Abstract of the paper by AFRC at the International Conference

Literacy and Communication

–The innovative experiment

Abstract of the paper presented at the International Conference, St.Teresa`s College, Kochi

Introduction

Wayanad is a backward district of Kerala, with less educational and related developmental activities. Majority of the population belongs to tribal communities and the rest are farmers .Since educational institutions here are less equipped to tackle language and communication requirements of students, it is the need of the hour to take a look at the problems faced by students, teachers, linguistic  and communication trainers of the district.

Complications

Most students in Wayanad belong to poor families with less educated parents.  Language is taught as a means to achieve better marks and grade, not as a life changing tool. Many high school students don’t know how to read and write properly. Since there is no good language base for the majority, students lack confidence and as a result they fail to make use of the language. They are deprived of effective communication skills training too.

Solutions

The project Leadershi Village YLP founded by Laila Saein, Dr.sangeeth Varghese LSE and Anil Emage has been involved with various activities to uplift the standard of language , communication and leadership skills among the students of Wayanad. The main training tools applied are Living Library and Library On Wheels. Through Living Library students are introduced to various personalities across the world thus opening avenues for the students to interact and learn the language firsthand. Library on wheels is an activity organized by the children to spread reading habit among the village children. The project has a library of its own with books donated by IITs and well-wishers across the world . Tremendous improvements happened here after these activities. Students started to present papers in international seminars, they became blog writers and they started training each other. Leadership Village now fills the missing elements in the educational zone of Wayanad.

-Laila Saein, Anil Emage, AFRC Wayanad

Photo of the week > anil Emage

one of my favourite images

always pushes me ahead

the best lesson nature can give

"hope never dies"

Face Features News feed/The Hindu News

Photographed by Laila Saein

‘English relevant for job-seeking Keralites'
Staff Reporter KOCHI: Education Minister M. A. Baby inaugurated the two-day international conference on ‘multimodality, multilingualism, multiliteracies: new pedagogies for new times?' organised by the Department of English at St. Teresa's College here on Monday.
In his inaugural address, the Minister said that knowledge capital, which can be disseminated using education, will help in democratising the society. Mr. Baby pointed out that the government has been trying to improve the qualitative dimension of education. Mark Bickerton, Director of International Development, London Metropolitan University at UK, stressed the importance of language over theory. He said that English has a lot of relevance in a State like Kerala, where 30 per cent of the population seeks jobs in the Gulf countries.
Fiona Mary, Senior lecturer, TESOL and Applied Linguistics at the London Metropolitan University, UK, delivered the keynote address. Sr. Christabelle, Principal of St. Teresa's College; Renuka. S, Head of the English Department; Tim Marr, Principal lecturer in Applied Linguistics, London Metropolitan University; K. M. Prabhu, Associate Professor, Presidency College, Chennai; and Latha Nair. R, spoke.

Face Features News Feed/Indian ExpressNews

Meet on multilingualism begins

First Published : 25 Jan 2011 03:28:35 AM IST

Photographed by Laila Saein

KOCHI: The two day UGC sponsored international conference on 'Multimodality, multilingualism, multiliteracies: new pedagogies for new times', organised by the Department of English, St Teresa's College here in collaboration with London Metropolitan University, the UK, began here on Monday. Inaugurating the conference, Education Minister M A Baby said the State Government has been trying to improve the quality of education over the last five years.

He congratulated the team behind the conduct of the conference and added that the conference attempts to address an important dimension of higher education, in the light of the world having become a global village. Mark Bickerton, director, International Development, London Metropolitan University, the UK, stressed the importance of language over theory and added that the focus of the conference was not on grammar, but on helping young people communicate. Sr Christabelle, principal of St Teresa's College, spoke ?

Letters from Connecticut > Paul Lalley

• 

Icicles hang from the back side of the house.

 "The woods are lovely, dark and deep but I have miles to shovel before I sleep."

Let me speak > Laila Saein

A SWEET MEMORY OF CHAKKARAMITTAYI

Photographed by Laila Saein

              The festivals form part of each temple's annual rituals. They're often a tribute to the temple's residing God, who emerges from  the temple once a year. Each festival has a different set of legends and myths behind it, depending on the temple God.

         Now in Kerala the time of festivals has started.   From January to April, with each festival running for around 1o days.  Before the ustava villagers announce the arrival of the festival  by beating the drum accompanied by ‘komaram’. He proclaims the date of utsava after his frenzy.

        In my country side, near Feroke (, the legendary ruler Tippu Sultan has given the name Feroke.) the village called Nallur has a famous temple of lord Shiva. When Feburary starts ‘Komaram’, the possessed-dancers in temples comes with his big sword and anklet bells. When we hear the jingling sound of his girdle bells our mind fill with day dreams.  People bow their head in front of him for the blessing of God.  But children always are scared of him.  During my childhood when I see him I wouldn’t mind him, when he cut his forehead with his sword my eyes would fill with tears.

         After his frenzy children with coconut and jaggery, wait for the elephants to give their presents. Sometimes children would beg the Mahout to give a chance to chain the elephant in their land property. Then they could see the elegance of elephant always, moreover it was  a prestige issue  among village children to own an elephant for some days. There is another fantastic possibility:  to get a hair of elephant’s tale. We gave bribe to Mahout to get the hair that is good for night fever(wetting the bed).

            Each festival has a different array of legends and myths behind it, depending on the temple God. In my village Shiva is the strongest God. Morning we could see the village lasses come with basils in their hair.

