AmritaAlumni Association
The Amrita School of Education has an alumni association, Amrita Vidyarthi Smarana Sindhu. Its members meet at the Annual Day celebrations where they provide feedback about the curriculum, suggest ways to improve the functioning of the college and network with each other and staff. The alumni association’s contribution to the school and to society is expected to increase as the number of ASE graduates increases.
Collaborations
The Amrita School of Education (ASE) is closely linked with ASAS, the University of Mysore, Karnataka State Open University and the Regional Institute of Education (RIE) Mysore. These inter-university linkages provide new perspectives in such diverse areas as curriculum development, practice teaching, research, staff professional growth and student placement.
ASE offers is expertise and facilities to other institutions in the area and to the community-at-large for such events as meditation programs, orientation programs and other workshops. Experienced faculty from local schools give model-lessons to students preparing for practice teaching, and linkages with these schools facilitate obtaining internships for ASE student teachers.
Student Development
Amrita School of Education (ASE) supports its student teachers in numerous tangible and non-tangible ways. The commitment of its faculty to the growth of its student teachers and through them, of future generations, is difficult to express and impossible to quantify. They share a vision that reflects in all that they do and affects all aspects of the ASE experience.
On a practical level, entering student teachers are given diagnostic tests to check their entry-level competence and to identify any areas of difficulty. Course content is enriched based on the results obtained. Various methods are adopted for content enrichment, including quizzes, seminars, discussions and peer tutoring. At times, the teacher educators teach the content directly.
All students participate in special courses in English, Communication Skills and Personality Development, which are offered for the first three months of each academic year.
Students teachers are encouraged to discuss the any aspects of their experience with teacher educators. Continuous evaluation in both academic and extra-curricular activities highlight student teachers’ strengths and weaknesses. Immediate feedback allows for quick student teacher and teacher educator response to needs discovered. Individual guidance and counseling is provided to students who need it, even if meetings must be held after school hours.
For student teachers from rural backgrounds and those who have studied Kannada at the degree level, education in Kannada can be arranged. Alternative arrangements will also be made for student teachers who are physically challenged. Gender-appropriate medical care is provided for student teachers when they need it.
ASE has introduced many innovations in teaching/learning/evaluation to support student growth. In addition to those mentioned above, the use of multimedia in all aspects of curriculum presentation, testing and remediation keeps students abreast of global trends and increases student interest in classroom activities. For example, micro-teaching lessons are recorded so that student teachers get immediate feedback by observing themselves on tape, more than could be communicated by simple verbal evaluation. The micro-teaching itself, when students present classes to peers and teacher educators prior to practice teaching in actual secondary schools, is a powerful tool to enhance student teachers’ teaching abilities and increase their comfort in teaching.
Graduating student teachers seeking job placement are aided by the interpersonal connections of the Dean and other faculty members and the reputation of the school. In the last three years, the average placement is over 90%. A formal placement center is under development.
ASE supports its student teacher growth through supporting its teacher educator growth. Staff members are encouraged to participate in orientation and refresher courses organized by the UGC Academic Staff College at University of Mysore, as well as other workshops, conferences and seminars. ASE also encourages staff to pursue Ph.D. in their technical subjects. The school willingly adjusts its timetable to facilitate staff’s professional growth.
Only through relaxed study can knowledge be retained.