|
 As
the train from Aligarh pulled into the Lucknow railway
station on a hot and humid day in July 1955, there alighted
a barefooted ill-clad young man, carrying a tin box on his
head. Apparently, the box contained his meagre earthly
possessions, a few books, bedding and clothes.
Hailing
from the remote village of Barsauli in Aligarh district in
the State of Uttar Pradesh in Northern India, he did not
know where to seek shelter from sun and shower. But he knew
what he wanted. He wanted something worthwhile, a university
education which would empower him to achieve what he thought
he was destined for.
From his
school days, Jagdish Gandhi wanted to do things to
ameliorate the condition of millions of people deprived of
food, shelter, clothing and above all the spiritual gifts of
inner peace and harmony. The pre-and post-Independence
bloody communal clashes between the major communities of
India and the blood bath India and Pakistan witnessed at
partition in 1947 along with the largest human migration in
world history that took place then, left indelible
impressions on the young man’s mind.
He wanted
to achieve great things for people around him but the
contours of what he wanted to do had not yet fully
crystallized. There was an inner urge to organize people to
save them from social unrest. Someone had to do something
most urgently. As always, Jagdish Gandhi was a man in a
hurry. The unfortunate assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, his
childhood idol and hero, caused him immense anguish. Since
in his childhood he had witnessed violence, brutality and
hatred all around and since no easy solutions were in sight,
he mutely dreamt of using the spiritual weapons used by
Mahatma Gandhi and Vinoba Bhave to combat the prevailing
chaos.
He found
inspiration in the words ‘catch them young’.
Children created in God’s image, he thought, were free
from prejudice and hatred. Beginning with children and
educating them in godly ways would be a fitting method to
reach where he wanted to go. It is society, he concluded,
which makes the innocent children saintly or fanatical.
Thus, Jagdish Gandhi ventured to look for bringing about a
change in society through meaningful education of the young.
Early
Impressions
From early
childhood, Mr Gandhi was inspired by his Uncle Prabhu Dayal,
to work for the betterment of society. Mr. Dayal was a
highly spiritual person who was also a well known social
worker and a dedicated follower of Mahatma Gandhi, sharing
prison terms with the Mahatma several times during the
Indian freedom struggle. The teachings of his Uncle Prabhu
Dayal lit the fire of spiritual awareness in young Jagdish
and motivated him to work for spiritual regeneration of
humanity. His uncle also taught young Jagdish to treat the
entire humanity as one family, following the Indian
tradition of 'Vasudhaiv Kutumbukam' (the world
is but one family).
From his
early school years, Mr Gandhi was attracted to the teachings
of Mahatma Gandhi. He had always dreamed about seeing
Mahatma Gandhi in person and was devastated when he heard of
Mahatma Gandhi's assassination on 30th January 1948. Young
Jagdish, then about 10 years old, was so heart broken that
he decided to carry on the Mahatma's mission and wrote an
application to the Principal, of his school requesting that
his name be officially changed in school records from
Jagdish Agarwal to Jagdish Gandhi. Since then he is known by
the new name of Jagdish Gandhi.
Another
person who left a deep impression on Mr Gandhi was Raja
Mahendra Pratap, a great crusader for World Federation, who
inspired young Jagdish to serve humanity just as God, the
Creator, looks after the entire humanity. While he was a
student of class XI at Mathura, Jagdish received some copies
of the monthly journal 'Sansar Sangh' (World
Federation) personally from Raja Saheb. Mr Gandhi attributes
his commitment to spirituality and world peace from the
ideas first planted in his mind by the articles in Sansar
Sangh. The third person to deeply influence the thinking
of young Jagdish Gandhi was Saint Vinoba Bhave, the
spiritual successor of Mahatma Gandhi and progenitor of the Sarvodaya
(upliftment of all) movement. Later in life, Mr
Gandhi personally met Saint Vinoba Bhave several times and
was so inspired that he chose Vinoba's clarion call Jai
Jagat (Glory be to the World) as the school motto for
CMS.
