Author: McCluskey, Neil

One of the most frequently voiced objections to school choice is that the free market lacks the “accountability” that governs public education. Public schools are constantly monitored by district administrators, state officials, federal officials, school board members, and throngs of other people tasked with making sure that the schools follow all the rules and regulations governing them. That level of bureaucratic oversight does not exist in the free market, and critics fear choice-based education will be plagued by corruption, poor-quality schools, and failure…In contrast to our moribund public system, school choice isn’t encumbered by compliancedriven rules and regulations, which allows institutions to tailor their products to the needs of the children they teach and lets parents select the schools best suited to their child’s needs. Click here to read more

Cato Institute Policy Analysis, 20 April 2005

NAGPUR: The country’s largest primary teachers union feels the government is not doing enough for early childhood education.

Rampal Singh, president of All India Primary Teachers Federation (AIPTF), said, “The Right To Education Act will be focusing on children between the ages of 6-14. But there is no major plan to deal with the children in pre-primary sections. That is the age when the foundation for future educational road map is laid.”

In the city to attend a seminar organized by SAARC Teachers’ Federation (STF), Singh said his group was in discussions with the government to do more for early education. “The seminar organized in Nagpur is about the same and one cannot stress enough on the need for a strong base to support future education endeavours. Currently, the only presence government has in early childhood education is through anganwadi classes which too are not up to the mark,” he said.

Heading an organization which has, including affiliated unions, over 20 lakh members, Singh is now in dialogue with the central government to make amends. He said the current government policy in dealing with pre-primary education was a one-size-fits-all approach.

“Every child has different capabilities which have to discovered at very young age. A teacher requires skill to identify those and nurture them. For this, we have prepared a project report in collaboration with a Canadian educationist and submitted it to the central government. We have suggested radical changes that are better suited to modern times in the current teaching methodology,” said Singh.

He accepted that private institutions who ran pre-primary institutions were better equipped with infrastructure and manpower to guide and teach children.

NG Ganar, MLC representing teachers constituency from Nagpur, agreed that the government was ignoring the most important age group. “In Maharashtra, the anganwadi teachers are just given basic training on nutrition. There is a greater skill required in dealing with small children. Between the ages of three to six the child is very receptive to ideas,” said Ganar. STF’s two day seminar on Early Childhood Care and Education ended on Sunday.

DV Pandit, secretary general of SAARC Teachers Federation, said, “Our organization is a branch of the Education International, which is the biggest teachers’ union in the world. This year the theme of our parent organization is early childhood education and hence we decided to conduct seminars across the country.”

The Times of India, 30 January 2012

The Karnataka Government’s delay in notifying the State rules for the Right to Education Act has resulted in 44.17 lakh students from classes 1 to 8 being denied a second set of school uniforms, and the lapse of a Central grant of Rs. 88 crore for the purpose.

The Centre had approved a grant of Rs. 88.34 crore to provide a set of school uniforms to all girl students (25.16 lakh) and boys belonging to the Scheduled Castes (6 lakh), the Scheduled Tribes (2.56 lakh) and below the poverty line families (10.44 lakh).

This would have been in addition to the set that is already being given by the Department of Public Instruction to students in government and government-aided schools under the Vidya Vikas scheme.

ADDITIONAL GRANTS

There were also discussions in the department on whether the State could make an additional allocation of Rs. 12.37 crore to provide a second set of uniforms to 6.18 lakh students who fall in the general category and are already receiving the first set from State, but are not covered by the Central grant.

Though draft rules for the legislation were framed and revised following objections, the final rules are yet to be notified by the Government of Karnataka, and hence the grants made under the Act have lapsed.

The failure of the Government to avail itself of the grant has also attracted the ire of weavers, as material for the uniforms is sourced from the Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation and the Karnataka State Powerloom Development Corporation.

‘INJUSTICE’

H.S. Ganji, secretary of the Akhila Karnataka Nekarara Vedike (a forum of weavers), has said that it is “injustice” meted out not only to children belonging to deprived sections of society, but also to the weavers who would have benefited if additional material was sourced for the uniforms.

