George Evans once said: “Every student can learn, just not on the same day, or in the same way”. As a special educator I, Pratibha Maheshwari agree, that every child has the right to the same opportunities as others, regardless of the difficulties they face. Special education is of great importance for children with learning disabilities, it gives them the opportunity to get quality education in line with their unique needs. Special education enables every student to gain a high level of independence to reach their full potential. I would like to thank the GCIS family for understanding the need of the students and to give me an opportunity to help the students dealing with learning difficulties. It is rewarding to know I have been able to reach out to the students and help them on their way to future independence.

With the support of the school management and all the teaching staff, we can meet the basic needs of the student who have potential difficulties with reading or writing. Special education is an integral part of our school’s education program and I love teaching because every time a student leaves the classroom it fills me with a sense of pride. This academic year, I was also given an opportunity by the CBSE in collaboration with Expressions India to be one of the Master trainers and to conduct training all over the country for various CBSE schools to help the youth of our country to deal with life skills. These training session are of great help for the adolescents to deal with their mental health, I feel extremely blessed to be part of the community which is helping the students to create a world where mental health will no longer be considered a taboo and it will lead us to a future where more people will be blessed with a happier life.

From the glory days of Michael Jordan to the passionate, avid days of Lebron James; I have been a devoted follower of basketball. I have discovered my affection for basketball through my peers and coach and I hope that I can help others share my love for the beloved sport. Firstly, I want to talk about the importance of sports in general. They play a crucial role in balancing a curriculum and have also proved to be reliable way for students to vent stress and enjoy. It determines the mental and physical fitness of a student as it helps them perform and analyze better in real-life situations.

It is easier to keep the subject interesting because of the ever-evolving state of sports. For example: students will be compelled to learn a sport if it is present competitively or if it is popular generally. Also, in the end, students will learn about their own body parallelly with the sport itself. This could encourage them to aim for a fitter body and continue to pursue the sport as a hobby or even as a career.

Secondly, I want to focus into a sport that I love and specialize in: basketball. Basketball is a team sport which requires intense strength, stamina, speed, consistency and teamwork, a team cannot function properly without five players who communicate efficiently with each other, much like the real world where it is absolutely necessary for good communication skills. Basketball is a sport which I grew up with and it has taught me as a wise master and nourished me as loving mother. I push myself daily to give back to this brilliant sport and introduce it to the developing buds I call students. I am also into teaching cambridge IGCSE, AS and A levels Physical education- which makes up a vital part of a balanced school curriculum which teaches students that physical education is not just playing in the field; it involves self discipline; analysing practical situations; understanding the human body and more. The subject is interesting because players get to parallely learn about themself as they play on the field. This subject is taught through a broad range of tasks, challenges, athletic adventures which encourages excitement in children to pursue knowledge.

As a coach, I aim to help my students improve themselves as a player and a human being. I provide them with a broad range of tasks, challenges, athletic adventures which encourages excitement in children to pursue knowledge. I also aim to teach them important personal traits that could determine their future, for example: self-discipline, resolve and hardwork. I hope that, one day, I could get the opportunity to see my students on the big stage.

Thank you,

Rohan Raj – Certified professional physical education instructor specialised in basketball and representative the Southern Blues club in A division in the men’s category (Seeded 4th overall in Karnataka)

“A journey of thousand miles must begin with a single step.” – Chapter 64 of the Dao De Jing by Laozi

Ms. Archana Jha, was born in the ancient city of Patna but her thirst for knowledge took her to different parts of Bihar and Jharkhand. She had always been a curious student, fascinated by the world of Chemistry. She did her masters in Chemistry from TMB University, Bhagalpur. She is also TET qualified. She has the credit of teaching multiple subjects in CBSE, ICSE and Cambridge curriculums across various cities of India like Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Ranchi and Bengaluru. She has been an indispensable part of the GCIS community for 9 years and is currently leading the Senior Secondary Section of GCIS. Her first steps into these crucial industry 20 years back hadn’t given her the slightest clues to her challenges and potential victories.

Under her supervision, GCIS conducted the Green Campus Program. She was titled the ‘The Innovative Ambassador for CBSE’ in the year 2021. However, she hasn’t halted experimenting new teaching techniques in the classroom, always trying to make learning a little more fun.

She says, “With work comes stress, with position comes responsibility.But it’s intriguing how after all these years I am still the happiest with my students and their nods in realization to my teaching always assures me of my decision 20 years back.”