Education and Self-Reliance

Masterclass hosted at Mayoor School Jaipur. To discuss Adlerian psychology and its application to education and self-reliance. Key Takeaways Problem behaviour is a direct plea for help: Students seek belonging in the classroom, not just at home, and direct their actions at the teacher as a way of asking for a place to belong. External validation creates dependence: Seeking approval from others makes individuals like “clockwork dolls” who cannot move without being wound. True worth comes from self-reliance, which is internal and psychological, not economic. Reward/punishment is a tool of control: These systems are immature and violent communication methods that undermine self-reliance and keep children dependent. Teacher happiness is a prerequisite for helping students: A teacher’s attempt to “save” students can be a “Messiah complex”—a superiority complex used to resolve personal unhappiness. The solution is for the teacher to find their own happiness first. Topics The Problem: External Validation & Dependence The core human need is belonging; problem behaviour is a misguided attempt to secure a special place in the community. Seeking approval from others creates dependence, making individuals like “clockwork dolls” who cannot function without external validation. True worth is determined internally (self-reliance), not externally (dependence). The courage to be normal is essential; individuality is absolute, not relative to others. The Solution: Self-Reliance & Teacher Happiness Problem behaviour is a direct plea for help: It is directed at the teacher, who must provide a “place to be” in the classroom. Reward/punishment is a tool of control: It is an immature, violent communication method used by adults afraid of a child’s self-reliance. Teacher happiness is a prerequisite for helping students: A teacher’s attempt to “save” students can be a “Messiah complex”—a superiority complex used to resolve personal unhappiness. The solution is for the teacher to find their own happiness first: An unhappy person cannot save others. Student Perspective & Social Media Students seek validation (social, academic, extracurricular). Those who struggle academically may use disruptive behaviour to gain attention. Social media influences this by glorifying “evil characters” and showing comedians getting instant validation from bullying, which students may emulate. Counterpoint: Social media is a tool for change and connection. The masterclass itself uses it to build relationships. Next Steps Sandeep Dutt: Continue reading The Courage to be Happy next week. All Participants: Reflect on the concepts of self-reliance, external validation, and teacher happiness. Engage with social media as a tool for positive change and relationship building.

War vs. Peace: Reading Chapter 2

Learning Forward Saturday

To read and discuss Chapter 2 of Wanted Back Bencher, Last Ranker Teacher.

Key Takeaways

• The Brain’s Limits: The brain has a finite capacity for information. Overload prevents processing and memory formation, while physical movement is essential for oxygenated blood flow to the brain.

• Respond from Intellect, Not Gut: Counter-aggression escalates problems and fulfils a student’s desire for attention. A calm, intelligent response maintains teacher control and de-escalates conflict.

• Proactive Engagement: Roma de-escalated a chaotic class by proactively engaging students with compliments and small acts of care (e.g., clipping hair, offering tissues) and by building rapport before entering the room.

• Turn Disruption into Dialogue: When a student made a provocative comment, Roma didn’t punish the student. Instead, she used it to spark a relevant discussion on relationships, connecting it to the day’s poem.

Topics

Staff Room: Teacher Perspectives

• Experienced teachers (Sumita, Ranjita, Ria) discussed a difficult class, noting that only Sumita could control it.

• Ria’s Frustration: Asked how to respond to “ridiculous” questions (e.g., “Why do we need math with calculators?”).

• Counsellor Uttara’s Advice:

  • Validate the Question: Acknowledge the student’s perspective.

  • Provide a Smart Answer: Explain the value (e.g., math builds confidence, prevents over-reliance on tech).

  • Respond from Intellect, Not Gut: Avoid counter-aggression, which escalates conflict.

Classroom: “War vs. Peace”

• Students delayed class and engaged in a water fight, makeup application, and skirt-folding to defy rules.

• Roma’s Proactive De-escalation:

  • Greeted students individually in the corridor.

  • Offered tissues to a wet student (Jeevan).

  • Complimented a student’s (Supriya) eyes and clipped her hair.

  • Gently adjusted another student’s (Simi) skirt.

• Outcome: These small acts of care built rapport, disarming the students before class began.

Counsellor’s Insights: Brain-Based Learning

• Uttara explained the science behind student behaviour to Roma.

• Brain’s Capacity: The brain can only absorb information for a limited time. Overload prevents processing and memory formation.

• Need for Movement: Young learners require physical movement for oxygenated blood flow, which fuels the brain.

  • Recommendation: Integrate movement via theatrics, role-play, and educational visits.

