Commemorating India’s Presidency at the G-20 and the 75th Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav St. Joseph’s Sr Sec. School Sector 44-D, Chandigarh hosted the State Level Conference to engender lucidity on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) that emanates from the NEP.

The Conference was graced by the greatest educational panjandrum of the tri city.

The Chief Guest Mrs. Harjinder Kaur- Chairperson CCPCR, praised the endeavours being carried out by the educators and said that classrooms are the true temples and children are the little Gods whom teachers are privileged to teach. She stated that bridging the gap between the haves and the have nots is of paramount importance.

Guest of Honour and Keynote Speaker, Mrs Ravinder Kaur -Deputy Director School Education- cum Deputy State Project Director apprised the gathering about the Janbhagidari and NIPUN Bharat system envisioned by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for encouraging active participation of people to endorse the theme of ensuring Foundation Literacy and Numeracy especially in the context of blended learning.

Honoured Guest Ms Reema Deewan- City Coordinator CBSE and Principal DPS, Chandigarh emphasised the need to improve the quality of teaching by focusing on providing individual attention to students taking into consideration the student teacher ratio and using technology as a potent tool.

The panelists comprised of venerable academicians- with Principals such as Ms. Seema Biji( Moti Ram Arya School), Ms. Ritu Bali (AKSIPS)Ms. Gurmeet Goldie (GHS, Khajeri) Ms Anjali Sharma (St. Soldiers School) Dr. Dharminder (Principal GMHS, Khajeri) along with Ms. Anupama Sharma (Veteran Resource Person – CBSE) Dr. Manisha Sahni ( Director Principal Delhi World Public School) Dr. Deepika Gupta (Assistant Professor, Co-coordinator FLN, Head Teacher – SCERT and Ms.Sunita Dua, Educator and Counselor. Needless to say that the discussions that ensued were replete with enriching pearls of wisdom contributed by each member of the panel.

The Event commenced with the time honoured tradition of the auspicious Lighting of the Lamp by the distinguished Guests, accompanied by a soulful rendition of the Ganesh Vandana and Classical Dance performed by the students.

After the Felicitation of the Honoured Guests, with Planters and Mementos as a token of affection and appreciation for their stalwart contribution in their chosen fields, the Conference was declared Open by Ma’am Harjinder with the official release of the School Calendar and the Handbook on Innovative Practices to Decode the Gameified Learning created by the teachers at St. Joseph’s .

Power Point Presentations by the Coordinators of the host school enlightened everyone about the salient features of FLN and the numerous innovative activities that can be incorporated into the curriculum Apart from this, a PPT making Competition, themed on Unique and Innovative Endeavours/ Activities related to FLN, was held in which the First and Third Positions were bagged by students of Divya Public School – Bhawna and Shrishti while Nirwan of St. Joseph’s was awarded the Second Position. The self composed song themed on FLN by Ms. Rashi of the Kindergarten Block also garnered a lot of praise from the audience.

Addressing the august gathering, Principal Ms. Monica Chawla expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the CBSE Regional Office, Chandigarh for entrusting the school with such a prestigious task of conducting the Conference at the UT level. She was elated at the chance to exchange and imbibe all the little nuggets of sagacity from the Eduleaders and said she was humbled by the overwhelming response and laudation heaped upon the efforts put in by the Josephian Family.

She also thanked the Members of the School Management for their constant support and encouragement and said that it was a blessing to be a part of the St. Joseph’s family be it the facilitators or students, who undertook any challenge with Pollyannaism. She especially thanked the Coordinators of the different Blocks who worked indefatigably, to synchronise all the elements seamlessly, which brought forth such conducive results.

She stated that since the world is transient with constantly changing dynamics, the catalyst or the main mode i.e. the education system has to adapt whilst keeping in tune with the contemporary requirements. She further added that we need a paradigm shift in the way we teach, and we need to respond to this gargantuan crisis exigently. She reiterated the fact that students must Learn to Read before they Read to Learn. Bringing the Conference to a close Ma’am Chawla said that it their humble endeavour to live up to the words of Ann Landers who said, “It’s not what you do for your children, it is what you teach them to do for themselves that will make them successful human beings.”

The Conference concluded on a joyous with a sumptuous Lunch.