• Home
  • Login
  • Registration
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • RSS
ESLarticle.com
Tweet
  • Home
  • Articles
  • Blog
  • Members
  • Add Article

Top Categories

Teaching 509
Other 210
Classroom Management 138
Career Development 135
Learning Methodology 121
Study Skills 90
E-Learning/CALL 87
English Language Learning (ELL) 78
Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) 77
Teaching Methodology 76
English Language Teaching (ELT) 73
English as a Second Language (ESL) 64
Teach in Shanghai
Home / Articles / Teaching / Young Learners / View Article

Publishing

  • Articles
  • Add Article
  • Articles Archive
  • Latest Articles
  • Popular Articles

Latest Articles

Jan 5, 2019

Metacognition in Reading Competency

As related to the reading process, metacognition can be defined as contemplation concerning one's own thinking processes or knowledge of one's own...

Jan 5, 2019

Mass Media Literacy Reflections for Language Instructions

"You cannot teach a man anything, you can only help him find it within himself." Galileo Galilei Mass media forms thrive today. As development...

Nov 30, 2018

Ideas for the First Class with New Learners

~~The first class with new learners can be an anxious one for all concerned – teacher as well as learners. Below are some tips to make that first...

Nov 19, 2018

10 Amazing Hacks for English Learners

10 Amazing Hacks for English Learners It is estimated that there are over a billion English speakers in the world, including native speakers,...

Nov 15, 2018

Building Reading and Writing Knowledge with Very Young Children at Hom

Education Today, December 2013 Building Reading and Writing Knowledge with Very Young Children at Home  Timothy G. Weih University of Northern...

Popular Articles

1141482 Views

5 Creative Ways to Decorate Your Classroom Bulletin Board This Winter

Back to school, fall leaves, Thanksgiving and Christmas all easily lend themselves to great decorating themes, but what to do when those are over...

380280 Views

Three Unique Ideas To Make Your Bulletin Board More Useful

Bulletin boards have long been existent in campuses. They have proven to be such versatile and useful aids in both the learning and teaching...

140276 Views

History of the Chalkboard

Walk into just about any classroom and you will find one: A dark green board on the wall, lined with pieces of chalk and felt erasers. Chalkboards,...

65027 Views

Report Card Comments

For a small minority, writing report cards isn't a big deal. But most teachers generally dread report card writing time. Completing the comment...

47798 Views

Second Language Acquisition: Swain's Output Vs Krashen's Input

1. Introduction: Input versus Output. A general overview In order to assess how compatible Krashen's and Swain's views are, it is essential to...


Children - The Building Blocks of Every Nation

by Sushma K.S

Dec 28, 2009 Young Learners 4364 Views

_notregistered/art_3980_1550bae700~.jpg

I saw him lying half-awake under a push cart. His tender and fragile face told me that something must be making him sleepless - something must have been bothering him at such a young age when other children of his age don't have to carry the weight of the world. I was to have a series of such sleepless night when I was haunted by the image of that boy. Here I was lying on a neatly made bed, my hunger satisfied with homemade food and an air conditioner whirring, thinking about that boy. I wondered how many such children are out there in my locality and across the entire nation. His image - poorly clad with the body left to the mercy of the blood sucking insects - contrasted with the eternal bliss I was living in was more disturbing. I was trying hard not to ruminate about the boy; thankfully the chores at the office let me go easy on myself for a while.

I could not erase the image of the boy from my thoughts for days together. Whenever I bumped into kids of the same age I thought about him. For me he represented the society's poverty and indifference towards the future generation. We are so lost in the maddening crowd and so caught up in the race of life to stand out, pause and ponder.

When we are deeply involved in the thoughts of succession at work place and economic or social development that we let the governments take care of other issues and do not even think for a minute who would address the core issues of poverty, lack of basic civic amenities and even basic education for children? These incidents made me see beyond and think how one could take the responsibility of these issues and work on them rather than fret at the sight of kids who are seen on the streets either begging or getting flogged accused of stealing? They are deprived of their childhood; their dreams crushed under child labour and exploitation as sex workers. Basic education and healthy life are their fundamental rights but who will fight for their cause?

Do you know there are *an estimated 158 million children aged 5-14 engaged in child labour in India which is one in six children in the world is a child labour. Millions of children are engaged in hazardous situations or conditions, such as working in mines, working with chemicals and pesticides in agriculture or working with dangerous machinery. They are everywhere but invisible, toiling as domestic servants in homes, labouring behind the walls of workshops, in plantations hidden from public view.

