Bharat Uday Gurukul

The purpose:

The main aim of this project is to to establish a learning institution for children that will prepare them to become world citizens with high moral integrity and self-esteem through making the learning interesting, stress free, durable and useful for their economic self-reliance, realization of self and their relation with outer world for a peaceful co-existence.

The Mission:

The mission is to establish a class I-XII non-commercial residential school campus (Gurukul) that emphasizes on the character building in students and provides a safe, secure and dynamic, environment preparing students for a successful future. Gurukul will encourage its students to become responsible, knowledgeable humans, who are capable of interacting positively and productively with others. Gurukul aims to offer an education and learning/inquiring environment that balances academic, creative, social and personal growth and achieves critical thinking, informed decision making and purposeful action and inspiration for peaceful coexistence.

The Concept:

Bharat Uday Gurukul Project is a unique concept to learn through inquiry in a residential school campus and thus, emphasis will be to promote happier and stress-free childhood. Although, the Gurukul welcomes children from all over the world, our vision is to render world class education founded in humanitarian values along with main stream accredited academic curriculum especially for children from under-served communities and thus it is aimed to provide equal opportunities to economically deprived and underprivileged community children. Children will be allowed to evolve naturally in a peaceful natural environment, where they will be working close of nature, ecological biodiversity and on other hand, these children will be exposed to multicultural world through exchange of mentor-pupils from other schools across the globe. Gurukul will effectively use state-of-the-art IT tools to enhance teaching and learning. Regular interactive lectures and games together with interactive social group discussions among children will be some of the key learning methods to develop logically thinking and adopt rational approach in life. Moral and inner development in children will be pursued through their personal interactions with inspiring personalities from various walks of life as well as through audio-visuals, websinars, workshops and visits to wonders of nature. Story-telling will be another key method for learning any subject. Further, pupils will be encouraged and stimulated to learn to love peace through inner realization. Although inner realization is a life long journey, however, in the Gurukul, children in their early age will be exposed to experiences of kindness and sharing through cooperative games and community building social work activities. In one hand, children will not be assessed for their learning through mug-&-puke styled tests and examinations, while on the other hand, mentors will constantly be interacting with pupils in learning session to ensure that they are learning the theoretical and practical aspect of the subject. Our aspiration is that the years which a pupil will spend in Gurukul must leave behind in him a fragrance and delight. It is aimed to achieve this through building an ambiance of co-existence for pupils and mentors that will be free of competition, authority, and where teaching and learning is a simultaneous process in the present, where the educator and the educated will both be participating in the act of learning. The highest priority of Gurukul will be to foster pupils interest in any area of knowledge. Although, outwardly Gurukul’s organizational structure will be free from hierarchical system, e.g. no designation of individuals in the system – teachers, principles and managers and workers will be equal without any special treatment on the basis of their duties, nonetheless, implicitly, their roles, responsibilities and duties will be different and thus their power to make various decisions will be different. We shall aspire to teach our children that all people are equal although they are different and do different work. Inculcating these values in children will be equal priority of the Gurukul mentors to produce world citizens with high moral integrity and self-esteem.

Philosophy and Practices

Philosophy 1

Gurukul must respect all members of the school community and encourage them to be communicators, caring, inquirers, thinkers, capable of being open-minded, principled, reflective, well balanced, creative, innovative, selfless and pragmatic idealist.

Practices:

Fulfil the requirements of the main stream accredited education Curricula.
Identify and accommodate different learning styles and needs. Key focus will be on inquiry based learning.

Philosophy 2

Gurukul will encourage its school community to take appropriate risks and challenges and to reinforce that learning comes from both successes and mistakes.

Practices:

Invite opinions, suggestions and questions from the whole gurukul community.
Empower students to take action that will enhance their own and others’ lives.
Serve as role models, creative, thinkers, innovative, sacrifice, selflessness

Philosophy 3

Gurukul would foster the understanding of the individual along with cultural and diversity to enhance the idea of a global community (vasudhaiv kutumbkam).

Practices:

Introduce students to facts, ideas, concepts and creative expressions that have influenced the world.
Provide learning experiences that maximize on the unique identity of Gurukul.

Philosophy 4

Gurukul would offer balanced and coherent approach to curriculum, instruction and assessment.

Practices:

Encourage connections across disciplines.
Help students learn how to learn individually and in groups.
Establish student academic potential and a means to monitor and measure growth.
Ensure the integration of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in the teaching and learning process.

Philosophy 5

Gurukul would foster learning as a life long process, preparing students for a world beyond the school environment.

Practices:

Engage students in reflective inquiry and critical analysis.
Encourage students to make use of the advancements in ICT while maintaining an awareness of the responsibilities that accompany the use of this medium.

Philosophy 6

Gurukul creates a community of learners/enquirers, that includes mentors, residents and students.

Practices:

Be a centre of learning/enquiring for students, teachers and residents.
Provide guidance and support for the whole Gurukul community.
Reflect on and develop professional practice and serve as a role model.
Utilize the advancement in ICT to develop communication within the global like-minded people, institutions and communities.

Philosophy 7

Gurukul will promotes an active concern for the environment, healthy living and an awareness of global issues.

Practices:

Foster a sustainable environment both locally and globally.
Involve students and mentors and residents into organic farming and sustainability projects in and outside the Gurukul.
Provide learning experiences that ensure the promotion of environmental and global awareness in addition to healthy living.
Maintain a dialogue with other educational providers within and outside India.
Serve as a positive role model.

The Location:

The Gurukul campus is located in very remote rural and natural settings in the ravines of Betawa river in district Hamirpur (U.P.), India. The location is very peaceful and secure. It is about 500 km from New Delhi – the capital city of India. https://www.google.se/maps/@25.8268496,79.8988246,18z