my thoughts

Whether one is a new leader or seasoned head of school, one thing is certain that in this age of accountability (which in today`s time is fixing responsibility and I may be allowed say to fix somebody after something goes wrong), everyone is looking to that one person to solve a mounting list of challenges-from overcrowding to underachievement to providing the inspiration the school needs. The principal always and at all times need to inspire and motivate and at the same time remain a champion for learning. Leadership can drive a school either forward or backward and therefore, needs to have a focused plan and a strong support network.” Listening to the above stated, conveyed by Sadhana Bhalla, Chairperson, NPSC, at the inaugural session of the 45 th National Progressive Schools’ Conference; I was filled with pride agreeing on the ideas that, “the school is as good as its leader and that is how critical the role of the principal is. Given the innumerable responsibilities be i...

In this article I would like to touch upon two important questions. One- what is more important opportunities or facilities and two- can research aptitude be sown in college or universities students without giving kids opportunity for the same at schools level? In the present times technology is advancing at a supersonic speed. Parents want their kids to be abreast with all the developments and advancements taking place around them. Their focus is that the child might not miss any opportunity due to lack of facilities. The question arises- “Do opportunities exist only amidst the abundance of facilities?”   I strongly believe that the answer is NO. Let us look into the meanings of these two words. Facility means- “ a special feature of a service or machine, which offers the opportunity to do or benefit from something/ absence of difficulty or effort.” This clearly indicates that facilities aim at cutting down on efforts. In the present times, whether it is parents or sch...

In one of his recent speeches in Rajya Sabha, honourable Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi raised the serious issue of increasing crimes against women and children. He questioned that why do parents and teachers ask only the girls to come home early for their safety and not ask the boys to do the same. Why should such hypocrisy continue? Why should a girl’s safety be her own responsibility while boys are set free to do whatever they want till late in the night? When I looked at the news headlines the next day, to my dismay, there was no mention of this issue of great importance. They rather took interest in taking a dig and jibe at what all was said about the opposition and the comments and counter comments related to that. Well, as I have often stated that we as a society have time and again failed to discuss the relevant issues and their consequences; I thereby take this opportunity to elaborate on this sensitive issue and focus on how we can make an effort to overcome the ever ...

I have often touched upon the topic of discipline in my articles. Of late, student’s indiscipline has assumed alarming proportions. It isn’t wrong to conclude that this violence is arising from utter lack of discipline. Almost every third day we read in the newspapers, reports of students being indulged in violent activities. The issue becomes even more important to be discussed as there is increase in horrifying cases of breach of discipline by school going kids. In a recent case reported in the capital city, a child of class IX lost his life over a small issue between two groups of school students. Before we try to look into the topic of the article, let’s ponder upon some incidents. In the first incident, a child got hurt while playing and the school’s nursing staff immediately took care of it as per SOP (Standard Operating Procedure). As a precautionary measure, the child was taken to the hospital for professional medical care and the parents were informed. The parents arr...