Technology - Boon or Bane

Technology is the way we apply scientific knowledge for practical purposes. We all are in the era of technological growth. Technology makes life easier and more comfortable by reducing human effort waste of time. It is having influence in each and every sector such as education, research, agriculture, administration, business, defence, entertainment fashion and many more.

From the wrist watch that we wear to the cars we drive, every single thing is digitized. Due to technology disabled people are no more disabled. Recently, brail which works on electronic pulses have been invented. Artificial foot, smart sticks, hearing aids and what not is invented.

Then where does the problem arises. According to science fiction luminary Sir Isaac Asimov - "The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than the society gathers wisdom ". This means that vast amount of information is constantly at our fingertips, yet it seems we still lack the wisdom to healthily limit our dependence on technology, not just for our own sake, but also for the health of our society and environment.

Technology actually holds enormous potential for improving our daily lives, from strengthening relationships to exposing us to alternative viewpoints.

But excess use of technology makes us impatient. We want all answers within minutes. We are losing power of patience and tolerance. It affects our memory also. Our mind recognizes that the information is being stored elsewhere, so we find it less important to remember it. So we stop dedicating the mental resources to remember it.

We all are familiar with a very old saying that "We learn from our mistakes" . But now there is no scope left for mistakes to happen. With the help of google, we get correct solution of every problem, we get exact answer of every question. So there is no question of doing any mistake. Then how will we learn. Students must give thought to it.

While working on this topic, I came across an interview by Mr Agam Jain, an IPS. According to him, laptops, mobiles, internet are not distraction as far as we know our limits. He said that when his prelims were very near, he watched videos related to topic, to get gist of it. During preparation, his mother used to call him and tell him not to worry. Those words by mother used to relax him. But there were many aspirants chatting about useless matters with friends. So, it's we only who make technology a boon or a bane.

He says that he used to sit at 10 am, practiced answer writing, read current affairs material and switched off internet at  11 am. But there were few who used you-tube endlessly for listening music. So, again it's we who has to make technology a boon or bane.

Technology is boon as long as it is our slave. It's when we let it become a master that it becomes a bane.

So, the crux is use technology judiciously. Toppers are not from Mars, and neither do they abandon these things. They just make better use out of it. We must learn to limit ourselves.

THE THREE C’S OF LIFE

Life always presents us a variety of options, from which we can choose. If we make right choice, it leads to success and happiness. The wrong choice leads to failure and misery.

I would like to emphasize on the importance of choices that one makes consciously or unconsciously in one’s life.

A few hundred year’s ago in India lived a saint called Goswami Tulsidas. He was very much infatuated by his wife. When his wife had gone to live with her parents, Tulsidas realized, he just could not stay without her. He started off to meet her. But since it was a stormy night, there was no boat willing to take him across. He found a log that he held onto and swam across, and then found a rope hanging from the wall, which he grabbed and climbed up to jump through the window into his wife’s room. He thought his wife would be pleased to meet him. But she scolded him for doing such a nasty thing. She said in your infatuation for me, you did not realize, that it was a dead body which you mistook for a log and that was a snake that you assumed to be a rope. She said the amount of love that you have for me if you had a fraction of it for lord Shri Ram, you would have achieved him. That scolding Tulsidas received from his wife was a wake up call for him. At that moment he decided, i will no longer allow my mind to remain in this degraded state. He decided to take action. He turned around engaged in spiritual practice and devotion and transformed himself to the great Goswami Tulsidas who wrote Hindi Ramayan.

That one choice, he made at that particular night, had such a big impact on his life.

The choices that we make have short term or long term consequences. Will today be the day when you will decide to choose wisely and transform your life like Tulsidas did?  You may ask me, is life transformation so easy that it is the consequences of a single choice ? Absolutely not. Alongside with the choice, is the intensity of the decision.

How many of you know about a real hero, karoly takacs and his real story. He is the third known physically disabled athlete to have competed in the Olympic Games and was the first shooter to win two Olympic gold medals that too with his left hand after his right hand was seriously injured.

That committed choice of his enabled him to inspire. So it is not only choices we makes but also the commitment to these choices that enable us to make our life, either more degraded or happier.

  

 

I will change

One of the great lessons of life is nothing will change unless you change. Nothing you get better unless you get better. Its not about luck, it’s not about circumstance we all get good and bad. We all get the challenging events that arrive in our life that’s normal part of being human. I’m talking about who choose to do with those circumstances if you are waiting for your pay check to change, waiting for your relationship to change, waiting for something to change NOTHING WILL CHANGE, if you want change you must change .When you change everything will change for you.

