Principles of Global Dream
Enrolment rates are now at around 95% across India, and still rising. However, schools are often failing to make their students literate. The Annual Status of Education Report (2016) indicates that 50% of Grade 5 students can’t read a Grade 2 Hindi text. The fact that so many students are failing to learn the basics in school shows that there are deep issues in our education system, for instance:
- Class sizes are often large, making it difficult for teachers to give targeted attention to students who are struggling.
- The primary pedagogy is ‘chalk and talk’: teacher- and textbook- focused, rote learning based. This often bores students, and prevents them from learning effectively.
- Teachers are often reliant on physical discipline and severe scolding to control the classroom, leading to an atmosphere of fear rather than inquiry.
The Global Dream program is more than just a set of books, it is a way of teaching which strives to model a better, learner-centred education. The principles of Global Dream can be summarised as ‘sawal, samay & sambandh’:
- Ask the learner questions (sawal), because this will be more interesting & engaging for them.
- Give them plenty of time (samay), so that they can think for themselves and go at their own pace.
- Keep a friendly relationship with them (sambandh).
Global Dream emphasises moving from the known to the unknown. We start with the picture, and ask what its first sound is, before going on to the unknown – the shape of the letter. This enables learners to incorporate this new knowledge effectively.