Teaching at Public Schools in India

Teaching at Public Schools in India

Why & how we do it?

Volunteering at district schools by collaborating with Teach For India.
The entire curriculum is divided based on the language used.
I volunteered in Hyderabad in a school in New Bowenapally, every grade is divided into 3 modes:

  • English medium, where all subjects are taught in English
  • Telugu, the regional state language
  • Hindi medium.

Each class usually consists of 60 odd kids.
I taught English and Science to Grade VII kids. On average a Grade VII child is about 14 years old, kids in these schools are older than the average due to constant dropping out of school and re-admission in another one.
I taught English by engaging the class in healthy competitive activities. Participation in class rose as everyone wanted to chip in. This helped most of the students be engaged and enjoy the class. Later, I started tailoring my approach to student's individual needs. Science inherently is an experimental subject.
With the help of youtube videos and quizzes, I taught science by linking instances from their daily life to the concepts being taught.
Overall development of the child is of utmost importance. Most kids are shy and easily hold back on trusting a volunteer, who teaches a few subjects for a couple of days and leaves.
I experimented with the help of a camera, capturing their classroom activities and extracurricular talents. They were quick to get comfortable, as we all connected on the common grounds of social media- Instagram and Tik Tok. This quickly graduated to classroom teachings, where examples and fun activities like quizzes were planned using instagram and tik tok as mediums.

Impact Created

    To conclude with, the initiative achieved a multifold impact:
  • Helped students with quick and thorough understanding of concepts with the help of interactive videos and games, and healthy classroom discussions.
  • Encouraged the concept of empathy, to inculcate an attitude of non-violence, so as to prevent kids from physically fighting with each other.
  • Helped boost the self confidence of students by broadcasting their talents on social media. It really helped that strangers from across the globe praised them.
  • We encouraged talents like beat boxing, acrobatic moves, dancing and solving rubik's cube which then gives them a direction to a better future.
  • A student of mine was inspired and decided to collect funds and blankets to help out over 40 homeless people on the streets of Hyderabad in the winter.