Early
Activities
Following
the teaching of Mahatma Gandhi, Mr Jagdish Gandhi also
established a Samaj Sewa Dal (Social Service Group)
in his school which undertook a city cleanliness drive when
the Sweepers Union went on a month-long strike in Aligarh in
January 1952. For ten days, three teams of about 50 of his
classmates inspired and led by him went round the city
cleaning the filth. The then district magistrate of Aligarh
district awarded him a cash prize of Rs 5,000/- which was
utilized by him in building a room for the Social Service
Centre at his school. During his senior grade in school, Mr
Gandhi launched a 'Be Good' campaign among students which
drew wide acclaim from all. He was also chosen for the 'Best
Student's Medal' by the principal.
As a
student, he sold newspapers, polished shoes and gave private
tuitions so that he could continue his studies and attend
Lucknow University, from where he graduated. As a university
student, Mr Gandhi organised many conferences, seminars and
debates with the aim of bringing about a change in the
mindset and outlook of students. His helpful nature and
cooperative spirit saw him get elected first as the
Vice-President of the Students’ Union and then as the
President the following year in 1958. Even four decades
later, old timers still recall that Mr Gandhi won the union
elections without spending any money on publicity a rarity
in those days.
Marriage
and Vocation
As a
committed social worker dedicated to serving humanity for
life, Mr Gandhi had made up his mind to stay unmarried
forever as he thought he would not be able to find a
suitable wife equally dedicated to his cause. However, when
he saw his future wife Bharti at a religious gathering
singing devotional songs, dressed in simple cotton saree, he
recognised his soul mate. The young pair got married at a
simple ceremony, graced by the then Governor of Uttar
Pradesh, Mr V. V. Giri, who later became the President of
India. After the ceremony the bride and the groom publicly
swore in front of the mammoth gathering that had assembled
to bless them to dedicate their lives to serving society by
educating children. True to their vow they are continuing to
spiritualize education at CMS.
School
for Shaping spiritually aware World Citizens
Mr Gandhi
established CMS, together with his wife Bharti on 1st July
1959 with 5 students, as an experiment for social
transformation, as an attempt to spiritually surcharge
humanity. He believes that "Every
child is potentially the light of the world as well as the
cause of its darkness, wherefore must the question of
meaningful (spiritual) education be accounted as of primary
importance." He
upholds that school must strive to make every child both ‘good
and smart’ so that every child coming out of
the portals of the school should become ‘a
gift of God to mankind and a pride of the human race’.
Mr Gandhi
believes that the main cause of all the ills of today’s
world is the meaninglessness of education. He believes that
human beings have three realities — Material, Human and
Divine. In order to make the
child a worthy human being, the school must develop ‘all
three realities of a child’ giving equal
importance to all.
Over the
last 45 years, thousands of students have passed out from of
the portals of CMS, reinforced with values of spiritual
awareness and committed to the cause of social upliftment.
Mr
Gandhi firmly believes in unity in diversity. These values
are reflected in the activities, philosophy and achievements
of CMS which emphasize character building through spiritual
and moral education and which also exemplifies the following
four building blocks in a child's development: Universal
Values, Global Understanding, Service to the World and
Excellence in All Things. The school strives to mould its
students to be ideal world citizens committed to the credo, "The
Earth is but One Country and mankind its Citizens."
The success
of the CMS model is reflected every year, in the public
examinations in which CMS students secure very high
percentage of marks which is higher than the national
average. Nearly 20 to 30 CMS students are selected for the
National Talent Search (NTS) Merit Scholarship every year
while hundreds of CMS students are selected for Engineering,
Medical, NDA and various other professional colleges and
institutes in India and abroad. Also, CMS is the only school
to have an Innovation Wing where over 40 experienced
educationists constantly research, innovate, develop and
adopt new teaching methods. They also study innovations in
education in India and abroad.
Rededicating
Life to Education
In 1969 Mr
Gandhi was elected a member of the State Legislature from
Sikandra Rao Assembly Constituency of Aligarh in Uttar
Pradesh. For several years Mr Gandhi used to convene All
India Children's Conference annually to highlight the
importance of children's issues and to infuse in them the
spirit of brotherhood, community living, cooperation and
spiritual values. Thousands of delegates from all over India
used to converge in Lucknow for the conferences. In 1974 Mr
Gandhi successfully organised an International Youth
Conference on " World Peace Through Education" in
London. It was during this conference that he met some
youths from the Baha'i community. After hearing their views
he was greatly impressed and influenced by the Baha'i
philosophy of the Oneness of God, Oneness of Religions and
Oneness of Mankind and so great was the impact on his mind
that he accepted the Baha'i Faith, gave up politics forever
and rededicated his life to education of the children as he
realized that "Among
the greatest of all the great services that can possibly be
rendered by a man to Almighty God is the meaningful
spiritual education of children, building their character
and inculcating in their tender hearts the love of
God."
