My Reflection for the Emerging Literacies Session 18th July 2026

Emerging Literacies Masterclass is hosted every Saturday at 5:30 PM by Sandeep Dutt.

The world has moved from a set menu to a buffet menu. Today, there are countless options before us in all the spaces, be it education, careers, technology, and life itself. But the future does not belong to those who have the most options. It belongs to those who can evaluate, prioritise, and make wise choices. 

In a world of abundance, the ability to choose well is more valuable than the abundance of choices itself. Critical thinking, self-awareness, decision-making, discernment, and adaptability are no longer optional; these are essential life skills.

- Khushi Kumari, Lotus Petal Foundation 

Quick Recap:

The Saturday Emerging Literacy Masterclass, led by Sandeep, focused on a group reading and discussion of Yuval NoahHarari’ss book “21 Lessons for the 21st Century,” specifically the chapter on the crisis of liberalism. Sandeep recapped the previous session and shared updates on the Learning Forward Retreat. The discussion explored the challenges facing the liberal story, including the rise of nationalism, the role of technology, and the concept of a “liberal buffet” where countries pick and choose elements of liberalism. Panellists Gurdeep and Khushi shared their reflections, with Khushi asking about the phrase “people vote with their feet.” Sandeep emphasised the importance of critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and character in preparing students for the future. The session also highlighted the programs under the Good School Alliance, including the Teachers Academy and the Emerging Literacy Project. Dr Deep Khare praised the initiative, emphasising the value of comprehension and reading for understanding. The conversation ended with a reminder about the resources available on the My Good School YouTube channel.

Freedom and peace - Visionary JMMS

Freedom means to do what you want, but for freedom to exist, one has to choose between the different choices. It also doesn't mean to do as we want or please, but it is the opportunity to do what is right.

Peace begins with a smile, as Mother Teresa said. Peace gives us happiness and a sense of satisfaction. Peace is a gift that we all can give to each other.

This is the story of freedom and peace on our planet Earth. It is the story of realisation that mankind has the willpower to change everything.

- Visionary JMMS @ John Martyn Memorial School, Salangaon, Dehradun
Neelam Bhardwaj, Parineeta Negi, Manmohan Kaur, Ambika Gurung, Bharti Dangwal

Happiness And Tolerance - Tarang JMMS

A mind is like a parachute it doesn’t work if it is not open. The parachute may have to go through some intolerant weather but it knows that a little push of the air of happiness will help it reach its defined destination. 

What is happiness?

“It is not about how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes happiness “- Charles Spurgeon. 

Happiness is the emotion we feel when we are content. When we start to appreciate and acknowledge what we have, we are bound to be happy. Every person feels happy in a different situation. A person who enjoys life start to appreciate it and eventually lives a happy life. Happiness does have an important role in our lives and it can have a huge impact on the way we live our lives.

Tolerance is permitting others to practise their beliefs and make their own choices. You don’t have to agree with them it’s a matter of respect for individuals as fellow humans. When we practise tolerance, we accept others ideas and beliefs. If you respect someone’s opinions – even if you disagree you display tolerance.

Here is a story by one of our group member where she tells the importance of happiness and tolerance.

The boy studying in her class was a little shy and had some speech problem because of which he finds it difficult to express himself and usually remained quiet in the class. The boy used to get angry and frustrated when he felt that other students are ignoring him or not understanding his thoughts. He used to scribble on others notebooks and even tore the notebooks out of frustration. Other students also distanced themselves from him because of his behaviour. The teacher also noticed this and was worried about his behaviour.

The teacher discussed the issue with other teachers and decided to have a meeting with the child’s parents. The parents informed that the child was advised by the doctor to have regular speech activities in order to better the speech. But the boy didn’t interact much in the class so the teacher then decided to conduct an interaction programme every day in the class where the boy was given more chances to interact with other students so that he could overcome his inhibitions and also his speech can get better.  It also helped other students to get to know one another and also get closer to the boy and thus understanding him in a better way. The programme really helped the child though he didn’t get fluent in his speech his behaviour changed towards others, he became more polite and tolerant as now he felt heard and accepted.

Tolerance and happiness are necessary for every species. As humans, we are very diversified and different so we need to tolerate one another in order to move forward in our journey of evolution. Happiness is not only in achieving the goal one can be happy during the process of achieving it. Your happiness is in your hand try to grab every moment that makes you happy.  

The story is based on the experience of the group members. The photos are taken as reference from Google images and are drawn by the members.

 - Tarang JMMS @ John Martyn Memorial School, Salan Gaon, Dehradun - Neelam Bhardwaj, Shalini Gurung, Dolly Pharasi, Laavanyaa Joshi