In a class of their own
Inspiration and Innovation have been the hallmark of these teachers...

Sanctuary of learning
Smita Deodhar 
Armed with colourful posters, picture cards and slides, Pune residents Sharmila Deo and Purnima Phadke have been
heading to Bhimashankar Wildlife Sanctuary each month for two years now.

Stage for studies
Papri Sri Raman

Ours is a love marriage," she says, smiling proudly at him. One does not expect such a bold declaration at the very onset of our conversation, but there an unmistakable pride in her voice, as she is referring to an achievement rare in those days. Meet 85-year-old Rajalakshmi Parthasarthy, or Mrs YGP, or simply YGP, who was recently in the news for being honoured with the Padma Shri for excellence in teaching.

Most people are familiar with Mrs YGP's rise in the world of academics - she started the well-known Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan (PSBB) group of schools in Chennai. But as one settles down to learn more about her life's journey, one gets to see a rare side of her personality — Mrs YGP as a woman with a passion for theatre.

She uses the present tense while referring to her late husband, Y.G. Parthasarathy (YGP), a government official, noted dramatist and a stage actor, who founded the United Amateur Artistes (UAA) in 1952. The theatre company continues to stage plays under the able guidance of Mrs YGP's son, Y.G. Mahendran, also a noted actor and the brother-in-law of superstar Rajinikanth.

"YGP's sister, Vaidehi, was my friend. She would write long letters to her brothers from her husband's home, and once, when he enquired about my well-being, I wrote to him directly. I was very bold," she says.

It was in Vaidehi's mother's house that Rajalakshmi met YGP, a budding theatre actor, and their love blossomed. Before the two married, Rajalaxmi completed her graduation in Mathematics as well as post-graduation in journalism from Madras University. She went on to work with The Hindu and was possibly among the first women journalists in the country.

After her marriage, she quit her journalistic career, and in 1952, the theatre-loving couple set up the legendary UAA.

In 1958, with the help of the women of the Nungambakkam Ladies Recreation Club, Rajalakshmi started a small school, Bala Bhavan, on the terrace of her home. "In the day time, there was the school... in the evenings, there were the rehearsals with actors," she recalls.

The Bala Bhavan also simultaneously grew from an institution that had begun under a thatched roof, to the PSBB group of schools with many branches and many famous names on its alumni — most of whom have something special to say about their 'YGP' or Rajalakshmi Rajamma.

In fact her biggest, but perhaps unrecognised, innovation in education has been the introduction of theatre as a teaching tool. "We must introduce creative drama from Class I," she says.

"One needs to act out dry history, if one is teaching the Battle of Panipat... the children need to become characters in that war... a soldier, a commander... Even the Constitution Assembly lessons... how interesting [they will be] if children acted the parts of the debating leaders... Mrs YGP certainly knows how to make learning fun and at the same time effective. Little wonder then that her students , past and present, call her the ultimate guru. — WFS

Each One, Teach One
Danish Khan

Ech One, Teach One — one of the most effective schemes to promote education today was popularised by a woman few remember, but who was a pioneer in the field of adult literacy in India.

Kulsum Sayani's name might not ring a bell for many but her life and work are truly remarkable. Mother of the well-known radio personality Ameen Sayani, Kulsum was born in 1900. Her inspiration was none other than Mahatma Gandhi. Her father, Dr Rajabally Patel, was the personal physician to Gandhiji and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.

Describing those trying times, Kulsum Sayani wrote, "A new Congress hospital was founded to care for the wounded. My late husband, Jan Mohamed Sayani, was the first physician to be put in charge if it. "

Sayani's interactions with Gandhiji and the importance attached to education in her family made her realise the need to eradicate illiteracy. In 1938, with a capital of Rs 100 (US$1=Rs 46.7), she employed two teachers and made the rounds of Muslim localities to get students. Considering the conservative attitude towards female education even now, imagine the effort it must have taken on Sayani's part to convince families about the importance of educating girls at that time. There were times people used to slam their doors on her face, exclaiming, "Why should women learn to read?"

Her tireless efforts proved that there was a tremendous need to work in the field of education, which needed a more organised set-up. It was in spreading the word on education that she is best remembered.

Sayani was very pragmatic and initiated several schemes to spread literacy, notably among them, 'Each one, teach one'. She used to visit several schools and encourage young students to devote 15 minutes every day to teach one adult. Another literacy initiative she undertook was reading out aloud. School students were encouraged to gather friends and adults and each one had to read out aloud.

