18 Dec 2017-22 Dec 2017|Noida | Amity campus, Saket
Faculty Development Program on the Theme “5 Cs’of Discovering one’s potential as an Educator: Commitment, Competence, Compassion, Coherence for Outcome and Output, and Communication"
Amity Institute of Education, New Delhi (AIE,ND) under the guidance and inspiration from our Founder President, Dr. Ashok KChauhan, organised a five day long Faculty Development programme (FDP) on thetheme “5 Cs’of Discovering one’s potential as an Educator: Commitment,Competence, Compassion, Coherence for Outcome and Output, and Communication”from 18th Dec- 22nd Dec 2017.
The FDP was inaugurated by Dr. Ranjana Bhatia,Principal cum Director, Amity Institute of Education, New Delhi and Mrs. ArtiChopra, Principal, Amity International School, Sector 46 Gurgaon.
In her welcome address Dr. Ranjana Bhatiashared with all the origin of the topic which was from the inspiring quotesshared by our respected Founder President Sir during his interactions with allthe staff members of the Amity Universe.
The first day of theprogram was regarding the first C – Commitment. The expert for the day wasMs. Arti Chopra, Principal, Amity International School, Sec 46, Gurgaon. Theprogram started with a simple introduction on what commitment reallymeans. And why is it important. Ms.Chopra defined Commitment as the act of binding yourself to a course of action.It rests on three main ideas: giving the best of one self, going the extramile, and not abandoning the situation where you find yourself in. One of thequalities of trust – an essential element to building and maintainingproductive relationships – is dependability. Commitment is the little engine ofdependability. There are three types of commitment – Cause, Challenge andPeople. Everyone is committed to a certain cause that they strongly believe inor a challenge, that they want to conquer or other people in their lives. Inorder to achieve this, it requires balancing two behaviors – Supporting andImproving.
The session wasconducted via several activities, fun games and open discussion. The purpose ofall these activities was to help us understand the importance of commitment andhow trust plays the foundation of it all. The day ended with a beautiful songsung by all – “We shall overcome” (Hum Hongi Kamyab) reflecting on the topic ofthe day. It was a wonderful experience for everyone present. The session made theparticipants realize that as an Educator it’s truly important to fully commit oneselfwith our job of nurturing the future generation. It’s important to commit notout of obligation but out of passion. It is our commitment that transforms a promise,which we make as teachers, to reality.
The second dayof the faculty development program was on the topic “Competence”. Competence is possessing skill andknowledge that allows us to do something successfully. Our competence usuallyincreases over time as we acquire more information and ability through inquiry,observation, and participation. The program had a discussion upon how a teachercan enhance her competence using Educational Technology, and how ICT can beused for the same purpose.
It was taken by Dr. Aerum Khan, Asst. Prof., Central Institute ofEducational Technology, NCERT. She has worked upon development and management of the National Repository of OpenEducational Resources, Academic coordination of ePathshala of UGC in'Education' and providing training to teachers across the levels for ICTinterventions.
The session focused on the importance of openeducational resources, their creation, identification and usage for expandingthe horizons of effective teaching and better learning. Also, it made us awarethat NCERT’s website showcases many repositories which can be used by theteachers, such as e-Pathshala which is an app resource, allowing access to thetextbooks, information and other repositories, resources can be submitted by uson this website and after evaluation it is uploaded.
Dr. Aerum threw light upon the factthat content taken by the internet can be impermissible to use, the resourceswhich are open, free and access to usage has license specification below thecontent. This license work is done by Creative Commons which is an institutionwhich provide licenses for the content to be published.
Though the program was an array of information, themost important information delivered was that the online courses can be provedvery effective, contributing to the enhancement of the competency. Thesecourses are operated via platforms like Moodle and Swayam by MHRD, Govt. ofIndia. These online courses are for various domains and standards.
The entire session was very informative. It was anencouragement for all. The information provided can be used by the teachers forthe increment of teaching-learning process either in developing lessons plansor in using readily available resources safely. It was a learning experiencefor varied class of people sitting. Also a variety of textbooks and materialwhich is available on the site is like a treasure trunk for teachers, educatorsand yes the learners.
The theme for the thirdday of the Faculty Development Program was Compassion. This is a wordfor a very positive emotion that has to do with being thoughtful. Dr. RanjanaBhatia, Principal cum Director, Amity Institute of Education, Saket, was theexpert for the day and enlightened the participants about the topic by sharing herlife experiences related to being compassionate.
The session began withan activity, where everyone closed their eyes and were asked to think about theperson who had hurt them the most. The participants were then guided throughmeditation to forgive that person so that they could obtain positive vibesthrough this activity. This thought process helped lessen negativity from thehearts and fill it with positivity.
Further, the termcompassion was defined as:
C – Caring forthose who are hurt
O – Open yourheart to those in need
M – Make time tolisten to those in sorrow
P – Pass onkindness to others
A – Actionsspeak louder than words
S – Smile
S – Sympathize
I – Includethose who are left out
O – Offer help
N – Necessaryfor world
These attributes ofcompassion were highlighted by the speaker. They were: Sensitivity, Sympathy,Distress, Tolerance, Care for Well Being, Non-Judgment, and Empathy. Eachattribute was explained by various examples. The difference between Sympathyand Empathy was also very informative and helpful. To be compassionate towardsothers, one must be sensitive towards others emotions. The speaker also quotedthe words of Mother Teresa “If you are judgmental, you will have no time forlove.”
