Some Reflections for Fulbright

• Linda_allen's Profile
• About this blog
• Entry from New Delhi

Trip Start Jun 25, 2007 Previous
Entry Trip End Aug 17, 2007 Next
Entry

  New Delhi, India
Monday, July 30, 2007

Before we declare the Summer 2007 Seminars Abroad Program over, we have had to write some responses to questions.  Here are some of my reflections:

As I have traveled around the country, I have been impressed with the very strong ties that our two countries already have, and the commonalities we share, but it is clear to me that the India-to-US bridge is stronger than the US-to-India connection.  For the good of both countries in the 21st century, this must change and the relationship must become more balanced.  
 
 The Indian educational system is rigorous and continues to rely heavily on rote learning and drill, although there is an effort underway to "reduce the burden of learning" and make learning more meaningful, interactive and hands-on

Delhi - A Taj Mansingh Sunset

.  Teachers use a lecture style in many schools we saw in which students orally "fill in the blanks" when the teacher's voice rises in preparation for a question.  There is a lot of repetition and reinforcement, which I liked, but not a lot of individual attention.  Families and children take education very seriously and the teacher is respected as learned and an authority figure.  The morning assembly was a marvel - spirituality mixed with patriotism and duty, culture, music, yoga (in some schools), elocution - it was my favorite part of every school observation.
 
The redundancy in the Seminar program was aggravating, but helpful, in that we heard about curriculum development at every city.  It has "stuck."  I understand (as much as I can in such a short time period) that the National Curriculum is reviewed every five years, and the most recent update in 2005 has called for quite a change in teaching methods and some change in curriculum.  I know that there are several Boards under which different school might operate, and those Boards drive testing, and thus curriculum.  The surprise for my was that in working with my partner teacher (from a KV school), the curriculum that is followed in those schools is not much different in math that the one I follow in Virginia, and Virginia's math curriculum is based on the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) recommendations

Fulbright Goup

.  So we are not very far apart.
 
Finally, I understand the difficulty in which an exploding population and limited resources places the educational system.  Great efforts are being made in India to add resources to instruction, introduce special education services to schools and reach underserved populations in rural and tribal areas.  It is a hopeful situation.

This program and extended stay in India has changed my life.  I have taught Indian students for many years, and admired their seriousness of purpose, intellect, and commitment to family, but I have to say, I had NO idea....
 
I was overwhelmed with sensory overload when we came to New Delhi.  I was angry at the insistent hawkers to take "just a look" and the rickshaw drivers' offers to take us to an emporium I didn't want to go to - "very nice."  I was bamboozled beyond belief at the start.  But I listened to others' experiences, I watched, I learned.  At USEFI, we had access to many of the great minds in Delhi, and that continued throughout the country.  I continued to watch as I visited schools and moved to new cities.  I thought, "If all these people can navigate this culture with all its contradictions, then I can learn."
 
India is over 5,000 years old in its culture (if not its political sense of self), and I have not met an Indian who does not cherish its history and relish its independence.  The Indian sense of unity and spirituality inspires my awe, but not in a romantic, 60s-era Beatles sense.  I have written down and photographed many sayings, but "Work is Worship" may be my favorite.  I have spent over a month trying to understand the sense of arranged marriages when family is the primary cultural institution.  I marvel at the endless textiles and the cleanliness of even the most poverty-stricken people.  I admire the openness, the friendliness and the optimism of all I have met and seen, regardless of material wealth or status. 
 
Every taxi and auto rickshaw driver, and most Indian teachers, when learning that I am from the US, has shared a story of some relative who is or has been in the US.  This love and pride must be reciprocated, and I did my best to talk about my wonderful Indian students, our family friends who are Indian-American, and those friends who have traveled to India.  
 
I was often confused in India, but I was never afraid (except when in a motorized vehicle!). 

And on a less serious note - today I bought an awsome Bhangra CD  - you've just gotta move to this music!! - and one called "Om," - just chants. 

The chanting is like an elixir for me - I will be in India whenever I hear it.  :-)  I will miss this country very much.

Slideshow Print this entry Share New Delhi hotels

Previous Entry Next Entry