G. Kumar Naik, Secretary, Primary and Secondary Education, told The Hindu that the grant was an annually recurring one. “It is not a one-time allocation. We will start receiving it once the rules are published,” he said.

The Hindu, 29 January 2012

The year 2012 comes with the beginning of a new academic year, increases in school fees and levies, expensive new uniforms and an impending strike. Even though education plays a critical role in any nation’s economic, political, socio-cultural and technological development as it helps people to participate fully in society and governance, the Zimbabwean academic year has commenced with clouds of uncertainty hanging nationwide. It is the onus of every government to avail and fund education but this responsibility is outsized and complex for the governmentof Zimbabwe to meet sufficiently. It is thus imperative for the government to explore alternative means of financing and affording educational services. This article will examine how public-private partnerships can help Zimbabwe meet its education goals.

Proficient and equitable access to education is proving to be elusive to many people in Zimbabwe as often low-income families, girls and other previously marginalized groups have limited access to education. Several Sub-Saharan countries have yet to achieve universal primary education even though enrollment rates across all developing countries increased by 4 percent between 1991 and 2006. The collapse of the Zimbabwean economy during the past decade is the source of scores of present day challenges for the country’s education system. It brought about with it failure by the government to finance the rehabilitation of learning infrastructure as well as the procurement of textbooks which are an essential resource of any education configuration if it is to function both efficiently and effectively. Zimbabwe’s economic downturn meant that remuneration paid to teachers by the government was below the Poverty Datum Line contrary to salaries offered by other countries in the region, thus teachers resorted to industrial action as a means of protesting against a failed government. This course of action produced an education sector which was fraught with stay-aways, go-slows and outright strikes with little or no education taking place. Education was put into further jeopardy by the mass exodus of qualified and experienced teachers who abandoned the profession in pursuit of greener pastures within and outside the country. The number of school dropouts increased, attendance became haphazard while pass rates declined.

Given market failures and equity concerns, the public sector remains an important player in providing education services, but making quality education accessible and affordable to all in a developing country like Zimbabwe requires innovative programs and initiatives in addition to public resources and good leadership. There are several ways in which the public sector and the private world can join together to complement each other’s strengths in providing education services and help Zimbabwe meet the Millenium Development Goals for education and to improve learning outcomes. These public-private partnerships (PPPs) can be tailor made and precisely targeted to meet the needs of low-income earners.

Public-Private partnerships are defined as “…any arrangement between a government and the private sector (inclusive of Civic society organizations s) in which partially or traditionally public activities are performed by the private sector.” These arrangements must not be confused with privatization that entails the total purchase of public entities for commercialization. The phenomenon of PPPs in Zimbabwe is neither alien nor new. Government recognized this critical role of the private sector in 2004, and developed underpinning PPP investment guidelines in this country. These guidelines provided the parameters for the development of an appropriate legal and regulatory framework, to protect the interests of the investors and the consumers.Various stakeholders contributed to the development of the PPPs’ legal and institutional framework in 2007 in Kariba, Mashonaland West Province and in 2009 in Harare, leading to the development of a comprehensive “Legal and Institutional Framework for Public-Private Partnerships in Zimbabwe” document, which should guide relevant Ministries.

The country has previously benefited and continues to benefit from PPPs especially in the arena of infrastructure development. For example…Recently, the government launched the National Manpower Advisory Council (NAMACO) with a mandate to explore possibilities and opportunities for PPPs in the Higher and Tertiary education sector that already has other corporate players such as Mimosa Mining Holdings, Econet Private Limited, British America Tobacco (BAT) through its scholarship Programs, Unilever and Metallion Gold.

However, PPPs in the education sector have been limited to the involvement of multilateral donor organizations such as PLAN International and World Vision together with churches such as the Anglican Church and the Roman Catholic Church that have either seen the establishment and management of schools, provision of resources and technical expertise. The involvement of the corporate sector however, remains subdued/limited. This can be attributed to the economic downturn, the long-term cost recovery of education, the bureaucracy of government systems and the absence of incentives to motivate corporate involvement in the sector.

