SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS OF LEARNING THROUGH THE METHODS USED IN AUROVILLE TAMIL SCHOOLS

INTRODUCTION
In a paper submitted at the ASHA conference at Chengalpattu in Tamil Nadu in December, 2000, several educational methods as well as their relevance in the Indian educational context had been explained. ven though man! educational methods are in use in "uroville, onl! nine of them were described in that paper. The! were# 1. Glenn Doman method; . R!"h! Valle# method; $. A%d!o Ta&e method; '. Phon!( So%nd" method; ). Themat!( P*o+e(t ,o*method; .. Ed%(at!on /# De"!0n method 1E./.D.2; 3. /a"!( Senten(e St*%(t%*e method; 4. C.I.E.F.L. method; 5. S&!*!t%al method". This article highlights some significant aspects of the learning b! the students when these methods are used for them.

THE SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS OF LEARNING

112 LEARNING OF THE STUDENTS IS NOT TOTALL6 DEPENDENT ON THE TEACHER AND ON THE LESSONS TA7EN UP FOR TEACHING In all these methods learning is not a one$wa! learning as it occurs generall! in Indian educational institutions, that is, from the teacher to the learner and, that too, mainl! from prescribed textboo%s. Instead the learner learns from ever!where even when the sub&ect content might be confined to a lesson from a textboo%. This 'ever!where( includes boo%s, teachers, friends, fellow students, T), radio, nature, conversations, and man! other things. *henever teaching ta%es place it supple$ ments this learning. The students do not become totall! dependent on the teacher for their learning. Thus learning of the student gets precedence over teaching b! the teacher. In the use of +lenn Doman method, the words selected for reading come from the children , words %nown to the children and words associated with topics interesting to the children. In the -ishi )alle! method, the stud! cards that need the full help of the teacher form a small proportion of the total number of cards. .uch cards mainl! belong to the first two levels. The students at the /rd and 0th level learn almost 102 of the cards without the help of the teacher. "t the 3 th level

the students stud! the prescribed government textboo% full! b! themselves. In the "udio$Tape method, the students pla! the language games b! themselves and learn the language aspects intended in the game. In the 5ro&ect *or% method the students learn through discussion between themselves, finding themselves the answers to the 6uestions given b! the teacher, doing specific learning activities, and through interviews, observation and experiments. 1 2 LEARNING MATERIALS ARE PREPARED AS AND ,HEN NECESSAR6 AND ACCORDING TO THE LEARNING NEEDS OF THE CHILDREN 7lash cards for using the +lenn Doman method are written as and when needed and according to the interest shown b! the child. If the children describe with interest and enthusiasm an!thing that happened in their villages or the! saw during their nature wal%, flash cards containing the words used b! them are prepared for the next reading session. In the -ishi )alle! method, if children need more enriching or remedial activities for an! aspect of their language or math learning, stud! cards containing such learning activities are prepared on the ver! next da! and used. In "udio Tape method appropriate language games for an! particular aspect of language are selected and materials , spinner charts, accordion boo%s, aestheticall! designed dice games, post box charts, flash cards , prepared as and when needed. 8ne %ind of games for the slow learning students and another %ind of games for the fast$learning students is prepared. 1$2 8HARD ACCUMULATE SPOTS9: LEARNING DIFFICULTIES : DO NOT

"t the primar! level children have man! difficulties in reading and writing in their languages correctl!, in understanding math concepts, and in writing math steps. "s different students stud!ing under -ishi )alle! method use different cards at one time, learning difficulties encountered b! them is immediatel! noted and appropriate remedial activit! is given either immediatel! or within the next wee%. 8nl! after the mista%e is remedied does the student move to the next card. In the context of learning an! sub&ect, the students learn a lot from fellow students. This aspect pla!s a considerable part in the removal of their learning difficulties encountered in that topic. 7ellow students find out the mista%es committed b! the student and remed! them immediatel!. The same thing happens in language learning using "udio Tape method. 9anguage games are pla!ed in groups and each group has a group leader. ven while the language games are pla!ed, the group leaders correct the mista%es as well as help in overcoming the difficult! in spea%ing or understanding or in writing as and when the! occur. "s this is done individuall!, immediatel! and

