The journey continues…..on the run!

How deluded we are, those of us who set the clock 10 minutes ahead, so that we can get to a place on time. It is the same kind of delusion that, after coloring one's hair, allows us to believe that the person staring back at us in the mirror is ten years younger! And the recipe for disaster? Attend a BITSAA event where you take a trip down memory lane; meet friends after twenty-five years. Allow them to convince you that you have not changed one bit in all these years! And then, full of nostalgia and the heady spirit of the evening, accept an open invitation from Vignesh to be part of the Chennai leg of BITS2Marathon the following morning!

And so it came to pass, that on what would have been an otherwise lazy Sunday, I was up at about 5.30 AM and dashing off to Marina, to be part of a motley group of runners. I did have a few fleeting moments of misgiving – those early hours of dawn when they say your head is at its clearest. Did I really want to go and test the limits of my already weak knee? But, I had mentally committed myself to this. Well, I can always stop at the slightest discomfort, I reasoned. And it was in that frame of mind that I landed up in front of a bunch of really eager runners!

I was glad for company – there was Ravi of the '75 batch who made me feel young again; and KKB of the '86 batch, who had ragging not been banned, might have run the risk of getting ragged - being mistaken for a fresher. How fit he was, we came to realize when he ran the 10K stretch with effortless ease, and then went on to cycle back home – a good 15 km away, while I staggered back into the car, grateful for a Sunday traffic, that did not require me to keep my legs pressed on the clutch for long periods!

We decided to run on the inner road adjacent to the beach, which thanks to the new enforcement was bereft of the beach cricket teams – I really miss them. BK had taken the effort to measure and mark out the 5KM route, which meant that we would be running from near the Lighthouse right up to Napier's bridge and back. The threesome who had planned to do the 10K run, got off to a brisk start followed by the rest of us. I discovered that 2.5 km can be really long when you have to cover that distance on foot! When I figured out I could not see the end of the road, I settled down to a more easy pace of one step at a time…one foot after the other…and remember not to land heavily on your left foot! Well, like the story of the tortoise, I can actually claim to have overtaken Vignesh at the end of 2.5 Km!!! I'll let him explain how! J

If there is one person who definitely needs to be thanked (apart from those who helped organize this event, of course), it is Suman, who very cheerfully, cycled up and down and made sure none of us felt dehydrated. The run back to base was far easier, as I drew comfort from actually being able to see the finishing point. As I looked up and saw the lighthouse, I allowed myself to be tricked into thinking that I was almost at the end of the run, and therefore need not stop for a breather! I must say, that really worked well for me!!! J After all, if one illusion can trick you into this run…why not use another to finish it manfully!!!

And so friends – I did it!!! After almost twenty years, I actually did something other than walk on a treadmill! And completed a five kilometer run! Of course, I'm dragging myself to office this morning! I have become aware of muscles in the body that I did not know existed – all of them vie for my attention – equally! Yet, I'm glad I got out there and did it! Conquered my paranoia about the knee!!! And actually enjoyed every moment of the run. Thanks Vignesh! And everyone else who helped organize this! And to KKB, the only familiar face – and the exaggerated stories to make my huge effort look quite normal!!! J

I was amazed to see mails pouring in from all parts of the world! And the kind of amazing response this has generated! But obviously - proud to be a BITSian! Anyone want to convince me about going the full distance?!! J

Independence Day celebration

It was a long weekend and I happened to be spending it at my in-laws' house in Lakkidi, Thrissur district. For those of you unfamiliar with the name, this place is about 25 kilometres from Palghat town and is famous as the home of some literary greats of Kerala – including Kunchan Nambiar. This is also famous for the Sri Rama temple at Thiruvilvamala, and more importantly for Aivar madom – a temple where you perform the last rites to propitiate the soul of your deceased family members.

And like the rest of much of Kerala that I have seen, this is a place that is soothing for the eyes with its verdant landscape, traditional "nalukettu" houses, and pretty women!!! And with practically no industry to speak of, Kerala is an idyllic place – one that has an absolutely calming effect on the mind and soul.