• Seating Arrangements: Varying seating arrangements (e.g., U-shape) break monotony and improve engagement.

Classroom: Handling a Provocative Comment

• A student (Ajit) made a provocative comment about physical relationships.

• Roma’s Response:

  • Avoided anger, counting to 10 to respond calmly.

  • Engaged the student directly, asking if physical relationships are the only important part of life.

  • Used the comment to launch a discussion on trust, faith, and respect.

• Outcome: The discussion naturally led into the day’s poem, demonstrating how to turn a disruption into a learning opportunity.

Next Steps

• All Participants:

  • Read the remainder of Chapter 2 for the next meeting.

  • Prepare to share personal stories of “war vs. peace” in the classroom.

• Sandeep Dutt:

  • Renamed the WhatsApp group to “The Teacher’s Academy” for better searchability.

• Next Meeting:

  • Date: March 14, 2026 (Saturday)

  • Time: 3:00 PM
    
    FATHOM-AI generated notes.

Do learners work alone or together in small groups? - Swati Tripathi

Learners can benefit from both individual and group work, depending on the learning goals and objectives.

a) Individual Work:

- Promotes deep, focused processing and metacognition

- Builds automaticity and fluency for basic skills

- Facilitates reliable assessment of individual learners

b) Group Work:

- Produces elaboration and multiple perspectives

- Enables distributed cognition and complex problem-solving

- Develops communication, collaboration, and social problem-solving skills

When to Use Each:

- Individual work for:

    - Remembering and understanding basic concepts

    - Building foundational skills

    - Assessing individual knowledge

- Group work for:

    - Applying, analysing, synthesising, and evaluating complex information

    - Developing teamwork, leadership, and communication skills

    - Encouraging creativity and social learning

Designing Effective Tasks:

- Consider complexity, positive interdependence, and accountability

- Use scaffolds like worked examples, sentence starters, and graphic organisers

- Assign roles and rotate them regularly

Assessment Approaches:

- Formative: exit slips, quizzes, and teacher observation

- Summative: group artefacts and individual tests/portfolios

- Use rubrics to assess content understanding and collaboration skills

By intentionally combining individual and group work, teachers can leverage the strengths of both approaches to support learner growth and development.

How do we facilitate their problem-solving process 

We facilitate problem-solving by structuring the process, modelling strategies, scaffolding with prompts, encouraging collaboration, and guiding reflection.

Without removing the productive struggle that fosters growth in learners.

Swati Tripathi 

Sunbeam Gramin School

Master Class or we can say a class for masters- Ankit Khare

 

Master Class or we can say a class for masters! Hello and Jai hind, everyone On this side, Ankit Khare From Sunbeam Sarnath, I am sharing my reflection on The Sessions, 📖 Wanted Backbencher and Lastranker Teacher. The discussions showcased inspiring success stories of individuals transcending academic struggles to achieve greatness. It emphasised that traditional education often overlooks diverse forms of intelligence, calling for educators to nurture students' unique capabilities rather than prioritising conventional academic metrics. This perspective shift validates alternative paths to success and recognises multiple intelligences.

Ankit Khare
Sunbeam School Sarnath

Right VS Wrong - Sunbeam Varuna

In this video, we dive deeper into the age-old question of “Right vs. Wrong.” Let us explore what it truly means to make choices that align with our values and morals. Is there a universal standard for right and wrong, or is it all based on individual perspectives? 

Looking at examples from everyday life, we examine the influence of culture and society and discuss how our personal experiences shape our sense of ethics. By the end of this video, you will have a better understanding of the complexities behind what we consider right or wrong, along with some insights for making decisions in your day-to-day life. 

Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share your thoughts in the comments!

Sunbeam School Varuna

Ranjana Singh

Ankit Verma

Aakash Aggrawal

Alok Jha

Happiness and Tolerance - Aarya RPKM

Scenario 1- Unhappy Child

A student in my class shifted to our city from another city due to his father's job transfer. In the course, he was always silent and sad. He always seemed a bit nervous and didn't even have friends. I noticed this, and one day I asked him to meet me after the class.

When he came to meet me, I asked him, "I see that you are often very quiet. Neither do you talk to anyone nor show interest in anything, and its effect can also be seen in your studies? What is the reason?
The student replied, "Ma'am, I miss my friends, cousins and grandparents. I have no friends here, and because of this, I cannot concentrate on my studies."

I carefully listened to him and decided to help him to overcome his sadness. I asked a few of my class students to be friends with him so he could quickly settle down in this new environment. I always cared that he might not sit alone and nobody would hurt him. I asked the other teachers also to take care of him. After a few days, I saw him laughing with his classmates and playing with them. His smile was God's blessing for me.

