To me personally, conducting Robotics Seminars in regions like
Villupuram, Pudukottai etc have been a terrific learning experience. It
is a feast to watch the students and teachers with so much passion to
learn something new and interesting. During my interaction with the
heads of schools and students in these regions, I have found that in
these places, there is a constant urge to learn and understand new
things. In Metros, they are all caught in the whirl wind of having
access to too much already, so things are different here. The students
in the upcountry regions have a very simple upbringing and are very
plain. The students in Metros are also keen but there is something about
the students in small regions that is totally missing in students in
the metro. I guess it is simplicity. I have always believed that it is
easier to learn something when you approach the subject with a plain
mind without having any preconceived notions or conclusions about it.
How can I question if I have already concluded the answer in my head?
This can boost my ego but can never lead me to learn. Most students in
Metro think they already know everything, so there is always this
barrier which prevents them from learning more. This can be broken
ofcourse and that is my job as I present the seminar to them, but it is a
lot easier on either side if the students come with an open mind
without drawing conclusions in their tiny heads. Our seminars are always
very interactive, and I always allow the students to do most of the
talking and make them think by throwing questions at them and asking
them to come up with their answers to explore and learn. I am only
pitching in to summarise and present facts now and then and in the
process giving them information that they may now know. So learning is
happening on its own and is not thrust on them. I tell them upfront that
I am there to learn as much as they have come to learn from me and I
really mean it. Every seminar to me is a great experience. Students from
different backgrounds, regions, cultures, different mind sets, so much
of an opportunity to learn. It is a great privilege too, because I am
addressing young minds and can actually influence them so It is a huge
responsibility indeed. So I am with them through the seminar listening
to them as much as they are listening to me. This helps me to build a
rapport with them instantly and by the time the seminar is over, we are
in a relationship that is so wonderful and mutual that is tough to
express in words. I find myself falling in love with every child in the
seminar hall. So much of energy and thirst for knowledge, so much to
learn from them. The teachers and the correspondents, most of them
highly qualified but yet so humble and simple. They are full of respect
and regard for others and with all this it is needless to mention that
they form great hosts.
It is critical to unlearn as we grow to be able to re-learn certain most
important aspects that will help us in our growth and well-being. This
is a lesson that people in urban areas must practice for well-being.
Otherwise, it hurts to see lack of basic values that are essential in
youngsters in the city which have fortunately not yet influenced the
rural areas that much as I can see.
As far as UniRobo Labs is concerned, our endeavour is to ensure that we
are able to reach out to as many students as possible across regions
and introduce them to Robotics to prepare them for what may be
inevitable in days to come. To me personally, I am just enjoying this
journey of unlearning and re-learning so much from these experiences and
to connect with so many young minds is an overwhelming experience
indeed. :)