In light of the challenges facing the education sector, it has become more than imperative for increased PPPs in education as best practice from across the globe informs one that for quality education to be a reality, the efforts of government alone, be it central or local government, is insufficient. An education industry producing the needed human capital for the development of this country needs the aid of the corporate world. Its performance affects and determines the quality and magnitude of Africa’s development and indeed that of Zimbabwe. It forms the basis for developing innovation, science and technology in order to harness our resources, industrialize, and participate in the global knowledge economy and for Zimbabwe to take its rightful place in the global community. It is a means by which Zimbabwe will entrench a culture of peace, gender equality and positive African values. The inclusion and participation of the corporate world, the inevitable beneficiaries of a good education system, must be prioritized as it entails a number of merits.Public Private Partnerships offer a less radical alternative to the sometimes controversial and less desirable wholesale privatization as in the case of Herentals Group of Colleges buying Cold Comfort Primary School.

Education as managed by governments has proven to contain a lot of red-tape and conservatism that often impedes the process and management of education in the country. PPPS offer the opportunity for enhanced managerial performance, entrepreneurial spirit through capacity-building and staff retention measures.

Best practice from Pakistan and India reveals a partnership that has seen the involvement of information Technology companies in the education sector with the resultant improved access to leading edge technologies. Intel, the global technology giant, has been responsible for the introduction of computer technology in schools while also participating in the training of computer tutors. Zimbabwe can also learn from the experience by engaging industrial companies in Metal work education,clothing companies in Fashion and Fabrics and culinary entities in Food and Nutrition tuition. Already, football teams have realized this avenue with Bantu Rovers Football Club adopting Mzilikazi High School in Bulawayo, sponsoring it with soccer skits and equipment.

The Zimbabwean education sector has not been divorced from the poor, corrupt governance system that is a common feature in Zimbabwean life. Communities and school authorities have been at loggerheads due to the lack of transparency, popular participation and accountability in the administration of incentives and school projects.PPPs offer an opportunity for improved transparency through involvement of local communities from project formulation, design, implementation and evaluation.

Actionaid, 26 January 2012

As a nation whose growth is talk of the town, quality education in India remains still a distant dream. A lot has been written about the system of education in this country.

A lot of questions have been raised against it- are we doing the right things for progress, is our research output anywhere near other nations of our league and inspite of having bright minds and enough numbers on our side we have failed to produce proportionate number of Nobel laureates.
So, before I proceed any further let me tell you that I am not going to offer any magical solutions to the problem but shift your focus to the deeper issues of this problem, I am sure going to do.

A couple of weeks back the results of the PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) survey were out and led to quite some frenzy. The reason – out of the 74 economies that had participated in the survey (which compares the quality of education in these participating economies) India was placed second from last, only ahead of Kyrgyzstan. The results were shocking for many of us in India probably due to the fact that the country’s education system has been considered to be one of the most rigorous and even Obama could not help but tell-he fears that the Indian and Chinese students may capture all the jobs- but for those who have been continuously lamenting the real state of Indian education system which lacks quality, it came as no surprise, only that the results made their point more evident and helped them back it up with comparative facts.

It is impossible to disbelieve all that was in the findings especially considering the fact that this is a country where education just means passing examinations to get degree or certificates! To earn your degree, you need not innovate, think creatively, work hard on your mind as higher studies would require you to, you just need to cram the answers that your teacher would want to see in the answer sheet. There is nothing for us to point finger at the poor student here, he just can’t be blamed for anything, that’s the way it is and we have been trained to do it since our very childhood. So it doesn’t come as a surprise when a survey, which was done in Himachal Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, shows primary students in a very poor light. Only 17% of students, in Tamil Nadu, were estimated to possess proficiency in reading that is at or above the baseline. And in Himachal Pradesh, this was 11%. The PISA study also found that only 12% of students in Himachal Pradesh and 15% in Tamil Nadu were proficient in mathematics. Put it without any statistics and according to the survey, not even half of the children, 15 years of age, could perform basic arithmetic or basic reading – something which brings in a lot of concern especially driven from the fact that the two states being talked about here, Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh, have always been on the right side of development and are considered among those progressive states in the country. A lot of concern for the quality of products in India but no value for quality of education or human resource!

