In an October 2012 workshop conducted by new BAT Board
Chair Sandeep Dutt, Fabindia faculty members reflected on the question: How
will we move ahead and develop our school from “Good to Great.” Their responses
indicate that they understand that the most effective agent of educational
change is the teacher. They also bring to mind the “instructional triangle” posited
in an essay by David Hawkins called “I, Thou, It.” Hawkins sets forth the vital
interaction between the teacher (I), the student (Thou), and the content (It),
which provides a shared focus for their relationship and interaction.
Some workshop participants focused on the teacher (the
I) as the main impetus for moving the school forward. They emphasized the
importance of using a variety of teaching techniques, of “planning for good
teaching” (Kavita Davda), and of creating “a friendly environment in class”
(Meenaz). They stressed the need for teachers to become learners themselves.
“Learn innovative ideas to communicate with students,” suggested Bharti Rao.
Others emphasized the “Thou”—the students-- and the
importance of creating a relationship with learners, (“Have a good and friendly
relationship with the students-Monika Vaishnav), communicating with them, (“How
we communicate with students matters,” --Om Rathore), engaging them in the
subject matter, and developing their interests. “How can we create interest in
children?” wondered Himani Chauhan.
Still others saw the need to improve the content that
is taught both in and outside of the classroom: the “It.” They recognized that the quality of the
interaction between teacher and student was intimately related to the quality
of the ideas and topics. “Content knowledge should be upgraded,” suggested
Nikta Rajpurcohit. “How to make a lesson interesting is a challenge,” wrote
Suresh Kumar, suggesting the key relationship between pedagogy and content. The
“It” also encompasses co-curricular activities such as community service. “Come
for education and go for service,” was Suresh Singh Negi’s way of moving the
school from good to great.
The challenge for any teacher is to keep the interaction vital
between the three angles of the instructional triangle—to be self aware,
innovative and reflective as a teacher (I), to create a relationship with
students which builds on their interests (Thou), and to interact over content
which engages students’ hearts and minds (It). In the workshop the teachers
engaged in the process of becoming a community of learners. As Jagdish Suthar
said, “Group discussion is important to make a school grow from good to
great.”—both among the teachers and between teachers and students.