Nurturing the Next Generation of Educators

In my 30 years, one of the best changes I notice is that the focus of teaching and learning has moved back to the learners in the classroom. All around the world, including my school in India, schools are putting in the work to bring children back to the centre of the classroom where they are supposed to be.

With the advent of AI in our lives and societies moving forward quickly with technological advancements, a big challenge is that teachers must bring balance into their classrooms. Questions like “What is the best way of using technology?” and “How much AI should be allowed to be used in a classroom?” require deliberation and regulation. However, it is with these questions that we understand the value of human intelligence.

For JBCN International School and the JBCN group of schools, we think about each one of our JBCNites, be it learners or teachers, as change makers. When teachers are encouraged as change makers, they bring the same values to the classroom, where they encourage both right and wrong answers, allowing students to understand the value of learning through mistakes.

Teachers also realise that their own journey of learning is extremely valuable because every day there is something new that can happen that they can bring into their classroom.

Throughout the years, we realise that well-being is at the core of everything we want to do and achieve in the school. If our teachers are happy and settled, knowing that there is someone who cares for them, they are able to bring the best possible environment for learning into their classrooms. Building upon that, we developed the Swasti programme at JBCN International, focused on the well-being of our teachers.

Swasti is a Sanskrit word that represents a mindful journey towards well-being created for teachers, parents, students, and support staff. A year long programme, it is extended to counsellors and educators from other schools.

There are simple activities like mindful dance sessions and drum circles that everybody enjoys, and on a larger scale, we conduct activities like community service, which brings about its own well-being because when we serve our community, we focus inwards.

For our students, we have a strong support team made up of people whose focus is on the care, compassion, and support of students. Each student has their own peer ambassador, and they help each other throughout their life in school. All our teachers are trained in Social and Emotional Learning (SEL), which helps them teach students about the importance of their own wellbeing.

It is important for us and for schools to keep finding new avenues to destress, talk about stress, and move towards a more mindful existence, leading to a more productive and positive environment.

The lesson study conducted by Mr. Atraju s/o Kanan Ramdas was a wonderful experience. At JBCN, we are excited and passionate about lifelong learning, and under that umbrella, the lesson study became one of the highlights for us as a school.

Forty of our teachers who have been around for quite some time went through the whole process, supported by our academic leadership team and trained by experts from MCE. This process led to a collaborative planning experience that ended with a reflective discussion, where everyone left enriched and inspired.

We implemented some of these processes later in the same classroom and could see a shift in perspectives among the teachers who led the lesson and those who were part of the observation team.

It has been a beautiful journey, with tangible and perceptible differences in the way teachers thought before and after the lesson study experience, and we are looking forward to the next steps in the journey.

As a school, whenever we use any resource, we give ourselves time to explore the materials. The first year is about whether we like it, whether we want to move ahead with it, and whether there is more to expect and gain from the resources.

We have started with the MCE English resources, and although it has only been a year since our adoption and there is more to discover, one of our favourite parts is the teaching resources that support our teachers. The AI resources help bring about differentiation in the classroom, particularly for formative assessment questions and daily teaching and learning, and have been received well by the teachers in our school.

So far, the resources have provided many benefits, and we feel positive that as we move forward and use them more, we will discover more that we can get out of them. Overall, we are happy with the resources and are excited to use them again next year, as we believe we are moving forward in a positive direction.

In India, blended learning is being adopted open-heartedly, as it is widely recognised as the path to prepare children for a future shaped by technology. At JBCN, our focus is to ensure that the necessary technology and physical tools are available in classrooms for teachers and learners to use as needed.

As educators, we must use AI sensitively and ensure it never replaces human intelligence. AI should serve as a tool to enrich the teaching and learning process. When used to aid educators and students, it helps learning to be embedded more deeply.

This question reminds me of the Chinese Year of the Horse.

Last year, the Year of the Snake was a time for introspection and reflection. Our educators explored new approaches, including blended learning, technology-aided learning, and AI. It was a year to experiment, observe, and understand these innovations.

The Year of the Horse marks a shift from reflection to action. With energy and forward momentum, we aim to use these resources optimally to deepen students’ learning. This year encourages us to implement strategies confidently, ensuring children develop the skills they need to thrive in an uncertain future.

By linking the lessons of last year with the steadfast attitude this year, we will be able curate strategies that combine thoughtful planning with practical application, preparing students for the world ahead.

My thoughts on instilling the growth mindset? I think it is non-negotiable. If you are an educator, you have no choice but to have a growth mindset. Every day is a new day for learning, and every opportunity gives you something to think about that can bring a best practice, a best thought, or a best idea to your classroom.

The growth mindset is about being open-minded enough to understand that every child might have a spark and that collaboration is non-negotiable. Teachers must communicate their thoughts and ideas not only in a very articulate manner, but also fearlessly, ensuring that respect underpins all communication.

Teachers must help children understand that exploring the outer world enhances understanding of their inner world, and this begins at the youngest ages. They must realise that the outer world will continue to change, and the inner world must increasingly be at peace with who we are as individuals.

Growth is not just tangible. In the classroom, growth often happens in the conversation between teacher and child, sometimes without words. Understanding the true meaning of growth which encompasses all human capabilities, shows that this concept extends far beyond the 21st century. Growth mindset has been celebrated for centuries. Ever since we became thinking human beings, we have realised that growth is the only path to take. For teachers, this is embedded in most of us. If we are in charge of moving human civilisation forward, the only way is to understand that growth is part of who we are.