Thottuva: Cutting across class, caste and religious lines, the tiny tots of Thottuva were initiated into the world of letters on the auspicious occasion of Vijayadashmiin PoornodayaVidyanikethan, a school that focuses on holistic education situated in Kuravilngad.
The Vidyarambam ceremony underlines the power of knowledge. Children in the age group 3 to 5 were made to participate in the ceremony held on Saturday, 30th September.
Clad in new clothes, children and their parents gathered at the nature picturesque campus of PoornodayaVidyanikethan, where arrangements were made for the initiation ceremony. Eminent litterateur, scholar and writer Mr. M R Gopalkrishnan helped the children write the Malayalam letters for the first time in platters filled with rice or on the tongue with a golden ring.
It was followed by a Parents Workshop where the educators and parents were preparing to help lead the charge towards education reform.
This summit brought together parents from across the Kuravilngad town for an opportunity to connect with policymakers, school leaders, education experts and advocates aimed at motivating, educating and empowering parent with a hear from a diverse line up of speakers who included state and local legislators, education advocates and education influencers.
Anish K Joy, the Educational Director of PoornodayaVidyanikethan said that the event was held in the belief that parents should have access to the same kind of knowledge, development and empowerment that educators do.
“I couldn’t understand why there wasn’t the same kind of development for parents,” Anish said of his motivation behind spearheading the initiative. “After all, it takes a community to educate a child.”
“This is for parents and families—mothers, grandmothers, fathers,” he said. “We want to develop the full family in order to develop the full child. And we didn’t just want to have parents and families in the room; we wanted to attract administrators and teachers. There’s often a gap and we wanted to utilize the summit to bridge that gap.”
Among the attendees was Mrs. Mary Sebastin, Kottayam District Panchayat Vice President and a well experienced educator who said that parents are integral to education reform in communities.
“I hope that this kind of events can bring parents together for ways to strengthen our communities,” she added. “It’s really exciting to see this kind of energy around an education reform. I would hope that parents come away feeling empowered, gain useful information and with an idea of what their next step is as far as how to be engaged with their communities. I also strongly feel that if the mothers could actively participate in such workshops, as they can make a difference to every child at home and in turn change the community as a whole.”
Neena George Kunnath, the school program coordinator briefly introduced the philosophy of PoornodayaVidyanikethan by showcasing them the lively photos of the innovative activities of students there that focused on active learning and skill development. “Education should help mankind experience the integrated process of life. There are two postulates of value in this regard, the scientific mind and the religious spirit. The scientific mind sees things as they are. It is logical, clear and analytical. The religious spirit is a creative spirit; it is totally independent and has no limits. It is a mind that is extremely pliable, subtle and compassionate.
To enable teachers and children to live an integrated life; balancing a scientific mind, that is clear and analytical; with a spirit of reflection; along with working hands and walking feet; is the primary task of the school. ”she remarked.
Simultaneously, the little children aged till ten were engaged in Little Stars of Poornodaya Challenge where they had 9 rounds of Games to win the Little Star Champion.The games were designed to test the nine types of intelligences such as “Engineer Round” for spatial intelligence,”Word Games” for linguistic intelligence and so on. However not all rounds were cleared by a single student.”As we have to stick to the rules of the competition, only consolation prizes were handed over to 2 students who cleared two to three rounds. ”said Maya Mary Ittan, the Principal of PoornodayaVidyanikethan.