My White Lotus

Dear Friends,

I am delighted to share with you my vision for my classroom for 2010-11. Having flushed it out, I am sharing it in the spirit of making myself accountable to all of you,who have helped me sail through my year one as a teacher in a challenging space.

Would also request you to take time to help me in your own capacity in the following areas:

a. Your critical feedback and questions will go a long way to improving the loose ends. Please contribute intellectually.

b. Details of our community development projects, namely Mentorship Program and Art integrated Curriculum can be provided on request. If you are connected to any one of them, or can render support, please let me know

c. Nothing more than devoting time to come and seeing the classroom for yourself. I have a structure in place called leadership forums for visitors to come in and talk about their life experiences. Nothing is more concrete than giving kids real life role models and showing them value of education. Your coming to my classroom will make it happen. Please drop me a msg if you are Pune starting this week.

d. Any way in which you can provide me access to resources to make my goals happen. I am specifically looking for support team for the year end Musical. Also, any second hand IT or classroom resources like projectors, books, games, toys and teaching aids will be useful. Me and my friends have moved into the community to make ourselves accessible to our kids and we have converted our hall into a learning centre. We are accepting anything in kind!

e. If your life is on the fast lane, or you will not be able to spare time and energy to contribute in above areas, you can contribute by cheque or cash to “Teach to Lead”. What is different is that, you will get a donor certificate from TFI and a 80(G) tax exemption.  I need development funds for my projects and field trips(grand trips which include plans to Hyderabad and Harvard)!

I urge you to only contribute an amount which is not overbearing on your personal finances. Please also indicate the timeline of your contribution so that i can estimate my cash-flows.

Thanks a ton,

Tarun

Link – Vision for 2010.docx

Travelled back in time at Boston with Sons of liberty, historic trail, oldest and richest public endowed institution-Harvard, and a saw a glimpse of future at M.I.T..I’m officially a Celtics and Red sox fan as well..I love Boston..Sorry NYC for coming second best..I’m still a small towner at heart!!

A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new, when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance.230 young sprits have moved already to express themselves to make the moment a reality by 2060. I see our vision happening in our lifetime.What and How much are you doing to actualize it?

Visited a TFA classroom in a Public School in the Bronx. An island of excellence. While it resonated with the situations we all face at TFI, in our limitation of extending the vision to school level, it also reiterated how impactful and transformative the role of a school leader was. Reminded of a saying in my mother tongue which means "As is the king, So are his subjects"

North star academy blew my lid on the bar of student achievement. Consider these anecdotes of underpriveleged students we saw. KG students reading and discussing on masai tribes in africa. 1st grader wanting to be US president and talking about maths strategies and structures in an interview. 2nd graders explaining how plates move during an earth quake. Impossible is nothing!!

Visited leadership prep charter school in Brookyln. A model of excellence with 20 years of TFA experience behind them and yet they haven’t found the right answers for right assessments and wholistic education. Enriching, comforting and profound for the oneness of the (chicken-egg) global problem of education!! Friedman,"did u say the world is flat?"

Empire state building bed room view, Madison square garden and Times square at stone’s throw..If you havent seen an expression of capitalism in its truest form, walk the streets with me – Exploring the Amercian dream!

I have been selected to represent TeachforIndia at a TeachforAll Synergies workshop in New York from May 17th to 21st.

I will provide the details of my travel plan as soon as I get it.

Ask not what the country did for you. Ask what you can do for it.Apply.TeachforIndia final deadline for 2010 – Jan 17.