Since then,
every year CMS has been presenting specially prepared floats
at the official Republic Day Parade in Lucknow. Every CMS
float is based on the theme of divine education, world unity
and world peace. These floats are public education tools for
stimulating public thinking and to motivate people to work
for spiritual awakening, world peace and global
understanding. Significantly, on 21 out of 26 occasions, the
CMS float has won the coveted Governor's Trophy for the Best
Float of the Parade.
Father
of Quality Concept in Education
Mr Gandhi
is considered the originator of the concept of Students
Quality Circles (SQCs) in education. Quality movement in
education seeks Total Quality Persons (TQP) who are imbued
with spiritual awareness and committed to striving for
quality in thought, words and deeds. Quality is linked to
godliness and order. When Mr Gandhi talks of quality in
education, what he is advocating is not merely high grades
or marks but a balanced spiritual base built on the four
building blocks and four pillars of CMS education. He is
convinced that high competence and grades matching one’s
potential can always be achieved provided the balance
between material and human education on one side and divine
education on the other is maintained. His efforts have been
recognized not only nationally but also by countries outside
India like Bangladesh, Mauritius, Japan, USA. and others.
Principals and teachers whom he trained at CMS have become
ambassadors of quality in classrooms and are going
out to foreign countries to bring about a qualitative change
in education under the canopy of divine teachings.
Creating
awareness for unity and world peace
CMS
has developed an extensive and highly meaningful educational
programme aimed at spiritually charging the children and
thereby building the defenses of peace in their minds,
because wars begin in the minds of men. The tools used to
attain this objective include daily prayer assembly,
All-Religion Prayers, World Peace Prayer Ceremony (WPPC),
Peace Poles and the World Citizen’s Dress, a CMS novelty
created to inculcate awareness about oneness of humankind
and common cultural roots. The Dress is a symbol of
synthesis of the global diversity. It is white in colour,
which is a universal colour for peace and purity, and has
the holy symbols of all major religions of the world around
the neckline. The flags of all the member countries of the
United Nations are also embossed on the dress, representing
international community and symbolizing the brotherhood of
mankind. The dress is the centre piece of the WPPC which
forms an integral part of all CMS functions.
As part of
its efforts to expose children to ideas of spiritual living
and religious tolerance, CMS has been promoting
participation of its students in international exchange
programmes. Mr Gandhi is also a life-member of the Children’s
International Summer Village (CISV) and International School
to School Experience Exchange ISSE. Over the years, hundreds
of CMS students have visited numerous foreign countries
under the CISV Camps and ISSE exchange programmes. During
past two decades, as CMS grew in size, the School has
created the requisite infrastructure to organize and host
international events. CMS Gomti Nagar campus has an
exclusive large international guest house with permanent
kitchen staff. The facilities also include an air
conditioned auditorium for seating over 800 persons. Now, at
CMS Kanpur Road Branch, a huge World Unity Convention Centre
has come up, comprising a large air conditioned auditorium
with a seating capacity of over 3,000 persons, several
conference halls, a very big dining hall and 57 air
conditioned guest rooms. CMS uses these facilities to
organize and host fifteen international educational events
every year. These include Quanta International, Robotics
International, Astronomy International, MACFAIR
International, International Students' Quality Circles (SQC),
COFAS International, CELESTA International, GEOFEST
International, International Mathematics Olympiad,
International Exspo (Sports), World Peace Festival, SAARC
Youth Festival, Commonwealth Youth Conference, Children's
International Summer Village (CISV) Camp, International
School-to-School Experience (ISSE) Exchanges and it was
during these events that Mr Gandhi first became aware of the
acute anxiety and apprehensions in the minds of children
regarding their future, and, being the founder of world's
largest city-school, he decided to appoint himself and CMS
as the custodians of the welfare of world's two billion
children, born and children yet-to-be-born. It was in this
role that CMS has been organizing a series of international
conferences for Chief Justices of the World, requesting them
to intervene on behalf of world's children, and to safeguard
their future by supporting their demand for enforceable
international law and for elimination of weapons of mass
destruction as also for ensuring globally coordinated
efforts for conserving ecology and environment.