What can you improve? Be honest with yourself in every area of your life. If you are being honest there will be many areas you can improve; if not, you are either not human, commit to work on improving those areas, remove everything unimportant in your life that could get you sidetracked from your goals and purpose anything that take you further away from the life you want ELIMINATE  IT. 

It might be television, it might be unhealthy habits. You know what it is….. Look within be honest with yourself. This is your life be strong have the courage to live the life you want to live. The road to success is hard but it isn’t impossible unless you ‘Quit’. Stick it out, suffer through, show your character one day they might speak of you. You the winner, you the champion, the one who didn’t quit, one who fought back with courage.

Decide right now I’m going to set up my life to win. I will be better, I will change.  

National Science Day

“Science for the people and The people for science”- This is the 2019 theme of National Science Day celebrated all over India today.  It encourages us to make science an integral part of people’s lives.

Every year we celebrate this day by introducing the Eureka Idea Box, but this year due to your exams starting early, we have already done that.  So if all of you have put your creative ideas into the box, you have done your bit to expand your mind.

Cultivate your curiosity because curiosity gives rise to questions, questions give rise to ideas, ideas help form theories, theories are proved or disproved by experiments and these experiments give rise to scientific discoveries and inventions.

All of you know that National Science Day was celebrated to commemorate this day in 1930 when the Nobel Prize was awarded to our Dr.Chandrashekhar Venkata Raman for discovery of the Raman Effect.  But do you know how he discovered it?  It is said that while returning from England aboard a ship, Dr. Raman was standing on the deck contemplating the blueness of the Mediterranean Sea, when an entirely new explanation for the phenomenon struck him..  This was his “Eureka” moment and he discovered the Raman Effect.

I wish to take this time for highlighting the  various ideas and projects that have won acclaim for the school in the field of Science.  A Smart Gas leakage detector made it to the National Round of CBSE Science Exhibition while and unusual combination of farming techniques called Tratek Farming made it to the Nationals of the Children’s Science Congress (NCSC).  An idea on modernization of Age Old Techniques to suit today’s world won us an award at DRDE while the idea of an app based smart dustbin and a multipurpose ladder won us national acclaim at the Inspire Awards.

So keep your mind open, let the ideas flow freely. Be curious, be hungry for ideas, seek explanations and in all keep the scientific spirit alive.

Happy National Science Day!!!

Chitra Viswanathan

Collaborative activity between students of Gwalior Glory High School and Afghanistan

A spectacular activity to reconnect with the various indigenous sports was conducted for the students of class VIII with an aim to make the learners study the indigenous sports from India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Afghanistan. Students researched about history, evolution and tradition of various indigenous sports from these countries and motor skills used in the respective sports.

Under the activity, Gwalior Glory High School collaborated with Youlmarab High School in Afghanistan to give opportunity to students to Rediscover, Reconnect And Revere The Indigenous Sports from both the  countries. Information about Indian indigenous sports -   Kho-Kho, Kabaddi , Gatka and Thang Ta were shared with the partner school.  Session on Kabaddi and Kho – Kho were conducted in which the Glorians participated themselves. Students visited LNIPE and also interviewed experts about various aspects related to the traditional sports covered under the activity.

The partner school also shared details about the indigenous sport from their country (martial art form -Wrestling , sport popular among the  competitive enthusiasts - Buzkashi  and  sports based on focus and aim –Sling Shot and Swat Shooting) .

Students watching demonstration of Wrestling - video shared by partner school in Afghanistan

Comparative study on how the sports from India and Afghanistan help in physical, mental and emotional upliftment , gave a comprehensive insight to the students. The collaborative project concluded very effectively.

Silat from Malaysia and Angampora from Sri Lanka are the indigenous sports that were also studied under the activity.

Learners also drew conclusion on why practices that have originated from India like Yoga and meditation have become an  important part of lifestyle of people nowadays. An exhibition was also conducted in which 3D models and charts related to various sports studied under the activity were displayed.

Overall this activity gave an insight into the indigenous sports and helped the students to appreciate the need of disciplined regime and focus that each and every sport emphasizes on for holistic development.

Such collaborative approach helps to learn in a better way..... do post your views ….

