However, girls can attain a higher level of education only when they master the basic skills. With every academic step that a girl takes the benefit for national development is assured. The educational programmes have to be made student friendly. Community participation is needed, which will encourage parents to send their girls to school. Activities that highlight the importance of primary girls education and easily accessible secondary education are the need of the hour. Active leadership in needed to promote the education of girls. Only dynamic leaders who can negotiate in the best interest of girls can lead the way to improvement in education.
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‘Language makes a man civilized’ Eminent Hindi scholars are unanimous in the view that without adopting English language on the line of countries like German, Japan, Russia and China, India too can achieve the status of a developed country with its national language. The scholars expressed their views while participating in the Hindi Divas celebrations held at Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, recently. They opined that each country has its national flag, national anthem and national language, but it is a matter of concern that these three issues are still debatable in our country. Indians consider English a language of learned people, while Hindi has taken a back seat. The session was organised by the Hindi Department of the university. Dr Kumar Krishan, Dean, Language Faculty of Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, delivered the keynote address while a distinguished Hindi scholar, Dr Hukam Chand Rajpal, presided over the inaugural session. Dr T.D. Narang, Dean, Academic Affairs, inaugurated the celebrations. Dr Kumar Krishan lamented that nearly 60 years after Independence we could not implement Hindi as official language in the Apex Court. He also suggested that Hindi should be liberal and should accept the words of other languages. Until, there was simplicity in words and clarity in expression, Hindi would not become the language of masses. Earlier, Prof. T.D. Narang, Dean, Academic Affairs in his inaugural address said GND University, in addition to other languages, was also committed to develop Hindi. A noted Hindi scholar, Dr Hukam Chand Rajpal, former Head of Hindi Department of Punjabi University, Patiala, said the language of a nation plays a great role in national integration and makes a man civilized. With the adaptation of words from other languages, Hindi would enrich itself, he added. Dr Narang and Dr Rajpal also released two publications entitled Punjab Ke Mahan Kalakar translated by Dr Sudha Jatinder, Head of Hindi Department, and Pradhikrit, a Hindi research journal.
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Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar
Code of conduct for youth festival
The Director, Youth Welfare, Mr Baljit Singh Sekhon, has released a Hand Book on code of conduct for Youth Festivals. The Zonal Youth Festival for Government Colleges of the Guru Nanak Dev University is scheduled from October 28-30. The actions of the performance should be in accordance with the traditional forms of dhol and rhythm, such as Bhangra, Luddi, Dhamal, Mirza, Pathania. He said indecent or obscene bolis would not be allowed. Only traditional
Punjabi male dresses i.e. kurta and chadra was allowed along with jacket and turban during the performance. Singing could be based only on folk songs with only one dhol and recorded folk songs, acrobatic actions were not allowed, he added. Giving the detail of the festival Mr Sekhon said on the inaugural day, the competitions in Bhangra, Fancy Dress, Histrionics, Skit, Mimicry, One Act Play, Mine, second stage Classical Vocal, Classical Instrumental (Percussion), Classical Instrumental (Non-Percussion), Semi Classical and Folk Orchestra and third stage Flower Arrangement (Fresh), Flower Arrangement (Dry), Rangoli and Phulkari would be held. On the second day, the competitions in Ghidda Group Song (Indian), Group Shabad/Bhajan, Vaar Singing and at the second stage Poetical Symposium, Elocution, Debate would be held. Similarly, third stage competitions in Painting (Landscape), Painting (Still Life), Sketching, Cartooning, Poster Making, Collage and Clay Modelling would be conducted. On the final day (October 30), there would be competitions of Classical Dance, Shabad/Bhajan, Geet/Gazal, Folk Song. —Compiled by P K Jaiswar
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ADMISSION DEADLINE Union Public Service Commission, Dholpur House, Shahjahan Road, New Delhi 110069 www.upsc.gov.in Eligibility: Unmarried males. Indian Army, HQ Rtg Zone, Independent Rect Office, Delhi 110010
Junior Commissioned Officer (Religious Teacher) for Environment & Forestry Forest Research Institute (FRI), PO New Forest, Dehradun 248195 (Utt) (Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education) www.icfre.org Research Associateship in Chemistry (Joint project entitled ‘Identification Development & Utilization of Natural Dyes from Forest Plants, Weeds & Agricultural Waste’ by Sikkim Khadi & Village Industries Board, Sikkim & FRI) Engineering IIT- Roorkee, Roorkee 247677
(Utt) www.iitr.ernet.in/admissions Finance University of Delhi, D/o Financial Studies, South Campus, Benito Juarez Road, New Delhi 110021 www.mfc.edu IT Symbiosis Institute of Computer Science & Research, Atur Centre, Gokhale Cross Road, Model Colony, Pune 411016
(Mah) www.symbiosiscomputers.com / www.snaptest.org MBA IT (2-year, FT) Management NIIT Imperia, 12, Ring Road, Lajpat Nagar IV, New Delhi 110024 www.niitimperia.com 1) Strategic Business Communication Program (IIM Ahmedabad, 4-month) Indian Institute of Forest Management, PO Box No 357, Nehru Nagar, Bhopal 462003 (MP) (Autonomous Institute of MoE & F,
GoI) www.iifm.ac.in/admission University of Delhi, Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi 110007 www.fms.edu 1) MBA Management of Services (2-year, FT) Medicine National Board of Examinations, MG Marg, Post Box No 4931, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi 110029 (M/o Health & Family Welfare,
GoI) www.natboard.nic.in Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh 202002 (UP) — Pervin Malhotra, www.careerguidanceindia.com
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