Philosophy
of Meaningful and Divine Education
Mr Gandhi’s
new concepts of divinity and his unique research on
spiritual discoveries through the education of the child are
path breaking. Through his City Montessori School (CMS) in
Lucknow, India, Mr Gandhi has created the
most unique program of spiritualization through education.
He has not only taught children about love of God and
concepts of divinity, he has done so in the most creative
and innovative ways for the widest possible impact. He has
devised many new and effective ways of communicating God’s
wisdom and infinite love through what he calls school, a
lighthouse. His effective model of education and his
thrust on spiritual discoveries through the children, has
reached millions in the process.
A deeply
spiritual man himself, Mr Gandhi believes that human
beings are endowed with spiritual capacities. An
understanding of the divine reality, positive virtues and
values give individuals and societies the moral
accountability, which is the basis of human integrity. CMS
provides each child with a spiritual foundation for his or
her activities, be they academic, physical, social, or,
eventually, professional. CMS trains its students to develop
virtues such as trustworthiness, compassion, humility,
courage, kindness, and patience in an effort to assist them
to expand their ability to perceive, participate,
experience, empathize, and comprehend.
Mr Gandhi
has shown that a school can teach spiritual values and
divinity without infringing on the individual identity of
each religion. Deeply affected by the religious and communal
riots at the time of the Pakistan /India partition, he has
developed a model of education in which values clarification
goes a step beyond critical analysis and intellectual
appreciation by connecting it to volition
and a desire for improvement. Mere knowledge of
ideals and principles is not enough; there is the need to
translate these ideals into action. CMS value education
teaches how spiritual understanding can combine with reason
to transform rational thinking and material growth into a
continuous stream of self-improvement and spiritual as well
as material progress. These values are taught at CMS in a
non-intrusive way to its religiously diverse student body
from the Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, Jain, Sikh,
Baha´i, Parsi and other faiths. This has been an incredibly
complex task but has not daunted Mr Gandhi, who is as full
of enthusiasm today as he was 45 years ago.
Mr Gandhi
researched many innovative concepts and perfected several
methods of his own for the development of spirituality in
children, thus breathing a new life into traditional
religious structures. Parents of all faiths greatly
appreciate the spiritual focus their children receive at
CMS, and in fact, many have brought their children to CMS
precisely because of this school´s emphasis on inculcating
the love of God, prayerfulness, thankfulness and the highest
focus on the spiritual realities of the child.
CMS model
of meaningful education increases the love
of God, it releases capacities, develops both
creative and analytical abilities, a sense of purpose, love
for beauty and appreciation for the mystery and wonder of
the universe, thankfulness, prayerfulness, self-confidence,
character, willpower and goal setting competencies, and
instils the spiritual vision that enables a child to become
later on in his life a self-motivated agent of social
change, serving the best interests of the individual, family
and community.
In his inspiring
school environment, Mr Gandhi puts first and
foremost emphasis on the discovery of the inner realities of
life over the outer, more visible aspects. He has shown
through his experiment that when the inner roots are strong,
the outer tree will also be strong. By giving more
importance to inner over outer aspects, Mr Gandhi inspires
individuals to their highest character even against the
contrary winds of change, growing materialism and lack of
divinity around them. Children moulded in this school
environment also have a greater sense of purpose, they are
more respectful, compassionate and conscious individuals,
and they are more motivated to serve their communities
through their careers and professions.
Through
good counsel and inspiration to discover the divine
mysteries, and modelling of these virtues and values by the
teachers, a school can provide a new direction and create
new possibilities through education for the transformation
of the individual, the family and society. In
this model, the staff of CMS aim to exemplify the values and
virtues they teach and the school organizes its material and
human resources for the highest possible development of a
child´s spirit.
Jagdish
Gandhi has come up with a number of new terms, concepts,
methods and innovations that are part of his unique
experiment with education. He has reorganized educational
structure and instructional content to facilitate the
highest possible focus on the spiritual aspects. Several of
his innovations have created a demonstration value and
raised expectations from education. Among others, these
concepts include:
-
The
concept of a meaningful education whose goal is to
inspire every child to become both good
and smart, a
gift of God to mankind, a pride of the human race, and a
light of the world. He considers man is a mine rich in
gems of inestimable value and the purpose of education
is to draw out these gems from within. He also defines
education as a continuous and
creative process.