Students of Gwalior Glory High School interact with the students of Russia through SKYPE

To share the study of varieties of fruits found in India and Russia highlighting the effect of climatic conditions on their growth, the nutrients found in them, a skype session was conducted in Gwalior Glory High School with Buturlinovskaya Secondary School 4 in Buturlinovka town, Russia. Students from both the countries displayed bowls of tempting fruit salad made with fruits found in their country. During the session, students of Gwalior Glory High School introduced the students of Russia with the importance of Ayurveda and Yoga through the characters  portrayed of Charaka, Patanjali  and Sushruta.

The students of classes III and IV have studied about fruits from various countries (India, Russia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Japan) under an activity titled- ‘My Fruit Bag … Health with Taste’.  Apart from the Skype Session , under the project a visit to an orchard was also organized that gave opportunity to the learners to know how fruits are grown, observed trees of different fruits and learnt steps of cultivating them. 

Students also discussed about factors that have led to the pollution of the natural resources and its effect on the productivity in the soil. In another exciting activity students had dressed up as fruits from the countries included in the study and participated in fruit parade.

Do share your inputs about such initiatives in which learners can collaborate to exchange knowledge….

‘Exploring Numismatics- Money Matters’

An activity titled ‘Exploring Numismatics- Money Matters’ was conducted for the students of classes VI and VII .The activity aimed to make the students aware about the history and evolution of currencies used in India, China, Japan, USA and UK and its role in economic growth of the nations. Various activities like – Wall Magazine display, PPT and Report Presentation, Discussion etc  were carried out. Students were also taught about ‘FOREX’, ‘Banking System’, interest rates and various services the banks provide to the citizens to add worth to their money. 

Decisions taken by nations on the economic front and its impact on the international realm were also discussed. Under a sub activity conducted, students had to make a list of items that can be purchased using 100 units of currencies used in different countries, this helped the learners to understand the difference in the value of money in various countries. 

Such activities develop a perspective about the economic structure of various countries and build an analytical approach in the learners  towards the happenings around...Do share your comments on what more new activities can be done in this direction.......

‘Folk Tales : Journey to our Granny’s Land’

An activity ‘Folk Tales : Journey to our Granny’s Land’  for tiny tots of classes I and II took the learners to the realm of folk tales of India, Japan , Saudi Arabia, Vietnam and China that inculcated moral values emphasizing on peace and justice. Educators narrated folk tales making it even more enjoyable by using puppets, screening videos on folk tales, character build up chart , comic strips and songs. The students were able to appreciate the cultural differences between their country and other countries through the activity with the learning that every culture propagates love, peace , kindness and harmony.

Stories open doors to imagination . How can story telling be used as an effective medium for teaching various subjects? Do share your opinion......

‘Visionaries-The Go Getters’

An activity titled  ‘Visionaries-The Go Getters’ was conducted for the students of class XI  that celebrated the innovative spirit of the visionaries from USA, Japan, UK , Germany , India, Russia and China who gave a new direction to the generations.

Students studied life sketch of the visionaries and through PPT Presentations shared their research about the contribution of the personalities in the field of Maths, Science, Commerce and Humanities. The students added a novel feature to the already existing concept to make it usable in a smarter way according to the need of today’s time. Talks in assembly also extended the reach of the project.

Such projects encourage the youngsters to shoulder the responsibility to imbibe the innovative spirit of the visionaries, be problem solvers and with ignited mind connect the world through novel approach and benefit all.......Do share your comments on what more new activities can be done in this direction.

Patriotism – Learning to Give

A project on ‘Patriotism’ was conducted for class IX  in which students studied about the personalities from Bangladesh, South Africa and India that associated the concept of patriotism in context to the freedom of the country from ill practices and beliefs, laws and ideologies that acted as obstacles in the path of progress of any segment of the society besides freedom from foreign rule.

Students had done research about various factors that contributed  to the identity of the patriots . They studied closely the journey of the patriots who contributed in bringing social change for women empowerment, upliftment of backward classes, child rights, access to education. The  learning was further shared through  various creative mediums.

The students closely studied the struggle and patience of the patriotic leaders. Various aspects pertaining to patriotism were discussed through which students highlighted between constructive and blind patriotism.

 SKYPE Session was also organized with a partner school in Bangladesh – CIDER International  under the collaborative project in which students interacted about the contribution of great patriots from India and Bangladesh and also exchanged views about various aspects of patriotism in present scenario. The initiative linked the students of India and Bangladesh through technology giving a connect to interact and know more about the culture, patriotic philosophy and views of the students in the international collaborative project.

Such programmes help to inculcate the feeling of patriotism in the students beyond the border of their country. Do share your inputs about it.