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| EDUCATION TRIBUNE |
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Diary of memorable events English not the first language in 240 UK schools
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Diary of memorable events
THE formative years are the most crucial ones for laying down the foundation of a good and sturdy human being. These years are the basic building blocks of one’s character, honesty and integrity. It is during these initial years that children are turned into a valuable human resource for a country. Among many things, school diary remains one of the important reference inventories that can provide us an authentic record of the early childhood experiences of a child getting transforming into an adult. The school diary plays an important role in a student’s life just as the uniform, the books and the school bag do. A lot of planning goes into writing and maintaining a diary for a school. The rules and regulations have to be clearly stated, along with mentioning the consequences in case of any violations. The language in a dairy has to be clear yet not intimidating. The ethos of the school has to be reflected through the diary as also the prayers, the hymns, the holidays and the instructions for parents/ guardians and also for student themselves. Parents’ undertaking is also required in the dairy so that they abide by the school’s commitment. Many schools put in drawings with a social message, including quotes that have stood the test of time. And it is a herculean task to choose appropriate quotes from the innumerable ones that are available. How is this all accomplished? “We incorporate the history of the school. The rough draft of our diary for the next session has already been designed. We have to insert list of holidays and the latest regulations issued by the CBSE. Every month, for us, in St. John’s, we have a value which we strive to pursue. So we invite boys to draw sketches that depict different values which act as standards for our expected behaviour in life. This is an exercise that is done very carefully and enthusiastically by all students. The ones whose paintings are chosen for publication in the diary feel both honoured and proud to be part of this dynamic document. Yes, it’s a lot of planning but is a responsibility which makes us involved with the spirit of the school. I am proud to be able to contribute my little bit to this,” says one of the senior counsellors of St. John’s High School, Chandigarh, Nitika. What does this diary, which is an inherent part of the school, mean to students? Isha Ghai, who is pursuing her second year B.Com (Hons) from Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi, goes down memory lane. An alumna of Sacred Heart Convent School, Chandigarh, she reminisces, “The school diary meant a lot to me. Flipping through the pages, to write the homework or to note down something, one’s eyes invariably went to the quotes and they made you pause and ponder. These quotes help you stand steadfast in life. We got a fair idea of the school’s mission, its history and the noble idea behind the school’s inception. The diary with the school emblem on its cover had a lot to teach us. It has played an important role in my life.” For Khushman and Pavit, who are students of Carmel Convent School, Chandigarh, the school diary with its hymns and prayers is a book of rules and regulations that sets the pace of their day. Khushman says, “My day ends with consulting the timetable in my diary for packing my bag for the next day. In school we have to carry the diary to note things that are dictated to us. It can be an entry for a project, a test, any extra-curricular activity or a surprise holiday. The diary is my partner to help me remember things that I might forget.” Pavit nods in agreement. Darshpreet, who is doing her final year from DAV College, Chandigarh, is an alumna of Vivek High School, Chandigarh. She has kept all her diaries safely tucked in her cupboard. She says, “Our diary had a blank page where we could note down the birthdays of our friends and teachers. We noted important dates on that page. Also, we did come to know from the dairy the goal of our school, its vision and mission.” The school diary, thus, is much more than just writing warnings and notes by the teachers. It captures the beautiful moments of childhood. The transformation from a child to a teenager is reflected, and this change is seen through the gibberish, scrawly handwriting of children of lower classes to clear and clean handwriting when they go to higher classes. It is a record of the children’s progress and a peep into the mind of the children. It is indeed an important document that records the events of the journey of a schoolboy getting transformed into an adult. |
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English not the first language in 240 UK schools
THERE are 240 schools in England where over 90 per cent of pupils do not speak English as a first language, with five primary schools having absolutely no first language English speakers at all. The numbers — revealed in Department of Education census figures obtained by Sky News — puts the total number of children without English as their mother tongue at 1.1 million, a rise of 54,000 in the last year. According to the latest figures, that number marks a rise of 2,28,000 pupils since 2008 — with roughly double the number of pupils now starting school with English as a second language as there were in the late 1990s. Head teachers have come forward to say that in many cases, pupils speaking English as a second language go on to outperform native speakers, thanks to the stronger work ethic required to achieve results in a less familiar tongue. They also suggest that students from a “foreign” background help to broaden the horizons of British-born pupils and help boost a school’s cultural outlook. But critics insist it can be incredibly disruptive for schools to take on large numbers of pupils without English as their first language, leading to discordant classrooms and lessons hampered by ineffectual teacher-pupil communication. The five primary schools where 100 per cent of pupils did not speak English as a first language included Sacred Heart