And so it was here, that Independence day found me, off on a long walk, enjoying the cool breeze and overcast sky – one that prevented the sun from coming up and making it a hot and humid day! I set off from home, taking the paths less trodden, in an attempt to get familiar with the terrain and allow my legs to meander in synchronization with my mind.

And this sight, this picture that you see stopped me on my tracks. Here, in this sleepy village, on an obscure corner of a road, which no google map will be able to show you, was a small celebration of Indian Independence. There were about fifteen or twenty villagers, mostly kids, with one of the older boys (the almost man) organizing a street-corner event. Very solemnly they stood around, sang the national anthem, hoisted the Indian tricolor and distributed sweets. I stood in proud silence while they sang the national anthem, watching in amazement the very voluntary and uninhibited show of nationalism. There were no chief guests, no one gave any long speeches about the freedom struggle, no politicians trying to gain mileage out of this…just a bunch of kids having fun!

I was reminded of a recent lecture by Ramachandra Guha which I attended – where he talked about why India was one of the most exciting places to live in. He had mentioned five different revolutions that were taking place … all at the same time! And how we were fortunate to be in such a time…a rare occurrence, which no other country had witnessed before. I remember he talked about nationalism and patriotism being two of the revolutions – along with things like the industrial revolution and the green revolution. I guess, I did not quite get what he was talking about at that time. But standing now, watching this event unfold, I just might have begun to make sense of what he meant.

I accepted very gratefully the chocolate and the flag they offered me, very proudly pinned the flag on to my t-shirt, and resumed my walk. Jai Hind!

To Sir, with Love

What would it be like to become the Headmaster of one of Chennai's most famous institutions at the age of 27? An onerous responsibility for sure, but it would seem like an equally challenging opportunity to carve the destiny of a school. And that was exactly what Mr. Kuruvila Jacob did. As this school turns 175 years old, all old boys of MCC School will definitely salute this man, who made this school one of the most prestigious institutions in Tamil Nadu, probably even in India. For the students of MCC School who studied from 1932 through 1962, he was a powerful force who influenced them, and to put it in the words of more than one man of that time – "Made men out of boys". And we are talking of people who are doyens of Indian Politics and industry; but yet to hear them talking of their teacher is truly inspiring.

And so yet again, August 3^rd was a day when people from different walks of life gathered to pay tribute to one of India's finest teachers. What makes this gathering so unique is the manner in which they choose to pay tribute to someone who inspired them during their formative years. A group of students belonging to this era have come together to create a trust that goes by the name "The Kuruvila Jacob Initiative for Promoting Excellence in School Education". This has been formed with the objective of encouraging schools adopt a more holistic concept of education that allows students to develop a well-rounded personality. One of the key objectives is to act as a catalyst in aiding schools adopts innovative methods and techniques in the learning process. Towards this cause, they have launched an Education Leadership Program that provides senior teachers of various schools to gain exposure in advanced teaching methodology and training methods. The CII Institute of Quality and IIT Madras (whose director Dr. MS Ananth is an old student himself) have been largely instrumental in designing the TQM program and the web-based learning programs, while the Eduction Leadership program is being conducted in conjunction with CEMD, Delhi. They have been taking these educational methods to Government-run schools and supporting the teachers create a more effective mechanism for increasing attendance in schools and reducing drop-out rates. (http://www.kuruvilajacob.com/school.htm has more information about this)

The web-based learning project is yet another initiative that is set to transform the way teachers teach. In a move to make education more student-centric, there has been a lot of emphasis on creating an environment where the teacher is the facilitator and allows the student to explore and discover knowledge. In the collaborative environment that is the classroom, this knowledge is shared and discussed, thus creating new knowledge. Even in the days when the Guru was considered the sole resource person, our ancient texts said the knowledge was the cumulative process of combining the teaching of the guru with introspection, interaction and experience. Today's challenge is to make available the cumulative experience of the class so that the student's learning goes beyond the experience of just one individual. From that perspective, web-based education, rightly-harnessed will allow for greater collaboration among schools and in the process greater sharing of knowledge. It is hoped that this learning process will not duplicate a typical classroom learning experience, but harness the power of the internet to make the resource available in a manner that facilitates and encourages the student to explore and create his knowledge base.

