by Paromita De
Apeejay teacher Ritesh Sharma discusses a “Good Work Approach to Sustainability” with her high school Biology students.
“As you are of Indian origin, I think we can vouch for the values. We already have a very good value system and if we preserve that, I think we will go a long way.” A teacher relayed me this conviction before my fourteenth trip to India. Each trip means seeing Kolkata’s city lights and making merry with relatives (read: teasing each other), but this visit gave me a unique opportunity: to meet teachers who earned Good Work certification from the Good Project and tGELF two years earlier. In response, the person of Indian origin in me nodded, acknowledging understanding of this “value system”. Upon conversation’s end, however, the researcher in me sought details. I set off for school visits in Delhi/Gurgaon with a question in mind: what are “Indian values”?
“Indian values” are contoured by the 21st century’s sweeping changes. The middle-class India my dad left 43 years ago knew only job shortages, street bazaars, and food ration cards, and couldn’t foreshadow its present economic boom, megamalls, and even microwaves.
India is reaping prosperity’s fruits, but increasing competitiveness presents challenges. Does one choose consumerism over thrift? How does one balance work/life? Should one overlook corruption?
If Indian society’s transformation is akin to a storm, then at its eye is India’s youth. They will inherit India’s growth, yet are lost in a results-driven frenzy. How do we teach youth to confront today’s issues?
Enter the Good Project: it has come when Indian schools want to embrace ethical thinking. I will describe Good Project initiatives of four schools and how they shape student’s identities.
Although I didn’t visit Delhi Public School – Sector 45 (DPS), through interviews I learned of ways in which educator Archana Singh and her students engage with society. We may liken engagement to individual passion, but factor in the other two E’s – excellence and ethics – and we see how full engagement in one’s work is cognizant of its societal influence. The DPS students fulfill both individual and social connotations of engagement. Singh is a Chemistry teacher, but she still manages to incorporate the Good Work Toolkit materials into class. Singh always encourages students to examine multiple perspectives and appreciate collaboration. Students find relevance in the Toolkit’s narratives and remark that the dilemmas they read about are actual issues that have come up for them as well.
Singh also founded DPS’ Good Work Club. The club consists of leaders from different service groups, whose projects include tutoring in villages, designing art with Cancer patients, and promoting school health. Members share lessons learned in leadership and team up on school-wide social initiatives, such as a street play on littering. When it comes to enhancing community service, the Good Work Club looks no further than the 3 E’s. One student said that she is “happy to be a part of the initiative, as it is suited to how I think.”
At Apeejay School, teacher Ritesh Sharma weaves Good Work into her Biology lessons and student leadership initiatives. For a natural resources lesson, Sharma incorporated Good Work-inspired activities, such as comparing materials needed for class to the waste in a class’ trash (the answer is that they are one in the same) and asking students about tradeoffs (like buying an organic or cheap product). These activities motivated Sharma’s students to consider what the implications are of the resource usage and what responsibilities they have for future generations.
Outside of the classroom, Sharma continues to use Good Work to foster caring attitudes. The Buddy Project, for instance, pairs high-achieving students with students in need of academic support. They provide homework assistance and serve as confidantes on tough issues. This project evokes the concept of mentors, who guide mentees’ progress in a field. One certainty is that mentors will learn much as well. As one student said, “Good Work has helped… to improve myself and become less self-centered…. I have become more sensitive than selfish.”
Geeta Bedi, a mathematics teacher at Scottish High International School, has been a tremendous influence in sharing Good Work with colleagues across all grade levels. Pre-K pupils have already proven themselves capable of designing their own “class rules” to promote mutual respect. Pre-K -8 students also discuss how the 3 E’s can be used to tackle social issues and how one can analyze value alignment.
9-12 graders at Scottish High have taken Good Work to the streets, literally, through plays. The performers enact scenarios of trials that a young person may face: lack of parental attention, drugs, academic pressures, and bullying to name a few. Between the scenarios the performers would break out into song, asking “What are we doing, who will we be?” One student took on the character of a humorous devil, who revels in a teenager’s decision-making confusion. In the street plays, I found a connection with an idea that catalyzed development of the Good Work Toolkit: individuals will be more comfortable reflecting on their own ethical dilemmas after they first discuss another person’s similar dilemma. By showcasing these scenarios, the students inform their peers that they are not alone in their concerns and prompt them to reflect on what actions the protagonist and/or they would take.
I visited mathematics teacher Ishita Mukherjee and her LGBTQI rights student group at Tagore International School only a week after Section 377 – which bans homosexuality – was reinstated by the Indian Supreme Court. A student summed up the disappointment by saying “One day we are getting an award for something (referring to a prize from November 2013’s tGELF competition), the next day it gets criminalized!” The group, modeled after the certification course’s collaboration project, educates peers on sexuality and advocates for LGBTQI rights – no easy task, given its taboo status. Mukherjee is proud of her students’ poise when faced with incessant questions. For instance, when asked if they themselves are gay, the students respond, “It’s not only about me, we have this LGBTQI community and…we have to work for them, because they’re being mistreated.” To me, these students’ resolve exemplifies responsibility: regardless of sexual orientation, these students view themselves as members of a greater society and feel obligated to protect its fellow citizen’s rights.
Returning to the question, “What are Indian values?”, a common theme in these Good Project initiatives reminded me of an Indian tradition: the “Namaste” greeting. This act recognizes that oneself and the other person are worthy of respect. Whether it is a classmate or a person they’ve never met before, Good Project students want their actions to accord respect for themselves and others. The kinds of discussions and reflections that these students are having through the Good Project are allowing them to draw attention to issues of national importance – pollution, corruption, discrimination, etc. – and figure out which solutions will align with the vision they have for their country. If we continue to cultivate this awareness of and attention to action in young people, I can agree with that teacher in believing they will go a long way.
Follow Paromita De on Twitter @ParomitaDe