sufficientl! fre6uentl!, the learning difficult! is not carried on. In all these methods eas! and fre6uent interactions between the students and the teacher occur. :ence whenever doubts arise or difficulties occur, the students immediatel! clarif! the doubts or overcome the difficulties with the help of the teacher and fellow students. "s a result learning difficulties do not accumulate, and the students do not give up learning and become a dropout due to the learning difficulties. 1'2 CLASSROOM ORGANISATION IS FLE;I/LE AND NOT RIGID In all these methods sitting arrangement in the classroom can be altered according to the learning needs and situations. "s man! games are used as part of learning activities, use of outside area occurs dail!. In -ishi )alle! method, dail! learning activities are grouped into five %inds, full! self$learning, learning helped full! b! the teacher, learning helped full! b! the fellow students, learning helped partl! b! the teacher and learning helped partl! b! the fellow students. "ccordingl! the stud! cards are divided into five groups and the students sit in five groups according to the %ind of stud! cards the! get on that da!. :ence ever!da!, regardless of the level the! are, the students group themselves different$ l! and sit in different groups. Classroom space is therefore one big room. Timetable is another flexible thing when these methods are used. In the use of -ishi )alle! method a big chun% of 10 minutes is available for each sub&ect, language, math and environmental science. ach of these 10 minutes session can be variousl! used according to the learning needs of the students on that occasion. In the use of 5ro&ect *or% and ;D methods even though the duration of the 5ro&ect is tentativel! fixed, it can be extended or shortened when needed. If the students show a great interest and enthusiasm in learning a particular topic, more time can be given for learning it in depth. 1)2 SCOPE FOR STUDENT INITIATIVE IS CONSIDERA/LE In the use of 5ro&ect *or% method for learning, this initiative occurs in a large measure. "t the preschool level the 5ro&ect wor% topics can be selected b! consulting the children themselves. <an! children readil! suggest topics. The same can be done at the primar! level. 8rganisation of the sub&ect matter for the nvironmental .cience in -ishi )alle! method is done in such a wa! that it is grouped into different topics or themes. Different %inds of learning activities are designed and cards prepared with suitable instructions for each %ind of activit!. There is plent! of scope for initiative for each student and the students full! exhaust that scope. 7or instance, if the theme is household animals or wild animals, then miming will be one of the learning activities. The students do this
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miming activit! for all the animals %nown to them and that too in a repeated manner and in a variet! of wa!s. If some displa! of the products of the 5ro&ect is expected, sa! the preparation of an illustrated boo% or a descriptive chart, the students stud!ing under 5ro&ect *or% method do them in an ingenuous and creative manner. *hen the ;D method is used, the students suggest original wa!s to tac%le the challenges or solve the problems contained in the stud! topics= several of their solutions are such that the teachers themselves could not have expected them. In organising their group learning activities, as in the "udio$Tape method or the 5ro&ect *or% method, the students sort out several things b! themselves. The! could naturall! feel that the! 'own( their learning. 