*Nearly 13 per cent of all children in South Asia are engaged in child labour which equals around 44 million. Of these children, 29 million live in India, where the child labour rate is 12 per cent. Within India itself there are vast divergences between states in the incidence of child labour, ranging from 32 per cent in Gujarat to 3 per cent in Goa and Kerala.

If these kids are the future, who will develop them into strong pillars that supports the very existence of our nation?

With these lingering thoughts I and my friends sat back sharing our concern for some Chai-biscuits. I realized that even they shared similar concerns and ideas on the same issue. Many of the like minded friends offered to help volunteer for this cause and wanted to put in time and effort to bring a change in the lives of such underprivileged kids. but that was not it. This was a temporary solution. What happens when we have transformed our lives growing professionally and personally with a shift from Chai-biscuits to green tea & Cookies like a sophisticated social being? What would happen when this passion and concern just dies out like any other interest in our life due to work and personal qualms?

This is a question which each and every citizen of this country or any nation facing similar development issues should address to create a harmonious and equitable society and develop a sustainable solution for the future.

There are numerous NGO's coming up that work for the development of such underprivileged section of the society with support of International agencies to mainly provide education and other fundamental rights. For example Paatshala, an NGO involving youth towards buiding a better tomorrow. An well designed model for Private- Public Participation (PPP) would work wonders for growth of any developing nation. May be the first step towards taking up responsibility would be to collaborate with such NGO's to create a better environment socially and economically and a school of thought for the younger generations to blossom and grow.

(*Data gathered from UNICEF statistics on Child Labour in South Asia)

To know more on Paatshala and latest programs visit: http://www.paatshala.org/

Article source: http://eslarticle.com/pub/teaching/young-learners/3980-children-the-building-blocks-of-every-nation.html

  • General Information
  • Pictures
Author Info

Author Name: Sushma K.S

About Author: http://www.paatshala.org/\\r\\nsushma_ks at rediffmail.com\\r\\n

General

Pictures:

Most Recent Articles

  • Aug 26, 2017 Primary School Homework - Is There Any Point? by Sushma K.S
  • Feb 18, 2017 Curiosity and Inquisitiveness by Sushma K.S
  • Oct 15, 2016 Home Away From Home - Preschool And Its Importance In A Child's Life by Sushma K.S
  • Sep 20, 2016 Extra-Curricular Activities in Elementary Schools by Sushma K.S
  • Jul 23, 2016 Early Bilingual Learning: Is It Necessary? by Sushma K.S

Actions

  • Print Page

Articles Archive

  • May 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021

Random Articles

Teaching

Does the Present Educational System Build the Character of the Human

Every human has to pass through the usual stages of growth. We all move on from one stage to another like moving on from one class to another. No...

E-Learning/CALL

Learning Management Software - Providing Support to E-learning

Although this modern teaching system is capable of teaching a multitude number of students managing them is another thing. This is where Learning...

Lesson Planning

Creating Plans For the Substitute - Tips For First Time Teachers

When you're sick the last thing you'll want when you return to school is more work fixing things after the substitute covers for you. Here's a...

Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL)

Why Teach English Abroad?

They say that travel broadens the mind. They're right. Teaching English abroad offers a world of opportunity and discovery.

Reading

Reaching the Reluctant Reader

Reading is the key to a successful, happy life. But our schools are filled with reluctant readers-mostly boys and English language learners and...

About ESL Article

ESL Article is a private ESL/TEFL site designed and maintained by educators and educational administrators. It was launched in August 2008 with the aim of bringing ESL/TEFL students, parents, teachers and schools information and articles about the teaching profession and learning community.

Icon Group Member

ESL Article is a member of Icon Group Thailand (IGT), a group of ESL TEFL TESOL websites providing educational resources and information to teachers, schools and students around the world. The group was founded in 2003 and now includes 15+ websites covering educational information services, teaching resources and e-learning.

What is ESL?

English as a second language (ESL) is the use or study of English by speakers of different native languages. It is also known as English for speakers of other languages (ESOL), English as an additional language (EAL), and English as a foreign language (EFL).

  • Home
  • Registration
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Help
  • Partner
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
​

© 2022 ESLarticle.com.
Member of Icon Group Thailand - Educating the Future:
TESall All TESOL  Total ESL  ESL Job Feed
TEFL World  TEFL Jobs Overseas  Teach Overseas
Asia TEFL  ESL Powerpoint  Teacher Training