Then the speaker shedsome light on how to be a compassionate teacher by exploring compassion andtalking to the students about compassion. A teacher can also read stories aboutcompassionate people and engage children in various activities which willdevelop the feeling of being compassionate.
Towards the end of thesession, the participants were divided into four groups of five members ineach. They were given newspapers and were then asked to cut any six charactersand write different emotions for each of the characters. Each group performedthe activity, after which the participants depicted each emotion and the othersguessed it.
Thesecond part of the activity was to narrate a story by cutting down differentcharacters from the newspaper. Each group performed the activity with fullenthusiasm and zeal. Even we as teachers can use these activities in ourclassrooms to generate the feeling of compassion among our students andinculcate such good qualities in them.
The fourth dayof the FDP was dedicated to the sub theme of Coherence of Output and Outcome and was taken by Dr. G. N. Tiwari,Associate Prof., Amity Institute of Education, Amity University Uttar Pradesh,Noida. The session started with the explanation of the roots of the topic i.e.,meaning of COHERENCE, OUTPUT and OUTCOME. There has been a lot of confusion inthe understanding of these terms.
As explained, COHERENCE means the logical andsystematic connection between two or more terms to draw meaningful conclusion.Example of PUZZLES was stated that each part of the puzzle fits into each otherperfectly with adequate coherence. Coherence as stated is a situation whereparts of something fit in a natural and reasonable way. No forceful activityshould take place in a coherent situation. Fitting of key in a lock perfectlyis an example of a coherent situation. To produce the desired results, anyactivity should be coherent in nature and one should be able to draw a logicaland meaningful conclusion out of a coherent activity/situation.
OUTPUTand OUTCOME are two different termsthat are relatable in nature but hold significant meanings. The participantsunderstanding of these terms was taken into consideration and thereafter theterms were extensively explained. OUTPUTis a product. It means what has been done to achieve a goal. OUTCOME means impact or the differencemade in a person/course through an intended activity.
As explained, there arefew levels of a result chain.
1. Input
2. Process
3. Output
4. Outcome
5. Impact
Weplan in accordance to the expected outcome. Outcome is more important thanoutput and output can be easily measured. A single outcome is more importantthan too many outputs.
After the desiredexplanation of the terms, an hour activity was conducted amongst theparticipants where 5 groups were made and a situation was given to all i.e., SMART BOARD INSTALLATION IN A SCHOOLand they had to devise the outcomes and the outputs of such a situation. Everygroup assigned their leader and gave a presentation differentiating outcomesand outputs of installing a smartboard in a school, emphasizing on the process,the desired changes to be brought in the teaching-learning experiences and theultimate impact of the same. The material was provided to the participants andevery group prepared a colourful chart reflecting their understanding of theterms OUTCOME and OUTPUT in accordance to the given situation.
Overall, theparticipants were greatly impressed with the teaching style of the expert ofthe day as to how he made the day so enthralling and interactive for theparticipants. The topic was related well to the educational aspect and thepracticality of the topic was discussed too. It was ensured that everyparticipant was enthusiastic throughout and the doubts were cleared. Apart fromthe understanding of the topic, the participants also learned new techniques ofteaching a concept in an innovative way so that it is retained by the studentsfor a longer time. The meaning of coherence, outcome and output shall remainclear and intact in the minds of the participants forever!
The fifth and thelast day of the FDP was centered on “COMMUNICATION”. The resource personfor the day was Mrs. Gauri D. Chakraborty Joint Acting Head, Amity School ofCommunication, Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Noida.
The session startedwith an activity in which all the participants were asked to move around thehall and on listening the sound of bell they were supposed to greet each otherbut in a non-conventional way. Through this activity Ms. Chakraborty made apoint that one should think beyond the obvious and language is not always afriend, i.e. even gestures can convey plenty of emotions while communicating.
Another important pointthat grasped everyone’s attention was that content to be delivered by a teacheris homogenous. It is the same old curriculum that has to be taught again andagain because neither we can change the formulas nor the concepts, so what canbe altered is the method of imparting knowledge. A teacher should use tactiletechniques for explaining the conventional concepts. As an example-the conceptof trigonometry can be explained by showing its practical applications inbuilding of monuments like Taj Mahal. A good teacher is a game changer and notany other ant in the trail of lethargic educators.
Some additional pointsdiscussed included student centered education instead of teacher centerededucation because the former one is interactive while the latter isauthoritative. A teacher should never shout in the class for attention rathervoice modulation is a better option as per the demand of the situation. Eveneye contact can serve the purpose. Art is one form which improves theexpression of an individual. Everybody must practice some form of art or theother like dancing, painting, reading. Some breathing exercises were alsoconducted to improve our vocal skills.
There was a briefdiscussion on Guru Shishya Parampara which has being practiced in India sinceages. Money cannot buy emotions and they can be developed only when two peoplecommunicate with each other and this is what exactly guru shishya parampara isall about. With the changing time modern techniques can be blended withtraditional wisdom to cater to the needs of the society.
Participants gained a lot from the infectious energyand enthusiasm of the resource person and realized through the interactionsthat having good communication skills and displaying them are significant forones profession. The whole session was full of humour and active participationby one and all.
Post the last session, the participants reflectedupon the learning gained and the experiences received during the FDP andthanked Amity Institute of Education, New Delhi for meticulously organizing theprogramme which richly added to their cognitive and soft skills as teachereducators and teachers.
In the end Dr.Ranjana Bhatia along with the FDP coordinator Mrs. Puneet Rahi, Asst. Prof.AIE, ND thanked all the resource personsand the participants for attending the FDP so religiously everyday and forhelping AIE, New Delhi in achieving this success.