Jen and I have been visiting our host school in New Delhi called Kendriya Vidyalaya, Pushp Vihar this week, and we feel quite lucky to have been so welcomed to the school. Today I want to give you a glimpse at what a typical day looks like at Pushp Vihar. The school is a government school and there are many students who attend the school…so many in fact that there are two shifts throughout the school day. My host teacher, Ms. Poonam Sharma, teaches in the first shift: 7am-12:30. You can see her in the first photo with the blue dress and pink shawl taking attendance. The second shift is from 12:30-6pm. The students begin each day with a Morning Assembly (pictures to the left). During the assembly, students stand in rows according to their homeroom and attendance is taken by calling out numbers. For example, the announcer will say “1”. Then all the students assigned to the number 1 will raise their hand (one in each homeroom). Then the announcer will say “2” and the process proceeds. This way all the homeroom teachers can take their attendance quickly and efficiently without having to walk up and down rows. The assembly then is run by one particular homeroom class. First the students say a prayer and sing an invocation to God, followed by 2 minutes of silent reflection. A drum is then used to signify the end of the silence and the students commence saying the Indian Pledge. In the U.S.A. students say the pledge while using their right hand to cover their heart. In India the pledge is said with the right hand extended out in front of you. After the pledge, a student comes to the microphone to express a thought for the day that is encouraging and inspiring to help students focus on their upcoming day. Some news is then read (weather, local and international news stories) and a special item. One student in the homeroom class decides to either read a poem, sing a song, or create a quiz as the special item. Today (Wednesday) the student gave a quiz! One of his questions was: Who is the president of the U.S.! After this there are announcements from the Vice-Principal, and finally the students sing the National Anthem. This morning assembly takes about 20-30 minutes and then students go to their first period class. On Wednesday students wear red, blue, yellow, or green shirts (depending on their Houses); all other days they wear the red plaid uniform. Each class period is 35 minutes long with a 45 minute break after 4th period for breakfast or lunch (depending on 1st shift or 2nd shift). I’ve added some pictures of what the classrooms and students look like at Kendriya Vidyalaya, Pushp Vihar. All of the students are incredibly friendly and helpful. There are Student Monitors for each class, school Prefects, and School Captains. Teachers all have degrees to teach. Teachers who teach kindergarten through tenth grade are Trained Graduate Teachers (TGTs) and teachers who teach eleventh and twelfth grade are called Post Graduate Teachers (PGTs). Students address their teachers as “Ma’am” and “Sir” and when we enter the room they stand up from their desks and say, “Good Morning Ma’am. This is class tenth A.” When students raise their hands to offer an answer and the teacher calls on them, the student stands to say the answer and does not sit back down until the teacher tells him/her to sit. Students usually sit two or three to a desk/table. I have been fortunate to observe several English classes while visiting the school so far. Ms. Usha Sharma is an English teacher who invited us into her classroom. All her students were excited to meet us and practice their English. A group of three students came up to the room to role play talking about the American teachers. Their English was fantastic, they weren’t nervous at all (even though they didn’t have time to practice their skit), and were energetic! Ms. Sharma also made Kachori for Jen and myself for a snack during the 45 minute break. After visiting this class, I observed Ms. Poonam Sharma’s eighth grade English class. Ms. Poonam Sharma is my host teacher and her students were very excited to talk with me! They taught me some Hindi as well: Namaste! Mira nom Janna Nobleza hy. [Hello. My name is Janna Nobleza.] The students also played a game with us: guess the question. The students spoke in Hindi and I had to guess what they said and answer them in English. The only hints I got were some gestures! It was hard! We also visited Mr. Singh’s twelfth grade class where Mr. Singh was teaching the poem “Keeping Quiet” by Pablo Neruda (picture to the left). The School Prefect sat at the front of the class. Since the students are still learning English (their second or third language) they would repeat important and new words they were learning while Mr. Singh was teaching. The lesson focused on how we should stop being so busy and reflect and be at peace in the world. It was a good reminder to me to relax and remember what is important. There are so many wonderful teachers here at this school. It has been a pleasure getting to know them all. |
3 Comments
Mom
7/23/2014 11:16:43 am
Fantastic description of a school day for those children. It sounds like the schools are very good and the day is well planned. I do have one question: You said that on Wednesday they all wore their red, blue, etc. school uniforms. But I am seeing plaid uniforms in all the pictures except one. What is the reason that they would wear something different to school on Wednesdays?
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Janna
7/24/2014 02:18:56 am
You're right, Mom. I have included some pictures from Monday and Tuesday where the students are in their plaid uniform, and some pictures from Wednesday where they are in their colored uniforms.
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Poonam Sharma
7/24/2014 03:51:06 am
Thanks Janna and Jennifer to you both. Though I have been a part of everything you have written but it feels great to read your narration.
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AuthorHi! My name is Janna Nobleza and I'm a high school English teacher in the Chicago Public Schools. This blog records my TGC India preparation, journey, and reflections. Archives
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