tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515064528971862771.post8316830740554930530..comments2024-03-28T16:25:44.886+05:30Comments on Lakshmi's Lounge: Tribute to a Trampled SoulLakshmi Praturyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10146881991094149572noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515064528971862771.post-5736938214250701082013-01-02T19:32:34.533+05:302013-01-02T19:32:34.533+05:30Lakshmi, I am an aspiring writer, teacher and curr...Lakshmi, I am an aspiring writer, teacher and currently a student of the Literacy Specialist Program at Teachers College Columbia University New York. What has happened in Delhi, the vicious and inhuman act of violence has left me thinking deeply about the injustices and prejudices that plague our society, and how as a teacher, an educationist, a mother and daughter, I can make a difference, can work to not just stand up and fight but to prevent such acts from happening in the future and sensitize our future citizens of the various social issues that still exist but typically get swept under the carpet in our country. I believe that reading can change the world and change has its beginnings in the classroom.<br /><br />I believe that we need to introduce our children to texts that touch on deep and sensitive social issues such as gender, poverty, religion, caste, class family etc. Thus as children are taught to read with a critical lens, providing them such stories to read, also helps to bring these important issues up in graceful ways. The teacher therefore does not teach about social issues, instead she teaches students how to read between the lines, how to feel empathy for characters in stories, how to make text to life and text to world connections and through making such connections the students make their own interpretations and inferences, leading to rich conversations and exchange of opinions and thinking. Classrooms then become places where reading really achieves its purpose of not just meaning making, but learning about the world around you, learning how different people view situations, learning to listen to and appreciate another's view point, learning to present one's view and defend it. Through reading I have found that classrooms can become communities of change, communities where all voices and all interpretations have room, where all children can be part of conversation. <br />It has been my dream to make this happen in our classrooms in India. As a first step, we need to provide our children books and stories that help them make interpretations, think critically and bring in topics that are sensitive and typically get brushed under the carpet. I have been working with a group of teachers who work with migrant labourers children in Bangalore, and together we are authoring a book about the dreams and life of a poor migrant laborer’s daughter. It is a children’s book authored collaboratively by the teachers in Kannada. I have been their writing teacher, doing writing workshop with them over skype, over the past 4 months. I am really hoping to make writing for our children in India infectious, for if we reach these stories to children in every classroom, then we are opening up such conversations in the most graceful and secure way, as well as making our classrooms truly democratic. <br />Gita Varadarajanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10196848103436313729noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515064528971862771.post-54744332077363564672013-01-02T12:17:34.039+05:302013-01-02T12:17:34.039+05:30Lakshmi: a beautiful writing....I am sure you tou...Lakshmi: a beautiful writing....I am sure you touched many by this....I couldn't agree with you with more...<br /><br />love<br />sriramSrihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04454590595623633213noreply@blogger.com