Advice to teachers 

• Always treat your students with love and care.
• Never criticize a student In front of other students.
• Nothing is more important than the mental health of a child.
• They are like sunflowers; you are like a sun to them, 'A ray of hope.'
• A happy teacher is a good teacher, so try to be satisfied with them.

Scenario 2- Intolerant Students    

Two years back in my class, two students, Naman and Reyan, started fighting and arguing with each other. Seeing them fighting, I stopped them and asked them, `What happened? Why are you arguing and fighting with each other?"

Naman said, "Madam, he is telling me I am wrong in my point."

Reyan said, "Ma'am, what he is saying is wrong."

Both were right on their points and didn't want to listen to each other. I decided to solve this. I asked Naman to stand on one side of the desk and Reyan on the opposite.

I took the chalk and drew the number 9 like this so that From Naman's side, it would look like 6, and from Reyan's side, it would look like 9.

Then I asked Reyan what he could see? Reyan said this is Number 9.

Then I asked Naman what he could see? Naman said this is Number 6.

Both answers were different, and they again started arguing. Seeing this, I calmed them down and asked them to change their places.

When both changed their places, I again asked them, "Now, look at the number. What is it?'
Reyan replied, "Ma'am, this is 6."

Naman replied, ``it is 9.’’

Seeing this, both students were surprised and realized they were right. I explained, "Life is like that too. One whose opinion differs from yours doesn't need to be wrong. It's just a difference in point of view. In such situations, instead of getting into arguments, we should try to understand other's point of view. This is how they both understood and decided not to argue anymore and try to understand each other's point of view.

Advice for educators
1. We should always maintain our patience with students, no matter how bad our mood is.

2. Sometimes, you experience many students with different strengths and weaknesses. Some students may have behavioural problems, making them difficult to handle in class. If a student is behaving poorly, address the behaviour at the moment. Take the route to get the student back on track with his or her studies. In the long term, take measures in your classroom to discourage problem behaviour. Work on preventing problem behaviours by establishing and reinforcing clear rules.

Aarya @ RPK School Moradabad
Nishi, Manisha Bansal, Natasha Singh, Kalpana Saxena, Meeta Gulati, Shivani Mathur and Jyoti Singh.

Image credits 

First image Shutterstock.com

Second one https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/perception-every-individual-unique-matters-samuel-bandi

Thoughtfulness and Understanding - Bharti Dangwal

Understanding

Understanding is deeper than knowledge. Many people know you, but very few understand you.

This is one of the many thoughts that tells us that it is not necessary to have a lot of knowledge when understanding others. As nothing makes you a better person than being understanding towards others. A knowledgeable person doesn't need to always understand you. It needs a lot more than knowledge to understand others.

Understanding comes through communication, and understanding we find the way to peace. 

Also, if you need people around you and your surroundings to be happy, you first need to understand them and empathize with them. Then, only you will be able to figure out their problems and needs. 

As a member of the staff of my school, I know my students. I understand them, their behaviour, their mood, their problems, their attitude and their anger. Everything they are going through. I can do it as I try to understand them and think according to their perspective. 

I am also fully aware of the behaviour changes of my family members. Their needs and problems. I know when my sons are happy or sad or angry. I am also able to figure out why they have those mood swings. 

I also know how my cows are doing. What they need and why they are behaving strangely. 

This is all because I am staying with them from the start. I have been taking care of them since I found them. I have always tried to understand them. 

Understanding is fundamental and why it is important is because we live in a world that has become selfish and only thinks about ourselves. The emotions like anger, happiness, sadness, irritation, compassion, and understanding are part of the social world. 

To maintain balance in the world, it is essential to have an understanding of nature. 

Understanding brings kindness, happiness, compassion and cares to others. Understanding can also help us to reason out our anger also and keep ourselves and the other calm. All the emotions are interlinked with understanding.

Thoughtfulness

To be thoughtful means to be full of thoughts, and it also means to be considerate of others. It also indicates that we are kind or sympathetic towards each other.

We could also say that thoughtfulness includes doing good things for others without any selfish motive and expecting something in return. Sending flowers or gifts to others to make them happy, smile, or wish them whenever you meet them shows your thoughtfulness towards them. Thinking about others is also a part of thoughtfulness. It also means helping others in their difficult times or taking care of your family. Students need to have sympathy, kindness and care towards others, which can only come when they are thoughtful and think about others. For inculcating thoughtfulness in the student's many activities can be done in class, making a student kind, motivated, and helpful. 