Although one could easily dismiss the report, saying that most countries considered, as a part of the survey, are either developed economies or small countries with a history of quality education but that does not take away from the fact that our system has failed to provide what it is supposed to –quality. In fact, we are still stuck in a state of absurdity where only a meager percentage of the population, usually the urban middle class and upper castes, have access to good schools and teachers and it would be no exaggeration to say that majority of our children, especially in the rural areas, are either employed as laborers or study in those schools which lack teachers and resources. With such disparities, it’s true that we can’t really be serious about economic development by just including the fortunate sections. Real development lies with the inclusion of all the people and for that quality education is the key.

Increasing enrollment is a major task in the process. It is indeed wonderful that mid day meal scheme and Right to Education Act have actually achieved that to an extent, but standards of what constitutes education are problematic themselves. Is it a mere ability to write one’s name or is it something more than that- to actually go out into the real world?

The RTE and the mid day meal scheme maybe buzzwords, but the real truth is that we can’t just stop with these laws alone, we just cannot afford to have children in schools just because they are getting a meal or fulfilling a law. Mid-day meal and Right to Education are indeed important but equally important is THE RIGHT EDUCATION and we just have to find ways and means to ensure quality for our own good and also to prevent a possible scenario where the world may see us as ‘Bharat drowning’.

The Fortnight, 26 January 2012

The mid-day meal scheme in rural areas of Punjab has failed to achieve the goal of Universalization of Elementary Education as prescribed by the UN Millennium Development Goals (2000) and followed by Government of India. Total Enrollment of selected schools belonging to three districts, namely, Amritsar, Tarn Taran, and Gurdaspur Districts of Rural Punjab was 33085 during the base year (average of 2007 to 2009). This enrollment declined to 31667 during the current year (average of 2010-12). Almost similar decline with varying degree was noticed in all the three selected districts. However the decline in enrollment of girls’ students was slightly more than their boys’ counterpart.

Moreover, the enrollment in primary standard of the selected districts of Rural Punjab has declined by 2.35 per cent which is attributed to the bogus admission made in the base period. In Upper Primary Section, Base year Enrollment was 10583 and Current year Enrollment was 11124. However, the enrollment in the upper primary standard has shown an improvement (the percentage change in the enrollment was 105.11).

These facts are revealed from in-depth analysis under taken by Dr Gursharan Singh Kainth ICSSR Senior Fellow of Amritsar based Guru Arjan Dev Institute of Development Studies. The study is restricted to Majha region of rural areas of Punjab consisting of three districts, namely, Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Tarn Taran and a part of the bigger project sponsored by Indian Council of Social Sciences Research, Ministry of Human Resources Government of India under their Senior Fellowship Program.

Another salient feature of the analysis is that a lion share of the enrollment at the elementary schools was claimed by the Schedule caste (SC) and schedule tribes (ST), their percentage being 69.36 per cent. In addition 17.66 per cent belong to Other Backward Categories (OBCs). Apparently, government schools are dominated by the reserved categories students due to obvious reason. The question arises: Why the other categories parents did not sent their students to these government schools. This needs a thorough examination.

In almost all the schools there was shortage of teaching staff because of unplanned opening of elementary schools in the rural areas.

Moreover, one-fourth of the schools have only up to two teachers whereas minimum classes in these schools are five. The government has recommended the number of teachers according to the strength of students i.e. one teacher for 30 students. But these norms should be revised. These norms should be set on the basis of number of classes but not on the basis of number of students. Due to lack of teachers, there is a negative impact on the study of children. During the survey it was observed that there is no academic atmosphere in the school due to lack of teaching staff. There should be at least one teacher for every class irrespective of the student strength. There is a strong need to rationalize the opening of school.