-
Despite
the constraints of an old and archaic system of
education focused on material goals, a
school can become the lighthouse of society,
influencing the individual, the family and society at
large.
-
By
giving more importance to inner over outer aspects and
practical measures to support these, Mr Gandhi has
demonstrated that a child can
become the light of this world, serving the
Lord in unique and creative ways, with a sense of
purpose and motivation that comes from within.
-
His Four
Pillars of Education are
unique in that they define the outcomes from education
differently. Knowledge, wisdom, spiritual
perception and eloquent speech (one´s being
itself a testimony), are the most important outcomes
from his educational model.
-
Its four
building blocks of education help
define educational content: universal values
such as truthfulness, courtesy, prayerfulness and
kindness defined by one’s own culture and religion, global
understanding such as coexistence, respect and
reverence for all forms of life, excellence in all
things which is competition not with others but with
oneself, and service to others, living a life of
contribution, conscious of the needs of others and free
from self-indulgence.
At the
heart of his meaningful educational
model is the belief that education must address
all three realities of a child: material, human,
and divine. Current education is focused almost
entirely on the material aspects of life. A child’s divine
reality is largely not addressed. Human education is also
largely lacking, an education which prepares a person to
become a good member of a family and community. While all
three realities of a child must be addressed, Mr Gandhi
places the highest importance on
divine education – love of God and discovering
the inner realities of all things, looking with a searching
eye at God’s creation, marvelling at the wonders of the
universe, and exploring the inner depths and meaning of one’s
existence and purpose for life.
He explains
that man has three natures: innate,
inherited and acquired. In his meaningful
education model, Mr Gandhi points out that while we cannot
alter the innate nature, and in most instances, the
inherited nature of a person, education can help greatly
alter his acquired nature. His acquired nature is
moulded in the three schools of humanity: the home
where parents are the child’s primary source of
empowerment, the school where a child receives his
second source of empowerment, and society at large,
his third source of empowerment.
Formal
education has a profound role and responsibility in
developing the acquired nature of a person. Indeed, Mr
Gandhi promotes the idea that purpose of education cannot be
different from the purpose of life. Divinity must be
emphasized not only in the context of home and
church/religious institution, all
three schools of humanity must
promote and endorse these realities. The purpose of his
education is to kindle the fire within each child that is
potentially already latent in them, just like a mighty tree
within each seed. Education must recognize the fruitful tree
the young plant will become. It must prepare the environment
for his highest development. When the plant is young, it
needs supporting stick. In the same way, a child needs
guidance. Most important lessons a child must learn are the
lessons about their spiritual life. They provide the
propelling forces that allow the tree of human being to grow
into an upright and fruitful tree.
CMS
continually innovates itself. With focus on continuous
improvement and
openness to new ideas, CMS constantly introduces new
experiences and opportunities for its students. It is also
the only school in the world to have an entire department
dedicated to innovation. Mr Gandhi places strong emphasis on
process and research. The result is enormous creativity of
its students, staff and parents.
Mr Gandhi
also believes that music is an
essential aspect of
the development of the inner spirit of the child, which
increases creativity and inspires the soul. There are many
new songs and original compositions made by CMS students and
staff that are based on the school’s vision, and that help
deepen spirituality in children. Mr Gandhi’s students have
also won numerous awards for their accomplishments in music.
Mr Gandhi has himself written many songs that inspire and
touch the divinity within. One of his popular songs is:
"Apne kaam se nahi Prabhu ke kaam se jiyo our jab
tak jio Hari ke kaam se jiyo." (Live not for your
work but for God’s work and as long as you are alive, live
only for His work)
Mr Gandhi
believes that the field of
education is unexplored and its goal unattained.
A lack of experimentation in the field of education has
limited innovation to its margins. He argues that true
progress will come only when the goals to which education is
geared are completely revised – with spiritual development
at its centre. These new goals for education will free it
from its largely economic context. Through his revolutionary
new ideas, Mr Gandhi has revised greatly our expectations of
human potential and its outcome through education.
Through his
school, Mr Gandhi has tested the hypothesis that when a
school provides a meaningful education founded upon
spiritual principles and educates by it not only the
students but also the parents and society at large, it
becomes a lighthouse of society.
In this new role, a school presents enormous new
possibilities for the discovery of the transforming power of
divinity for the individual and society.