in Tipton, Westwood Primary in Oldham, Gladstone Primary in Peterborough and Brookhouse Primary in Blackburn. Among the most popular first languages spoken in these schools were Punjabi, Russian, Portuguese, Urdu, Czech, Polish and various African dialects. As part of its research, Sky News visited Sacred Heart Primary School where the vast majority of pupils have parents from Pakistan or Bangladesh. Melanie Gee, the head teacher of the school, which recently won a regional award for inclusivity and education standards, told researchers: “Our school is really no different to any other. We have a curriculum and all the lessons are taught in English.” She added: “We have got bilingual staff. Children in the very early days will probably communicate to the staff in nursery in their home language, but within a couple of weeks we find that they are communicating in English. Gee went on to say: “The majority of our bilingual staff, if we use them, are actually to communicate more with the parents rather than with the children.” — The Independent |
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Campus
Notes Students bring laurels DR Gulab Pandove, an alumna of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) and presently working as a teaching assistant in the Department of Microbiology of the university, fetched the prestigious “Jawaharlal Nehru Award 2012” for her doctoral thesis research. Union Minister of Agriculture Sharad Pawar presented the award to Dr Pandove during the 85th Foundation Day and Award Ceremony of the ICAR, New Delhi. The award carried a certificate, citation, gold medal and a cash prize of Rs 50,000. Dr Pandove carried out research on the topic “Biomonitoring of Indicator and Emerging Pathogens in Water” under the guidance of Dr Param Pal Sahota, senior microbiologist-cum-head of the Microbiology Department. Meanwhile, Naveen Gupta, a Ph.D student of the university, was awarded the prestigious “2013 Scholar Award” by the International Plant Nutrient Institute (IPNI), Norcross, USA, for his research work carried out during Master’s programme and as an assistant scientist with IPNI. Gupta is presently pursuing his Ph.D under the guidance of Dr S.S. Kukal, Professor of Soil Conservation, and Director, School of Climate Change and Agricultural Meteorology of the university.
Nigerian delegation visits varsity A 17-member delegation from Nigeria visited PAU to have a wider perspective of teaching, research and extension programmes of the university. The delegation, led by Dr Ahmed H. Usman, Director, Partnership and Linkages, Agricultural Research Council, Nigeria, visited the university under the West Africa Agricultural Productivity Programme. The members interacted with senior university officials who gave detailed presentations of their respective activities. Dr V. P. Chahal, Principal Scientist (Agricultural Extension), ICAR, was also present on the occasion.
Food security issues A three-week training programme on “Unconventional Breeding Approaches to Tackle Emerging Issues of Food Security” was held at the university recently. The programme was organised by the Centre for Advanced Faculty Training (CAFT) at the Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, PAU. As many as 22 scientists from different state agricultural universities and research centres participated in the programme. In his remarks, the chief guest, Dr K. Sharma, ADG (HRD), ICAR, New Delhi, emphasised on the organisation of refresher courses to update technical knowledge and hone the skills of scientists. Dr. H.S. Dhaliwal, Dean, College of Agriculture, said scientists should develop varieties capable of giving good yield under adverse conditions.
Seminar on sugarcane A three-day national seminar on “Sugarcane” was jointly organised by the university and the National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories Ltd. (NFCSF), New Delhi. Senior officials of PAU, representatives of NFCSF, officials of sugar mills from various states, and scientists from PAU, Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs), state agricultural universities/ICAR institutes participated in the seminar. Inaugurating the seminar, Dr Baldev Singh Dhillon, Vice-Chancellor, PAU, who was the chief guest, said, “In view of depleting underground water table and stress on natural resources, water use efficiency should be taken as one of the priority areas in sugarcane research.” M.G. Joshi, Managing Director, NFCSF, said as per the report of the working group on sugarcane productivity and sugar recovery, proper varietal planning to enhance the area under early maturing varieties is required. Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences
University, Ludhiana
Prof on European expert panel on vaccines Dr Hari Mohan Saxena, Professor of Immunology at the university, has been appointed a member of the expert panel on vaccines of the European Society for Translational Medicine, which is a global non-profit platform for the advancement and progress of translational medicines. The society facilitates cooperation and interaction among clinicians, scientists, academia, industry, governments, funding and regulatory agencies, investors and policy makers to develop and deliver high-quality translational medicine programmes and initiatives to enhance global health. The society promotes research and development of novel and affordable diagnostic tools and treatments for the diseases affecting global population.
International conference Dr Mandeep Singh Bal, Assistant Scientist, Department of Veterinary Parasitology, attended the 24th International Conference of World Association of Veterinary Parasitology (WAAVP-2013) held at Perth, Western Australia, recently. Dr Bal presented his research work on “Polymerase chain reaction vis-à-vis parasitological techniques for diagnosis of Trypanosoma evansi infection in bovine” as oral and poster presentation. Such molecular methods are helpful in diagnosis for the better management of haemoprotozoa. More than 500 delegates from different countries, including the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, Brazil, South Africa and France, attended the conference. — Contributed by Charanjit Singh Teja
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