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Written by Prof Kamala Mukunda, the book titled, What did you ask at school today is a practical guide on educational psychology for teachers working within the Indian system of education. “We place far too much importance on rote learning and very little on conceptual learning. This needs to change. Given the modern day challenges that the children face, our educational system needs to change with the times. We need to equip them with the right tools with regard to academics, work and emotional pressures at different levels,” said Kamala.
“While we cannot do away with exams or classrooms, we can be more creative and sensitive to the way we teach and assess our kids,” she added.
The book was launched by Dr Shekar Sheshadri, additional professor at the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Department at NIMHANS.
“It is important for a child to learn not just his lessons at school but effective ways to deal with life and society. Exams have become dreaded and stressful exercises when in reality they should be joyous milestones reached in a learning curve. We also need to change the way we view and interpret results and the method in which we conduct our exams. We can and must be innovative in teaching and inspire our children to learn, and not just memorise,” he said.
“There are many dedicated teachers who have their own theories based on big names in education like Piaget, Montessori, Steiner and others. But while these have importance, there is also absolutely no truth in education as we are dealing with children who are unique and individualistic. Thus there will always be situations where these theories will not work so the teacher needs to be open minded, flexible and innovative,” added Kamala.
“Children need to be taught how to deal with moral and ethical dilemmas that they will inevitably face in life. Marks are not of sole importance when a person is not emotionally and mentally strong and balanced,” opined Shekar Sheshadri.
The book is written in a simple style containing simple yet effective ways of making learning in the classroom and at home a flexible and enjoyable process. It also has lots of practical tips both for the teacher and parent to adapt in their teaching methods.