Mr Gandhi
believes that a school should lead
others in society. As parents are increasingly
unable to provide spiritual nourishment they once did, the
schools must take on a new responsibility. They must both
set and meet new standard of ethical conduct. By
demonstrating the effectiveness of his lighthouse model, Mr
Gandhi has not only created a valuable experiment, he has
helped millions to acknowledge the importance of a divine
education.
There are
many eyewitness accounts of these successes such as A
Bold Experiment in Teaching Values, Educational
Leadership, May 1996, USA, 35 Inspiring Stories from
Around the World, European Centre for Conflict
Prevention, 1999, the Netherlands, Conflict
Resolution: 50 Success Stories from Around the World,
Oxford University Press, U.K., September 2001.
The results
are visible. As some studies and observations
have shown, children coming out of CMS are significantly
more conscious of their true station, more God loving,
endowed with values and virtues, a sense of mission, and
also aim for excellence in all they undertake. Observers
have noted CMS is like an oasis in
the desert, a centre of respect and values that
stands out not only among the schools of Lucknow, but among
schools at large in India and the world. One evidence is the
endorsement of the parents who by choosing CMS as their
choice school for their children have made this the largest
school in the world, with its entry into the Guinness World
Records.
Mr Gandhi
has tested the hypothesis that given
a spiritual education, children will excel in their studies
also. For example, Mr Gandhi´s students have
demonstrated the best results in the country year after
year. In his model, emphasis is placed upon competition with
oneself, not others. By making excellence a value, CMS
students have shown an internal desire to excel, to stretch
the boundaries of their human and spiritual potential. By
making this spiritual education experiment successful in
academic sense also, Mr Gandhi has further given credence
and created a demonstration value in the need for a
spiritual education.
CMS
students aspire to perfection as Mr Gandhi teaches them that
God wants us to aim for perfection both within and without.
Mr Gandhi has given them also the unique concept of the TQP—Total
Quality Person, that is, a person who is balanced
in all aspects of life, inside and outside. It is no wonder
that the CMS students have won countless awards in every
subject, and have excelled in music, arts and the sciences,
at the same time as they are conscious and compassionate
individuals.
Mr Gandhi
places special emphasis on the learning
of the sciences, as a vehicle to discover the
inner mysteries and divine realities. When choice has to be
made between the sciences and the arts in the higher grades,
Mr Gandhi’s school offers only the science options while
other schools can take care of the others. He organizes
local, national and international science fairs and science
and cultural exchanges, astronomy exhibitions and fairs, so
that children learn to articulate and begin to understand
the more complex realties of life, discover the inner
meaning of faith and worship, and develop a love for God. He
sees a natural connection between science
and spirituality as two important and connected
vehicles for the discovery of the world and its inner
realities.
Mr Gandhi
has created a new culture and a new climate within his
school and around him. He has built
up demand for this type of education. Countless
schools not only in Lucknow, but also nationwide and
worldwide look up to Mr Gandhi’s school as a model worth
emulating. They take inspiration from his example and have
begun to implement his ideas in their schools. For example,
after a team of Icelandic educators visited CMS and attended
two international roundtables on the content of education
organized by CMS in 1998 and 2000, they started the
Education Society of Iceland (www.ims.is) based on
CMS model and several schools throughout Iceland are now
taking inspiration from CMS. CMS literature on spiritual
education has been translated and used in several countries
including Macau, China, Russia, Zimbabwe and others. A
recent enquiry was made by the Zambian Ambassador to the US
on how she could set up a non-profit educational society in
her country based on the CMS principles.
Mr Gandhi
has a proactive, forward-looking
agenda, at the centre of which is the
transformation of the individual. Schools must not only take
a leadership role, they must also be supported in these
goals by others. In his proactive stance, Mr Gandhi reaches
out to his parents and the members of the community in new
and unique ways. For example, CMS organizes yearly divine
education conferences and the decade 1991-2000
was declared as the Decade of
Divine Education. Another innovation, the
teacher-guardian program has also become a very
effective means to connect home and school. In this concept,
a guardian-teacher takes on the role of the parent surrogate
who follows a child for several years and is responsible for
all aspects of their development (material, human and
divine). The guardian teacher visits the home of the child
and coordinates with parents on these aspects. With the
active communication between parents and staff which is
ensured at all levels, and through conferences and events
for mothers and fathers, parent meetings, mothers’
quizzes, honouring of mothers and fathers and even grand
parents, the family is brought in into the process. He also
has materials designed specially for the parents, to inspire
and educate them to these goals.
