Date: Feb 26–28, 2015 Place: Sri Aurobindo International School, Patiala
WORKSHOP FOR SRI AUROBINDO INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL (SAIS) & AURO-MIRRA CENTRE OF EDUCATION (AMCE), PATIALA
Monica Kochar spent three days at Sri Aurobindo international School, Patiala, Punjab, for a combined workshop on Integral Education through mathematics for teachers of SAIS & AMCE. She has spent many years in schools as a Math teacher, and has given numbers a heart and abstract concepts a ground to stand upon. She holds workshops, conducts training sessions and writes books for both teachers and students to offer an integral approach to learning in general, and math in particular, so that the education becomes a way to deeper and wider growth, where fears are removed and fun in classes becomes official.
The sessions focused on the following:
1. Primary teachers learnt how concepts can be introduced in maths classes using simple aids such as hundreds, tens, ones chart and graph paper. The importance of logic behind concepts was emphasized and teachers’ own logical comprehension of concepts was enhanced.
2. Middle school teachers started with teaching concepts with strategies with multiple intelligence as a base. They worked on some concepts. They also checked their own MI and finally worked on lesson planning using the eight intelligences.
3. Activity teachers focused on developmental goals of their area of work. The tool used to convey the developmental goals was the Physical-Mental and Vital in human nature and necessity to involve all 3 in our classes. They also learnt about traditional and developmental attitudes in a teacher.
4. Value education focus was on peace. Participants went through four exercises that they can make use of for bringing in more peace in their lives during the daily activities. They were very receptive to the whole process and found it very fruitful. The atmosphere in the room was charged with peace.
In all sessions, especially the last, work on body was integrated with other learnings. Teachers learnt how to involve the physical in their learning.
The sessions were very hands on and experiential with a basic rule to include only those activities that the teachers can replicate later in their classrooms and lives.