Kids Will Be Kids- An Initial First Hand Look

I had an amazing day today with a first-hand glimpse into the Indian education system. Our Teachers for Global Classrooms group visited a local government elementary school comparable to our public schools back home in the States. I saw so many similarities- caring teachers, structured lessons, and eager students. The school also has similar challenges such as a lack of funding and resources. Class sizes were less than I had pictured, but it was speculated that more children would be enrolling as migrate workers return from their distant employment opportunities. Our presence excited the children, but their teachers redirected them in lesson involving learning English words such as cat, dog, goat, lion, feed, and watch. It is incredible to see the importance of the English language here in India. My misconceptions of Hindi being the language of India have been dismissed and replaced by the knowledge that India has a wide diversity of languages that are spoken according to region. The English language unifies and allows for common communication throughout India. Learning to fluently speak English opens multiple doors of opportunity for both teachers and students.