The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

EDUCATION

SCHOOL BUZZ
Uzbek delegates laud Heritage’s IT facilities
Smriti Kak

An Uzbekistan Educational Delegation of four members headed by Mr S. S. Gulyamov, Minister of Higher and Secondary Specialised Education of Republic of Uzbekistan, visited The Heritage School, Vasant Kunj, to observe the latest methods of Information technology infrastructure, labs and e-learning facilities in everyday classroom teachings.

The high-level delegation was accompanied by the Vice-Chancellors of Samarkand University, Tashkent State University of Information Technology, Ferhana Polytechnical University and Ms Anjali R. Roychoudhary, CEO and Managing Director, Super Infosoft Pvt Ltd, who has provided the technology for this project.

The delegation was on an official state visit in India and looked at the various facilities provided in India. The team congratulated Mrs Roychoudhary and Mrs Rita Kaul, principals of Heritage School, for providing the latest methods of Information technology in everyday classroom teachings.

Quality education

Shemrock Schools, with an aim to provide quality education to children across the country, has begun its expansion programme. The school recently opened branches in Karnal, Rewari and Patna with another branch coming up in Panipat. With an investment of less than Rs 10 lakh for starting a pre-school, Shemrock has been establishing and setting a landmark in the field of Pre-Nursery Education and Child Development.

The school also plans to enter the senior secondary education. The Shemrock Group has established a senior secondary school in Piragarhi, Delhi, which will be operational from April 2003. The group has tied up with DPS and has opened a school in Panchkula, Chandigarh.

Displaying talent

Some guests at the talent show in GHPS, Fateh Nagar.

GHPS, Fateh Nagar, organised an exhibition, showcasing the talent of the students. Dr Harmohinder Singh, joint secretary, DSGMC, inaugurated the exhibition.

On display were models based on scientific principles, arts and craft, and stalls where students put up means of food preservation and meal planning. A model that presented the maximum usage of space through multi-storey parking stood out. The Principal of the school, Ms M. K. Grover, welcomed the guests.

Drawing competition

A winner of the drawing and colouring competition at Learner’s Castle.

Christmas celebrations at Learner’s Castle Preparatory School included a drawing and colouring competition for children up to 10 years. The topic was ‘winter’ and ‘Christmas’. There were prizes too for the Best Dressed Child and the Best Dancing Child.

In Kamla International School, Sector 15 Gurgaon, the students decorated the classrooms and organised a special morning assembly wherein passages were read out depicting the life of Jesus Christ.

The children dressed up as Mother Mary and Santa Claus also presented a cultural show.

Arithmetic and science test

Pie education organised a rehearsal test for Class X CBSE students. The test was conducted free of cost for students wishing to take a rehearsal test in arithmetic and science.

More than 25,000 students from across the country took the test out of which 15,000 were from the NCR alone.

Those students who performed well were also felicitated and the top five rank holders were presented attractive Pie education trophies.

A date with Dikshit

Kids watching the movie Makdee, organised by Amity Humanity Foundation and Delhi Department of Social Welfare.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit’s penchant for the movies is no secret. The CM recently went for the special screening of the movie Makdee. It was Ms Dikshit’s date with the hundreds of children who being homeless live on the streets.

The screening was organised by the Amity Humanity Foundation in association with the Delhi Department of Social Welfare. Nearly 750 children from Prayas Observation Home for Boys and from Children’s Home in Narela, Lajpat Nagar and Alipur, enjoyed the antics of Shabana Azmi as the witch in the ‘Makdee’.

PRINCIPALSPEAK
Don’t be hesitant to say ‘thank you’

Did you express your gratitude for the favours done to you or did you behave like the rationing officer when it came to expressing your thanks to others? When Jesus Christ cured ten lepers, only one stayed back to thank him. Surely, you do not want to be like the nine others, who showed their human weakness and a lack of ethics.

Gratitude is a beautiful feeling. It improves our personality and builds our character. We should express our gratitude spontaneously through words, our behaviour and our attitude towards others. Our thankfulness should be sincere – “When you convey your thanks, what you express in words is 10 per cent; what your eyes convey is 20 per cent; what you say from your head is 30 per cent and what you say from your heart is forty percent.” All these add up to a 100 per cent ‘thanks’.