1.2 INTERACTION /ET,EEN THE STUDENTS AND THE TEACHER< AND /ET,EEN THE STUDENTS THEMSELVES< OCCUR FRE=UENTL6 IN THE CONTE;T OF THEIR LEARNING In all these methods no need to deal with all the students at the same time arises, even if their number goes be!ond 00. +lenn Doman method can be used onl! with one or two children at a time. -ishi )alle! method learning activities occur in groups of different %inds of which onl! two are teacher reliant. In the course of the use of the stud! cards all the students come under the individual attention of the teacher. In its nvironmental .cience class and in outdoor learning activities, a friendl! interaction between the teacher and the students occur. In the 5ro&ect *or% method learning, even though the teachers need to address the class in general for introducing the 5ro&ect and for explaining an! complex and difficult aspect of the topic, the learning is done in groups and the doubts rising in the course of learning is cleared on an individual basis or on a particular group basis. "part from that, during the field trip to gather information and during the brainstorming and discussion sessions arranged to process the information, a close interaction between the two occurs. "s there are man! group learning activities in all these methods, interaction between the students occur in a large measure and warm friendl! personal relations get established in the course of their stud!. 132 VALUES ARE IM/I/ED SPONTANEOUSL6 DURING LEARNING "s all these methods regularl! involve learning activities in groups, the students ac6uire man! values in a spontaneous and living manner in the course of their learning. :elping the fellow students in the removal of their learning difficulties is 6uite a common dail! occurrence. In the 5ro&ect *or% learning, the! ac6uire the values of cooperation and coordination during the implementation of their planning. 9eadership values are ac6uired b! some. 7riendliness, honest!, truth$ fulness, transparenc!, fran%ness develop to a large extent since a feeling of
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nearness with the teacher or other group members is alwa!s there in the context of their learning. 142 ALL THE ENERGIES OF THE STUDENTS REMAIN A/SOR/ED OR 8CONCENTRATED9 IN THEIR LEARNING In all these methods, the students find learning a ver! interesting thing in man! wa!s. The sub&ect matter at the preschool and primar! level is learnt through man! pla!wa! and active learning activities. "t the secondar! level "udio$Tape method and 5ro&ect *or% methods involve a lot of self learning and a good amount of ac6uisition of new %nowledge and new s%ills b! wa! of new words, sentence ma%ing s%ills, new illuminating information and fresh understanding. :ence the learning occurs with a sustained interest absorbing all their energies. Due to the spontaneous ac6uisition and use of social and other values during the learning process, difficulties that usuall! occur in conducting the classes, li%e 6uarrels between the students, use of abusive words, reactions of &ealous!, are minimal. :ence students( energies have no scope for diversion in unproductive activities. 152 A CONSIDERA/LE EAGERNESS TO LEARN NE, THINGS ARISES .ince learning difficulties do not accumulate, the students are able to add more and more %nowledge and s%ills to their mental storeroom. 9earning activities are so designed that the! are able to stud! the sub&ect matter with comprehension and ac6uire and exercise their thin%ing and other s%ills. This graduall! brings about an expansion of their being. "s a result, the! feel a readiness and eagerness in learning new things which the! no more consider as impossible and which the! feel confident that the! can learn. 11>2 SELF?LEARNING CAPACIT6 DEVELOPS CONSIDERA/L6 "s a result of all the above a considerable capacit! for self$learning develops in the students. "t the high school and higher secondar! level this can develop into a capacit! for self$directed learning. In the use of +lenn Doman method, the children ac6uire the s%ills of reading and learning rapidl!. 8nce the! start exercising these s%ills, particularl! reading s%ill, their brains automaticall! learn to process a large amount of information without the need of a teacher or oral explanation. The entire learning process in the -ishi )alle! method involves considerable self$learning. The students who are accustomed to use the "udio$Tape method for
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learning a second language become capable of self$learning an! other language using this method. The use of 5ro&ect *or% and ;D methods involves a lot of initiatives from the students in man! aspects of their learning an! topic, and when the! succeed in ta%ing them, it results in a tremendous increase in their self$learning capacit!.