Mr
Gandhi educates CMS teachers to a new understanding of their
role as motivators and exemplars, how their mindset, their
attitudes and their vision are critical in the education
process. He educates and re-educates his teachers with this
new mind-set. A new staff member is thoroughly oriented. The
critical mass of individuals
that believe in and support these same goals are the most
critical component for the vision to be realized.
Through
extreme focus and consistent emphasis together with a "yes,
it can be done" motto, Mr Gandhi is
creating a new and positive mind-set, which is necessary for
reform. He believes when teachers become exemplars and
believe in the spiritual goals wholeheartedly, change will
be real and permanent. The staff members participate in many
debates, quizzes, competitions, and attend regular seminars,
local, national and international events. These carefully
crafted events are organized with the view to motivate and
inspire the teaching staff to the school´s goals.
Mr
Gandhi´s efforts have extended from the child and the
school, to the entire society by a
conscious act of will on
part of Mr Gandhi who believes that both family and society
must be transformed in the process of educating the child.
As a result, his outreach processes have touched millions.
T.V. Network and local television channels carry 20-25
minute segments daily of his presentations, logical
arguments and articulate discourses on meaningful education.
One of the channels, that is the Aastha channel, is heard in
65 countries and the impact of their views on education is
enormous. The scope and depth of his vision and the
transformative power of Mr Gandhi’s presentations are
simply otherworldly. The impart of his discourses on T.V.
Network is given in the following pages.
Mr Gandhi’s
extreme resolve against his extreme difficulties along the
way, has made CMS, a non-profit organization, and the world’s
largest school recognized by the Guinness World Records.
There are currently over 30,000
children in the school,
which has also graduated tens of thousands of students over
the last 45 years. It is also the only school in the world
that organizes 18 (Guinness World Records mention at the
time of entry 15) international events for its students.
The
Guinness World Records also recognizes CMS as the first
and only school in the world to receive the UNESCO
Prize for Peace Education in the year 2002. In a press
release from UNESCO headquarters, it is written: "CMS
is not a school like any other. It is distinctive not only
for its size ... or the quality of its teaching. Its
students systematically score higher on exams than the
national average. More
than anything else it stands out because
of its philosophy".
Hard
Work and Promotion of Science
Many
legends have grown and developed regarding Mr Gandhi's
energy and dedication to his self-chosen mission. Ever since
the establishment of CMS, Mr Gandhi has been working 18-20
hours a day, and his office, which works round-the-clock,
has never closed for holidays even for a single day for over
more than forty years!
Under Mr
Gandhi's leadership and inspiration, CMS has emerged as a
forward looking school with special emphasis on practical
education of the basic sciences. CMS has been mainly
responsible for getting India an entry into the
international Physics, Chemistry and Biology Olympiads by
sending CMS teachers to participate as observers in these
Olympiads for two consecutive years, thereby earning the
country's right of participation in these International
Olympiads by Indian students. Now Indian national teams
after their selection by Government of India through a
nation wide competition have started participating in these
three International Science Olympiads. CMS is also the first
school in India to send its students to International
Robotic and Astronomy Olympiads held in foreign countries
where they won many medals for India. CMS hosted the 6th and
7th International Robotic Olympiads in Lucknow, India, in
the year 1997 and 1998.
Conferences
Attended AND COUNTRIES VISITED
A widely
travelled man, Mr Gandhi has visited a number of countries
including USA, UK, USSR, Switzerland, Sweden, Singapore,
Thailand, Norway, Mauritius, Malaysia, Lebanon, Japan,
Italy, Israel, Iran, Hong Kong, Holland, Germany, France,
Egypt, Denmark, Czechoslovakia, Myanmar, Belgium and
Afghanistan. Among the many international conferences he has
attended are the following: Third International Conference
on Higher Education, Lancaster University, UK; the Seventh
Triennial Conference of CISV at Leeds, England; the First
World Conference on Gifted Children, London; International
Teachers Conference, Nottingham University, UK;
International Teaching Conference at Hong Kong; Cultural
Conflict and Asian Community in UK at Leicester University;
International Teaching Conference at Paris; Youth For
Mankind Conference at Chicago, USA and International
Teaching Conference at Haifa, Israel. Mr Gandhi also
attended the Anthropological Congress at Chicago, USA and
was interviewed for an hour by American Broadcasting
Corporation (ABC) Radio in California on his multifarious
achievements and successes in the field of education.
