Clean up for real

It’s time for direct action to save the heavily polluted Yamuna.

Earlier this year the National Green Tribunal had asked the Delhi Pollution Control Committee to shut 1,200 industrial units that were dumping untreated waste into Yamuna. But it’s not just industrial effluents that are poisoning and choking the river to death. Though Delhi produces 3,800 million litres of sewage per day, the city’s 23 sewage treatment plants can process only 40% of that. The rest flows directly into the Yamuna through rainwater drains. And this is the river that provides 70% of the national capital’s drinking water.

The environment disaster brewing in our rivers must be reversed forthwith. Think of it as an investment not only in the public health of citizens but in enhancing tourism as well. Once the Yamuna has been cleaned up Delhi’s river front can be made to bloom, like the Seine in Paris or Thames in London.

Coping with Challenges

Life is not a bed of roses. We always face ups and downs in our life. During our good times we enjoy life to its fullest. At times of challenges, troubles and failure of our hopes and aspirations start bothering us.

In the real sense, every challenge makes us stronger and confident if we accept it in a positive way. Never forget that each one of us is born with a talent. The need is to identify it. With introspection, you will find that you possess a unique personality with lots of abilities. God has blessed you with brain and power. Always use them wisely. Few things are always beyond our control. It is controlled by the almighty. He tests our patience, hard work and determination from time to time.

Every failure teaches us a better way to deal with problems and every problem has a solution. The need is to accumulate our strength and start believing in ourselves. Always keep an optimistic attitude towards life. Gradually, we would find that every problem settles down with the passage of time just like our mind and body have the capacity to heal and rejuvenate.

National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico

It is known for world-famous repository of some 600,000 art and other objects relating to the country

§  Founded in 1825, the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico is known for world-famous repository of some 600,000 art and other objects relating to the country.

§  In 1964, the museum moved to a modern new building that housed a school, a library of some 300,000 volumes, a film archive, and public auditoriums.

§  Located in Chapultepec Park in Mexico City, the museum houses significant archaeological and anthropological artefacts from the country’s pre-Columbian heritage, such as the Stone of the Sun and the 16^th- century Aztec Xochipilli statue.

Interesting Facts

§  It contains artefacts from the Olmec and Mayan civilisations. The museum extensively traces the lives of people of Olmec and Mayan civilisations with rare artefacts.

§  The giant colossal heads at the museum are a unique feature of the Olmec civilisation. These heads portray mature men with fleshy cheeks, resembling physical characteristics still common among the inhabitants of Tabasco and Veracruz, the Mexican states, which at once were dominated by the Olmec civilisation 3,000 years ago, with its height around 800 BC.

§  The Olmec were the oldest Mesoamerican culture which dominated areas in what are now the states of Mexico, Guerrero, Oaxaca, Veracruz and Tabasco as well as parts of Central America, and considered to be the founding culture for all of Mesoamerica.

Unique Features

§  Among other most important features of the museum is the ‘Stone of the Sun’, an Aztec stone calendar dating back to the 1400s. In 1792, two years after the stone’s unearthing, Mexican anthropologist Antonio de León y Gama wrote a treatise on the Aztec calendar using the stone as its basis. He concluded that some of the circles of glyphs for the days of the month, and some of the symbols may represent the five ages that the Mexican people believed the earth had passed through.

§  The museum houses impressive statues of Aztec goddesses and a remarkable miniature model of Aztec capital Tenochtitlan, long since replaced by present-day Mexico City.

§  One of the most valuable pieces is a ‘Monkey Cup’ made of black obsidian. The ancient Mexicans did not have access to diamonds, carving an entire cup with the form of a monkey on it and polishing it was not an easy task. Some scientists say it took generations t create such a piece.

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Statue of Tlaloc, also called the great goddess of water, considered an important deity in Aztec religion. He was worshipped as a beneficent giver of life and sustenance.

Standing for six hours can cut obesity risk

People who stand for at least one-quarter of their day may have a significant lower likelihood of obesity, a new study has claimed. While sedentary behaviour such as watching TV and commuting time has been linked to negative health effects, it is unclear whether more time spent standing has protective health benefits. A research team led by Dr Kerem Shuval, Director of Physical Activity & Nutrition Research at the American Cancer Society, examined reported standing habits in relation to objectively measured obesity and metabolic risk among more than 7,000 adult patients attending the Cooper Clinic in Dallas, Texas for preventive medicine visits from 2010 to 2015. Specifically, the association between standing time and obesity was determined through three measures: body mass index (BMI), body fat percentage, and waist circumference. The association between standing and metabolic risk was assessed via metabolic syndrome, a clustering of risk factors that increase the risk factors for heart diseases, stroke and diabetes. The study carried found that among men, standing a quarter of the time was linked to a 32% reduced likelihood of obesity (body fat percentage).

Act on terror

Global community must undertake united efforts to fight the menace

The G20 summit in Turkey was understandably overshadowed by the horrific terror strikes in Paris, forcing world leaders to push any economic agenda to the background. There were resolute assertions that all nations needed to unite to defeat the terror menace before it was too late.