CONCLUSION
India urgentl! needs 6ualit! education for all its students. The methods needed to provide the 6ualit! education are not onl! in use in different places in India but also the! possess significant aspects that ma%e the learning interesting and livel!, and that increase the personalit! content of the learner. These aspects do not have much scope in the wa! in which education is presentl! organised in India. *hen India succeeds in finding out a wa! through which these aspects can find full expression, that will be a red$letter da! in the histor! of its education.

S%@a"h
(November, 2001)

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Po!nt"A 1. Learning by the students is not totally dependent on the teacher and the lessons he/she takes up or teaching. !hey are all centred in the student. 2. Learning materials are prepared as and "hen necessary and according to the learning needs o the children. #. $%ard spots& (learning di iculties) do not accumulate. '. (lassroom organisation is le)ible, not rigid. (time table, urniture arrangement etc.). *. +cope or student initiative is considerable. ,. -re.uent interaction bet"een the students and the teacher, and bet"een the students themselves in the conte)t o their learning occur during learning. /. 0alues are imbibed spontaneously during learning. 1. 2ll the energies o the students remain absorbed or $concentrated& in the learning. 3. 2 considerable eagerness to learn about ne" things arises. 10. +el 4learning capacity develops considerably.

ISAI AM/ALAM SCHOOL

INTRODUCTION
Isai "mbalam .chool is located in the northern peripher! of "uroville. Its students come from nearl! five villages. Initiall! Isai "mbalm .chool was catering to the learning needs of @oung "dults in the age group of A to 43 !ears, who were considered dropouts from other learning establishments and came from the villages in the "uroville area. In the course of time it has evolved to the present stage. Now it has preschool, primar! and @oung "dult sections and there are 423 students and 42 teachers in the school. 7or the last 0 !ears the school is specialising in conducting experiments in education b! adopting innovative and comprehensive educational methods that ma%e learning easier, faster, more &o!ous and context$oriented. "ll these methods conform ver! well with the / cardinal principles of education enunciated b! .ri "urobindo and all of them are based on &o!, freedom, learning b! doing and self$learning. 7urther man! of them have been effectivel! and successfull! used elsewhere in and outside India, and are being successfull! used in the school.

GLENN DOMAN METHOD

Creative and pla!wa! activities are dail! given to the preschool children. "part from these activities, the teachers appl! the +lenn Doman method for imparting reading s%ills in Tamil and nglish and general %nowedge to the preschool children who &o!ousl! respond to this method of learning. .ince the inception of this method in 411>, 0 batches of 42children each have learnt to read using this method. 8ne of the 0 batches learnt the reading s%ill completel!, than%s to the continuance of the learning practice for the full specified period of 2 !ears. The staff members also teach the parents to appl! this method to the children at home in a fruitful manner thus shortening their learning time.

RISHI VALLE6 METHOD

To the primar! level children and the @oung "dults the school is aiming to impart all the s%ills needed for their self$directed learning. "s one of its steps, it has transcreated in Tamil the educational method discovered and successfull! used b! the -ishi )alle! -ural .chools in "ndhra 5radesh in India. This method consists of a number of stud! cards in Tamil, <athematics and nviromental

.cience that are arranged in a graded manner and can be used b! the primar! level students to learn most of the sub&ect matter b! themselves. Creative and pla!wa! activities as well as group activities are in$built in the stud! cards. " regular primar! section was opened in Bune 4111 and this method is used there now. The primar! section has reached the fourth level. This method has a great potential and can be resourcefull! used to organise in future the learning activities in "uroville.

THEMATIC METHODS

PROBECT ,OR7

AND

EDUCATION

/6

DESIGN

7or older @oung "dults who wish to continue their studies Thematic 5ro&ect *or% <ethod and .;.D. <ethod C ducation ;! DesignD are used and an appropriate classroom environment has been created for them to use these methods. In the .;.D. method, as part of their learning process, the @oung "dults are given challenges or problems to be tac%led, which involves the stud! of their sub&ect matter. The teachers create the challenges or problems from the sub&ect matter to be learnt such as staging a pla! enacting the important events in the Indian Independence <ovement, or the prepartion of a chart with appropriate illustrations to teach simple prepositions in nglish. The @oung "dults do 5ro&ect *or%s in groups to tac%le such problems. The teachers help them when needed. This method of learning is somewhat similar to the 7ree 5rogress .!stem used in the .ri "urobindo "shram .chool. -esourceful and intelligent use of this method can bring out the innate talents and faculties of the students and also lead them to access the deeper or higher regions of consciousness.