    When the ‘Kodiyettam’, as a symbol of the commencement of a festival starts villagers are in full bloom. One of the festivals feature is the  large processions of bejeweled elephants, drummers and other musicians, colorful floats carrying gods and goddesses, and fireworks. The idol of the God in the temple is taken out on a procession around the country side atop this elephant. When the procession visits homes around the temple, people  usually present rice, coconuts, and other offerings to the God. Processions often include traditional music such as Panchari melam or
 Panchavadyam, drum etc.
                                                                     Photographed by Roshan YLP

         The landed property of the temple fills with the sellers  who sell  variety of types of balloons, colourful bangles, ribbons, and dolls. But the most attractive thing is the ‘chakkaramittayi’ a most delicious appam I ever had in my life made with jaggery and rice powder. Without the chakkaramittayi, we can’t even think of festivals .  Everywhere around the temple we could see temporary thatched sheds, from there flows the smells of food items. Big fire-hearth with stone ,people makes mittayi  in big frying pan. That ground, then seemed like painted with captivating and enchanting colors in midnight filled with the yellow light of hurricane lantern.

        During festival days we never think about the cast and creed. All days people get feast and’ payasam’ sitting together in one row and partake food. There we don’t think whether we are Hindus, Muslims, and Christians ……... We believe in unity. Festivals are a blend of humanity shadowed by hilarity.

Whispering reeds>Ramsheena YLP

Children of Koleri

T

his is Ramsheena. I got a golden chance to show my leadership skills in front of others. It was during x`mas vacation. There was six day camp in Koleri High School. Koleri is a small village. I couldn’t participate all the 6 days of training. I could participate only 3 days. But those three days were really valuable to me. That was revolution in a small Indian village where children are innocent and parents , mostly are poor. But without their support and the dedication of the headmistress Mrs.Theresa and Mr.Murali the camp couldn’t be success.

The students of the school, like any village school, were backward in communication, language and leadership. They were shy to stand in front of others. When we went there they were sitting calm and quiet. But within hours we make them energetic. They started to talk and do all activities.

At the night of the fifth day there was campfire. Really we rocked there. Within two days I felt an attachment to the village children. At the last day of the Leadership/Language/Communication camp we handed over prizes to the most improved students. Every student were really talented.

At this time I should remember the boy named Arjun. At the starting of the camp he was so silent

He was very shy to speak in front of others. But at the last days of the camp he became ery smart boy. Not only Arjun, but all the students improved a lot. That was what we expected. That was our victory. For YLPs me and Roshan, it was an unforgettable experience as were trainers there. I trained children of my own age and I am proud of it. I thank my trainers Anil Emage and Laila Saein and our Precious leadership Village YLP for this. Now I am a trainer and quite proud too.

Letters from Connecticut

Hi, Anil and Laila,

I have three feet of snow on my picnic table. Kids love it. They make snow men and go sledding. Adults have to shovel it to get around in their cars. Not fun.

Imagine walking through a million shredded ice cubes. That's snow and I've lived with it all my life. I'd like to move to a warmer climate but my wife loves her job.  So, we stay.

It took three days for the snow plow guy to get to our driveway. Imagine being stuck in the house for three days!

Of course, it's also beautiful to look at but cold. Very cold.

Attached is a picture of my picnic table after a storm two weeks ago. We got another 24 inches since that picture was taken. I think you'd like it for about 10 minutes.

All the best, and stay warm as we say in Connecticut,
Paul Lalley

I seek

Photo Poem - aEmage

I seek a shining nickel

among faded notes

I seek a tiny brick

among piled up rubble

I seek a beating heart

among frozen bodies

I seek thy face

among faceless masks

Leadership Village @ Koleri Govt. High School

Leadership Village YLP - Wayanad ,

along with Koleri Govt. High School organised a 6 day camp for the students of the school.

The training was focused in the areas of Leadership/Communication/Language

and the event was first of its kind in Wayanad District.

No school in the district has ever organse

a 6 day camp for leadership and

Communication

Children of Koleri Govt. High School

New Year gift for Village Library

Care
A column dedicated to thoughts and action of compassion

When Prof.krishnaveni of Mumbai IIT, who we never met  , decided to take all the pain to pack hundreds of valuable books for the children and youth of Wayanad she might not have thought that it would achieve the status of a rocket launch.

One good action kick starts another.

 When Leadcapper Vidyadhar , from Mumbai shipped two big packages to Wayanad, preperations were made to create the Leadership Library at Leadership Village.
On new years day we received a package consisiting of award winning Educational films , classic books and study materials from USA. Paul Lalley, writer and film maker, much impressed by the activities going on under the umbrella of Leadership Village Library took a great initiative to ship many useful books and films, invaluable for the leaders here.

Some of the titles we received::

Films- We All Get Wet
           A kids guide to personal behaviour
           Danger ahead:: Drugs
           Danger ahead:: Alcohol
           Simple choices, Hard choices
           Kids guide to self protection
           A first look at careers
Books::Pippi Longstockings
          ::Ramona Quimby age 8
          ::Children`s dictionary of occupations
          ::Frankenstein
          ::The wonderdful wizard of Oz
          ::Charlie and the chocolate factory
and many more.
*********************************************************

ATTENTION Village Library members.

Tomorrow will be a Library day and Pls visit with the books you have borrowed.

        

2011/Leadership Year is Here!!