A high altitude trek in the Himalayas has become a part of the learning programme at The Valley School, Bangalore, since the year 2000. In the late nineties, it was an optional event every summer where a handful of high school students and one or two adults would participate.
The Mountains will Surely Speak to You Read Post »
Are we preparing our youth to take to the heroic wise path of the dhirah, the fulfilling path of sreyah? The evidence, unfortunately, points heavily to the contrary. The vast majority of our ‘educated’ population are clearly on the mandah’s path of preyah—with a focus almost entirely on enjoying various sensual pleasures, amassing wealth and acquiring power at any cost.
Exploring ‘Self-Awareness’ at IIT, Madras Read Post »
Every narrative on society categorizes people. It even segments thoughts and actions. It sees life as a set of predefined options. Based on which one we choose, we are either co-opted into a definite identity, or we inherit one. We have to belong to a category or a type.
The Spirit of Art in a Classroom Read Post »
In my first year as a teacher, I was fortunate to chance upon Kamala Mukunda’s book What did You Ask at School Today? From the chapter titled ‘Motivation’ I gained a perspective (perhaps not intended by the author) that has shaped my teaching practice over the past three years.
Learning the Craft of Teaching Read Post »
Most of the deliberate activities in a school are concerned with building up: accumulating knowledge, honing skills, developing the complex processes that constitute what we call thinking; developing too an aesthetic and moral sensibility, a stance towards the world and towards ourselves.
Breaking Walls and Amending Fences: Some Thoughts on Unconditioning at School Read Post »
This is a journal on education that is brought out annually. It is an anthology of writings by educators, teachers and thinkers exploring a new vision of education in its many dimensions—philosophy, psychology, classroom experience, curriculum, nature and environment, and contemporary issues. It lays special emphasis on J Krishnamurti’s principles of education.
To continue with what we were saying in our previous letter, we were pointing out your responsibility to study, to learn and to act.
In this edited extract we find Krishnamurti opening up one of his favourite topics: authority. At the same time, the topic itself is linked to another: the awakening of intelligence.
After the middle school MAG (Mixed Age Group) Day at The School- KFI, I spoke with my colleague Akhila Seshadri about what went into the production of a pageant presented by students of her class on that occasion.
Process Behind a Pageant: An Interview with Akhila Seshadri Read Post »
‘Why do we need to learn a dead language?’ ‘Where shall we ever use it?’ ‘Is Sanskrit relevant to today’s world?’
Charms and Challenges of an Ancient Language: Teaching Sanskrit in Middle School Read Post »
We wake at dawn to the trilling calls of unfamiliar birds, go for a walk amidst the tea-bushes stretching row upon row on the steep slopes, bordered on the higher ridges by dense shola forests—an entirely new landscape!
On Sustaining ‘Culture Spaces’ in Schools Read Post »
When teaching academic philosophy, one never ceases to be amazed at how little a subject once termed ‘the love of wisdom’ has to do with ‘wisdom’, let alone ‘love’.
The Mirror of the Text: Teaching Philosophy Through Knowing and Not-Knowing Read Post »
Two birds, inseparable companions, cling to the self-same tree. Of these, one eats the sweet fruit and the other looks on without eating.
‘Where are we going for excursions this year?’ is invariably one of the early questions we face as the children return to begin a new year at Centre For Learning.
In A Faraway Land: The Thinking Behind a School Excursion Read Post »
I have always loved literature, largely because of the sentiments expressed in Dickinson’s poem.
The Art of Inquiry in the Literature Classroom: Musings from an Ex-English Teacher Read Post »
‘What do you think dialogue is all about?’
Dialogue Through the Ages Read Post »
In the course of our lives, we seem to know things in two, rather different ways.
Building Up and Coming Down Read Post »
What happened to all the children? I did not find anyone on my way here,’ enquired my guest, who was visiting Rishi Valley after a gap of several years.
Decline of Outdoor Activities Among Children: Why Should it Concern Us? Read Post »
Environmental education is an ideal forum to put into practice some of the educational insights of Eleanor Duckworth.
Nature as Teacher: Extending the Learning Community Read Post »
In the summer before I started teaching, I sought out one of my own childhood teachers and asked, ‘What is teaching? How do I support children in learning? What is it that I am trying to do?’
Writing as a Way into the World: A Record of One Year Spent in Rishi Valley Read Post »
In the literature class we were studying Lord of the Flies—a novel about a group of pre-adolescent school boys who crash land on a lonely island and fend for themselves in the absence of any adults.
Endearing and Trying: They Are Only Twelve-Year-Olds Read Post »
The importance of self-knowledge is mentioned in many school mission statements, and this is not surprising.
A Practice of Mindfulness Within Childhood Education Read Post »
Memories of Ahalya Di remain fresh, crisp. Just a few days before she passed away, I spent a precious week with her.
A Light Unto Oneself Read Post »
Ahalya Chari was Principal of the Regional College of Education (now called Regional Institute of Education, Mysore, RIEM) in its early years when I joined the institution as a lecturer.
Ahalya Chari As I Knew Her Read Post »
This is a journal on education that is brought out annually. It is an anthology of writings by educators, teachers and thinkers exploring a new vision of education in its many dimensions—philosophy, psychology, classroom experience, curriculum, nature and environment, and contemporary issues. It lays special emphasis on J Krishnamurti’s principles of education.
An Impersonal Responsibility Read Post »
A year ago, in November 2012, the Journal editorial team was sitting around in Ahalyaji’s room, wrapping things up for the seventeenth issue.
In one of the past letters we said that total responsibility is love.
Letters to Schools: Volume One – 15 December 1978 Read Post »
Underneath the obvious critical situation of the economy and the environment, isn’t the world today actually suffering from a crisis in knowing and thinking?
‘To Know Is Not Enough’: Critical Thinking in a Krishnamurti School Read Post »
School is an institution for drilling children [and teachers] in cultural orientations.
From Visibility to Accountability and Assessment: A Sleight of Hand Read Post »
You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view …
Learning from Feedback Read Post »
It was on a crisp winter morning, when the entire teacher body of Rajghat Besant School sat in the eastern verandah of our magnificent assembly hall that it was announced that articles were invited for the Journal of Krishnamurti Schools.
On Lighting a Passion for Reading Read Post »
For some time now, I have been fascinated by what children are thinking about as they read.
The World ‘Between the Lines’: What does Reading Comprehension Really Mean? Read Post »
