Since the spread of COVID, schools have switched to online tutoring at war footing. Highly appreciated. This also makes us wonder about the future of schooling?
There are a lot of unanswered questions in my head . What would be the future of residential schools? Will they collapse? Will they have the same amount of admissions and demand like they use to before COVID?  Now, that most teachers have been forced to techno-teach, will they really love going back to green board or black board or chalk and talk method of teaching? 
 Will there be a steady growth of home schooling? 

thinking………

This covid lockdown was a period of reflection as far as I am concerned. One of the household chores I dislike very much is cooking. My dislike has nothing to do with gender. But, it has everything to do with my limited fondness for food. I am not a foodie – so minimal food that satisfies my hunger is fine with me. 

So when moved in with my father – who loves tasty food – it was quite a challenge for both of us to see eye-to-eye on the issue. To put the matter at rest, we chose to hire a cook who cooked as per my Dad’s demands. Life went on smoothly – till COVID broke out and the lockdown started.

Not an avid cook, I had to surrender myself in the kitchen. I love my study and honestly, dislike cooking and kitchen. I have no regrets and no qualms about it. Anyways, coming back to where I left – I had to cook. Initially, I felt I should master everything and get accolades for my culinary skills. Eventually, I had to admit that whatever I tried I didn’t love the job. It was burdensome. So I sought to seek help from my family.

I left the job of cutting veggies to my Dad. He gladly obliged. When it came to getting my son to engage in cooking – I found a strange, unwanted resistance – not from my son but my father. Flummoxed at first, I put my foot down. I made it clear that he better quip himself with some basic cooking skills – which he did with least resistance.

He cooks one dish everyday with clear and elaborate instructions from me. I do not supervise his cooking, which he is fine with. I still find my father subtly discouraging him from entering the kitchen, which I chose to ignore and so does my son.

Probably, my father comes from a time period when women took care of the family and men worked. He graduated into an era where he had seen my mother work outside and take care of the family too. He probably wants me to replicate the same. Well, my thinking does not agree with him. I believe, when hunger is a universal issues, then cooking and maintaining kitchen is an essential life-skill to be learnt by everyone. Kitchen is never a woman’s bastion alone.

• G.Meena

Economics Faculty

Are we getting lost – spending too much time on technology and its variety of options- rather

                                than focusing on getting the content across?

I love teaching – I love the humane touch it brings with it. In this COVID season, I miss the fun. I believe technology aids in teaching – I prefer keeping it that way. In the thick of COVID; technology has become the only source available to connect to students or the taught.

As a tutor, though I find new teaching tools through technology interesting and fun to learn – I sometimes, feel I am drifting away learning the numerous aspects of using an application than focusing on the appropriate tools that go with the subject and the topics.

The approach used by schools, I feel is quite not right. We tend to get lost trying different aspects – rather fine-tuning on a few relevant ones. Do you feel the same?

I went out as young girl

Hoping and jumping,

Full of life; full of joy and laughter;

Hope and love.

I went to school;

Full of life.

I stayed, hoped, jumped and played.

I went to college;

Full of chatter and dreams.

I stayed, hoped, jumped and played.

Hidden behind cubicles,

In-between desk phones;

Ears plugged to calls, no time for food

In the thick of corporate rat race.

Once did I find you – today of all day?

Away from. Oblivious to us;

You hoped, jumped and played.

I sat down looking at you;

You chatted and laughed aloud.

You skipped, hoped, jumped and played.

I craned my neck later.

Busy day it was, though.

I still found you

You hoped jumped and played.

Last to leave that day,

With lights switching off

Footsteps dying;

I still found you,

Not planning to move

You hoped, jumped and played.

I went home.

I lay in bed.

I looked around.

Did not find you then.

Found you now,

With the click of my mail.

I quit. Resigned.

I lay down, closed my eyes

I heard you,

In me,

You hoped, jumped and played.

Why am I finding me in you?

It is I who matter.

You left me.

Why am I looking for you?

Up the lone mountain, I went

To lie under the tree

To look at the blue sky.

Why did I ever want you near me?

I was fine without you, then.

So am I today.

I laugh at it,

I weep at it.

Up on the lone mountain,

Under the lone tree.

Am I complete, now?

Was I complete, then?

Do I need you, today?

Did I need you, yesterday?

Why was I clinging to you then?

Why was I always looking out for you?

Why did I even, look at you?

Who are you?

Who were you?

And, Who am I? Today? This day? This minute?

Up in the lone hill

Under the lone tree, I lay thinking…..

Am I lonely? Don’t I have me?