The study further reveals total lack of enthusiasm in the implementation of the scheme in too and found lopsided functioning on various components of the schemes. Under MDM scheme the government provide food grains like wheat, rice etc. to the schools. But schools are not getting food grains on time and in short. In most of schools, there is a negative balance of food grains due to which they are unable to provide the food to children as per menu specified by government under Mid Day Meal Scheme. The government provides food grains gunny bags with specified quantity. But generally the schools get less quantity of food grains. There are many holes on the gunny bags of food grains and the quantity is less even up to 15 kgs. School authorities have to accept those gunny bags due to shortage of supply and under pressure. Quality of food grains at the initial stage was below average, but there is a continuous improvement in the quality of food grains. Moreover, there is lack of scientific storage of grains in the school premises, although some schools are provided with bins.

For storing the food grains, drums are not available in majority of the schools. Shortage of drums couple with insufficient space for storage, no proper caring of food grains etc. results into wastage of food grains. Moreover food grains also get exhausted when they are not properly stored.

Under MDM Scheme, Schools are facing the acute scarcity of funds. They do not get enough funds on time. Their funds are showing the negative balances from last many years. Generally one fourth or little more than that of the monthly expenditure is reimbursed to schools rendering school funds into negatives which cumulative balance into thousands. Even funds are delayed for months- some schools had reported negative balance of more than Rs 25 thousands and even up to Rs 50 thousand. The question again arises: How they manage the scheme?

Moreover schools with less strength are easily getting funds whereas schools with more strength are not getting any funds which have resulted into negative balances. For smooth functioning of MDM scheme, the schools authorities are investing their personal cash or borrow from the grocers.

Although cook- cum- helpers are appointed in all the schools but they are not trained. Moreover, they lack enthusiasm again due to delayed payments even up to four to six months. Moreover, they demand that their remuneration should be increased and provided on time to them.

Cooks should be appointed in schools on permanent basis. According to schools, only those cooks should be appointed in the schools that have some degree in cooking. They must be fully trained in cooking Under MDM schemes, schools are provided gas cylinders for cooking foods. Schools are facing the problem of shortage of gas cylinders.

Moreover, in most of schools the delivery of gas cylinders is not easily available. They have to cover long distance and pay more fright for getting gas cylinders. In some schools, gas cylinders have been stolen or there is a fear of stealing of gas cylinders. Due to these problems, the schools do not prefer to use gas cylinders for making food. Although the government has banned the use of cow dungs, firewood etc. due to their ill-effects but still most of schools are using this firewood and cow dung paste for making food because these are easily available. Less cost is involved in their procurement. The main disadvantage of using firewood is health problems to cooks and children.

In majority of schools, utensils are not provided to children for eating. Children bring their own utensils from their homes. Half an hour is not sufficient for distribution of food to the children. More time is involved which results into negative impact on studies. Hence there is wastage of time in washing the utensils after fooding.

Moreover, time span for fooding is very little. The government should provide utensils to schools authorities for serving the food to children. Cooking utensils are also inadequate in many schools. The most liked dish of the menu was Karri Chawal followed by Dal Chawal. Sweet rice was least liked by the students in almost all the schools and needs to be replaced with salty rice in the menu.

Alternatively curd should be provided with the sweet rice. Children insist that there must be some alteration in food menu. According to them, Rajma-chawal, Cheese, Dalia, fruits, green vegetables, Salty rice, curd etc should be added in the menu. The government should also make alteration in the food menu after considering the preferences of children or school authority may be permitted to change the menu according to local conditions.

Eurasia Review, 28 January 2012

PRINCETON, N.J., Jan 29, 2012 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX) — An enthusiastic reception from students of all ages, parents and educators across the globe has propelled the online educational portal, TellyQuiz.com a product of VIHO LLC (New Jersey, USA based Software Development Company), into the forefront of web-based academia. Designed to supplement student learning and foster scholastic success, TellyQuiz.com has enjoyed rapid expansion in global outreach since its 2011 debut.

