BIOGRAPHY
This is an extract from the book “My Shishu” written
about Stella in 2012.
The
unexpected librarian, Stella
 |
| Glad to write about my biography |
There
was something about Shishu Mandir that appealed Stella. And so it came about
that despite being teacher of high school classes, when she was offered a job
teaching prep children, she took it up. It was February that end of an academic
year, and Stella was still teaching in another school. But that training for
new teachers was starting at Shishu Mandir and the German volunteers had come
for a few months to train new teachers. And so, to make the most of it, Stella
would make her way to Shishu in the morning to attend her training and then go
to her school in the afternoons to teach. For three months, she straddled two
jobs and all its demands.
At
Shishu, Stella’s training began in phonetics, not commonly taught in Indian
schools at that time. New to this new to this method, she would practice it at
home, much to her husband’s amusement. Stella remembers that for a long time,
‘w’ eluded her. “Practiced all ‘w’ words in front of the mirror”, says Stella,
with a disarming lack of ego or the feeling that, as an experienced teacher,
she knows it all. Later, when she met Hella and attended her demo classes, Hella would say, “it’s not ‘vater’, its
water “and Stella would take Hella’s advices and make her “mouth like an
elephant’s trunk” to pronounce ‘water’
It
is this same openness to learn that keeps her enthusiasm and energy high even
now, ten years later. “I have learnt so much in my time here. I feel I am a
student, not a teacher. And that with each year, I am making process, “Stella
who began teaching in the primary classes made her way up as the teacher for 6th
standard. She finds that in Shishu Mandir, her
colleagues support her in the
learning. They share ideas, offer suggestions to teach a topic and even give
feedback. “In other schools no one has the patience to teach the staff, and
here Mama herself takes out time to give demo classes for us.” Stella finds
openness very refreshing. Making mistakes is okay, but the opportunity to
improve is available for an Eastern teacher like her. Hella may have exacting
demands, but teachers like Stella seek her approval, and it pushes them to work
at their teaching skills. And when Hella compliments her on her teaching, Stella is absolutely ecstatic.
For
three years Stella taught English, in addition to the primary classes. When she
was assigned another subject, science she was a little nervous. Stella began
using the library extensively to support her on learning. She went there often
to read more about the topics that she taught. So much so that when Meena Kant,
who was managing the library, had to leave, she recommended Stella as her
successor. Stella was not convinced, but she had to admit that she was among
those most familiar with the library. “It is like in a family,” she says, “We
take over some additional responsibilities, if there is a need for it”.
As an untrained,
inexperienced librarian, Stella set out to create an absolutely fantastic
library. She worked with a consultant library organization called Hippocampus Reading
Foundation (HRF) went through their
training and introduces a reading programme for her children. She learnt how to
identify children’s reading skills and began to help them become fluent
readers. The library, located in a large, airy room, soon became one of the
children’s and visitor’s favorite places. Library periods become fun and
enjoyable and Stella worked very hard to keep it that way. She actively chose
book to the collection, introduces children to books they could enjoy, and
encouraged their book borrowing. In 2009, at gathering of librarians, Stella
received the Ace Librarian Award, given to outstanding librarians by HRF. She
was happy to receive it, but happier still, when “Mama called from Germany to congratulate me.” Today, Stella and a
team of four teachers run the library, which boasts of impressive collections
of 10,000 books, adding up to over 60 books per child. This is far more than
what most schools offer their students. Stella and her library are today recognized
among schools and librarians in the city as a successful case study of what a
library can become with a good librarian.
Stella
is one of those teachers, who willingly take on responsibilities, never feeling
that a task is too small for her. Besides her responsibilities with that
library, Stella is the designated report writer, creating monthly and daily
reports. She manages the staff credit society. She is also the timekeeper of
the school, ensuring that the bell goes off on time. When it was needed, Stella
volunteered to check the toilets for cleanliness every day. “I don’t calculate
how much time I spent here or what work I do here. For whom am I doing all
this? For my school and my children,” she says.Looking back at her years in
Shishu, Stella sees it as a time, when she made good friends and found her
bearings. Among the many
bonds she has forged here, she values the one with Anand Sir and his wife tremendously. He is a father figure, “she says,
echoing the sentiments of many of the Shishu’s staff and children. Stella
associates all the positive developments in her life with Shishu Mandir. “I had
my first child after joining Shishu Mandir,” she says. She prayed for a house,
and along the way, that wish too was granted. At Shishu, she also went on to
complete her master’s degree and earn a B.Ed. degree. While this brought with
it an opportunity for a better-paid job, Stella chose to stay back at Shishu.
“I have received so much from Shishu. In my career, Shishu has helped me learn
new skills, sent me for several training programs; here I feel I am doing
something for society, especially underprivileged children, who deserve to be
treated with respect. I am in the right place.”
Reflection about my 18 years of experience in the
teaching profession
I
started to teach in the year 1997 in Ranipet, Rajeswari Matriculation School,
and Tamil Nadu. In 2000 I got a chance to work at my school where I studied my
High School in Little Flower Convent. As a turning point in my life I settled
in Bangalore after my marriage in the year 2001. For a year I worked for Amar
Jyothi High School and as a God’s call in the church there was an announcement
that in Shishu Mandir there is a vacancy for the post of a teacher. So I
approached the school and I was selected as a teacher in the year 2002.
My
journey in Shishu Mandir is a challenge to my profession. It is like climbing
up the ladder each year with different classes as well as various training
programmes which strengthens me widely.
In the year 2012 as a golden
opportunity I got a chance to visit Germany along with Ms. Meena who is my
friend in our school. In this visit we
were thrilled to have the exposure to German schools and learning their
teaching strategies.
We
were happy to see different schools and got a close insight of them. Thanks to
our close German friends Susanne, Bettina and two new friends Karin and Anja.
In Susanne’s school the first matter of surprise was that the children learnt
cycling with the help of the police. They were taught all traffic rules and had
to pass a test before they would get the formal permission to ride on the
roads. We observed Susanne’s Maths, Music and English classes. In Maths the
children were given different worksheets according to their level which they
had to work out independently. A second helper was going around seeing where
assistance was needed. Her English class was made interesting by a bingo game.
In her music class the children accompanied the song by playing on different
percussion instruments.
A
fully different school experience was waiting for us, when it was a school for
disable children, both mentally and physically, so we saw quite a number of
children in wheelchairs operated by the children themselves. The classes were
small in number, maximum 12, and there were different assistance for the main
teacher. The children have a swimming pool with special ways to enter the
water, a gymnastics hall with again a very special material for the children to
practice with, a special room for very severe cases of mental disability, where
they can practice with different colours and
designs. We were very much taken up by the school set-up and facilities
available for these kids. We felt that it was a place like 5-star hotel. Hats off
to the German government which provides good facilities and to its less
fortunate children!
The last of the schools
visiting was a British school for the children of the British armed forces in
Germany by named Windsor School. At the
school we could not participate in any class except for an address by the Principal
to the whole school. It was a sight-seeing event of two hours! Even trips are
organized on a high level, as for instance a group of the students will be
taken to the European Parliament in Paris where they will also have the
opportunity of discussing with highly placed politicians and bureaucrats. We
were very happy to have had the opportunity of seeing schools of different
countries and levels.
Finally
I like to conclude that my journey in the teaching profession helped me a lot
to learn many things and experience sweet and bitter moments of ups and downs
to face the world with challenges.
“Listen
most to yourself. You, alone know what to do and what you can do”.
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