I have been trying to catch up with the Madras Players – an oldest English drama troupe’s plays online. That’s a special offer for the COVID lock down. The one that I enjoyed most was water – but could not complete the series. Each play was on the YouTube for 3 days. I got to complete watching the 2^nd play – chudamani – an anthology of different women – we encounter in our lives – mother, aunt, widowed friends, remarried niece, to-be-bride, probably a spinster struggling to take care of her blind father.

Each actor came out with their best performance – but the first story of 2 fathers belonging to two different ends of a spectrum was the best. ‘My wife wears only silk’ – a father’s statement with a tinge of pride and ‘oh, you live in Bombay’, with a submissive gesture by the other father justifies their viewpoint of their daughter’s wedding.

And, “I secured my son-in-law for Rs. 4 lakhs,’ was an even excellent dialogue used at the right time of the story to subtly show the dowry system that was prevalent then. The best was the last play where the bride-to-be compromises so many things for the sake of her marriage. The reality hits her that with compromising – she might turn out to be another version of her docile mother (who has no identity of her own) to take a firm stand by saying no to compromises and retaining her self-respect – more for herself than for others.

Of late, I have been hearing of women with lots of health issues. Is it really health issues? Or is it pent-up emotions leading to health issues in women?  I, many times, feel that headache, body ache, arthritis and any other health issues are manifestations of problems in a women’s life.

Most women have issues with husbands, children and of course, in-laws. Those pent-up emotions manifest in different health issues. I had a student’s mother very obese – then I learnt about she was a step mother to the student and her husband was always travelling leaving her to deal with the running of the family – unrequited love makes them addicted to food – food becomes an elixir of life. This leads to overeating and obesity.

These days, I notice tattoos – ‘that’s fashion’ would be the quick retort but then the reality might be – acceptance from family, friends or society. People with tattoos have some emotional issue with their loved ones which they are not able to sort out or not able to express. I, also look at piercing the body parts in the same way. Piercing at the earlobes, the belly and in hands are all indications of some disagreement with the family members which has not been resolved.

Any other views?

WHEN BIG BOSS WAS LAUNCHED IN TAMIL, IT HAD ITS ROUND OF CRITICISM IN THE MEDIA – MAGAZINES, NEWSPAPERS AND FM RADIOS. SOON, IT DIED DOWN. WHY? WAS THE CONTENT INTERESTING OR THE FORMAT NEW? NONE- IT DID WHAT NO OTHER ENTERTAINMENT DO – SHOWCASE THE WEAKNESS OF OTHERS – ESPECIALLY THE CELEBRITIES WHOM WE FROM A DISTANCE ENVY.

IT IS NICE TO NOTE THAT CELEBRITIES ARE PEOPLE WITH VICES, ANGER MANAGEMENT ISSUES, GOSSIP MONGERS AND CONFUSED. DOES THAT MAKE US ANY BETTER; NO IT MAKES US HAPPY THAT THEY ARE SIMILAR TO US. THEY ARE NOT ‘CELEBRITIES’ AS SUCH.

SO IS THAT IT? NO, I WAS IN THE PARLOUR YESTERDAY AND I NOTICED THAT MY STYLISTS WERE BUSY WATCHING SOME SIMILAR CONTENT ON MTV- WHERE YOUNG ADULTS WERE PAIRED AND THEY HAD TO PROPOSE, THEY HAD TASK TO DO.

MY STYLIST WAS TOO ABSORBED. SHE WAS DRAWN TO THE CONTENT SO MUCH THAT SHE HANDED OVER ME TO HER SUBORDINATE AND BUSY WATCHING THE FUN. UNPROFESSIONALISM? WHAT INTRIGUED ME MORE THAN ANGER ME WAS HER RESPONSE TO EVERY ACTION ON SCREEN. HER LAUGHTER WAS RINGING IN THE PARLOUR. SO I PEEPED IN TOO TO FIND THIS CONTENT.

WHAT MAKES THE REALITY SHOWS INTERESTING – AS I SAID EARLIER WAS IT ONLY LIMITED TO THE FOLLIES THAT WE SEE IN OURSELVES AND OTHERS OR IS IT THAT WE ARE CERTAIN THAT DREAMS OF BREAKING BARRIERS IN SOCIETY AND LIVING WITH STRANGERS NEED NOT BE DREAMT. IT CAN BE REAL TOO?  HAS TELEVISION BECOME AN ELIXIR IN LIFE WHERE SHE CAN SHOWCASE US, OUR POVERTY AND OUR SORROWS? HAS TELEVISION HELPED US TRANSCEND OUR INHIBITIONS, REVEL IN THE STATUS OF A CELEBRITY EVEN FOR A FEW HOURS OR LEFT US CRAVING FOR IT THAT WE CAN STOOP TO ANY EXTENT?