Sayani's life is an inspiration to many. Married when she was only 18, she managed her family and pursued her social interests with equal elan. Her sons, Hamid and Ameen, both radio broadcasters, created their own identity. Ameen Sayani attributes his "basic grounding in clear and credible communications in Hindustani" to his involvement in assisting his mother in bringing out her publication Rahber.

She received the Padma Shri in 1960 and was also awarded the Nehru Literacy Award in 1969.

Sayani, who died in 1987, belonged to an era where people believed in giving their best to the nation without expecting anything back. — WFS

Sanctuary of learning
Smita Deodhar

Armed with colourful posters, picture cards and slides, Pune residents Sharmila Deo and Purnima Phadke have been heading to Bhimashankar Wildlife Sanctuary each month for two years now. They have a mission on their mind — to instill in the local children of Bhimashankar an appreciation and protective attitude towards their verdant home.

Bhimashankar is an evergreen forest in the Sahyadri range, 120 kilometres from Pune, Maharashtra. Declared a reserve forest in 1985, it boasts of several varieties of trees, 236 species of birds and 66 of mammals. But the region also faces multiple threats: The unchecked tourist influx that has led to an increase in air pollution. Even an 18th century Shiva temple that stands within the forest has contributed to its ecological woes. Large-scale pilgrim presence causes extensive littering. The plastic bags, bottles and wrappers that are strewn for miles not only choke the water bodies, but are also increasingly responsible for the death of wild animals that ingest them. The sanctuary is definitely in dire need of conservationist intervention.

In 2008, prominent Pune-based environmental NGO, Kalpavriksh, decided to conduct a sensitisation drive on these issues among the local residents. A two-year environment education programme for school children was a part of this effort.

Kalpavriksh officer Sharmila, 37, who had earlier done similar work in Ladakh, was put in charge of this project that was sponsored by the Concern India Foundation and Ruffords Small Grants Foundation (UK). She roped in a German language teacher, Purnima, 64, as collaborator and voluntary educator. The two had met and found shared interests when they did a one-year diploma on environmental conservation in 2003.

"I looked after the organisational and financial aspects, while Purnima designed a lot of the content, after deliberating with me and the experts at Kalpavriksh. We conducted the actual workshop together," Sharmila informs. Extensive research and several exploratory trips to Bhimashankar later, the project got underway.

The svelte jeans-clad Sharmila and the matronly Purnima soon became familiar figures in the 'ashramshalas' of Tekavade and Terungan villages, where their playful, hands-on half day sessions provided relief from monotonous classroom studies and opened a whole new world of discovery for the 150-200 students of Classes VII and VIII. The ‘ashramshalas’ are government run residential schools for tribal children.

"In the beginning, the students were completely non-responsive, as they were accustomed to passive learning. Breaking the ice was the most difficult part of this job," recalls Sharmila.

The educators had decided that teaching would be non-pedantic, context specific, and rooted in the children's world of experience. Cultural events were turned into teaching opportunities. The human pyramids formed by the students during the Dahi-Handi festival, for example, became a tool for explaining the concept of the energy pyramid.

Soon a rapport was established, and the children's enthusiasm soared. They learnt about the food chain and the web of life through role-playing of different birds, mammals, insects and aquatic animals.

"We gave them many opportunities to display their creativity," says Purnima. The children made collages out of various kinds of leaves to produce a fascinating array of patterns and shapes - green snakes, insects, peacocks, airplanes and Ganesha figures! That year, an anti-plastic drive during the Mahashivratri festival, which brings thousands of pilgrims to the temple, gave an opportunity to train them in activism. Draping themselves in assorted plastic waste and dubbing themselves as plastic monsters, the children moved among the crowd, singing anti-plastic songs and asking the pilgrims to eschew plastic.

The comprehensive, ingenious programme that the two women ran is indeed a model of how environmental science must be taught. Prakash Dudhe, the principal of the Tekavade school, expresses appreciation for the efforts of the two women. "The classroom walls melted as children trampled through the jungles, and explored their own environment with more scientific eyes." As they bid their students goodbye after the last session of academic year 2010 – though Sharmila is still trying to source funds to run to for another year - the children asked, "You will come back again next year, won't you?" The hopeful query was a gratifying indication that the environmental cause had found a place in the children's hearts. Sharmila and Purnima needed no other reward. — WFS