When school is out, students log in to TellyQuiz.com to brush up their academic skills and expand their knowledge through self-assessment activities and interactive fun. The TellyQuiz team of qualified educators and topical experts has developed top-quality quizzes geared to grade level curricula as well as dozens of tutorials targeting a gamut of academic topics.

Since its online launch last year, TellyQuiz has received international approbation with an infusion of student participants that continues to surpass the company’s expectations. The TellyQuiz breakthrough educational technology has been the topic of discussions in online forums worldwide and the subject of ongoing interest from larger educational institutions and investors.

TellyQuiz provides interactive learning experiences that keep kids focused on improving their classroom skills and expanding their knowledge in a fun atmosphere of competitive comradery. TellyQuiz welcomes a wide range of students to a free, easy to navigate environment optimized for learning fun. Once they log on, visitors in all grade levels discover new depths of knowledge and new friends that bring them back time and again.

To date, TellyQuiz.com offers over 300 online quizzes spanning all academic subject areas that are tailored for their appropriate grade levels. With dozens of academic categories, plus special sections for students preparing for the GRE, SAT, and GMAT exams, there really is something for every visitor at TellyQuiz.com.

When students sign in to TellyQuiz.com, they can choose from Quiz Room, Play Quiz with Friends, Jokes, Quotes and Inspiration, Facts, Tutorials, Learning Center and Maths Worksheet. No matter the category they click on, they will be greeted with an impressive but easy to navigate menu of topics. They select what they would like to work on during their visit, and they are free to explore materials from other grade levels. No one is limited to working within a pre-determined curriculum.

Part of the fun of the TellyQuiz experience is that each student can select items of interest and learn about them as extensively as they choose, then test themselves on their newly gained expertise. Whether visitors’ current interests run to computer programming or creative writing, they can expand and test their knowledge on TellyQuiz.

Scholastic Skill and Character Building for Children Worldwide

Unique among online education applications, TellyQuiz is the creation of Gauthaman Thangaraju, a software developer originally from India whose recognition of gaps in the Indian private educational system inspired him to explore new avenues for bridging them. By giving kids powerful tools to supplement their school experiences, he hopes to improve the academic achievements of children everywhere.

Thangaraju’s additional recognition that schools do not always adequately address children’s ethical training is another key component of his TellyQuiz philosophy. His belief that the purpose of educating children is not only to impart knowledge but to nurture those values essential to ethical living is evident throughout the TellyQuiz site in the form of inspiration, humor, and quotations from international leaders in many disciplines.

Armed with a concept and a self-imposed mandate to bring better scholastic and character-building activities to school children across the globe, Thangaraju enlisted the services of a staff of rural educators in Dindugal, Tamil Nadu, India. They formulated a series of questions geared toward grade two through grade 12 curricula that became the original quizzes for the TellyQuiz educational website. These teachers established the groundwork for what has become a leading educational portal in India, the U.S., and internationally.

With an intuitive, artful blend of academic and character building features such as inspirational excerpts, videos, and jokes, today’s TellyQuiz.com is a kid-friendly venue where the pursuit of knowledge leads to fun interaction, friendly quiz competitions, and most importantly, academic excellence. The success of this educational web portal can be measured in terms of the rapid growth of the thriving TellyQuiz.com community.

What began as a labor of love for Gauthaman Thangaraju has gained momentum with school children, their teachers and their parents on an international scale, with more subscribers each day attesting to the popularity of TellyQuiz.com. With rapid growth come plans for continued expansion as well as opportunities for superior returns on investor capital.

Well-researched and age-appropriate TellyQuiz content provides kids with fun ways to bolster their knowledge and character while fine-tuning their test taking strategies. The welcoming, non-threatening TellyQuiz.com environment encourages students to progress at their own pace while learning what it takes to be successful in their school careers as well in as their future professional lives.