Having a thankful heart is the greatest virtue. The two simple words, “Thank you” said sincerely are value-loaded words and help to build bridges between people. Many times we forget to be thankful to the people closest to us, such as our parents, our relatives, our friends. Gratitude must be expressed.

It is something one cannot give enough of. It teaches us the virtue of co-operation and understanding. We ought to make it our way of life.

When you say “thank you”, say it from the depth of your heart. Avoid using it by rote like a parrot. Say it with feeling in your voice, a smile on your lips and in your eyes. Thank people for everything - for giving you their time, for the greetings on various occasions, for making you feel that your life is worthwhile.

Remember that a proper use of “thank you” reduces stress. In acknowledging your gratitude to others, you receive their goodwill. The vibes is indeed positive. You will have only yourself to thank when your generous thank you repays your efforts and makes you feel fulfilled. This, however, does not mean that you in turn must expect gratitude from others.

We all know that there is nothing as beautiful as a personal hand written thank you note, a warm thank you hug or a thank you handshake. There are so many ways in which you can say thank you. You can even invent some of your own. I will never forget a wonderful thank you gesture from home, I found a unique thank you note. On a small piece of paper she had placed two orange toffees on the two ends of the page and linked them with the words – “Thank you for being so sweet!” That thank you meant everything to me.

A thank you has to be felt and expressed at the right time. If the thank you is said too late, it is like a month old newspaper. It loses its purpose. So, do not be lax or hesitant. Do not let shyness or ego come in the way of expressing gratitude - it will weigh on your conscience. A sense of gratitude will certainly change your outlook in life.

Most importantly, remember people do things for you out of love or out of goodness and not for your thankfulness. This calls for reciprocation. Thus, we should be thankful to all those who have in some way or the other shaped our lives, be it our parents, teachers, friends or sometimes even strangers.

Perhaps it is never too late to thank them. And, without doubt, our greatest “Thank you” should go to God, who has given us this precious life.

Madhu Chandra, Principal
Birla Vidya Niketan

NSUI meet protests against privatisation of education
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 12
On the occasion of Swami Vivekananda’s birth anniversary, which is celebrated as the National Youth Day, the National Student Union of India (NSUI) organised a convention and sought to expedite their struggle against the privatisation of higher education.

The convention, held in Krishna Nagar, was attended by more than 500 delegates. It was inaugurated by Mr Mukul Wasnik, general secretary, AICC. Addressing the gathering Mr Wasnik advised the students to imbibe the teachings of the Swami.

Chief guest Oscar Fernandes stressed the need to follow the policy of, ‘Each One Teach One’.

The NSUI also announced their campaign to collect old books for the needy students and passed a resolution seeking to pressurise the government to spend at last six per cent of the GDP on education. They also resolved to launch a drive against what they alleged is the saffronisation of education.

The NSUI blamed the BJP-led NDA government for failing to provide resources to the weaker socio-economic sections of society. The need for having a separate campus for the East Delhi residents and securing sustainable job-based education was also reiterated.

Two MCD schools in Rohini, Rangpuri
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 12
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has opened two primary schools in the Capital. These schools were inaugurated by the chairman of the standing committee, Mr Ram Babu Sharma, in Sector 16 Rohini and at Rangpuri near Mahipalpur.

Mr Sharma pointed out that 1,316 classrooms, 33 halls and 12 office buildings of the schools are also in progress. The Municipal Councilor, Rohini, Mr Vijendra Gupta, said that Rohini has now become a tent-free zone and that new building has been built with provisions for rainwater harvesting and gardening. He said that the building is earthquake-proof and has incurred an expenditure of Rs 50 lakh.

The school building in Rangpuri has 11 classrooms and has incurred an expenditure of Rs 32 lakh. The Health Department of the MCD organised a camp at Vivekanand polytechnic on the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekanand. About 3,000 patients were examined and given free medicines.