The activities such as teachers can narrate them moral stories or stories related to kindness or watch movies that motivate them or be aware of others. We can ask them to do role plays where they can show some kindness or the act of caring for others. 

Teachers can have fun games for students regarding thoughtfulness. They can make a kindness tree in their class to write good things about their classmates every day. Each day they can write for different people. By doing such activities, they will know what others are doing for them and what they are doing. 

Motivation can be inculcated in students through rewards or praises. For example, whenever the students answer in class, they can praise them or provide stars or stickers.  The students can also appreciate the kid by giving positive feedback or giving applause to the student. Also, if a student gives a wrong answer, the teacher should not criticise him for the wrong answer but appreciate an answer, and the other students should not laugh or humiliate each other. In this way, students enjoy the class, but they get motivated to answer more and interact more.

So being thoughtful towards your surroundings is the best thing to make the world a better place for you and the people.

- Bharti Dangwal@JMMS, John Martyn Memorial School, Salangaon, Dehradun

Thoughtfulness - Rahul Thakur

Thoughtfulness is thinking before we act an action. Thoughtfulness is a way to encourage love and appreciation for others. It is thinking to change the world for the better. A way to show thoughtfulness is to help someone; it helps us feel better. By thoughtfulness, you can neutralise them negatively. When someone doesn’t act with respect or kindness, that time how you react.                                                 

Anger is an emotion that can cause so much damage and hurt at school that you want to handle it. You think about people other than yourself. This is thoughtfulness.

Sometimes we act before we think. This can hurt other people, so think and then react. We always need someone who thinks that people who think a favour of others always benefit and are loved by everyone.

Rahul Thakur

The Fabindia School

rtr@fabindiaschools.in

Positive Thinking - Jitendra Suthar

People with positive thinking mentality scrutinize the brilliant aspect of life and anticipate happiness, health and success. Such folks, square measure assured that they'll overcome any obstacle and problem they could face.

Positive thinking isn't a thought that everybody believes and follows. Some, think about it as nonsense and scoff at those that believe it. However, there's a growing range of individuals, who settle for the ability of positive thinking as a reality and believe its effectiveness.

This subject is gaining quality, as proved by the various books, lectures and courses regarding it. To take advantage of the ability of positive thinking in your life, you wish to try and do over simply remember of its existence or believe it. you wish to adopt the perspective of positive thinking in everything you are doing.

With a positive perspective, we tend to expertise pleasant and happy feelings. This brings brightness to the eyes, additional energy, and happiness. Our whole being broadcasts sensible can, happiness and success. Even our health is affected by an exceedingly helpful means. we tend to walk tall, our voice is additional powerful, and our visual communication shows means we tend to feel.

Jitendra Suthar

The Fabindia School

jsr@fabindiaschools.in

Thoughtfulness

The term “thought” is an idea click in one’s mind for something happening around. We can say a person is thinking when we see the characteristic of being kind, good and helpful to others (whether it can be a person or anything around him). There is always some or the other thing going into mind when we are thoughtful, we don’t need to wait for any kind of opportunity, rather then we can make it. A thoughtful person is most creative as there are lots of thoughts flowing in his mind.

People who think in favour of others benefit are always loved by everyone. For example A Friend is always a thoughtful person to us. It is universally accepted that whenever there is a problem, first-person our eyes search for is our Friend. We always need someone who thinks from our perspective in any situation. Thoughtful nature always makes a person capable of overcoming all the hurdles that come in the way to achieve success. There are 2 types of people, the one who is keen to solve everything and the other one who is always ready to give up in any situation. These are divided as Thoughtful and Thoughtless respectively.

Gautam Buddha once met a bandit who used to kill innocents cut their finger and tie it to the wreath. While listening to his threats Buddha was calm and quiet. He then asked bandit to pluck 2 flowers. Bandit surprisingly went and plucked flowers. Now he was asked to again attach flowers to the same plant as they were earlier. Bandit was so confused that why he was asked to pluck it and again joining those plants was impossible.

When he asked Buddha about this he replied: “If you can’t join a flower back to its original place, you have no rights to pluck it, same as when we can’t make someone happy – we are no one to make them cry”. By this bandit was in the feet of Buddha. It was his thoughtful nature that helped a bandit to convert into a good person.

- Punita Chouhan, Shivani Rao & Jitendra Suthar
They are pursuing the Learning Forward India Professional Learning Program 
at The Fabindia School