It was tailor-made for children-Melur, Tamil Nadu

NIE, a nutritious supplement to regular diet

— FILE PHOTO 

Rewarding:Class VI students of S. S. V. Sala Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Melur, engaged in a reading session during the NIE programme. 

Source : The Hindu:S. Annamalai:Tuesday, May 18, 2010

It was what the mother had ordered for her children – a nutritious supplement to regular diet.

And it has paid off handsomely.

For the children, what was offered at these schools was a wholesome meal – a vibrant curriculum supplemented by an equally vibrant THE HINDU Newspaper in Education (NIE) programme.

Beneficiary schools

The programme, implemented in Madurai region since 2004-05 in classes seven, eight and nine, has 103 beneficiary schools spread over Madurai, Sivaganga, Virudhunagar, Tirunelveli and Tuticorin districts.

The modules offered are ‘Language Skills,' which enables the children to finetune two ‘R's – reading and writing – and also helps them in developing listening and conversation skills; ‘Me and Myself' in which they learn about behavioural skills and how to enhance their academic experience, they also get to read the newspaper, incidentally; ‘Science and Mathematics,' which introduces them to the universe surrounding us and also to scientific facts, besides making mathematics a likable subject, and ‘The Hindu Panorama,' where the young ones gain an awareness of consumer rights, health, road safety and civic issues.

The children, who passed the higher secondary examinations this year, have felt the impact of NIE in a better manner than their seniors as many of them have been exposed to the programme from seventh standard.

Some of the components of the programme, like dramatics, have induced creativity among children, says V. Gnanaguhan, correspondent, Guhan Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Madurai.

The way they are taught to read the newspaper (THE HINDU) puts them in an advantageous position, he adds.

The children keep abreast of what is happening around them through authentic presentations, a trait envied by elders.

The NIE programme has developed the analytical and questioning spirit of children in suburban Melur.

The ‘how' and ‘why' questions are more in classrooms, after the children were introduced to the programme, says R. Sudha, Principal, Sri Sundareswara Vidyasala Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Melur.

Their level of comprehension went up several notches and this enabled them to understand the questions in higher secondary examinations better and answer them properly, she adds.

Four years of association with THE HINDU NIE has been much rewarding for this school that has launched an environment-friendly programme of waste plastic collection in Melur town as an NIE project.