AUGUST-201 4 Believe nothing, no matter where you read it or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense --- Buddha A warm Welcome... After passing through various evaluations process which lasted for almost two weeks the final list of students emerged out. The college warmly welcomed those few selected candidates and the journey towards excellence began on 12th of August 2014. A formal inauguration program was organized where the students of new batch interacted with the teaching faculty for the first time. The Principal, Dr VasundharaPadmanabhan congratulated the new batch of learners and oriented them about the course. The much required ceremony of introducing each other served as ice breaker towards pursuance of excellence.
Preparation towards excellence Faculty forums were organized to discuss and review about Microteaching lesson plans. Planning of this academic year and preparation of academic calendars was carried out. Every faculty member prepared and presented new lesson plan on different techniques and methodologies. Towards Quality Control It is known that quality is a key to success. To work on this aspect IQAC meeting was conducted on 27th Aug for enhancing quality initiatives taken by staff to enrich teaching learning process. For our M ed students... Beginning with the academic year our M.Ed students got orientation about course requirements, library referencing and the regular instructional sessions. The students began working on their dissertations by seeking advice from their respective guides. They also contributed their part and gained experience by guiding B.Ed students in Microteaching. Workshop for Microteaching Moving ahead towards our first endeavour a workshop on Microteaching was conducted by the in charge Ms. Rupal Thakkar and other faculty members for our new batch of B.Ed students. Skills of Set induction, Questioning, Explanation and Illustrating
with examples were demonstrated and students were encouraged to prepare plans and implement those skills. Constructive feedback by the faculty instilled confidence and ensured that the skills were well imbibed into the learners. New faculty for a better institutional development. To enhance our synergy, 3 new teachers have joined the teaching faculty. The new teachers were first mentored and then encouraged to take up their individual responsibilities. Lesson Planning Workshop Lesson Planning Workshop was conducted by the in charge Dr. Sreetanuka Nath and other faculty members wherein different aspects of the lesson plan such as Aims, Objectives, Content analysis, Learning Experiences, Evaluation, inculcation of core elements etc were taught to the B Ed students vis-s-vis a well chalked out workshop. The teachers presented the various aspects of the above and then students were assisted in preparing a lesson plan in their respective subjects. Our first taste of colour... The first Cultural Event for this academic year was held on 25 th August 2014 at K J Somaiya College in Lecture Hall. B.Ed and M.Ed Students were the Participants and they showcased their talents in various activates like Mehndi, Rangoli, Wealth from waste, Poster Display, Essay Competition, Extempore and
Solo/group songs. Everybody enjoyed the event very much... a really colourful one.
Practice Teaching and Guidance Groups Formation To make a head on start on making our students to get a taste of teaching learning in real classroom set up the practice teaching activities were started with the formation of practice teaching and guidance groups by the practice teaching in charge. Demo Classes by the Alumni --Nostalgic reminiscences of college days Demo classes by our Alumni, faculty members and M.Ed students were organized by Demo In charge Dr. Sreetanuka Nath. On 30th August 2014, demo classes were conducted by the alumni of our college. This was done with an objective to give our prospective teacher with an exposure of different teaching learning styles, evaluation techniques, support systems which are being used in different reputed and international schools. Demonstration was conducted on an Economics topic by Mr. Shakti Jhala of 2012-13, B Ed. batch. He focused on the different aspects of Consumer Act. He had presented his subject by giving examples of companies that duped consumers about products through faulty advertisements, and the rights, which consumers have against such exploitation. Five different case studies were forwarded and rights of the consumers were discussed. Mrs. Saraswati, alumnus of 2013-14 batch had given a lesson on the topic Wants and its various features. Audio Visual aid was used. Another lesson was given by Mr. Shakti on English poem The race of flowers. The medium used was audio visual aid. The core value was brought out very well. In another room Mr. Varun Menon, another ex- Somaiyites of 2012-2013 batch presented a History lesson in an interesting way.
Ms. Nimisha and Ms. Ankita, alumni of 2013-14, conducted classes on Science topics namely Digestive System and Simple Machines respectively with lucid explanations and appropriate examples. The entire content was first related to the concepts already known to the students and was well constructed to cater to the maturity level of the class. Maths class was effectively carried out by Ms. Amita Bhanushali, alumnus of 2013-14 batch, which focused on different components of circle. Feedback of the sessions were given elaborately to guide the student teachers. The unique way of presenting the contents through mind map was the most remarkable feature. Inculcation of the play way method was the sole ingredient in these subjects.
Demo classes by our faculty members...leading from the front It s the culture of our institution that the teaching faculty gives actual 30 minutes model lessons in various methods. This year also our faculty members and Principal herself gave lessons on 1st September. This was done to provide an insight to our students into different aspects of teaching learning process like preparation of lessons, achievement of objectives, inculcation of core elements, class room management skills, time management, building rapport with the students etc. The same could be told verbally, but it makes a difference if we show by practice that what we preach Mr. Ravikant Sanugade, faculty of S.K. Somaiya College of Arts, Science and Commerce was invited to conduct a lesson on Commerce. He focused on Financial Market which proved to be very enriching for our student teachers.
Benefitting from synergy Along with our faculty members our M.ED students pooled in their expertise to present demo lessons on the 2nd of September. Ms. Biju Nayar had presented a very enriching session on Comprehension skills. Ms. Nayar our current M. Ed. Student, is also associated with an NGO called Akanksha which plays a very important role in teaching the not so fortunate children. Mrs. Radha, M.Ed. student had presented a session on debate writing, on the topic Smart Phones are a menace to teenagers. All these sessions were enriching and focused on guiding student teachers for their future endeavours.
The Pre Independence Day celebration The pre Independence Day celebration was conducted by students and staff of the college on 14th of Aug 2014. Somaiyans (B.ed group) were filled with enthusiasm to celebrate this great day. Everyone from staff members, decoration team, coordination team, Organizing team, and participants were all geared up and enthused for the occasion. The lecture hall was adorned by the decoration team, prior to independence program. Traditional dance forms were there from the state of Gujarat, Punjab, Maharashtra and Rajasthan. The foot tapping numbers took every one by its stride. Patriotic Quiz, melodious songs, bollywood fusions made it a spectacular evening coloured with the feeling of patriotism.
Thousands llaiid down ttheiir lliives so tthatt Our counttry breatth tthiis day.. Never fforgett ttheiir sacriiffiice... Happy Independence Day