The Wall Street Journal, 29 January 2012

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) is all set to corner the Congress party with its demands relating to four pieces of legislation which influence their welfare and development.

The AIMPLB has for long been demanding that the madarsas be kept out of the Right to Education (RTE) Act. They have also been demanding amendments to the Waqf Act, Direct Taxes Code Bill, and the Zamindari Abolition Act, the last to ensure equal status for women in distribution of property. The Board’s campaign at the time of the UP poll could spell serious electoral trouble for the Congress.

Zafaryab Jilani, member of AIMPLB, told DNA on Saturday that the Board would take up these issues at its meeting on Sunday in Farrukhabad, which happens to be Union law minister Salman Khursheed’s constituency. His wife Louise is contesting the assembly poll here. Jilani said similar meetings to highlight these issues would soon be organised in Rae Bareli (Sonia Gandhi’s constituency) and Amethi which is represented by Rahul Gandhi.

Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh has tried to allay the Muslims’ discomfort in this regard by assuring that the Centre was ready to keep madarsas out of the purview of the RTE Act. He has also said that the UPA government was willing to consider the other demands also. “But these issues should not be politicised,” he told reporters here recently.

However, the AIMPLB is not satisfied. “All we have been getting are assurances from the Congress. Now we will take the matter to the people,” he said. “When Salman Khursheed’s promises on these issues have come to nothing, how do you expect us to believe Digvijay Singh. We are not willing to be fooled anymore,” he said resentfully.

Daily News and Analysis, 29 January 2012

Howard Gardner, founder of the theory of ‘multiple intelligences’ is in India. A professor of cognitive psychology at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, 30 years ago, Gardner brought about a radical change in the way the world looked at classroom learning. It redefined intelligence in a way that was not only revolutionary, but also an eye-opener.

A world that was used to treating intelligences as a singular conglomerate – the presence or absence of it determining a child’s intelligence – was sensitised to a definition, a ‘set’ of criteria for what counts as an intelligence and data that supports the plausibility of ‘each’ individual intelligence.

As far as multiple intelligences is concerned, how does a teacher identify a student’s strengths? First, Gardner advises teachers to take students to a children’s museum a few times (or to a playground with multiple games) and watch them. This will complement what you observe in class, he says.

Secondly, he suggests, students, their parents, and if possible their last year’s teacher, be given a questionnaire about their strengths. To the extent that all three report the same strengths and weaknesses, teachers are on a safe ground. “I don’t trust self reports unless they are corroborated,” he adds.

SLOT PLOT

If you know that somebody is going to be a great dancer when they are five, should you create culture palaces where they just learn to dance? Gardner says, “It is a value judgment. A scientist can’t tell you what to do. If you want your country to win the Olympics, you may choose to put every five-year-old who is a good racer in a school where you just do racing. But, if you have a different value system, maybe you should not put people into pigeon holes when they are five.” Gardner reiterates his theory can reinforce the idea that individuals have many talents that can be of use to society; that a single measure is inappropriate for determining graduation, etc; and that important materials can be taught in many ways, thereby activating a range of intelligences.

On the future of learning, Gardner says that digital media has brought about a revolution. “Today , not only can people learn at home with their device, but learning has the scope to be more individualised . Also, there are many ways to teach and learn. That is where multiple intelligences have opened things up,” he adds.

The ‘Howard Gardner India Tour’ is being hosted by iDiscoveri Education, an education innovation company focussed on learning and leadership.

The Times of India, 30 January 2012

In the year 2000, the international community signed up to the Education for All and Millennium Development Goals. Currently the two most infl uential frameworks in the field of education, they are an ambitious roadmap for the global community to follow, offering a longterm vision of reduced poverty and hunger, better health and education, sustainable lifestyles, strong partnerships and shared commitments.
Worldwide, more people than ever before are bene ting from an education. Over 1.5 billion children and youth are enrolled in kindergartens, primary and secondary schools and universities. Click here to read more

UNESCO, 2011