Kalam Libraries all over India including Gujarat, Delhi, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh,”
Author Srijan Pal Singh begins his book What Can I Give: Life lessons from My Teacher by saying, “Throughout the rest of 2008, and till my graduation from IIM-A in April 2009, I was in regular touch with Dr Kalam over email and occasional phone calls. We would discuss the topic that we had chosen for research during class —providing Urban Amenities in Rural Areas (PURA).” Srijan’s inspiration behind the book is to bring forth the values of Dr Kalam as seen from the inside — and let readers discover what made him the person we adore.
His philosophy of always asking — ‘What Can I Give’ inspired the title and much of the content of the book. “His humility, impeccable dedication to integrity, and his ability to let go of short term opportunities for lifelong values influenced me the most. It is a composition from personal experiences I had with Dr Kalam — working with him, learning from him while travelling to many different places across the world,” states Srijan.
Dr Kalam always gave a mission to everyone — that of a home library. “He made people take an oath about this — and stressed on the emphasis of it. He told the youth about the importance of reading. His philosophy was that a great society is built upon knowledge-driven citizens. Hence, to take forward his mission to give every youth access to the best of books, my team and I started the Kalam Library Project. This mission strives to start community-driven libraries across the nation, especially in villages and in urban under-developed economic zones. These libraries are completely free and operate in multiple stages — Trishul, Prithvi and Agni. With the resources from the book What Can I Give and a few friends of the Project, we have established 25 Kalam Libraries all over India including Gujarat, Delhi, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh,” shares Srijan.
An ardent believer of Kalam’s works, Srijan has penned three books with Dr Kalam. Talking about his three books, he adds, “Target 3 Billion (Penguin, 2011) is based on our research work on rural development and innovative solutions to address issues of poverty across the world. Roughly half of the world (3 billion people) is living in moderate or extreme poverty, hence, the name of the book. Reignited (Penguin, 2015) was targeted towards younger readers. It was an account of how the world will shape in terms of science of technology, and how can the youth position their careers in a changing world. Advantage India (2015) was Dr Kalam’s final book. It was an account of our ideas on the path India needs to take in its quest to become an economic superpower and a socially equitable nation.”
When Srijan is not writing or researching on his books, he likes to let his hair down by spending time with kids, who are the future of our nation. “I enjoy interacting with children and sharing their ideas. I also love playing the drums and reading about history and science,” he shares.
Source | http://www.asianage.com/life-and-style/lessons-beyond-classroom-521
3D printers are changing the way kids learn
Whether it's printing a prism to understand geometry or a skateboard to figure out friction, students can now bring lessons to life
On a Wednesday morning at Maurya School in Palam Vihar, Gurgaon, eighth grader Kunal Arora is busy creating a three-dimensional model of a human cell. “We just learnt cell structure in science class and I want to see it in 3D to get an idea of how it really looks,“ says Arora.
In the lab where he's working, other materialized `printouts' are scattered around -a beyblade, a keyboard, the Taj Mahal, a turbine engine and an octopus.
Goodbye cardboard cutouts, hello 3D printing. The model-making technology that allows anyone to create anything, has finally made it to Indian classrooms. The elite variety, of course, since though the prices of 3D printers have fallen ¬ most now start at around Rs 1 lakh -they're still not for your average school.
But a few like Kunskapsskolan and Maurya in Gurgaon, Pathways-Noida and the Global Indian International School in Pune are training students to apply 3D printing to both curricular and extra-curricular subjects. Alfred Philips, a trainer with 3Dexter, a company that has designed the 3D printing curriculum for Maurya School, says 3D printing can help kids understand their class lessons better. It lets them create three-dimensional solid objects from digital models with the help of a printer that lays down layer upon layer of a special material. “For example, to see a practical demonstration of a physics concept like friction, we ask students to make a skate-board. To understand `sound', they can make a musical instrument like guitar,“ he explains.
Given a choice, most children would rather use this technology to bring their favourite fairy-talecartoongaming character to `life'. Ten-year-old Anvi Sehrawat created a tiny Angry Bird using the 3D printer at her school in Gurgaon. Explaining the various steps involved, she said she started with drawing the character on the computer using a modelling software. To create the bird's beak, she drew a triangle on the computer screen and pulled it up with a tool so that it became a three-dimensional beak. Sehrawat, who studies at Kunskapsskolan, is planning a dinosaur head next.
Unlike France where schools are making an innovative use of 3D printers by using a printable clitoris to teach children sex ed, Indians are playing safe with science and maths.
Kunal Bhadoo, CEO Kunskapsskolan, says the technology is especially useful for grasping scientific and mathematical concepts. “They can actually see how a cube is a 3D square, prism a 3D triangle or `hold' the earth's crust in their hands to understand its various layers,“ he explains. It's not schools alone that are keen on the new technology , but parents too. “The push is also coming from parents who are tech-smart and want their children to be too,“ adds Bhadoo.
Raunak Singhi, marketing head, 3Dex er, says the company is working in six schools this academic year and 15 more across India are in the pipeline.
Novabeans, a 3D printing solutions irms, has already set labs in Kunskapsskolan and Pathways, schools in Pune and Chandigarh are next. While middle and high school students work on more complex 3D printing software, younger children are encouraged to use 3D pens. A 3D pen has a plastic `ink'. Once connected to a power source, the pen heats up the plastic ink turning it to a viscous gel. You squeeze it out, it cools down and solidifies into any shape.For example, to make a cube, draw a square with the pen and keep adding more squares on top of it. It's exciting to see a three-dimensional object taking shape, just like a vase on a potter's wheel. The trick lies in controlling the movement of the pen.
At Global Indian International School, Chinchwad-Pune, kindergarten students use the pens to create simple objects like flowers and necklaces. “We have three printers and plan to get a chocolate and food grade printer next,“ says Reshma Shaikh, activity head at GISS Pune.
Source | Times of India | 18 September 2016
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