There’s no denying the fact that the Islamic State (IS), terror group responsible for the Paris massacre, has exploited weaknesses in the global order to emerge as a threat to the entire world. It has not only preyed upon sectarian rivalries in the Middle East to carve out its so-called caliphate, but has also leveraged differences between major powers to expand its footprint. Take for example the situation in Syria. Hitherto, differences over Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have seen the US and its Sunni Arab allies take an opposite position to that of Russia and Iran, even though both camps claim to be fighting IS.

This has only made sure the military operations against the terror group lack focus. Against this backdrop, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has done well to call for early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism. This would include clearly defining terrorism, isolating states and actors that support it and delinking religion and terrorism. In fact, the biggest impediment to fighting terrorism in its current transnational form has been the use of terror groups by certain states for strategic gains. Unless this is stopped and a uniform approach to all terror groups-irrespective of their ideological hue-implemented, the menace will continue to spread.

Weaving values in curriculum

It is a challenge, in the present time, to develop virtues such as honesty, respect, humility, courage and generosity in our children. Over the years, parents are asking us how to help their children develop good human values like empathy, responsibility and gratitude.

The point of contention is- Can teachers redesign education to enable our children to hold themselves back when everyone else is mindlessly running in an undeclared race, introspect, think, own the concerns, empathise, analyse, express and take action.

Practical Approach

Preaching and nagging are out of question as they won’t serve any purpose. Children need to not only connect with this reconstructed educational design but also own and propagate it amongst their peers. So it has to be child-friendly, relevant in a contemporary way, ‘cool’ and interesting.

This ‘different’ kind of concept in education emerges from the premise that values cannot be taught, but they may be thoughtfully woven in the entire curriculum and the climate of the school so that children may grasp the values in action all around them and acquire a purposeful vision. Each curricular aspect of this moral construct must lead has to be interlinked – which may range from every morning in school beginning with motivational songs, inspirational audio-visual sessions followed by reflection, integration of values in curriculum, values interspersed in academic concepts, meaningful films, role play activities, gender sensitivity programme, inspiring personality project, positively stimulating class presentations, music, dance, drama, open house, self discipline through class discussions, school activities, community singing, regular counselling, peer educators, group leaders, community outreach programme, practicum in simplicity and minimalistic approach and responsibility towards environment. After all, children learn the most valuable lessons of life beyond textbooks and classrooms. 

Redefining role of teachers

Children are born illiterate. They are ignorant of the prevailing norms and achievement of the community in which they have been pushed into. With the right to educational environment they grow in to responsible citizens. Children, right from infancy go through a continual learning phase. A mind is an empty cabinet; it is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.

As educators, their endeavour is to shape students into good human beings with moral values that are necessary to lead a healthy life. Teacher’s prime responsibility is to provide a safe environment and holistic education for the overall development of children. Hence, education has to be student-centric to meet the needs of today’s competitive world.

The traditional approach of lecture and note taking has lost its effectiveness as the modern day. Experimental teaching is the need of the hour. Teacher has to make the learning process enjoyable with subject-based classrooms and smart classes. Students can interact, understand and remember things very easily as these are innovative where visuals have more impact than just reading. The use of technology supports flexibility and choice in curriculum. Classrooms with pads and tablets provide children with an extraordinary learning opportunity. Technology has revolutionised the education sector and paved way for new models of learning. With changing content resources and teaching methods, there is focus on greater involvement on the part of students.

Parents play an important role as primary educators. Both parents and teachers together would be able to make the education holistic and complete. The importance of support system that a student gets from home is equally important as his brain power, work ethics and genetics which all work in the accomplishment of his goal in life.

Is our education effective?

The world of technology touches every part of our lives. The resources available online provide each classroom with more interesting and diverse learning materials. Technologies have increased educational productivity by enhancing the rate of learning and reducing costs associated with instructional material.

Learners First

Student-centred instruction is based on the elimination of traditional teaching practice. The teaching learning process operates on collaboration rather than teachers taking a high seat. Conversation can occur between the teacher and the taught when homework replaces a lot of classroom activities, when learning is based on mutual respect and quest for knowledge. Involving students in conversation about their learning will not only boost up their confidence but they will be able to assess their work critics.

However hard we may try, our schools and colleges are not at par with international standards. We have not yet weaned ourselves or deviated ourselves from the patterns of education introduced by the colonial masters. Rote learning still plagues our system, students study only to score marks in exams, and sometimes to crack exams like IIT JEE, AIIMS, PMT, CAT or MAT. There are very few centres of educational excellence. Our educational institutions do not meet even the minimum standard. Focus on skill based education, inculcation of original and critical thinking, emphasis on research and innovation, involving smarter teachers , redefining the purpose of the education system, providing personalise education, etc are some of the steps which may enhance the standard of education in India.

Apart from providing financial security, parents provide emotional support and security to their wards. As prime educators, schools can also fulfil the role of the parents. If the schools provide a homelike ambience away from home, obviously they are fulfilling the role of parents. The school must realise that each personality handed over to them has special needs.