NEED?/ASED ENGLISH LEARNING

"ll the students and teachers learn nglish. " need$based approach is practised for this learning. That is, all those who wish to learn to spea% nglish are taught the spo%en s%ills, and all those who wish to read and write and pursue higher studies in nglish are taught to list out the details of this learning, and then to learn them using appropriate methods. "n "udio Tape <ethod combined with language games is used for the @oung "dults. Teachers and senior @oung "dults use ;asic .entence .tructure <ethod. The! also use a 000$:ours Intensive nglish Course developed b! CI 79 CCentral Institute of nglish as 7oreign 9anguageD of :!derabad. The "udio Tape <ethod combined with -ishi )alle! <ethod can help establish a 9anguage 9aborator! in "uroville where languages from all over the world are spo%en.

TRAINING CAPACIT6 DEVELOPING IN THE SCHOOL

The school is graduall! becoming a resource base with reference to the removal of the difficulties in learning encountered b! the first generation school$going children, in particular the removal of the difficulties that stand in the wa! of ac6uiring language and maths s%ills and of pursuing higher studies. The school is also slowl! developing the capacit! to train people from outside in the methods used b! the school, in removing the difficulties in learning experienced b! the children and in organising one(s teachingE learning activities in a manner suited to the learning needs of the children. 8utside educational institutions have also started see%ing assistance from the school in appl!ing non$formal, &o!ous, pla!wa! learning activities in their establishments that are now appl!ing formal teaching methods.

ACCESS TO GRACE
7urther an effort is being made to create conditions in the school under which the students can become aware of the +race acting all over "uroville, and can invo%e it. 7or instance, when difficulties or hurdles arise in the context of their studies, the! are taught to %eep their mind silent and to concentrate so as to find a wa! for their removal. "lternativel!, the! ma! pra! for their removal. +race also operates automaticall! when a certain maximum possible perfection is achieved in an! aspect of their stud!, or a certain maximum effort is put forth b! them. The! also offer their wor% inwardl! to the divine 7orce or creative 7orce, so that it can act upon the difficult! to remove it. The students are taught and encouraged to do these three things. "s a result the! are ac6uiring the capacit! to feel the silence that results from such endeavours, and to cherish it. The! are also able to feel the intensification of silence when the! collectivel! concentrate. The school hopes that soon aspiring students will learn to 'draw upon( the +race for their progress in their learning.

CONCLUSION
The students learn in the afternoon art$related s%ills in drawing, music and classical dance, and vocational s%ills li%e tailoring and t!pewriting. Towards the end of the school da! ph!sical exercises and sports activities ta%e place. Thus learning occurs in the school in an integral manner involving not onl! the mental level but the vital, ph!sical and ps!chic parts of the being.

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TOWARDS EXCELLENCE IN ELEMENTARY EDUCATION (5667(5L58 9:0:L;<8:N! !; 2(%7:0: :=(:LL:N(:

(Submitted by Subash and Lourdes on behalf of Auroville Educational Resource Centre, Auroville, at a meeting of Resource Persons in the year 2000, convened by the Secretary of Education, Pondicherry

Excellence in Elementary Education can e attained only !"en t"e #tudent# are !"ole$ "eartedly in%ol%ed in t"e learnin& 'roce##( )ence curriculum and learnin& acti%itie# #"ould e #o de#i&ned a# to ena le t"e #tudent# to ecome *ully a #or ed in t"eir learnin&(
Factors Needed To Enable The Students To Become Fully Absrobed In Their Learning And To Learn The Curriuclum Well :
!" #reedom from fear, $sychological inhibitions, doubt in one%s ability" 2" &oy" '" (nterest and Curiosity" )" Learning by *oing" +" #reedom to learn at one%s $ace" ," A$$ro$riate Classroom Environment" -" A$$ro$riate Learning Structure" ." A$$ro$riate and /imely 0el$ from the /eachers" 1" 2tilising the 0el$ from the Classmates" !0" *evelo$ing Ca$acity for Self3Learning" !!" 2se of a Sufficiently E4ui$$ed Library" !2" #ield /ri$s Associated 5ith the Sub6ect Content"

