After my wonderful break from reality in Agra at the Oberoi there, it was back to work albeit a bit late this morning in Kolkata. When I arrived, I started the day with the delightful 6th grade students working on magnetic properties and experiments and then it was an exciting day of teaching all the classes (10, 8, 7, 12) of the Geography teacher who was absent. Three teachers were absent today, so it made for an exciting and busy day.
Geography here is not just locating countries on maps, it is more of an environmental, locality, natural resources, manufacturing resources, etc. type of class. Had quite the day of fun locating the various classrooms and teaching lessons on the fly. Overall, it went very well and kept me busy the entire day. I think my favorite class today was the year 12 girls. I had them read and mark an article from the New York Times on waste-pickers in India and their formalized status and its impacts. We had a really amazing discussion about the impacts on India's class and caste systems, on local communities, on the idea of self-respect and what it means for a person and a community. This was one of the best moments so far of my teaching here in Kolkata. Excellent insights from the students and a wonderful way to learn about the many variations found throughout the country.
Geography here is not just locating countries on maps, it is more of an environmental, locality, natural resources, manufacturing resources, etc. type of class. Had quite the day of fun locating the various classrooms and teaching lessons on the fly. Overall, it went very well and kept me busy the entire day. I think my favorite class today was the year 12 girls. I had them read and mark an article from the New York Times on waste-pickers in India and their formalized status and its impacts. We had a really amazing discussion about the impacts on India's class and caste systems, on local communities, on the idea of self-respect and what it means for a person and a community. This was one of the best moments so far of my teaching here in Kolkata. Excellent insights from the students and a wonderful way to learn about the many variations found throughout the country.
Cool.
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