Some
Recent Conferences Attended
* participated in the United Nations General Assembly hearings, UN Headquarters in New York in June 2005.
*
was invited by the United Nations to the Millennium Forum held
at UN headquarters at New York from 22nd to 26th May, 2000.
*
was invited by Peace Edirect and Keighley Foundation to tour UK
(17-24 October 2004) and speak to communities in pleaces that
have witnessed racial violence in recent years.
*
presented keynote address at 5th Convention on Students
Quality Control Circles (ICSQCC 2002) at Georgetown,
Kentucky, USA from June 11 to 13, 2002
*
was invited by the UNESCAP to address a U.N. Conference at
Bangkok, Thailand on 20th September 2002
*
was invited as Chief Guest in Mauritius at National
Convention on Quality Circles in Education held from
September 26-30, 2002
*
was invited by the Goi Peace Foundation of Japan to
address a Peace Symposium as Guest Speaker at Tokyo, Japan
on 18th November 2002
*
was invited to the International Convention on Quality
Control Circles at Taiwan, Taipei.
*
participated in International Conference of International
School-to-School Experience (ISSE) at San Francisco, USA
1996
AWARDS
AND HONOURS
Details of
the Awards and Honours received by Mr Gandhi and the CMS are
given in the following pages as also the positions he is
currently holding, and has held, in various organizations.
Positions holding and
has held
1. Founder-Manager,
City Montessori School, Lucknow
2. Chairman, World Council
for Total Quality and Excellence in Education
3. Vice President, World
Union, Pondicherry (2003)
4. Vice President, World
Constitution and Parliamentary Association, USA (2003)
5. President, Children’s
International Summer Village (CISV), U.P. Chapter, India
(since1992)
6. President, International
School-to-School Experience (ISSE), U.P. Chapter, India
(since1972)
7. Vice-President,
Intellectual Forum of India, U.P. Chapter, India (since
2001)
8. Vice-President, Quality
Circle Forum of India (2001)
9. Convener, International
Conferences of Chief Justices of the World (since 2001)
10. Chief Coordinator,
Indo-Pak Children’s Penfriends’ Club Aao Dosti Karein
(since 2002)
11. Convener,
Parent-Teacher Association, Lucknow (1982)
12. Member, Uttar Pradesh
Legislative Assembly (1969-1974)
13. Founder-Manager, Sarvodaya
Sewa Sansthan, Lucknow (1959-1974)
14. Founder-Manager, C.T.
Women’s College, Lucknow (established 1970)
15. Founder-Manager, C.T.
Nursery Teachers’ Training College, Lucknow
(established1970)
16. Founder-Manager, Adarsh
Shiksha Kendra (Adult Education Centre), Lucknow
(1959-1962)
17. Founder-Manager,
Pre-Primary Teachers’ Training College, Lucknow (1959)
18. President, Uttar
Pradesh Naujawan Sangh (U.P. Youth Movement) (1955-1959)
19. Editor, UTHO JAWANO (a
Weekly to motivate youth) (1960-1965)
20. Founder-General
Secretary, All India Children & Youth Festival
(1960-1973)
21. Organizer, Annual
Scouts & Guides Camps, Lucknow, U.P., India (1965-1973)
22. Assistant District
Scout Commissioner, Bharat Scouts and Guides, Lucknow
(1962-1965)
23. Convened an All India
Education Exhibition aimed at highlighting the importance of
spiritual education (1964)
24. Led an Anti-Dowry
Campaign aimed at mobilizing public opinion against social
ills (1959)
25. Convened the U.P.
Sarvodaya Conference at Allahabad University
(India) for mobilizing the student community in favour of
spiritualization of educational curriculum (1958)
26. President of the
Lucknow University Students’ Union, U.P., India (1958-59)
27. Founded Social Service
League at his school in Sikandra Rao, Aligarh, U.P., India
(1952)
28. Established Samaj
Sewa Sadan (Social Service Centre) at G. S. College,
Sikandra Rao, Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India (1954)
|