The Curriculum Should Contain:

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!" Content a$$r$riate to the living environment of the students" 2" Content a$$ro$riate to the learning level of the students" '" Content that should 7indle the interest and curiosity of the students to instill in them the 5ish to learn more and more" )" Sco$e for learning by doing" +" Sco$e for $lay5ay activities and games" ," Sco$e for observation and study of their living environment" -" Sco$e for grou$ activities" ." Sco$e for $racticing the s7ills and com$etencies ac4uired in language and arithmetic" 1" Sco$e for building u$ s7ills in $roblem3solving, clear thin7ing, creative thin7ing, critical thin7ing, organi8ing, leadershi$, collaborative 5or7, communication etc" !0" Sco$e for bringing out the innate talents and faculties of the students"
Appropriate Attitude or Approach of the Teacher

!" Removal of the fear in the child to5ards the teacher and the encouragement of the feeling of confidence in him9her" 2" (nsistence on the students attaining the com$etency rather than his9her com$leting the syllabus" '" A com$rehensive understanding of the learning level of the students" )" Ado$tion of fle:ible time table a$$ro$riate to the learning need of the students" +" Encouraging the students to arrive by themselves at the solutions for the $roblems" ," Assessment of the students% learning should not be for the $ur$ose of re$orting or recording or $romotion to
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the higher class, but for becoming clearly a5are of the learning level and need of the students so as to $rovide a$$ro$riate assistance to them in their learning"

S%!ta@le Method"
!" ;lenn *oman method cou$led 5ith /hematic Pro6ect <or7s at the $reschool level" 2" Rishi =alley method foll5ing the system of multigrade multilevel study cards at the $rimary level" '" Phonic Sounds method to learn to read English on one%s o5n" )" Audio /a$e method combined 5ith Language ;ames for learning a second language" +" Education >y *esign method and /hematic Pro6ect <or7s method at the elementary and secondary level"
Appropriate Teaching/Learning Aids

Type of Training Needed by the Teachers to Achieve this Excellence :

!" Language ;ames 2" Story3telling ?ethods" '" Science through Songs" )" ?a$3?a7ing ?ethod" +" <riting and Reading ?ethods to Attain Proficiency in <riting and Reading" ," ?aths Activities" -" <arm32$ or Energi8er Activities instilling Energy or Enthusiasm or Curiosity in the Students in the course of /eaching9Learning Process, 5hich can ta7e ' to + minutes" ." *iscussion through 5hich the Ans5ers are Elicited from the Students" 1" >rainstorming through 5hich (deas are (nvited from the Students"

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!" @ero Lecture Programme" 2" (n assessing sufficiently correctly the learning level of the students" '" (n finding the a$$ro$riate teaching9learning strategy to be ado$ted for each student and a$$lying it" )" (n $re$aring the curriculum according to the level of the students" +" (n $re$aring the learning material a$$ro$riate to the learning level of the students" ," (n designing Pro6ect <or7s" -" (n designing Challenges or Problems for using in the Education >y *esign method" ." (n maintaining an (ndividual Portfolio for each of the students, 5hich should contain the outcome of their learning activities so as to assess the $rogress made by each of them in their learning" 1" (n Classroom Arganisation and ?anagement" !0" (n involving the students in the regular use of the library" !!" (n the use of modern technology in the teaching9 learning$rocess" (#or e:am$le, use of com$uter for $re$aring the curriculum and the learning materials, use of e:isting education videos and soft5are, $re$ariong and use of audio materials, use of the (nternet" !2" (n the use of S$iritual ?ethods li7e meditation, bring3 ing $eace and silence to the mind, $rayer, consecration, e:hausting one%s effort"

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