ಐದನೇ ಆವೃತ್ತಿ, ಸಂಚಿಕೆ ೨ : ಮೂಢನಂಬಿಕೆಗಳ ವಿರುದ್ಧ ವಿಜ್ಞಾನ ಶಿಕ್ಷಕಿಯ ಹೋರಾಟ (Season 5, Episode 2 : A Science Teacher's War Against Superstitions)

Please welcome Ms. Pooja Devi to this episode of ‘Pratibimba’. 

Ms. Pooja Devi is a  teacher at N. R. Pura, Chikkamagalur District. She has been teaching Science for the past two and half years. She has a total of 17 years of experience in teaching. She has been the winner of many State and National Awards for her excellence in teaching. She even has her own YouTube channel and blog spot for teachers. 

Pooja Devi is also inspired by her primary school teachers. She feels Science is as interesting as it can be difficult. She is convinced that, in order to make science learning effective, teachers have to make the students curious and ask 'Why? and How?' 

She advocates learning by observation of natural phenomena. She emphasizes the importance of science in our daily life. Her teachers were helpful in getting rid of her superstitions through science. Hence she draws the attention of students toward everything that affects life on earth. 

She then goes on to quote a very interesting incident. Students had to use a toilet located next to a crematorium adjacent to the school. They were found falling or getting injured particularly on a new moon day or on a full moon day. Superstition drove the children away from the school. After a bit of digging around, Pooja Devi found out that students would run back to school after using the toilet on those days. It was all due to the fear they had already built up in their minds, after hearing random stories. And that fear, coupled with haste, led to them tripping and falling, and injuring themselves. She then helped them get over their superstition by explaining her observations to them. 

Poojadevi narrates another story of a boy who would dance like a snake and declare that the snake god had possessed him. He would light a piece of camphor in his mouth and close his mouth and show the flame going out. On closer observation, Pooja revealed that he was doing all this to command the respect of his classmates, who would otherwise make fun of his poverty. 

She has arranged many mock sessions to demonstrate that many people fool others for a reason and give it the colour of religious belief. This has also led her to teach ‘knowledge is wealth’. 

Pooja Devi has had to take the parents into confidence to achieve a few desired results. The monthly magazine ‘Ayush’ is one such result. Students are thrilled to see themselves on her YouTube channel – talking about what they did to get rid of their superstition. She created a ‘Science Room’ in some students’ homes. All households tend to have many chemicals – unknowingly. She used this fact to encourage students to conduct their own experiments at home so that they understood the concept of an acid and base by taking extracts of different flowers. 

Pooja aims to build a scientific outlook among children. That would be the biggest reward to her from her students.  

Hope you enjoyed listening to this recording by Akshara Foundation. If you have an interesting story, please share your story with 98450 79590.