"When I graduate, I'll probably have a job that doesn't exist today". This quite aptly sums up the challenges of the students of the Net generation. In his best-selling book "Grown up Digital", Don Tapscott talks about the this generation of learners thus: "They seek choice, customization, collaboration, fun, speed and innovation in their learning… they expect to learn how to learn, not what to learn." Students will use technologies in collaborative inquiry-based learning environments with teachers who are willing to assist them in transforming knowledge and skills into products, solutions, and new information. How well will our schools be able to transform themselves and adapt to the new pedagogy – the intersection of pedagogy, content, knowledge and technology?

As long as we have far-sighted teachers like Kuruvila Jacob, we can rest assured that schools will face up to this new challenge too.

That which pervades the entire Universe!

अखण्डमण्डलाकारं व्याप्तं येन चराचरम्
तत्पदं दर्शितं येन तस्मै श्रीगुरवे नमः

Salutations to that respected Guru who showed us the place of the one who pervades the vast universe with all its movable and immovable things.

Alex, had he read this, would have commented, “Wow! Is he talking about Google, Dad?”! For the net generation, if there is one thing that shows them anything at all, it must be google. And how well, this description fits!

In a sense the more things change, the more they appear to remain the same! Taking a random walk through cyberspace, I chanced upon Punya’s blog, and one that especially caught my fancy was his mash-up of an advertisement for an online university! A lecture is still a lecture…no matter what you watch it on! The message of “Create, Explore, Share” comes out very strongly…something that technology now enables you do so well.

And yet, is this all new? I don’t think so. I was just reflecting on the teaching methodology adopted in my son’s school, and they pretty much do the same thing! Only, the old-fashioned way!
The School KFI (where my children go to) has been a pioneer of sorts in experimenting with pedagogy. And yet, quite surprisingly, they have steered clear of technology. It is not as if they are Luddites ;in fact, Gautam anna, the principal can often be seen walking into a meeting with a Notebook PC taking notes even as he participates in the discussions. Well, if this commercial is anything to go by, then it makes imminent sense. The last thing we want is for children to sit and do the same old thing, the only difference being that they will be doing their homework sitting in front of a computer, and not on notebooks!

“Explore, Create, Share” seems to fit very nicely into the ethos and working style of The School. The school has been in the forefront of the Activity Based Learning (ABL) model, which is now being implemented even in government-run schools in Chennai, thanks to the Kuruvilla Jacob Education initiative.

A very successful model of learning / teaching that has been implemented here is the Mixed Age Group (MAG) classes. Here, we see some very real examples of learning, that can actually be transported to the online environment. A teacher plays the role of a facilitator, and is part of the student’s learning process. The entire environment is very student-centric; the teacher introduces the topic and some key concepts. The rest of the learning happens by students learning in smaller and larger groups, and sometimes alone; the results of their learning is shared in the class. This is true collaboration – net generation style. Only all of this is happening within a classroom; students work with dictionaries, thesaurus and encyclopedias. They even walk into the library if they need more information. The teacher is available as an expert to consult with in case assistance is required. They explore, and they create – and all of this knowledge is shared.

I think the key here that more than learning by rote, definitions and theorems, the students learn what to learn….and how to learn. They are guided where to look for information. The content is there…but where to look for it becomes the key learning.
In small part, I am glad that I made friends with serendipity! Quite coincidentally, all the work that I am doing in the knowledge management space echoes these very thought processes. I just hope that this concept can be applied equally successfully in this domain too.
I look forward to your comments on how learning can be different in an online environment, and how this concept can be applied in the KM space too.